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Hello all,
At gigs I switch between mandolin, dobro and acoustic guitar. My bandmates suggested I might buy a kind of mixer - sounds like a good idea. I looked up the thread about the Radial Tonebone, but perhaps there are better options now, such as the ART Split Mix 4 or the Rolls MX42. 'Better' as they are passive and therefore do not influence the sound.
My amp is a Fishman Loudbox Artist; sometimes I use the Fishman PRO EQ and then to the PA.
I would appreciate your suggestions.
Michael
I use a Mackie Mix 8. I bought it about a year ago, open box on Amazon for $59.
Attachment 174696
Wow, heck of a deal there.Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg P. Stone
I use a small Behringer mixer, can't remember the model but its a 4-channel with a couple extra aux channels. Behringer gear doesn't get much love here but its worked great for me for almost 10 years and the price was right.
It’s going to depend on the impedance of your instrument pickups (usually high) and that of whichever mixer you decide upon (often/usually low) assuming you aren’t going to need impedance matching devices between the instruments and mixer.
Thanks for your suggestions so far. Ray, my mandolin has a K&K pickup, dobro and guitar have MiSi pickups. They all function very well with the Fishman amp and PRO EQ.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray(T)
You don't need a mixer to do this. I use a Morley ABC pedal to switch instruments. The output goes to my RedEye with a tuner/mute pedal in the effects loop, you need to mute when swapping instruments on the Morley. Works great for me, but a mixer would give the option to set up separate EQ and effects for each instrument.
The mandolin has a K&K so that needs to go directly to a preamp, the dobro and guitar with the MISI have built in preamps so can go direct to the board. One of the 4 channel boards mentioned would work well as the guitar and dobro can go direct to that, the mandolin to a preamp then the 4 channel.
Most mixers have low impedance inputs (usually XLR for mics and jack sockets for line levels - e.g. keyboards) Some can accommodate electric guitars but even those aren’t ideal for acoustic pickups.
I use a twin K&K on my GBOM and that goes either straight into an acoustic amp with high impedance inputs or via a preamp (usually a Baggs PADI) into a mixing desk. I’m not familiar with the MiSi pickups but I fitted one of their preamps to an acoustic/electric bass with a Baggs under-saddle piezo. That goes into my Acoustic Image bass amp which is basically an acoustic amp. If your MiSi pickups have the same preamps they may well work into a mixing desk but you’d be advised to try it first.
A really good bet, if you can find one is an Award Session or Morley MM4 which is 4 acoustic ins to pre amp to a mono out. Pre amp from their old Gordon Giltrap acoustic pre amp. Works perfectly but might be an EBay job. I need mine.
I agree with the abc switch, i only do ab and have had no issues , with foot pedals or impedance. I go into a fx loop in a fishman
I play fiddle and 2 or 3 mandolins when I gig. I use a Baggs Venue. It allows you to use one cord for all instruments in that when you hit the tuner foot switch, it cuts the signal off so you can unplug and re plug in without any noise. They aren't cheap, but I've had mine for years and it keeps on working. It has EQ, tuner, and a adjustable signal boost activated by a footswitch for leads. If it conked out today, I would buy a new one.
+1 on the Baggs Venue, if that solution can work for you. An ABC switch into the Venue might be a help there. While you can't save settings between instruments, it is certainly a lot less expensive than going with a digital mixer.
The piezo in my Rigel really needs a strong offboard preamp. Even the awesome preamp on my older Loudbox PRO-LBX-400 doesn't quite get it. I find the Venue just really puts the signal where it needs to be.
That's true beyond the Rigel. The Baggs (and a comment in a Cafe thread) helped me tame the incredible body and pick noise the Radius M pickup captures. And promise not to tell...even my electrics love it. I've put mine in front of the Fishman, Laney Cub 10, and Peavey Classic 30; none of them complained and all of them seemed to enjoy the experience.
The eq, vol, gain, and boost are all tweakable; you can't help but find your preferred tone. The tuner is meh, but so what. Put a Polytune mini in the fx loop, or use the mute and your clip on of choice.
I like the Idea of the Morely ABC switch, but a small 4 to 8 channel mixer like Behringer is probably what I would do.