Re: Help with live sound, acoustic guitar

[ScotFraser]

<< The amplified acoustic is pretty good, but there is one frequency
range that troubles me. The B string, fretted to a C and on up to
about a G (1st through 8th fret), the result sounds more like an
electic guitar, than an acoustic. >>

That's a huge improvement over other pickup systems, then. Generally the entire
range of the instrument sounds like a bad electric, so you're way ahead of the
game already.


Scott Fraser

[Andy Cullen]

Dear Doug

we tend to agree with Lorin David's suggestion that the issue here may
be caused by feedback and yes, a poorly designed speaker / enclosure
can indeed result in all sorts of acoustic problems. However, we feel
that the remark concerning the quality of our product may be
unjustified. As the owner of the unit, you are in the best position to
convince yourself of its "quality" - in terms of audio performance, in
terms of features and in terms of durability.

With the ACX1000 we would suggest trying the following tests to get a
little closer to what's actually causing the problem.

Do either of the "clip" LEDs or the "limiter" LED come on when the
problem occurs ? If yes - reduce the volume on the guitar or the input
gain on the amp. Does the problem persist even at low level ?

At low input gain and moderate sound level, with the loudspeakers
facing away from the body of the instrument ....

- deactivate the effects module
- set all EQ controls to 5, if you are using the mic channel reduce
the exciter to "0"
- set "feedback 2" fully clockwise and "feedback 1" fully anti -
clockwise
- if you are using both channels - try switching one or other of the
"phase" switches (channel 1 input & pre master-volume mix)
- experiment with different settings of the feedback controls

Do you get any result ?

- If you have access to a CD player - select an appropriate recording
and use the tape in connectors at the back of the unit to play the
recording (disconnect your guitar for this). In this configuration you
will not induce feedback, so you can increase the master level to hear
if it is the cabinet which is causing the problem.

Whatever happens - we'd love to hear from you with your findings.

Our R&D has taken care to design the ACX1000 in such a way that it
delivers the clarity and power on stage where you need it, and the
cabinet itself plays a significant role in getting the right
performance from the 'speakers. We have chosen to use a large volume
fully-closed cabinet combined with two 8-inch full-range speakers
which were custom-designed for this specific model, augmented in the
very highest frequencies by a piezo driver. We found this to be the
optimum configuration. The result is a clear, well-balanced response,
without "boominess" or dullness which would detract from your
performance.

We really don't think that the ACX1000 itself is the root of the
problem - but if you do feel that the unit is not performing to the
expected standard, or even if you suspect a technical defect - then
please get stay in contact with us until we will find a solution
together.

Best regards

Andy Cullen
Customer Support Administrator
BEHRINGER Spezielle Studiotechnik GmbH




(Doug) wrote in message >...
> I have a Taylor electic acoustic with their new expression system. I
> am playing it in a small venue with a 120 watt Behringer acoustic amp.
> The amplified acoustic is pretty good, but there is one frequency
> range that troubles me. The B string, fretted to a C and on up to
> about a G (1st through 8th fret), the result sounds more like an
> electic guitar, than an acoustic. Also, when I turn the amp way up,
> these are the frequencies that start to oscillate. The E string sounds
> ok, as do all the lower strings. I'm not getting that "acoustic"
> sound out of my Taylor on these notes. It is missing the initial
> attack and has too much sustain, and the sustain sounds like it's
> dominated by one frequency instead of the complex harmonics of an
> acoustic. It has a "jazz" sound, on these few notes.
>
> Now Taylor makes some sort of a box to plug into before your amp or
> PA. Also, I could get a small mixer or equalizer or ???. Taylor says
> they idealized the system to play into a PA (Old man Taylor plays into
> a PA at his church every Sunday). Should I just get a PA (actually a
> lot of the clubs I play at have a PA, in which case I use it). If so
> which one (the new Bose?).
>
> At any rate, I'm trying to get my Behringer acoustic amp to sound
> better while playing my Taylor.
>
> Wonderful guitar, by the way. And yes, I know it sounds better
> "miced", but I can't hold it and play into a stage mic. Inhibits my
> playing. Whole reason for aoustic/electric.

[Mondoslug1]

Mike wrote:

>In article >
writes:
>
>> Is there such a thing as a "decompressor"?
>
>Yes, it's called an expander. But that's not what you need.
>
>> How about a "notch" decompressor?
>
>How about a notch filter? This is fairly common in an amplified
>acoustic guitar setup to reduce the gain at resonant frequencies so
>that the tendency to feed back at thost frequencies is reduced.
>
>> Actually, the guitar sounds pretty good. Building pickups inside an
>> acoustic guitar that sound natural, is an unsolved problem. The Taylor
>> system is certainly better than the Martin Fishman Blend system I
>> demoed.
>
>A year or so back, Taylor introduced a new guitar pickup and preamp
>system that was (at least partially) designed by Rupert Neve, a highly
>respected designer of audio equipment. I tried one at a NAMM show and
>no matter how I turned the knobs, I couldn't get it to sound the
>slightest bit like an acoustic guitar. But it didn't feed back.
>
>Amplified acoustic guitar is something different than an acoustic
>guitar that's loud enough for a large audience to hear. It's a fact of
>life.

Well said.


Generally the most "acoustic" sounding amplified acoustic
>guitars use a combination of a pickup and a small microphone inside
>the body, blended to get a natrual tone (mostly from the microphone)
>and some extra clarity for percussive rhythmic playing (mostly from
>the pickup).
>
>
>
>--
>I'm really Mike Rivers )
>However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
>lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
>you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
>and reach me here: double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo
>
>
>
>
>
>