small amp question

leftandleaving · Post by **leftandleaving** » Tue Dec 14, 2004 5:51 pm

I'm getting a moog for xmas and I know zilch about synths. Do I need to buy a keyboard amp also? can i plug it through a guitar amp?

MC · Post by MC » Tue Dec 14, 2004 6:58 pm

If you try to pump Moog bass sounds through a guitar amp it isn't likely to be pretty. Guitar amps are not designed for bass, in fact it can prematurely burn out your output stage whether tube or solid state.

If you're just doing lead sounds then a guitar amp will suffice.

tunedLow · Post by **tunedLow** » Tue Dec 14, 2004 8:20 pm

MC's right. I run mine through some monitors that someone built. This was a lucky find. I sometimes run leads through a Marshal amp for distortion. However, note that unless your amp is a twin, you'll miss out on the stereo effects that the 2 filters can give you.

I looked around online a good bit to decide how to power my MMV, and a strong monitor seemed to be the best bet. So far so good. Sometimes I run sounds through it that I think may be straining the tweaters, so be careful anyway you go. Be careful with your ears as well, since you'll be running extreme lows and highs into them!

thewaag · Post by **thewaag** » Tue Dec 14, 2004 8:37 pm

I am in complete agreement with my esteemed colleagues.

Years ago, when I first got my Arp 2600 and Odyssey (back when they were still making them) I ran my synths through my nice new stereo system. The result was a nice new pair of blown out speakers that rattle any time there is low bass or high highs. I still have those speakers today; they are in my office work area. I still hear that rumble to remind me of the good old days of my youth.

Years later, when I went digital I used to run my new keyboard through an old guitar amp. I never blew it out, but one day I noticed how much better my synth sounded when I listened through headphones, rather than through the speaker. Back to the music shop to get a pair of keyboard monitor speakers. MUCH BETTER!!

I don't think that you said whether you were needing the speakers for home studio or for playing in a club, etc. Make sure that you get the correct speakers for your use. You don't have to pay an arm and a leg, particularly if you are not playing with a band, but don't scrimp either. Get good quality, reasonably priced speakers. You will be glad that you did, and your new Moog will sound much better.

endocrine · Post by **endocrine** » Wed Dec 15, 2004 9:02 pm

What about a bass amp? I have this old yamaha from the 60s and versitile as hell for clean sounds. It runs great bass. 15" speaker, solid state output. Do you think that would work?

thewaag · Post by **thewaag** » Wed Dec 15, 2004 9:35 pm

First of all a disclaimer:

I AM NOT AN EXPERT AND MY OPINION IS WORTH WHAT YOU PAY FOR IT!!

Having said that, a bass amp would probably be less prone to blowing out on the lows that a synthesizer can make, but I still think that a synth can make much more complex low tones than a bass guitar, and thus you still could hurt your speakers with certain bass sounds.

I would think that a bass amp would be muddy on the high frequency tones. One way to find out is to listen to the tones from your amp, and then compare them to the same sounds played through a good set of headphones. If the synth sounds better on the headphones, then you know that you are not getting the sounds your synth deserves out of your bass amp. As I said in my earlier post, this was a real eye-opener (ear-opener) for me.

If you want to use the amp for home use I doubt that you would hurt it, but if you are trying to be heard over a band by cranking up the volume, you may hurt it.

Any opinions from you EE types out there?

Don · Post by **Don** » Thu Dec 16, 2004 12:05 pm

The problem is not with the frequencies or even with the complexity, but with the duration. A bass guitar can produce a wide range of frequencies and its amp needs to be able to reproduce them. But a synth can produce the same frequencies, combined with a much wider range (and amplitude) of overtones, and keep that pitch going for seconds, minutes, or longer.

If you keep the input amplitude down, and if you keep the amp's volume down, there should be no problem. In fact, if you follow that rule, you shouldn't have a problem with any amp: synth output at 50% or less, amp channel volume at 50% or less, amp master volume at 50% or less. Can those figures be adjusted? Of course. But you'll be safe that way.

However, the characteristics of a synth are far different from a bass or guitar. The frequency range of a deep bass note and its overtones are far wider than either instrument, and amps for those instruments are designed with those stringed instruments in mind, not a synth. So you could use even a tiny Pig Nose amp (if it has a line in or if you have an adapter), but the quality of the sound wouldn't be too good.

To the best of my knowledge, the ONLY type of amplification system designed specifically for reproducing the full range of all instruments (which is what a synth can produce) is a P.A. And if you like the full, rich, bass tones of a Moog synth, the problem with most inexpensive P.A.s is that they don't adequately reproduce those lows.

So my suggestion to you is get a cheap P.A. and add to it a subwoofer. Since I believe you mentioned that this is for home use, you could use a sub designed for home stereos.

endocrine · Post by **endocrine** » Fri Dec 24, 2004 10:54 pm

If I used the amp for a Roland Juno 106 and only had to compete with two other synths and a drum machine, this would be fine right? What I'm thinking is that would be good for writing/practicing purposes and then when live I could run it through the house P.A. Would I lose tone using the house P.A. What if I used the house P.A. and my bass amp pointed at the audience for the lows?

Don · Post by **Don** » Sat Dec 25, 2004 12:47 pm

That will depend upon the house P.A. I played at some venues where the house P.A. sounds better than any single amp for synth reproduction. I've also played at some venues where the house P.A. could barely do the vocals.

If you're going to depend upon a house P.A. you take your chances.

swirley Jr · Post by **swirley Jr** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 3:19 pm

i run my voyager through eq, a compressor, a yamaha power amp and then two ampeg bass cabinets. works great for me, and neither of the extreme ends get cut off.