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Connecting 2 instruments (e.g. vocal & guitar) to a loop pedal...?

  • 10-08-2008 10:14am
    #1
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭


    Hello all,

    I have an akai headrush 2 and am wondering about the best way of connecting 2 instruments to it. Would one of the A/B switces, such as a Morley one, work? I'd have to get a connector to connect a mike lead to it (the A/B pedal). Would it then be ok, to just run everything from the "out" jack on the akai to the PA. I've not had a chance to try it, as I don't own a PA, and can't try it at a gig, in case it goes wrong!!


Comments

  • #2
    Paligulus
    Closed Accounts Posts: 364 ✭✭Paligulus


    BarryCreed wrote: »
    Hello all,

    I have an akai headrush 2 and am wondering about the best way of connecting 2 instruments to it. Would one of the A/B switces, such as a Morley one, work? I'd have to get a connector to connect a mike lead to it (the A/B pedal). Would it then be ok, to just run everything from the "out" jack on the akai to the PA. I've not had a chance to try it, as I don't own a PA, and can't try it at a gig, in case it goes wrong!!


    I had a similar problem a while back and bough the following:
    http://www.thomann.de/ie/behringer_micromix_mx400.htm

    This did the job for me (I also send the output of my looper to a PA) Only 24euro and you can connect up to 4 instruments. As you said, you'll need a connector if you want to put a mike through but you'll you can order one of them on thomann when your getting the Micromix.


  • #3
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭BarryCreed


    I have a morley A/B switch, so I think that should do the same job as the behringer. Mate of mine has one of those behringers, so I'll suss it out...


  • #4
    Eoin Madsen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,117 ✭✭✭Eoin Madsen


    Does the akai have balanced inputs or outputs?

    A mic output is completely different to an instrument output. You could use an adaptor to unbalance the mic output and change it from an xlr to a jack, but the signal will suck, basically - especially after it travels down 30 metres of multicore. If you can rebalance it, you'll at least cut your losses, but the impedence mismatch will already have skewed the frequency response of the mic. If you're going to do it at a gig, bring a second mic specifically for it.


  • #5
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭BarryCreed


    I'm kinds lost there Eoin, but I think I get what you're saying. I saw the band TV on the Radio do that, and he had a separate mic for sampling.
    The akai does have output options, which seem to be good when using the delays, but I have only concentrated on the loop function for now, so I'm not 100% sure of its capabilities regarding output quality/signal/volume etc...


  • #6
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭BarryCreed


    I know KT tunstall does it, though I don't want to sound anything like her...


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  • #7
    Eoin Madsen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,117 ✭✭✭Eoin Madsen


    BarryCreed wrote: »
    I'm kinds lost there Eoin, but I think I get what you're saying. I saw the band TV on the Radio do that, and he had a separate mic for sampling.
    The akai does have output options, which seem to be good when using the delays, but I have only concentrated on the loop function for now, so I'm not 100% sure of its capabilities regarding output quality/signal/volume etc...

    In a nutshell: mics have to be plugged into mic preamps. If you plug it into something else and/or defeat the balanced XLR connection with some kind of adaptor, it will not operate correctly.

    Just looking at a pic of an Akai E2 - it does not contain a mic preamp and is not designed to work on a mic or even line level signal. It's a guitar pedal. To send it's output direct to a PA you would also have to use a DI box.

    I'm not saying that what you want to do won't work at all, it's just not the best way to do it. You can get loopers etc that work with mic signals, but the one you have has not been designed for this purpose. That's not to say that you won't get any sound at all out of it if you set up up as you've suggested - you will. It's just not a good way to do it. Expect reluctance from any sound engineer you encounter. ;)


  • #8
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭BarryCreed


    I would have thought the akai output could go straight to the PA. I know a di box will always help, but in theory it could go straight to the PA right?
    Yeah, I know the mic into it is not ideal at all, but I'm trying to rule out what would work and what wouldn't.

    So , if someone just wanted to loop a vocal, what pedal could they use...??


  • #9
    Kenny_D
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,204 ✭✭✭Kenny_D


    You can use the Headrush for it. I do anyway. My acoustic amp has an XLR input and voice channel so I have both my guitar in channel one of my amp and my mic into channel two. I then run a cable from the Line Out output to the input of the akai. Then another cable from the output of the akai in the Line In input of the amp. That way anything recorded from either guitar or mic goes into the looper and anything that is looped is sent back in through the Line In on the amp. You can do the same thing with a mixer


  • #10
    BarryCreed
    Closed Accounts Posts: 701 ✭✭✭BarryCreed


    GStormcrow wrote: »
    You can use the Headrush for it. I do anyway. My acoustic amp has an XLR input and voice channel so I have both my guitar in channel one of my amp and my mic into channel two. I then run a cable from the Line Out output to the input of the akai. Then another cable from the output of the akai in the Line In input of the amp. That way anything recorded from either guitar or mic goes into the looper and anything that is looped is sent back in through the Line In on the amp. You can do the same thing with a mixer

    so if I were using a PA, it would just be a case of sending the output of the Akai to the mixing desk.


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