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Playing out LIVE - tips?

Hi good people! So happy to have joined!

I am having Hambone down in Texas build me a 3 string CBG with a P90 Pickup - To play this at live shows, can I go Direct to the PA? Do I need a DI Box? A Line 6 Pod?

I need advice - I do NOT want to drag an extra amp along for the 2-3 times I will feature the cbg during the show.

THANK YOU!

Heath

www.thebluesprofessors.com

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Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on March 10, 2017 at 5:10am

Here lies a huge misunderstanding about electric guitar tone. No electric guitar pickup ever made produces a "distorted" sound - it is only the combination of a guitar pickup plugged into an amp plus a loudspeaker that produces the familiar distorted overdriven sound. It is the amp that is "clipping" producing that "dirty" sound, NOT the pickup alone.

Plug that P90 equipped guitar direct into the PA and I predict it will sound as smooth and mellow as anything - I 'd lay even money you may even think it sounds bland and flat.

You are trying to alter a sound that you are only anticipating and are only experiencing in your head....stop thinking too much and running round in mental circles and just like Ron suggests, do a simple practical test when it arrives. And after all, how much grief will it be to take an amp to the gig?

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on March 10, 2017 at 5:32am

It's the excitement of the new, John. And some admitted inexperience (else, why ask for advice?)...;-)

You'll be fine, Heath.

Just follow the 567 English-Chinese-English steps in the accompanying setup manual ("Accept femininity for in-plugging to gloriously achieve best amplified sounds."), have one too many Boone's Farm strawberry spritzers pre-gig, and pick a fight with your guitar partner's girlfriend for wanting y'all to wear matching crotcheted vests she made herself.

After that, dialing in sound for a two-man band to be politely ignored by winebibbing hipsters will be a breeze. ;-)

And don't forget to video the gig and post it here. We wanna watch:-).

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Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on March 8, 2017 at 6:47am

You do not need a DI box, you don't need anything other than a guitar lead. Plug it direct into the PA and you'll get a smooth clean sound. If you want to warm or dirty it up a bit, put it through an overdrive pedal. I've run hundreds of open mic sessions, gigs and festivals where we put the electric guitar straight into the PA. As I said, the "dry" sound will be pretty neutral, so you might want to tweak it a bid with a pedal. Having said all that, It's much better to use your own amp if you need a specific sound.

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on March 9, 2017 at 4:11pm

I have an Electro Harmonix EHXtortion. It's a bit pricy. But has a great smooth distort/overdrive with dual channel setup.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Electro-Harmonix-Tortion-JFET-Overdrive-Dis...

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on March 10, 2017 at 12:45am

Sorry, i was kinda in a hurry when I posted last. The EHXtortion is a DI box with flexible distortion. It's got a XLR out that goes directly into a mixer. So your entire setup could be on a pedal board. Plug in a single power supply. Plug your guitar in on one side. The PA on the other. Sound good all night.