Loudbox Mini with 2 or 3 sets of headphones???

[sulkair]

Originally Posted by fotofantom

Could you be more specific? What adapter and what headphone amp did you try? What specifically was the problem with the audio?

I too am interested in using headphones with my Loudbox Mini, and I wonder if it is possible to do with the speaker volume turned down.

Yes, you can turn the speaker all the way down, or up. It made no difference to the sound in the headphones.

Headphone amp: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Sterling...e-Amplifier.gc

With a pretty high grade XLR to 1/4" cable.

Tried two different headsets. Bose QC-15, and Lightspeed Zulus. Both sounded equally as terrible in the same way. So even if my headphones aren't up to snuff, the fact that they sounded the same, I'm guessing the big problem is with what's entering them.

First off there was a buzz that I couldn't get rid of no matter what. The guitar sounded like wind chimes made from old tin cans. The sound was hollow and electronic sounding. The voice sounded tunnely and reduced kind of like a fireman's bull horn.

Gotta get a mixer in the mix me thinks.

[lschwart]

If your plan is to enjoy playing at home and you like the sound of playing through headphones then consider one of these, which are designed to allow ensembles to rehearse together with headphones:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-a...section-system

If you are planning on gigging, then my recommendation of a powered speaker is still my recommendation. That or some other small PA/system or solo/duo performer amp like the Fishman "stick" or Bose, etc.

Louis

[sulkair]

Very cool - hadn't seen this. Will add this to my possibilities. Thank you.

[lschwart]

Originally Posted by sulkair

Yes, you can turn the speaker all the way down, or up. It made no difference to the sound in the headphones.

Headphone amp: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Sterling...e-Amplifier.gc

With a pretty high grade XLR to 1/4" cable.

Tried two different headsets. Bose QC-15, and Lightspeed Zulus. Both sounded equally as terrible in the same way. So even if my headphones aren't up to snuff, the fact that they sounded the same, I'm guessing the big problem is with what's entering them.

First off there was a buzz that I couldn't get rid of no matter what. The guitar sounded like wind chimes made from old tin cans. The sound was hollow and electronic sounding. The voice sounded tunnely and reduced kind of like a fireman's bull horn.

Gotta get a mixer in the mix me thinks.

Wrong tool for going from the DI output of the Mini. That unit is designed to take the kind of stereo signal that comes from the headphone output of a computer or iPhone or other device with a headphone out, not the kind that comes out of the Mini. It would let you split up the sound from the headphone out of a Loudbox artist, however.

Louis

[sulkair]

That makes sense. Too bad the rock-star at guitar center couldn't have told me that

[sulkair]

Are you guys sick of me yet? Lol

Would this work?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/136965.../shares/tQ0R74

I would need to send my Mini back for an Artist, but curious if it would work.

Having individual control over each channel for each person would be cool.

Also I would like to use the effects built into the Fishman as opposed to using the mixer and relegating the Fishman to a simple amp/speaker.

[lschwart]

Originally Posted by sulkair

Are you guys sick of me yet? Lol

Would this work?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/136965.../shares/tQ0R74

I would need to send my Mini back for an Artist, but curious if it would work.

Having individual control over each channel for each person would be cool.

Also I would like to use the effects built into the Fishman as opposed to using the mixer and relegating the Fishman to a simple amp/speaker.

If you are planning to use a mixer, I think you're going about this backwards. Why not just get a mixer with effects and a headphone out (most of them have one), plug yourselves into the mixer and then go out to the amp or whatever amplification device you choose to use? All you would need for more than one person to hear on phones would be a small multichannel headphone amp like the one you bought at GC or this one from Samson:

http://www.samsontech.com/samson/pro...***-mini/samp/

I wouldn't do this live, but at least it's a set up that works with the components the way they are supposed to work.

Note also that if you use the separate channel DI outs from the Loudbox, you won't get the effects or the EQ from the amp and one person will only have guitar, while the other will only have voice. You'd have to use the "Mix" DI out, and in that case, you might as well use just one mixer and a headphone amp from that to split things to each person's phones. Still it makes more sense to use the mixer as a mixer instead of a device to convert the DI signal to a headphone signal.

Louis

[sulkair]

Yeah, I understand I seem neurotic. I guess I just really wanted to use the Fishman for it's true purpose, namely an all in one 2 ch. mixer/effects generator/amp/speaker and not just a basic amp/speaker. Everyone raves about the simple effects and tone of the mini/artist and I didn't want to futz with that on the front end.

I wanted the ability to slightly turn down the guitar in her ears while keeping it higher in mine.

Interesting: I didn't realize the CH1 and CH2 DI outputs on the Artist didn't include the effects for each respectively.

I think I'm trying to do the impossible. Achieve for $200 what real musicians pay thousands for.

However this video caught my eye. https://youtu.be/Sx64pNZyuLI. Marty C pointed these out to me. But I would need a 'mic to line level pre-amp' between the D.I. Mix and the Personal Monitor. Might be worth a shot.

Anyway guys I appreciate ya'll humoring me with this nonsense - Thank you

[lschwart]

Originally Posted by sulkair

Yeah, I understand I seem neurotic. I guess I just really wanted to use the Fishman for it's true purpose, namely an all in one 2 ch. mixer/effects generator/amp/speaker and not just a basic amp/speaker. Everyone raves about the simple effects and tone of the mini/artist and I didn't want to futz with that on the front end.

I wanted the ability to slightly turn down the guitar in her ears while keeping it higher in mine.

Interesting: I didn't realize the CH1 and CH2 DI outputs on the Artist didn't include the effects for each respectively.

I think I'm trying to do the impossible. Achieve for $200 what real musicians pay thousands for.

However this video caught my eye. https://youtu.be/Sx64pNZyuLI. Marty C pointed these out to me. But I would need a 'mic to line level pre-amp' between the D.I. Mix and the Personal Monitor. Might be worth a shot.

Anyway guys I appreciate ya'll humoring me with this nonsense - Thank you

The purpose of the channel DI outs on the Artist is to allow you to send each channel's signal to the house mixer for a sound person to mix, eq, and add effects in ways that serve the whole house mix in the room--something he/she can hear, but you can't when you're playing on stage.

To provide different headphone mixes to each of you, you would have to send both signals separately to both mixers, something that you can't do from the Mini (or from the Artist, for that matter).

That is usually accomplished in one of two ways: 1) is the way explained in that video with something like a Rolls PM351 or, 2) with a mixer that can send more than one monitor mix from what are called Aux sends. Two different Aux send mixes could each be sent, for example, to something like a Rolls PM351 (more vocal, less guitar from one, the opposite for the other).

As far as I can tell there's no easy way to make units like the PM351 work for your purposes, however, from or with either a Mini or an Artist.

Really, I know I'm repeating myself, but you'd be much better off either with a unit like the JamHub I mentioned earlier, which would allow you to each plug in and monitor by headphones independently. The JamHub also has onboard effects and can send a signal to your amp. Or you could go the standard way with a small mixer with effects. If you got one that had two Aux sends, for example, you could use the PM351's to achieve exactly what you want to achieve. It will, however, cost more than $200, all told. If you kept the Mini as your speaker, however, you could probably do it for under $500, not including headphones.

Louis

[sulkair]

Louis great post. I know it doesn't seem like it, but I've been hearing you, you're effort is not in vain.

So I've been doing some research on the Jamhub.

Check out this video if you have time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAE51pjdzFc

So if I follow what this guy is doing on a much smaller scale, I could basically split the guitar to go into the Mini AND the Jamhub, and also split the Microphone to do the same. Like he does with all his little boxes.

But what about this too??? (just spit balling here) What if I run the Loudbox Mini's D.I. output into 'say' the 3rd bay of the Jamhub? So we could ALSO monitor the mix as it were? I don't know might blow the thing up!?

Bay 1 would be the guitar
Bay 2 would be the vocals
Bay 3 would be the mix monitor from the Mini.

Don't fail me now Louis! What do you think?

[lschwart]

To do something like what that video describes on a simpler scale with a Loudbox mini and a JamHub you would need two things:

A small mic signal splitter like this:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SplitComPro

And a simple DI box like this:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/EDB1

You would plug your guitar cable into the DI box and run two cables out of that: another regular guitar cable into the Mini from the "thru" output of the DI box and an XLR cable from the DI out into the mic input on one bay of the JamHub. You're essentially using the DI box as a splitter that allows you to send your regular unbalanced instrument signal into the amp while also sending a balanced mic-level signal to the JamHub.

You would plug your vocal mic into the mic splitter and run one XLR cable from that to the Mini and the other to the mic input on another bay of the JamHub. You could then get the two mixes you want though head phones from the two bays of the Jam hub and add some effects as well, while the Mini would operate just like it normally does sending sound out into the room.

I still think you should get a PA speaker and use the Mini as a monitor, but if you really want to monitor yourselves on headphones, have two different mixes in those headphones, have effects on those headphones, and use the Mini with its effects to send sound out to a small audience, the above will, I think, do it for you.

And yes, you should be able to run the DI out of the Mini into the mic input on another bay of the JamHub and monitor that mix as well, although it might not mix that well with the mix you make from your direct guitar and vocal signals. You could simply mix it in to get a reference, though, so your Jamhub mix sounds close to what's coming out of the amp, but the sound you hear in your phones won't really sound the same as what's coming out of the amp and reverberating in the room. Better to set the amp the way you like it in the room, and then use the JamHub to get a satisfying sound in each set of phones.

Louis

[fotofantom]

Okay, I appreciate the detailed responses to Sulkair's question, But I'm still puzzled as to why the DI output from the Mini won't work with a headphone amp. Is it an issue with the XLR cable? Would it work with a headphone amp with XLR input? So could you go from the Mini XLR out via XLR cable to headphone amp XLR in?

[sulkair]

Originally Posted by lschwart

To do something like what that video describes on a simpler scale with a Loudbox mini and a JamHub you would need two things:

A small mic signal splitter like this:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SplitComPro

And a simple DI box like this:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/EDB1

You would plug your guitar cable into the DI box and run two cables out of that: another regular guitar cable into the Mini from the "thru" output of the DI box and an XLR cable from the DI out into the mic input on one bay of the JamHub. You're essentially using the DI box as a splitter that allows you to send your regular unbalanced instrument signal into the amp while also sending a balanced mic-level signal to the JamHub.

You would plug your vocal mic into the mic splitter and run one XLR cable from that to the Mini and the other to the mic input on another bay of the JamHub. You could then get the two mixes you want though head phones from the two bays of the Jam hub and add some effects as well, while the Mini would operate just like it normally does sending sound out into the room.

I still think you should get a PA speaker and use the Mini as a monitor, but if you really want to monitor yourselves on headphones, have two different mixes in those headphones, have effects on those headphones, and use the Mini with its effects to send sound out to a small audience, the above will, I think, do it for you.

And yes, you should be able to run the DI out of the Mini into the mic input on another bay of the JamHub and monitor that mix as well, although it might not mix that well with the mix you make from your direct guitar and vocal signals. You could simply mix it in to get a reference, though, so your Jamhub mix sounds close to what's coming out of the amp, but the sound you hear in your phones won't really sound the same as what's coming out of the amp and reverberating in the room. Better to set the amp the way you like it in the room, and then use the JamHub to get a satisfying sound in each set of phones.

Louis

Brilliant! Thank you Louis!

[sulkair]

Originally Posted by fotofantom

Okay, I appreciate the detailed responses to Sulkair's question, But I'm still puzzled as to why the DI output from the Mini won't work with a headphone amp. Is it an issue with the XLR cable? Would it work with a headphone amp with XLR input? So could you go from the Mini XLR out via XLR cable to headphone amp XLR in?

Perhaps a headphone amp that received mic level input would work if they make such a thing. The one I purchased only accepted line level input.

I suppose my needs have morphed since I first tried the headphone amp anyway because now I want to be able to turn down the guitar in her ear.

According to reviews, everyone loves how the Jamhub works and sounds, but some complain it is cheaply constructed. I think I can deal with that however for my purposes.

[sulkair]

Louis,

Advice taken!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/136965.../shares/P2Z6N2

There is a learning curve here, but it does what I wanted. Running the Mini's D.I. mix back into the JamHub works great too.

Want to still try some other ideas too. Thank goodness for ebay. Shouldn't get hurt financially.

My only complaint is that the Taylor's pickup doesn't sound good in headphones from this mixer. But that may be the case for any mixer. I think there is a work around for that - something about a D.I. pedal. I will study up on it. OR I may just mic up my guitar and see how that sounds. I have 7 ports LOL!