Just got my Line 6 HD Pro X.. Need speaker help! 2 crappy speakers or one good one?

[Christopher5777]

Ok so first off, I got my Line 6 Pro X the other day and wow, loving this thing! I am a huge tone snob and have been chasing classic, true to form Metallica and Megadeth tones for years now, I have tried both Mesa Mark and Dual Rec series, Peavy 6505 and even your crappy Boss Metal zone pedals and up until now, I have never got the tones I crave, thank GOD for the POD pro for finally making my tone dreams a reality.

 

Now with all this being said, I bought two JBL 5 inch powered speakers, priced at $149.99. They are ok but I feel they are a bit muddy and not enough clarity.. I can take them back to Guitar Center and exchange them, my question is... Should I just spend say $400.00 on say one good 12 inch powered speaker, or $300-$400 on two not so good speakers?! If the speaker is good enough, will one speaker sound good or will it sound bad with only one speaker no matter what?!

 

Any speaker suggestions? I pretty much strickly play 80s thrash metal, never drop tune and I am NOT looking for that super low end, death metal sound. Any thoughts?

[mrcleenmrcleen]

If you don't need stereo get one really good speaker. You can always add a second later.

[Christopher5777]

If you don't need stereo get one really good speaker. You can always add a second later.

I dont think I need stereo, how would I know? Also, which powered speakers are good for guitars? Peavey?

[mrcleenmrcleen]

If you make use of stereo effects. If you don't know you probably don't! 😀

You just want something full range and flat response. Lots of folks seem to like the alto ts 112.

[cruisinon2]

Ok so first off, I got my Line 6 Pro X the other day and wow, loving this thing! I am a huge tone snob and have been chasing classic, true to form Metallica and Megadeth tones for years now, I have tried both Mesa Mark and Dual Rec series, Peavy 6505 and even your crappy Boss Metal zone pedals and up until now, I have never got the tones I crave, thank GOD for the POD pro for finally making my tone dreams a reality.

 

Now with all this being said, I bought two JBL 5 inch powered speakers, priced at $149.99. They are ok but I feel they are a bit muddy and not enough clarity.. I can take them back to Guitar Center and exchange them, my question is... Should I just spend say $400.00 on say one good 12 inch powered speaker, or $300-$400 on two not so good speakers?! If the speaker is good enough, will one speaker sound good or will it sound bad with only one speaker no matter what?!

 

Any speaker suggestions? I pretty much strickly play 80s thrash metal, never drop tune and I am NOT looking for that super low end, death metal sound. Any thoughts?

If those JBL's you have are the LSR305's, then there's nothing "crappy" about them...you bought nice monitors. If the low end seems a bit muddy, it's likely because of whatever surface you've got them sitting on. Low frequencies tend to become more pronounced through "coupling"...the speaker vibrates, and then whatever surface it's in contact with (desk, table, etc)vibrates as well, and the whole mess essentially becomes a giant sub-woofer. There are several options:

 

1) Speaker stands. No contact with other surfaces, no coupling.

 

2) Acoustic isolation pads...they accomplish the same thing as the stands, they just sit underneath the monitors and suck up the low end to prevent coupling. Makes a HUGE difference. Sweetwater has a set for $50.

 

3) Or if I'm right about the speakers you've got, there are low and high frequency trim settings on the back of those things. Switch the LF to -2dB and see if that clears up the low end a bit.

[brue58ski]

RE: the muddy low end. Turn the Res Level in the Cab Parameters all the way down. Many people also recommend turning the Bass all the way down. At least start there. You can always turn them up.

[Christopher5777]

Yes I do have the JBL LSR305.. Another thing, I also have stereo headphones and it sounds downright amazing through the headphones. They dont neccesairly sound terrible through the speakers but they just sound muddy and not crystal clear..

 

So buying say a better speaker with a speaker size of say 12 or 15 inches wont make a difference?

[Christopher5777]

Right now they are just sitting on some cheap, faux wooden computer desk I bought at Wal Mart.. So speaker stands actually impact the sound and make a difference?

[Christopher5777]

So I just looked up the isolatio pads, GC has a pair of 4 for $29.99 so I might try those.. Also, is turning up the volume knob on the actual speakers good or bad for sound.. Right now I have them up about 50% and the rest of the volume comes from the POD, should I turn the speaker volume up?

[cruisinon2]

Yes I do have the JBL LSR305.. Another thing, I also have stereo headphones and it sounds downright amazing through the headphones. They dont neccesairly sound terrible through the speakers but they just sound muddy and not crystal clear..

 

So buying say a better speaker with a speaker size of say 12 or 15 inches wont make a difference?

EVERY time you play through something different, your tone will change. Sometimes it's subtle, sometimes it's night and day. If you plug in a different set of headphones, you have my personal guarantee that it's not gonna sound identical.

 

So yes, a different speaker will make a difference...whether it not it'll be better or worse, there's only one way to find out. However, if your complaint is too much low end "muddiness" from a 5" driver, moving up to a 12" or 15" box is not gonna help you. It's likely to make the problem exponentially worse. Bigger speaker = more low end.

 

Use the low cut filter under the cab parameters on the POD....somewhere between 100-120 Hz. 99.97% of the problems you're having can be solved from the POD itself. Speakers are not a magic bullet. What you have are in fact, quite good. And no matter what else you buy, they're not gonna sound exactly like your headphones. I've got one set of patches for headphones, and another for my L2T that I use live. Bedroom volume and stage volume are two totally different worlds. Perceived loudness of different frequency ranges changes with volume...it's just the way our brains process sound. A tone you dial in at comfy living room levels, when cranked to stage volume will sound VERY different.

[taylorbeats]

Just picked up a pair of ALTO 212's for under $500 at guitar center.  Rivals my QSC's in clarity for guitar.

[pianoguyy]

I dont think I need stereo, how would I know? 

 

Of course, the real answer is - no speakers. Go direct. 

 

But based on the actual question that was asked: 

I might suggest going for 2 speakers even if you don't use stereo. 

Simply because you may be using stereo and not realize it. But then when you send it to the pa, if they only get one channel, you are missing half of your tone. 

 

The alternative to this would be using one speaker and using a dummy plug in the other jack to make sure that you are never summed. 

[Christopher5777]

EVERY time you play through something different, your tone will change. Sometimes it's subtle, sometimes it's night and day. If you plug in a different set of headphones, you have my personal guarantee that it's not gonna sound identical.

 

So yes, a different speaker will make a difference...whether it not it'll be better or worse, there's only one way to find out. However, if your complaint is too much low end "muddiness" from a 5" driver, moving up to a 12" or 15" box is not gonna help you. It's likely to make the problem exponentially worse. Bigger speaker = more low end.

 

Use the low cut filter under the cab parameters on the POD....somewhere between 100-120 Hz. 99.97% of the problems you're having can be solved from the POD itself. Speakers are not a magic bullet. What you have are in fact, quite good. And no matter what else you buy, they're not gonna sound exactly like your headphones. I've got one set of patches for headphones, and another for my L2T that I use live. Bedroom volume and stage volume are two totally different worlds. Perceived loudness of different frequency ranges changes with volume...it's just the way our brains process sound. A tone you dial in at comfy living room levels, when cranked to stage volume will sound VERY different.

Where do I find the cab parameters exactly?

[Christopher5777]

If those JBL's you have are the LSR305's, then there's nothing "crappy" about them...you bought nice monitors. If the low end seems a bit muddy, it's likely because of whatever surface you've got them sitting on. Low frequencies tend to become more pronounced through "coupling"...the speaker vibrates, and then whatever surface it's in contact with (desk, table, etc)vibrates as well, and the whole mess essentially becomes a giant sub-woofer. There are several options:

 

1) Speaker stands. No contact with other surfaces, no coupling.

 

2) Acoustic isolation pads...they accomplish the same thing as the stands, they just sit underneath the monitors and suck up the low end to prevent coupling. Makes a HUGE difference. Sweetwater has a set for $50.

 

3) Or if I'm right about the speakers you've got, there are low and high frequency trim settings on the back of those things. Switch the LF to -2dB and see if that clears up the low end a bit.

Yes, the speakers have a LF trim AND a HF trim, if I set the LF to -2dB what should HF trim be set at?

 

I just bought some isolation pads on GC, which would make a bigger difference? The pads or speaker stands?

[cruisinon2]

Yes, the speakers have a LF trim AND a HF trim, if I set the LF to -2dB what should HF trim be set at?

 

I just bought some isolation pads on GC, which would make a bigger difference? The pads or speaker stands?

All of these questions are specific to your listening environment, and can't be answered remotely...your ears are the only ones in the room. However...

 

1) You mentioned low end mud, not high end fizz, so if the top end doesn't sound harsh, then leave the HF trim alone.

 

2) You already bought the pads....try them first before you worry about buying stands. Nobody can tell you which will "make a bigger difference" for your situation anyway. It's entirely possible that either one would work equally well, but there's only one way to find out.