strayfalcon Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Hey newbie here , I am looking for options - I want a powered monitor -FRFR to use as a speaker instead of a guitar amplifier and I want to use this as a stand alone unit but with enough grunt to be heard over my band - yes genre , hard hitting drummers,1 guitar band etc etc but everything aside , has anyone used or is using the behringer cheapie powered monitors as a stand alone speaker - ie plug ya guitar and pod into it and crank it for onstage live use? With a line out to the PA ? now can someone chime in on this , I get the impression the expensive LINE6 LT speakers etc that are being used as a must have if you intend n doing live gigs are nothing more than a powered monitor with built in mixer and perhaps a few cool features but in principle in plain simple speak - it's just a fancy powered monitor ? the reason I ask is obviously the lne6 speakers are expensive so I'm doing my home work and viable cheap alternatives for live work . So just to recap : Any ne using the behringer powered amps in their band as a standalone unit - and if so does it have enough volume to do what you want it to do - I'm wanting something for old stool 70s rock volumes , nothing sanely over the top volume wise but I do want that ability t be heard - so regardless of whether I go direct to PA desk or just the powered monitor as my " guitar amp" is this possible with out the over the top prices of the supposed purpose built lt series of inbuilt pa etc etc frat Im not wanting to run anything fancy other than plug my guitar into the pod into a powered speaker source instead of direct into PA For live gigs only , no stereo effects etc etc , genre is rock , no hi gain stuff Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CipherHost Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Old stool will eventually become hard rock. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shredjsx Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Surprisingly Beringer stuff is actually pretty well built... The reason it's affordable it its act made by the Grman Government instead a fan outside self owned company... That being said... I used to run my X3live direct through our PA and dedicated to a monitor wedge back at me... It sounded find Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rd2rk Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 By definition, "old school 70s rock volume" IS "insanely over the top"! That's why we loved it so! That said, here's a suggestion. Spend some time on gear/guitar forums. In addition to this forum, where everybody at least uses the same basic gadget, Gearslutz is a great place to start. Search for "frfr". After 15 minutes you'll realize that every man jack with a six string (or 7 or 8 or) has a different opinion on this subject. Through all of those opinions, one thread will be consistent. NOBODY uses Behringer speakers. Well, once in a while you'll run into someone, everybody else laughs at them. After you've read until your brain bleeds, go to your local GC and try out as many rigs as you can. Buy what sounds best to YOU. Odds are, when you've played a couple of gigs in different acoustic environments, you'll realize there's no "one size fits all". What sounds good to you on stage will sound different in the audience, and the sound guy'll more than likely make it worse. Welcome to the real world. "What sounds good to you on stage" is as good as it gets so get something that sounds good to you and pray for a good sound guy. Last thought, concerning "this forum, where everybody at least uses the same basic gadget". The Lt series speakers and DT series amps ARE DESIGNED TO BE USED WITH THAT GADGET! An everyday claw hammer CAN be used to frame a house. A professional house framer uses a framing hammer. They both hammer nails, but the framing hammer costs more. Why would a PRO use a more expensive hammer? Go figure.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rd2rk Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Additional thought. I expect that Line6 will shortly be coming out with a new version of the DT amps for use with the HELIX. I'll be interested to see if it's also backwards compatible with the HD series. By that time I should have the bread to buy one or the other, which I will, because to me, what's going to sound best onstage is a good old fashioned tube amp, just like they used in the 70s, with the front end flexibility of the HD/HELIX technology, best of both worlds! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexKenivel Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 You might want more wattage for loud playing. I'm running about 1000w class D for high gain so you'd want something in between. There's a lot of talk about the humble little Alto active speakers, on this forum and others.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 I never tried the monitor you're speaking about.. I use a good keyboard amp for monitoring and moving some air behind me.. a couple of personal thoughts here: FRFR systems are great, but the more really FRFR (full range flat response) they are, and more you'll need to tweak to perfection your patches, especially to eliminate eventual excessive boominess and harshness present in the tone.. so, to make it simple, a good idea could be: build 4-5 different patches with the tones you need more often and you like the most, bring your guitar and pod loaded with your patches to the GC, and try different FRFR solutions live, simply choose the one that sounds best, don't be fooled too much by specs numbers to take decisions Hey Guru yea that's what I'm thinking re key board amp have tried a load of different powered monitors and yet to find something suitable to my ears and in terms of volume Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 By definition, "old school 70s rock volume" IS "insanely over the top"! That's why we loved it so! That said, here's a suggestion. Spend some time on gear/guitar forums. In addition to this forum, where everybody at least uses the same basic gadget, Gearslutz is a great place to start. Search for "frfr". After 15 minutes you'll realize that every man jack with a six string (or 7 or 8 or) has a different opinion on this subject. Through all of those opinions, one thread will be consistent. NOBODY uses Behringer speakers. Well, once in a while you'll run into someone, everybody else laughs at them. After you've read until your brain bleeds, go to your local GC and try out as many rigs as you can. Buy what sounds best to YOU. Odds are, when you've played a couple of gigs in different acoustic environments, you'll realize there's no "one size fits all". What sounds good to you on stage will sound different in the audience, and the sound guy'll more than likely make it worse. Welcome to the real world. "What sounds good to you on stage" is as good as it gets so get something that sounds good to you and pray for a good sound guy. Last thought, concerning "this forum, where everybody at least uses the same basic gadget". The Lt series speakers and DT series amps ARE DESIGNED TO BE USED WITH THAT GADGET! An everyday claw hammer CAN be used to frame a house. A professional house framer uses a framing hammer. They both hammer nails, but the framing hammer costs more. Why would a PRO use a more expensive hammer? Go figure.... Hey just startin thank you for your input , yes have read and also popped into the local GC but have yet to find something that's suitable and sounds good to my ears - as a pro player of 40years live - I've decided to make the change from the usual set up of micd amp to using my HD500X for not only my corporate gigs as I play across 5 bands of different genres and need something with a broad cross range of colors and pallete - the HD does that for me Direct into the PA with powered monitor/ feed back to me live on stage and it's fantastic , however I'm trying to incorporate the use of the HD for smaller pub gigs and not wanting to go direct to the PA hence something that can throw sound would be great hence the question re powered monitor As for the old school rock sounds yes I stillA/B X 2 100watt heads via x 4 quads one set for hot and the other cold - and I bought these new in 1978 so yes I nderstand everything there is to know with regards to gear and what we used back then and that I still use now , how ever for versatility and as a professional I'm looking at other sound options . I play 5 times a week average crowd size on any given nite is 1,000 to 5k so I'm well versed with live stage sound, gear requirements and usage as a working musician of this length of time I would NOT laugh at someone fronting up with Behringer gear to a corporate function that knows how to use their gear , you'd be surprised to know what's being used on stages around the world by known bands and players so moving on starting up ....... Once again thank you for your input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 Surprisingly Beringer stuff is actually pretty well built... The reason it's affordable it its act made by the Grman Government instead a fan outside self owned company... That being said... I used to run my X3live direct through our PA and dedicated to a monitor wedge back at me... It sounded find Yes I totally agree , as a working musician I don't turn my nose up at gear with regards to brand , where it's made etc etc sure when I was a kid like all kids I must have that and this brand , where's it made etc etc etc etc but for myself it's a tool to do the job and nothing more than that if it works great and if it doesn't oh well back to the drawing board lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunedinDragon Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 I'm one that runs my rig pretty close to what you're describing with a Yamaha DXR12 monitor and a line direct into the PA. I'd be a bit concerned about using the F1220D if you're going to be competing with other loud instruments on stage. It's a bit light on wattage and I'd be concerned it could be overwhelved. As someone mentioned earlier, with this type of rig you'll likely have to tweak things like the global EQ to remove the boominess and harshness from a FRFR speaker, but it's really not that big a deal. I'm pretty much in the same boat as you in that I play a wide variety of styles and that's what brought me to using this type of rig. Once you tame the high and low end of the FRFR speakers you'll find much better articulation and clarity than you can normally get from a guitar amp speaker, and that becomes really evident and important when you move between styles like jazz, rock, metal, country, blues, etc. But if you're playing clubs without a direct line to the PA I'd really suggest getting up into a 500 watt or higher speaker just to make sure you have some headroom if you're playing with loud band members in a sizeable club full of people. You might get by with the rated 250w of the F1220D, but you might have to have it cranked up higher than you'd like. I was using a Behringer B212D as my home rig for practicing with my HD500X, but recently got another DXR12 as all of these type of speakers behave a bit differently and I found myself having to adjust my patches too much once I got them into my live system with the DXR12. Also the B212D didn't match up as well to the sound I was getting out lf the main PA which is based on QSC KLA12 line array speakers whereas the DXR12 is much more indicative of what those speaker will sound like. As far as Behringer having a bad rap, there were some fairly serious quality control issues they had 4 or 5 years back, but that all seems to have been resolved after they were bought out by TC Group. They appear to have some pretty solid reliability now and are even branching out into higher end/higher quality units. I'd second the advice of taking your unit down to your local Sam Ash or Guitar Center and trying out a few different speakers to get a feel for them. That's what I did when I got my DXR12. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 Awesome Dunedin dragon ! Cheers for chiming in this helps big time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rd2rk Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Since you introduced yourself as a "newbie", asking, basically, "Why use the expensive L6 stuff instead of cheap Behringers", I provided a lot of personal opinion unnecessary for someone of your extensive experience. So that noted, the simple answer to your question is "because the L6 stuff is specifically designed to be used with the HD". No, it's (the L2 and L3) not just an overpriced monitor. The DT is not just another tube amp. If you've tried them and didn't like the sound, then obviously the search goes on. In that case it's even more true that it's all about your ears, and if you've done all the required reading you know that a lot of the suggestions on Gearslutz and elsewhere you won't find at GC to try. A conundrum, to be sure. BTW - My statement about Behringer stuff was a statement of fact about the opinions expressed on most forums. I used lots of Behringer equipment when I did pro sound reinforcement, particularly in my smaller rigs, very successfully. But, fact is, not a lot of people are using Behringers as a FRFR solution. Whether that's an issue of perceived quality or actual sound I don't know. YMMV, as they say! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 28, 2015 Author Share Posted December 28, 2015 Since you introduced yourself as a "newbie", asking, basically, "Why use the expensive L6 stuff instead of cheap Behringers", I provided a lot of personal opinion unnecessary for someone of your extensive experience. So that noted, the simple answer to your question is "because the L6 stuff is specifically designed to be used with the HD". No, it's (the L2 and L3) not just an overpriced monitor. The DT is not just another tube amp. If you've tried them and didn't like the sound, then obviously the search goes on. In that case it's even more true that it's all about your ears, and if you've done all the required reading you know that a lot of the suggestions on Gearslutz and elsewhere you won't find at GC to try. A conundrum, to be sure. BTW - My statement about Behringer stuff was a statement of fact about the opinions expressed on most forums. I used lots of Behringer equipment when I did pro sound reinforcement, particularly in my smaller rigs, very successfully. But, fact is, not a lot of people are using Behringers as a FRFR solution. Whether that's an issue of perceived quality or actual sound I don't know. YMMV, as they say! All good just starting out and yes I am a newbie with regards to the POD HD 500X how ever I'm not a newbie in terms of performance , gear and live work , as a working musician , I i appreciate any and all comments with regards to this question of mine , I'm interested in other sound options before I commit to the Line 6 - L2 & L3 - how ever if that's what works best overall I'll certainly utilize their speaker system cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rd2rk Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 All good, strayfalcon, best of luck. Just a heads up, "just startin" is a default member description. Forum member's names are on the gray bar at the top of messages. I am, yours truly and always, rd2rk! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shredjsx Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 As far as having to have stuff that is main stream.... I loved showing a guitarist up once... He had a Gibson LP and a Marshall PLEXI Lead... And if you had anything else yours sucked... I showed up with my Esp and A 5150 Peavey combo... He was railing me... The. We started playing and my rig was knocking stuff off the walls across the room And he couldn't understand how could my gear sound better than his I LOVED IT!!!! Point, just because it's a different brand and a little cheaper, it might be s diamond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexKenivel Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 when I got my first pod, I played through a Behringer Eurolive PMX2000. More than enough wattage. The Speakers were horribly cheap Squier 12" but it sounded GOOD. little did I know that the tweeters were blown out. I later tried a Carvin Pm12a and didn't like what was coming through the tweeter. So go buy a used speaker with a busted tweeter. No, I'm kidding, that's not the point. The point is if you can get it loud and clear enough, it sounds good, who cares what name is on it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 All good, strayfalcon, best of luck. Just a heads up, "just startin" is a default member description. Forum member's names are on the gray bar at the top of messages. I am, yours truly and always, rd2rk! Oops apologies rd2rk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 As far as having to have stuff that is main stream.... I loved showing a guitarist up once... He had a Gibson LP and a Marshall PLEXI Lead... And if you had anything else yours sucked... I showed up with my Esp and A 5150 Peavey combo... He was railing me... The. We started playing and my rig was knocking stuff off the walls across the room And he couldn't understand how could my gear sound better than his I LOVED IT!!!! Point, just because it's a different brand and a little cheaper, it might be s diamond Yup exactly shredjsx I'm hearing ya on that one , re gear , it's funny every time I use my Marshall Plexi rig I get a lotta young guys coming up going hey love the sound of ya rig have ya had it long? Wish I had that rig and I go don't waste ya time or ya money ,no need to be running 2 heads and 4 quads these days , they go yea but you are and I go yup but I've been using this same rig since 1978 not because I like Marshall/ stacks but cos I got a great deal on the 2 stacks way back then and if I were to buy gear now it would be a combo or a pod direct into a PA but having said that I spec gear for the gigs I do , hence over the years with technology the way it is I embrace change and tools to do the job , I'm not a purist gear snob like some are - shredjsx you'll find that axe man ya talking about has either sold his gear and no longer plays or its gathering dust loll hey maybe he bought himself a pod lolol ..... End of the day each to their own..... Just tools to do the job Ps good on ya shredjsx I love hearing stuff like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strayfalcon Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 when I got my first pod, I played through a Behringer Eurolive PMX2000. More than enough wattage. The Speakers were horribly cheap Squier 12" but it sounded GOOD. little did I know that the tweeters were blown out. I later tried a Carvin Pm12a and didn't like what was coming through the tweeter. So go buy a used speaker with a busted tweeter. No, I'm kidding, that's not the point. The point is if you can get it loud and clear enough, it sounds good, who cares what name is on it Awesome Alex cheers for that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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