Helix through a p.a. system (stereo or mono??)

[pete1975]

so,i have my helix set up for use through a p.a. system,i run dual amps for my heavy sound and one amp for clean.

At the minute im blending the 2 heavy amps for heavy sound and using a jc-120 for cleans and running in mono to my rehearsal rooms p.a.

 

Now at a gig i usually run through a head and cab and miked through p.a. but ive never really thought about whether im being panned to the side im standing or im just panned to both (mono).

or will both my left/right signals be summed to mono and panned to my side of the stage?

 

i have played hundreds of gigs with an amp but not direct,just want to see if its worth running the helix in stereo if im just guna be panned to the side im standing

So my question is if i pan my 2 heavy amps,1 left and 1 right will it be wasted in a gig situation if im just summed to mono and panned to my side?or summed to mono and panned left and right?

 

Something that made me think of this is metallica,both guitarists use axe fx now live and blend 2 amps for their heavy sound but at a metallica gig do they pan hetfields blended signal all to his side and same with kirk?or they both just come out left and right?

 

I imagine it would be odd if they were panned then you wouldnt hear the left side if you were on the right in the crowd and visa versa.

 

any thoughts?

 

cheers

 

 

 

[DunedinDragon]

That's why, before you make the investment in time and energy to go stereo, you should make sure the sound crew you work with are willing to go to the trouble to set it up.  Most won't simply because it will never appear as real stereo for people unless they're perfectly positioned between the speakers and not too far back in the venue where all the sound mixes together anyway..  It can be done, but it's typically done with a LOT more speakers positioned in the venue than just two stacks up front.

[cruisinon2]

Now at a gig i usually run through a head and cab and miked through p.a. but ive never really thought about whether im being panned to the side im standing or im just panned to both (mono).

or will both my left/right signals be summed to mono and panned to my side of the stage?

 

i have played hundreds of gigs with an amp but not direct,just want to see if its worth running the helix in stereo if im just guna be panned to the side im standing

So my question is if i pan my 2 heavy amps,1 left and 1 right will it be wasted in a gig situation if im just summed to mono and panned to my side?or summed to mono and panned left and right?

 

If the sound guy is panning you hard left/right, then half the room isn't hearing anything you play....you might be pushed a little bit one way or the other depending on the room acoustics, and perhaps to make room for the vocals, but it's never gonna be all one or the other. Running in stereo live gets ugly fast, and if you're used to micing a cabinet, you're mono anyway.

[gunpointmetal]

Most places are going to center the instruments and mix in mono unless its like a theater production or something. The only real advantage to going stereo is if you're two heavy amps are running out completely different outputs. Then the sound guy can treat them two totally different microphone sources and blend them to the room. otherwise using the XLR mono out just collapses your stereo signal to mono anyways.

[amsdenj]

You can get the best of both with Helix using a compromise. All Helix guitar amp models are mono, and therefor all the effects before the amp should be mono (to save DSP since they'll be summed to mono anyway going into the amp block). All of the effects after the amp (delay, reverb, chorus, etc) could be stereo. If your FOH supports stereo, you can use the Helix left and right outputs into the PA panned hard left and right. Your guitar will still be centered since the amp was mono. So the audience will still hear your guitar no matter where  they are sitting. But your after the amp effects will be in stereo and give you a bit more ambience and stereo width. 

[Rocco_Crocco]

I always use mono for the reasons stated above.

[gunpointmetal]

You can get the best of both with Helix using a compromise. All Helix guitar amp models are mono, and therefor all the effects before the amp should be mono (to save DSP since they'll be summed to mono anyway going into the amp block). All of the effects after the amp (delay, reverb, chorus, etc) could be stereo. If your FOH supports stereo, you can use the Helix left and right outputs into the PA panned hard left and right. Your guitar will still be centered since the amp was mono. So the audience will still hear your guitar no matter where  they are sitting. But your after the amp effects will be in stereo and give you a bit more ambience and stereo width. 

That's only really true if you're using a parallel patch with the stereo effects, otherwise there is no "center" there's just whatever signal is in both channels, and depending on the delay/reverb/whatever there might not be anything "centered". Stereo ambiance doesn't add ANYTHING to a live performance except for the audience members that are directly in the center of speakers at the proper distance from the stage. Even places that DO HAVE full stereo FOH capabilities would rarely use it, given it presents different sounds in different parts of the venue. Stereo sure is fun at rehearsal with monitors spread across the room, though.

[njglover]

I've started using stereo recently, but only for doubling so that we can have a bigger sound. It's never a good idea to do much beyond that for live for most of the reasons above - live mixes are generally going to be mono to make sure no one is left out. Doubling gets around this because it is more or less the same signal going left and right, so it's effectively still mono (even though I am running it through two different amps so it doesn't sound mono).

[zooey]

If the amps are different on each side, each half of the audience hears your tone a little differently though.

 

I still dig stereo enough in my basement that I can't let go of it, even though I know it's almost always an actively poor idea live.

[shanecgriffo]

i used to run 2 amps on stage split after a chorus pedal (with very gentle, slow chorus rate/mix) .. It was more for my benefit tho as it sounded great to me onstage, tho from memory most times we only ever mic'd the one amp to go thru the foh mix. So i guess , get the best sound for yourself onstage while considering the overall system/mix

[njglover]

If the amps are different on each side, each half of the audience hears your tone a little differently though.

 

I still dig stereo enough in my basement that I can't let go of it, even though I know it's almost always an actively poor idea live.

 

Yes, but that's fine. I don't set them THAT different - they are made to compliment each other. Panning to one side without a second amp just means half the audience doesn't hear you at all, which is far worse than hearing a slightly different tone.

[strabes]

I run stereo out of the helix when I can, but only because it really helps the feel in IEMs. If I'm using a wedge I just run mono. 

[MusicLaw]

Stereo through the Helix is Absolutely Glorious! Granted, if HELIX is directly feeding FOH, Stereo makes things more complicated. However, I didn't buy HELIX for FOH, and FOH didn't buy me my HELIX! ;)