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Horizon Apex/Overdrive w/ Helix LT... Speaker vs Monitors?


MovingPictures90
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Hi all, 

 

First of all, terribly terribly sorry if this has been discussed.. I really did try to find my answer but couldn't.

 

We have an new office space at home where we do a lot of our photo/video editing and we have the room now for my guitar equipment. I really want the Helix LT, a good speaker solution, with the Horizon Apex Preamp.

I've heard mixed things about the Helix.. From what I've read the speakers you use determine whether or not you're satisfied.

I don't play in a band, I don't really jam with anyone. I just chill and play guitar and tweak settings effects and play along with other music. Typical bedroom guitarist. I'll probably record a few licks here and there with a drum simulator program etc., but that's about it.

I was looking at the Powercab 112 (I know it's overpriced), or a set of Yamaha 8" studio monitors (I know someone who works there who can get me a really good deal).

For my particular, limited use.. What would you recommend for the best overall tone? I would use stereo monitors for regular every day listening as well for what it's worth..

 

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Are you playing through anything now? The biggest difference in playback systems is what you're expecting to hear. If you're expecting the experience of a live amp, studio monitors won't do it for you. If you want pristine "album-ready" tones to play through, monitors will do you well. The Powercab approximates a guitar speaker in "speaker mode" and can also be used as a full-range playback system, so it might be worth it if you wanna go back and forth between the two types of sounds. I'm personally not a fan of the HS series monitors for regular music listening, but they're great for mixing/reference. 

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6 minutes ago, gunpointmetal said:

Are you playing through anything now? The biggest difference in playback systems is what you're expecting to hear. If you're expecting the experience of a live amp, studio monitors won't do it for you. If you want pristine "album-ready" tones to play through, monitors will do you well. The Powercab approximates a guitar speaker in "speaker mode" and can also be used as a full-range playback system, so it might be worth it if you wanna go back and forth between the two types of sounds. I'm personally not a fan of the HS series monitors for regular music listening, but they're great for mixing/reference. 


That's good to know. I like going back and forth between both; for playing along with recorded music I think monitors would be great, but for just noodling around/riffing I'd love the sound of a live amp. 

I'll just grab some regular Yamaha speakers for general music playback I guess!

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8 minutes ago, gunpointmetal said:

Are you playing through anything now?


Oh, and no. I haven't had my guitar stuff in a long, long time. Probably close to 7 years now.. Just getting back into it, bought a used Ibanez (RGA321F) and just looking for the Helix and a good speaker to go along with. Really interested in having a clean, tight knit setup as we use our office space for other things too.

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+1 on the Powercab(+) Since the introduction of the 212 Powercab+, there will probably be a lot of  used 112s on the market. I also have the HS8 studio monitors that are in my mind awesome but use them for primarily acoustic patches. If I had to choose just one, I'd go with the Powercab+

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OK - I'm going to disagree - with qualification!

It sounds to me like you don't play loud?

Most live systems need to move a certain amount of air before they start to do what they are designed to do.

If you want to get great sound at a level where you can talk over it and be heard - go with the studio monitors - the whole amp in a room thing doesn't really mean much at that level - and most speakers designed to kick out live levels that keep up with a drummer don't sound anywhere near as nice as well EQ'd sound that's sitting in reasonable balance with a backing track - playing along with songs in your case.

If on the other hand you are getting loud........well it's all going to depend on how loud!

The kick in the bum of a loud amp only works loud.

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Powercab Plus all the way! I have a "pair" and they are set up to send audio back (thru a mixer) to my HR824 Mackie monitors using their (PC+) speaker simulations thru the Mackie, and this works whether turned up or all the way down on the Power Cab Plus! Why do I do this, this way? Because I can also use the speaker simulations from the PC+ on my Kemper too!!!

 

Get a Power Cab Plus, you won't regret it. 

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