Miletown Posted August 14, 2022 Share Posted August 14, 2022 Hi All, I play in a hard rock band and I've been working on dialing in my PC212+ with my Helix LT for the possibility of using it live. However, I noticed that the window (for lack of a better term) between the signal LED in the yellow (the most realistic non-linear natural breakup characteristics) and the LED in the red (clipping) is very small. This has prevented me from achieving suitable levels for lead playing. I should add that we have to use our own PA at all our shows and we don't have a dedicated sound man. Are there any ideas on how to address this issue? How hard is it on the powercab if it clips for short periods of time? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilrahi Posted August 16, 2022 Share Posted August 16, 2022 On 8/14/2022 at 8:12 AM, Miletown said: Hi All, I play in a hard rock band and I've been working on dialing in my PC212+ with my Helix LT for the possibility of using it live. However, I noticed that the window (for lack of a better term) between the signal LED in the yellow (the most realistic non-linear natural breakup characteristics) and the LED in the red (clipping) is very small. This has prevented me from achieving suitable levels for lead playing. I should add that we have to use our own PA at all our shows and we don't have a dedicated sound man. Are there any ideas on how to address this issue? How hard is it on the powercab if it clips for short periods of time? Thanks! It's extremely unlikely you're going to blow up your Powercab. Damage to it isn't really where I'd put my concerns on the red light. The risk is consistant clipping - which sounds awful. So if it's only occasionally hitting red, and if what you hear isn't bad, then breath a sigh of relief. You're good to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miletown Posted August 16, 2022 Author Share Posted August 16, 2022 Thanks Kilrahi. I appreciate the input. In all of my testing I've come to the conclusion that there's only around 4 to 6 db of headroom between the yellow and the red. My band has two guitars so I need just a few more db's to cut through nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulTBaker Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 As the other poster said, I don't think you will blow your PC. Your ears should tell you if you are clipping or not. You should be fine bouncing in the red. Jason sadites has a video where he talks about this. Basically saying bouncing in the red is ok..... Unless your hear something bad. If you only need a few db, you may try boosting some mids and lowering the bass. It may sound bad by itself, but it will cut through the band and sound good. Apologies if you have already tried changing eq. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miletown Posted August 20, 2022 Author Share Posted August 20, 2022 Thanks PaulTBaker. I've seen Jason's vids on this topic, plus other's that have talked about it, but I'm still unsure about using the powercab in my band. I don't think the few db it has before going completely in the red will be enough for soloing. It's not a EQ problem, just a volume problem since, unfortunately, my band plays pretty loud. I guess I'll have to take a chance and try it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulTBaker Posted August 20, 2022 Share Posted August 20, 2022 Hope it works for you. I think you will find that it does. Let us know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.