Sound cutting out playing live...2box or amp?

[wildhorse5678]

Played first live gig with a new band last night using 2box brain with 2 box hh and cymbals and Roland pads. Mono signal being feed to Alessis 400 drum amp.  Thought the night the sound seemed to suddenly drop about 20-30 secs into songs. Particularly noticeable on hi hat and snare. Hi hi sound virtually disappeared with snare going muddy. I thought initially the hh cable was loose and tried to remedy this,  while carrying on playing. I even tried switching kits mid number...but that wasn't successfully. Oddly, once song finished, the hh started sounding ok again. But next song same thing happened.  My gut feeling is that the problem is with the Alessis Amp.. It feels as if there's some cut out when some threshold is reached.....and I did have everything up to 10 on dial.  Any one have this problem.

[welshsteve]

Sounds like the amp limiter kicking in to me. It's a circuit designed to prevent over loading of signal to the amp thus preventing speaker damage.
What do you have going into your amp, just drums or do you use it as a monitor for the rest of the band too!

[wildhorse5678]

Steve, only my drum kit plus alesis samplepad pro into the drum amp. I have a separate monitor for sounds from the PA. As it happens we only used the Pa for vocals plus the sample pad pro.  As I said I did have the volume up full on the drum amp. But not on the 2box module.  I did think as you suggested that it's some safety cut out... So if I have to turn down the drum amp on stage seems like I will also need to put the kit through the pa as well.  You can see the exact kit set up I'm using on video 10 on my website. http://2boxfornewbies.weebly.com

[welshsteve]

Okay I'll check your vids out. But if you're not putting the drums into your pa and relying on the amp to project the sound of the kit into the audience, I defo recommend putting the kit into the pa and reducing the master volume of your amp. If it's not doing it through headphone jack on the module, then I very very much doubt it's going to be the module. Give that a try and see if it reduces or cures the issue.

[welshsteve]

Btw... great website! Very informative for as newbies, looks like you've covered all bases. You sound like one of my countrymen, am I right? I am a Swansea boy myself.

[wildhorse5678]

Originally from Rhondda. But away over 40 years.  We decided to try our first gig without everything through PA as was small pub.  But seems like that meant stage amps too loud . Gonna set it up as you suggest next time.

[welshsteve]

Ha, 40 years and you still have the local twang! It's a bloody birth-mark isn't it? Anyway hope my suggestion works out. It's all about headroom see, try and push beyond that and the circuitry in the amp will prevent you by use of limiters. Basically put, it turns you down automatically buy will focus on what the signal demands the most. I guess you have more kick drum than cymbals in the mix? That'll explain why it sounds like the hats quieten. Kick drums require more energy in the reproduction though amplifiers as there's a lot more low frequencies that hats.

[wildhorse5678]

Just to complete this thread.. Alesis have indeed confirmed that there is a limiter on the Amp..to protect the speakers...So at least I know it's not a fault.