hi all, I think this question will generate a few differing views but here goes....

I have a modest set up spirit sx, beringer composer pro, yamaha spx 50D, phonic peq3400 (L&R) dod stereo crossoxer, old psl 1000 amp feeding colosus bottom cabs and harrison k3000 amp feeding peavey hisys 2 15x1 tops.

what I need to know is this...

we are supposed to be playing an outdoor gig next month and I don't think this will cut the mustard, can I just extend the system by chaining the amps together, ie using the XLR signal out on the back of the amp to another amp and set of speakers.

or..

do I have to have a distrobution amplifier somwhere in there ?

the band has ample backline and accoustic drums so the pa is really just for vocals and a little reinforcment / balance.


cheers,

p.s. dont have any real figures for crowd size or spl at mixing position, (probably will end up mixing from stage, but do have a multi, just need somebody I can trust to do FOH) just thinking of "what if" at the moment.

To answer bit about linking amps, yes you'll be fine doing it as you suggest. If you wanted to link a large number then some form of distribution amp would be needed, but 2 or 3 linked is not a problem.

Now, as you only have the one crossover, you'll need to find a PA that will work with the crossover point you already have set. It may be better to get a system with a crossover & do your splitting before the crossovers.

It's also worth noteing that adding a second (different) set of speakers may not sound good.

Just to clarify slightly... If the signal coming out of the XLRs is line level, then yes, it's not a problem to run anther amp in parallel as you're essentially just splitting the input signal in two. If the XLR outputs are what you'd normally connect to the speakers, then absolutely not - they shouldn't be connected to anything other than speakers.

There is a separate issue relating to using extra speakers to try to gain extra volume - if they're not designed to array properly (I suspect the HiSys2s won't) then you can actually make the sound worse like this as the outputs of each speaker can destructively interfere with each other. This is a pretty complex subject though.

in response to the above poster

ive used 4 peavey hisys 118 bass cabs and 4 peavey hisys 2 speakers together (split into two stacks)
the hisys 2's I pointed one directly outwards for long throw and turned one in for middle of floor. It sounded quite nice and no problems were reported!

where abouts are you based?

Of course you could, if you wanted to, use a DI box with an appropriate pad.

Not unless hes talking about the Outputs of the amp being sent over XLR? Thats the only thing I could think of.

Rich

Indeed. That's precisely what the quote said.

hi all, a big thankyou to all who have shared their time and knowlegde with me, I had an idea that it would work but wasn't too shure about stuff like input impeadance.

thanks again.