live performance troubles

[David Cubbedge]

I have an old (1970s?) Emmons single-10, 4 pedals, two levers, most likely a starter model that over time has seen some mods done. Jimmy Day setup. I bought it in 2000 and have used it for live performance and recording and other than some changer issues, it has given me great tone and provided me a lot of enjoyment. Up until this year, my live setup consisted of a Pod XT running through a Nashville 400.

Recently I joined a band that uses no amps on stage. We all have in-ear monitors. I run a line form the Pod output to a direct box. Here's where the problem starts. When I play by myself, the steel sounds fine, nice and clean. However, sound guys are always asking me for more output, but I have limited ways to provide that with the pod alone. I'll turn up the amp output and if that isn't enough, I'll raise the compressor output. (That's all I believe I can do - my Pod patch is pretty simple.) Once the band is playing and my output is higher, the sound is distorted, but not in the same even way a guitar distorts intentionally. This sound is just uneven as if it was a dirty pot or a loose electrical connection. Could be described as 'scratchy'. I have gone through everything. Switched volume pedals, it's not the pot. Not the Pod as it works fine with guitars.

Could it be that it is the guitar itself that is causing the problem? Because of the volume, are mechanical things causing the guitar to deliver uneven tone through the pickup?

My question to the forum would be is there anyone else out there using a Pod in a live situation and is there anything special or different that I should be doing? I never had problems like this when just running the Nashville 400.....any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

[Jack Stoner]

What is the tone setup you are using? If you are increasing the drive (channel volume) to the point it is overloading, to get more volume then that could be a problem.

I have a POD XT and a POD X3, and although I haven't used them direct to a sound board, it would appear that either the sound guy isn't setting the level correctly or if you are using an unbalanced (guitar cord) to send to the board it may be losing some volume level, and if that is the case use a DI box to convert it to low impedance XLR and you won't lose volume level.

The POD XT is designed to drive a power amplifier and thus has "line level" output (max output). But, as noted if you are using the high impedance, unbalanced, output instead of the balanced that could be the problem. If you have a TRS cable (3 conductor Tip Ring Sleeve) cable that will connect to the POD output and make it a balanced low impedance output. The other end of the TRS cable would probably need to be an XLR connector for the PA board. As previously noted using a DI box and converting the unbalanced high impedance (guitar cord) to the XLR is another option.

[Dave Mudgett]

I generally agree with Jack - definitely make sure you're using a TRS-to-XLR cable for your line-out to get the maximum headroom to the board. I have used my Pods (both old-version Pod 2 and Pod XT) direct to the board, and the line-out signal isn't necessarily real hot if you keep the gain down, which you need to do if you want a nice clean sound. If you have your own mixing board (even a small one will do), set it up and check it out for yourself.

If I was using a Pod direct more than occasionally, I'd build (or buy) a real clean, low-noise XLR-in/XLR-out preamp to boost the signal a bit. Another approach would be to carry along a small mixing board, but make sure you get a very high-quality one. I would insist on listening to it with my rig before committing to it. Even my little Yamaha mixer, which is a pretty good mixer and works fine for mixing vocals and acoustic guitars for a small duo/trio live sound setup, tends to squash my steel and electric guitar sounds more than I like.

Of course - you should look at your Pod patches using Line 6 Edit. Make sure your Channel Volume is maxed, make sure your gain is down to the point where you're not distorting, and definitely make sure that the extra gain switch (can't remember what they call it - crunch or something like that) is off. Then when you push the main volume, you should stay clean all the way to the top.

Finally, consider the possibility that the sound guy is overloading the trims at the board to the point where he/she is getting horrible bipolar-transistor distortion. Sometimes they do this trying to get me up in the mix. I have to go tell them to turn the trims down and raise the post-gain. Doh.

[Jim Park]

I found using in-ears can cause you not to play loud because you think your volume is too loud. The initial volume of the POD should be with the VP open all the way and the channel volume at 3/4 to give you headroom to turn up if needed. also try the input pad...........maybe you are overdriving the POD. Steel pickups usually have more than enough signal to give to the POD

[Lewis Goldsmith]

If you only have that problem with this one band, then it's most likely the in-ears, the in-ear system, the soundman, or all of the above. I hate the in-ear thing, I have found that I'm either too loud, or too soft, playing dynamics are non existant and my guitar just doesn't sound the same coming out of that little tiny driver as it does coming out of a stage amp and speaker. In fact I hated those things so much I quit my church gig because of it.

[David Cubbedge]

Thanks to all who responded. After a night of fiddling and tweaking with things, I believe I came to the causes of the problem. First, I had some Pod settings that were not correct regarding drive and output. Second, a lot of the noise was actually coming from the mechanicals of the steel and the pickup wires. We tacked the wires down with a little clip and - presto!, great sounding steel! Now I'm going to look on here for ideas to quiet down the pedal operation - still seems overly noisy to me.... I'll be testing the gear out this weekend, so I'll keep y'all informed on how it goes. Thanks SGF!

[David Cubbedge]

So, I had some pod setting wrong, that solved most problems, but ultimately the thing that cured all was purchasing my "new" restored 77 Emmons D10! Now the only issue is my level of talent!

[Donny Hinson]

Recently I joined a band that uses no amps on stage. We all have in-ear monitors.

I apologize, in advance, for this rant.

Well, 'ya gotta do what 'ya gotta do. I understand that. Still, I see this as an unfortunate trend (bands playing without amps). The amp is half your sound, and eliminating it can't be a good thing. I've heard famous groups and local groups with the "thin ears", and I'm always disappointed. The sound is dull and lifeless, more like a juke box than a live band. The instrument separation is gone, and it's no longer possible to sit near the steel man and hear mostly the steel. I can understand and accept the process if you're playing in a stadium or 1,000 seat club, but using them in small-to-medium venues really robs the audience of the dynamics that a live band normally gives.

[David Cubbedge]

Your rant is well founded, I prefer an amp myself, but it is what it is. We use a system that allows us to adjust monitors with iphones/ipads. It isn't my choice, but it is a steady working band and for that I'll take what they dish out!

Many shows I do with this one particular band are larger venues. When I play in my 70s country rock band, I use my Nashville 400.