Connecting two Spark Live amps together
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 12 сен 2024
- I haven't seen any other videos out there about how you can do this, and the user manual doesn't really say much other than you can 'sync' them via MIDI, so I thought I'd try a few different things with 2 Spark Live amps together.
One thing that is disappointing is that I couldn't get my iPhone to stream music to both at once, even though the I think the iPhone is capable of doing so with things like headphones (please correct me if I'm wrong!)
Really helpfull! Been looking into this sort of small venue/busking setup :D
I have 2 Spark Lives and just used them as a PA and music set up for my wedding. I had to run 2 1/4” speaker wires between both inputs and outputs in each unit to stop feedback and to fully power the 2nd speaker. I doesn’t really make sense to me but they balanced perfectly and sounded great.
Ah, that’s interesting; I have been in contact with PG several times about what to me is a volume ‘drop’ or volume limit when using the outputs from the Live to connect to an external speaker.
Basically I have tried connecting the Spark Live output to a PA speaker and to a Fender FR10 (a flat response cab designed for guitar modellers which is basically a PA speaker)
In both cases I have had to turn the volume of the external speaker up WAY past what I would normally have it set to, in order to get a decent volume from the external speaker (to give you an example, if I plug my modeller directly in to the Fender FR10, I have never taken the volume above roughly the 10 o’clock position, because it’s so loud. When I plug the Spark Live in to the FR10 input however, I have to turn the Fender up to about the 2 o’clock or 3 o’clock position to get a workable volume out of the Fender.
I haven’t had a reply back from PG about this yet, but just to clarify, are you suggesting that if I plug BOTH outputs from on Live into BOTH inputs on the other, it might address this issue? 🙄
ps, it’s also a shame that PG haven’t thought that
much about the potential for connecting two Spark Lives; it would be great if running one cable from the ‘master’ Live enabled you to get a nice stereo spread by turning the two amps in to a stereo pair; the Boss amps (Cube and Katana) have this sort of functionality so it’s not difficult to implement.
Also it would be great if you could either a) connect to both Live via Bluetooth so you are streaming to two stereo speakers, or sum the signal once the two Lives are connected (for example using their in-built WiFi?) so you end up with a stereo pair, in the way that the Sonos Roam speakers can be linked to act as a stereo pair, or seperated to act as identical mono speakers.
Really the only way to get two Lives to act as a stereo pair is to use a mixer and just use the Lives as a left/right pa speaker plugged in to the mixer. Which of course makes all of the built in mixing functionality rather pointless, which is a shame as you’ve kind of paid ‘extra’ to have that if using two Spark Lives.
One solution would be for PG to launch a new bit of hardware, a Live extension cab; so a powered speaker with the same aesthetics but at a lower price point because it doesn’t have the guitar modelling etc
@@littlespaceman have you tried the double speaker wire yet?? When you do pls let me know your results.
@@stephenrobertson4652 Hi - Not yet, as I'm away for a few days but I'll try as soon as I'm back and let you know 👍🏻
@@stephenrobertson4652 Hi there. I just got home today and tried the double speaker wire - and yes, it's definitely louder. Which is weird and not very helpful - because the problem is that one of my other speakers, a Fender FR10, only has one input, so when connecting to the Spark Live I can only connect it to one output, and then the volume needs to be turned up much higher than I would usually have it
Can you set what the midi channel is on these? You’d be able to independently control the two cabs…
Are you on Facebook groups by chance and what’s your name there? I’d have some real ideas and questions but RUclips comments would be fairly useless.
Sadly you can't - the Spark Live is set to Channel 1 only. I'm on the XSonic facebook group, here facebook.com/groups/xsonicaudiouser/
Not sure how to tell you my name without telling you my actual name, which I don't want to do here 😏
@@littlespaceman you got mine, give me a shout, dual items in the same midi ch1 there are definitely ways to sort that out.
You ever use wireless? You can broadcast your mono guitar out to two receivers basically forming a wireless splitter, programming each spark live with paired presets you’d be able to create either a wet dry rig or stereo hopefully without any phasing issues or feedback.
I have a channel covering weird hookups like this. See if you can find me on Facebook mate, Alec Bourne . Line6 midi mad scientist club
I do use wireless actually (Boss WL20) so I'll take a look, thank you!
Why isn't my signal coming out in stereo?
I am running my stereo device into the left and right into the left and right inputs properly into the back but my signals are being summed to mono (yes my spark is being placed in landscape/stereo position)
If this is normal it's a huge deal breaker and very misleading
I've already returned my Spark cab because of its limited mono only capability but truly believed that this was a true stereo system that I could use for running my other guitar modelers through in stereo
I sell tons of spark gear at the music store that I work at because of my fondness of it but if this isn't capable of stereo through external inputs I will be encouraging my customers to follow my lead with returning theirs within their return window timeframe
Major oversight on positive grids part
I seriously hope I'm wrong about this but if I'm not
This thing's going back to the store I work at & where I bought it
Yep, I'm afraid you're right, the signal is summed to mono. As per my comment below, I contacted PG about this and they told me the inputs sum to mono, and I've verified this by streaming music via Bluetooth to the Live, then connecting my headphones to the Live. Music streaming is very clearly stereo. I then connected my iPhone to the Live using a stereo breakout cable (3.5mm stereo to twin 1/4 jack cable) going in to Input 3/4 and it is clearly in Mono. Which is very disappointing, and a real oversight on the part of PG here.
I have expressed my surprise and disappointment to PG customer support about this; my best suggestion would be that you (and as many others as possible) contact them to say the same, and maybe it's something that can be fixed by a firmware update. But in the meantime it's simply misleading to label the rear of the amp 'Stereo', which is pretty inexcusable really
@@littlespacemanyessir
Major MAJOR Problem
Definitely a huge game changer and mine will be going back
I work where we just got 2 of these and I bought the first one
I've been labeled by my coworkers as the "spark guy" and have sold a ton of the other spark amps
Tons ot Customers come by my bench all day with tons of questions as I'm a guitar tech right in the middle of a big box store where I have a spark go piped into an aux in of a stereo 4/12 cab and they hear that it's a done deal
I am truly pissed and will now be on a new crusade regarding this misleading and game changing Positive Grid SPARK LIVE
GOOF
another major screw up they did is with the Mini
The aux in on the mini suffers a very serious latency flaw
Which is unfixable & has been discussed a good bit on the web
I've got to say it again
THIS SPARK LIVE NO STEREO INPUT IS A MAJOR SCREW UP!!!! Guess I've got some mad money coming lol when I return this and I am going to list it as broken
As far I'm concerned it is broken and it looks to me like all of the Spark Lives are broken LMAO
thank you for your excellent channel,video and response
I'm subscribed and spiking the like
Very Good Thought provoking Questions...? Why say STEREO if it SUMS to Mono, because ci was considering Doing What You are Doing, but definitely Want Stereo OUTPUT, particularly for Stereo Keyboards...?
Yes, or for stereo signal from a guitar modeller. I find that really strange too - both the user manual and the labelling on Input 3/4 show this as a 'Stereo Input' but PG themselves have told me the inputs sum to mono, and I've verified this by streaming music via Bluetooth to the Live, then connecting my headphones to the Live. Music streaming is very clearly stereo. I then connected my iPhone to the Live using a stereo breakout cable (3.5mm stereo to twin 1/4 jack cable) going in to Input 3/4 and it is clearly in Mono. Which is very disappointing, and a real oversight on the part of PG here.
What the f××k, when do we e er hear it!
What the fxxk, you don’t - I never said you would in the title, and there’s nothing really to hear, which is pretty much the whole point of the video. It doesn’t really do anything when you connect the two of them, other than duplicate in mono whatever sound you’ve got coming out of the first amp on the second. Any other helpful comments?
A 13 minute talk and no play.... Just wow.
Yep, you're absolutely right, well done! I didn't promise to have any playing in the video, and there isn't much point anyway because linking the two amps together doesn't really do much sound wise - but please let me know when you've posted a video yourself, so I can offer you some pointless and faceless criticism? 👍🏻