A/B box idea/question

[beggar_guitar]

When I play at church I have a 4x12 cab mic'ed, but will be downsizing there to a 1x12 or 2x12. I predominately play electric, but on occasion I need to play my acoustic. Youth services the acoustic gets more play.

Anyway my signal goes

Guitar->POD->PowerBlock->4x12->mic->soundboard/PA

When I use the acoustic i have to unhook the mic and plug it into a direct box

Guitar->Direct box-> soundboard/PA

I know I could just run the direct box and A/B the POD/Acoustic. I have to use my cab as a monitor though and I can not get a satisfactory tone plugging the POD direct, and they won't bend to let me tweak the EQ's on the PA to accomodate. So Mic'ed it is.

I guess I am wondering if there was an A/B box available or which could be built in which one input was a 1/4" and the other an XLR(female) and the Output an XLR(male). I think... I'll check when I get back up to church.

Is this possible? Or am I over looking a way easier way to do this? Please don't reccomend a Variax! I've considered it, but I am looking for a more inexpensive solution.

 

[WhoFan]

Re: A/B box idea/question

i have never heard of such an a/b box but they maybe out there....

just a side note along the same lines/issues you have.. best set up i've seen yet for switching instruments thru one amp was the keyboard player in my last band.. he played Electric Guitar, Acoustic and 2 different Keyboards, all thru his Keyboard amp... He had a POD for the Electric guitars (but he also used the Pod to juice his keyboards Organ tones for that Deep Purple sound) The back of his keyboard amp had XLR outputs... so everything he was doing went out to the PA on one cable... freaking genus!!!!!

 

[RW James]

Re: A/B box idea/question

I know this doesn't answer your question - but the way we do it in our church is - the electric goes into an a mic'ed amp - the acoustic-electric goes directly into another channel and is eq'ed for that instrument. Using the same channel for electric and acoustic just causes more trouble than it's worth.

 

[beggar_guitar]

Re: A/B box idea/question

I know this doesn't answer your question - but the way we do it in our church is - the electric goes into an a mic'ed amp - the acoustic-electric goes directly into another channel and is eq'ed for that instrument. Using the same channel for electric and acoustic just causes more trouble than it's worth.

Agreed. I'd prefer to have it set up that way. Sometimes we use 2 guitars and we have to scurry around and steal a channel for it. It's a serious headache. The Best answer to my problem is go in and re-do the stage and fix any bad connections.

That may end up getting my weekend before long.