So no questions here, I just want to know if I made the right answer!
I run the PA/Sound and everything else pretty much for a large local high school baseball team. They actually use the college field of a division 3 college in town, really nice field. Really nice except one thing, their audio system, mainly the speakers, are not great.
What they use is a Bogen receiver/amp, which i think is ok (still no power amp tho!), and then TWO laughable JBL indoor/outdoor speakers that i think probably cost $300 at most. They are on the sides of the pressbox. This is what they use for a pretty large outside baseball venue (laughable i know). The mic connection sounds fine. Which actually got me thinking about this stuff to begin with.
I obviously use digital music, ipod/iphone, but have went to jriver and a laptop recently as i would like to switch to in game software at some point. Well, this system, just keeps sounding worse and worse. Even like a little wind will mess it up. Get more mad each year. Sometimes it doesn't sound HORRIBLE, but in my eyes, its unacceptable. I even know the athletic director of the college real well, still just get the run around there. Football team has a new 250K scoreboard tho... of course.
I was just going out of the headphone jack into RCA for YEARS. Just sick of it, wondered if their was ANYTHING I could do to make it sound even a bit more decent on my end. Thought the mic sounds good, which got me thinking maybe try plugging into the XLR instead?
So i did research, the craziness of AI,DI, and DAC's of course. A buddy of mine had a couple old DI's, so i decided to try it. U know what? It sounded i think, quite a bit better! Actually had more power, cleaner sound. I mean, overall to me still crummy, but still better.
So, after some more research, I decided to pull the trigger and get the radial USB pro, one of the best supposedly for this type of stuff.
I know i can only do so much, but just wanted to ask if made the right decision? So many different options, i know the focusrite i highly thought of, and so are a lot of others! DAC's, DI's, AI's? Perhaps just gone with the dragonfly usb thing? I don't know, i just pulled the trigger on this one I guess. Laptop is just a crappy lower end HP, but i don't think the sound card has been a major problem. Maybe a TINY bit worse sounding than an ipod, but hardly much difference.
So, did i make the RIGHT decision? If i DID make the right decision going with the DI, did i waste my money on this one? Should have just went with the $50 peavy or something? I do no recording, i play the drums. haha. So this is all its for, maybe hook it up to home stereo if i am bored enuf in the offseason.
I just wanted to do what I could do. Thanks! I appreciate any advice/feedback from you good folks. Glad i have found this forum! I have already read a lot on here, thank you!
I run the PA/Sound and everything else pretty much for a large local high school baseball team. They actually use the college field of a division 3 college in town, really nice field. Really nice except one thing, their audio system, mainly the speakers, are not great.
What they use is a Bogen receiver/amp, which i think is ok (still no power amp tho!), and then TWO laughable JBL indoor/outdoor speakers that i think probably cost $300 at most. They are on the sides of the pressbox. This is what they use for a pretty large outside baseball venue (laughable i know). The mic connection sounds fine. Which actually got me thinking about this stuff to begin with.
I obviously use digital music, ipod/iphone, but have went to jriver and a laptop recently as i would like to switch to in game software at some point. Well, this system, just keeps sounding worse and worse. Even like a little wind will mess it up. Get more mad each year. Sometimes it doesn't sound HORRIBLE, but in my eyes, its unacceptable. I even know the athletic director of the college real well, still just get the run around there. Football team has a new 250K scoreboard tho... of course.
I was just going out of the headphone jack into RCA for YEARS. Just sick of it, wondered if their was ANYTHING I could do to make it sound even a bit more decent on my end. Thought the mic sounds good, which got me thinking maybe try plugging into the XLR instead?
So i did research, the craziness of AI,DI, and DAC's of course. A buddy of mine had a couple old DI's, so i decided to try it. U know what? It sounded i think, quite a bit better! Actually had more power, cleaner sound. I mean, overall to me still crummy, but still better.
So, after some more research, I decided to pull the trigger and get the radial USB pro, one of the best supposedly for this type of stuff.
I know i can only do so much, but just wanted to ask if made the right decision? So many different options, i know the focusrite i highly thought of, and so are a lot of others! DAC's, DI's, AI's? Perhaps just gone with the dragonfly usb thing? I don't know, i just pulled the trigger on this one I guess. Laptop is just a crappy lower end HP, but i don't think the sound card has been a major problem. Maybe a TINY bit worse sounding than an ipod, but hardly much difference.
So, did i make the RIGHT decision? If i DID make the right decision going with the DI, did i waste my money on this one? Should have just went with the $50 peavy or something? I do no recording, i play the drums. haha. So this is all its for, maybe hook it up to home stereo if i am bored enuf in the offseason.
I just wanted to do what I could do. Thanks! I appreciate any advice/feedback from you good folks. Glad i have found this forum! I have already read a lot on here, thank you!
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