I just don't understand live sound as well as I should, I'm sure you guys can straighten me out.
When you go to a show and you see a wall of cabinets, just how much of the overall sound is actually the bass/head/cab and how much of it is the PA System?
If a sound guy has your cabinet mic'd to run through the house PA, the audience is actually hearing the qualities of the PA System, not the instrument/head/cabinet, right? Sound guy usually says "leave your amp at n level, and I'll boost the gains through the board".
What would it matter then if I just brought a small combo amp, if they're just going to mic the speaker and raise the gain to optimal levels for the house anyway, right? I mean, I have small SWR combo that has great tone, and I can pick it up with one hand.
If my assumptions are even close to correct, then why would anyone lug a high end head and pair of 8x10's to a gig? A more relative question is: why spend the money on amp/cab when the sound guy is pumping it through the PA System anyway. I know that there's a lot of tonal qualities tied to the bass itself, pedals,amp/cab, but how much of those tonal qualities are then brought to the capabilities of the PA System?
See, I'm trying to help my son's band out as much as possible without being obtrusive to the music they choose to play or write. I'm trying to spend money as wisely as possible in an effort to help them get started.
They've played a few small gigs, and have more on the horizon. So far, it looks like spending money on a huge backline doesn't make any sense at all. A small (400W or so) PA System (for bars, coffee shops, etc) appears liek a better place to spend some amplification cash.
I may need to be set straight by you guys, so have at it.
Ack