11r and power amp

[swwee8]

sorry for the noob question but does a power amp make a difference in sound quality?

i plugged the 11r straight into the pa. sounded pretty decent. will a power amp make is sound that much better?

[VaiSatchAtrucci]

There's a lot of factors involved... What type of power amp, cab, etc... Basically though the direct signal going to FOH for me sounds better than any amp I've had mic'd up in terms of what comes out the mains and also through the monitors, but there's no substitution for an amp/cab on stage behind you IF you are used to that and prefer that. I personally don't miss it because I never really could hear it anyway over my monitors signal so it's a moot issue for me.

[randombastage]

Plugging into your own dedicated, good, FRFR monitor you can be sure to hear it and have control over the stage volume for your guitar regardless of the mix.
With a power amp and traditional guitar cab you have the same ability to hear it regardless of your sound man not always giving your instrument a good level in the PA system's monitors but you also get that familiar 'real amp' feel and sound instead of the mic'ed sound like you get from the PA's monitor mix or your own FRFR monitor.

Using the power amp and real cab does limit your preset sound to the character of the power amp and real cab you choose versus the the variety of all the different cab sims built into the ElevenRack if you go FRFR. So you'll have to decide which way you want to lean....

I like the real amp sound for the most part but still run FRFR for some presets because the 4x12 feel for the heavy stuff is really good and hard to get with my open back 1x12, my only 'real amp/cab'...
But I'm not on stage having to load in and out every other night either. I probably would just run FRFR if I was still playing on stage purely out of lazyness. People listening won't know the difference, they always get the mic'ed sound anyway and I can enjoy the feel of the FRFR enough to get by. You get accustomed to the mic'ed sound. If you have your own PA and trust the soundman...and already have a good monitor in front of you anyway as part of the regular PA setup just bring the ElevenRack and your guitar and enjoy!

When I'm in a room alone trying to get inspired by the sound of the guitar, trying to come up with new stuff, that is when I really need that 'amp-in-the-room' sound. When I'm hearing me in a mix it doesn't matter and sometimes in a mix it's even better FRFR.