Ev zlx

Re: Ev zlx

Chad Young said:
Yes, actually:
- How do you like the sound controls on the back?
- Do they seem rugged and more road-worthy then their thin-skinned ELX siblings?
- Easy to transport and set up?
- I would love to hear your thoughts on their sound quality/quantity once you use them live.

Thanks!
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The controls on the back feel almost rubbery. However the processor in there is pretty cool for a $400 speaker.
I haven't used the ELX but the grill got a good scratch when a mic stand was pushed up to it, but the box itself seemed pretty good,
Very easy to transport and set up, the handle on the top did not feel natural to me (that's being a bit picky)
The box sounds pretty good to ear but i don't think they will get very loud. I was running a 3 piece acoustic gig (2 acoustics & cajon) and i set the front lights to clip and they lite up a few times during practice, so i set a 24db butterworth at 52hz and never saw it again and we were running around 90db c weight on a radio shack meter 20 ft from the stage. Once I get my measurement mic in I will find out what the all the processor settings really do.
I liked there's a reset function so if i rent it out at least i can walk someone through getting signal without a drive
 
Re: Ev zlx

Thanks! I also am curious what the various settings do. My ELX112P cabs work well as monitor wedges with a 100Hz HP filter, so I am keen on seeing if one of the internal filters on the ZLX can provide this.
 
Re: Ev zlx

Sorry for the bump a couple weeks later, but I figured I'd contribute my own little mini review. I am impressed by these speakers, within their own category as a budget speaker. I just got two of these in and tested them out.

What I did, and this may be unconventional for some, was I used my M-Audio box (connected to my laptop) and used the direct outs from that into the speakers, using balanced 1/4" to XLR. I then opened up iTunes started playing music. Both iTunes and the laptop were at 100% volume.

The inputs on the speakers were set to halfway, and the master volume was set to 0 dB. Both the low end and high end were very present. I let it run for a few minutes before I started cranking these up. I got to about +7 dB on the master before the limit notification was shown, from presumably too much low end. Keep in mind that the limit wasn't holding but rather just flashing in different periods of time.

I went into the DSP menu and cut back on the bass all the way it could go (-10 dB). I then proceeded to turn the master and input gain up in short increments. It wasn't until I reached about +20 dB (+10 dB on the master, and a couple notches on the input gain) that I started hitting the flashing limit again. At that point the objects in my kitchen about 40 ft away started rattling. The bass is still very present while maintaining a good high end.

I probably did not properly test these out, but I wanted to see what kind of headroom I could get out of these. I don't think these will give the EXL112Ps or the K12s a run for their money, but they're a good option for those looking to save a bit. I am impressed so far, and I can't wait to use these on a live gig.
 
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Re: Ev zlx

I'm glad this was brought back up, how hot should the amps get on these?

I used them for the first time with a full band over a pair of renkus dual 18s, and all went really well until tear down, (4hr event) and they were so hot they melted my light weight jacket when it pushed up against it.
 
Re: Ev zlx

I played music for about an hour continuously, it was warm to the touch, but not piping hot. They were about as hot as my Thumps would get after an hour's worth of work.

I will let you know after I do my 3 hour gig this weekend to let you know how hot mine get during tear down.
 
Re: Ev zlx

Ben Gingerich said:
I'm glad this was brought back up, how hot should the amps get on these?

I used them for the first time with a full band over a pair of renkus dual 18s, and all went really well until tear down, (4hr event) and they were so hot they melted my light weight jacket when it pushed up against it.
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From an engineering standpoint, I don't think it is good that they get that hot. The PRX powered speakers also tend to the hot side as well.

My feeling is that the thermal cycling of the circuits is bad and can cause failures. Additionally, if it is that hot on the outside, think of how hot it is on the inside! That doesn't do good things for the voice coil or the material the speaker cone is made with either IMHO.

My DSR112's rarely get more than "warm" to the touch and even when ran full out, I can still stand to put my hand on it.

My PRX618S-XLF's on the other hand will get quite hot if I push them all night. I have had them for about 2 years and play them every week. So far my fear of their higher temps hasn't resulted in any issues, so I could be wrong :)
 
Re: Ev zlx

I had these speakers on from 7pm until Midnight. Playing half live music, and half recorded music. Ran keyboards, bass guitar (reinforcement, not amplification) and vocals through it. It filled a 300 person hall pretty nicely, but keep in mind that our object was to keep music focused on the dance floor, while allowing people in the rear of the dance hall to socialize and whatnot.

Touched the back of it at the end of the night. It was warm, but I wouldn't say so hot that it would deform anything that touched it. I'm pretty impressed with these things myself, but will end up getting a sub eventually to take off the low end.
 
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