Speaker recommendation

Tim Timpone

Freshman
Feb 18, 2014
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I am currently using two SRM-450 for outdoor events. These are usually walks/runs for charity. Occasionally people will say to me that they were unable to hear me from the back. What would be a step up for speakers that can be heard from a further distance? They would have to fit in an SUV and be portable. Thanks
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Need some further information. What are you putting through the speakers: full range music, spoken word only? What's your budget? How large an area do you need to cover, and how loud does it need to be? How many people need to hear what you're putting through the speakers? If it's a large enough area, you may need to consider additional delay speakers.
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Mostly announcements need to be heard about 100 yards away. Number of people varies from event to event. Usually around several hundred to a couple thousand. Getting delay speakers will be tricky due to liability of tripping over wires and availability of electric. It would be nice if a couple of speakers would do the trick. I've been looking at the QSC k12's just not sure if they will be any louder.
 
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Re: Speaker recommendation

Is it because is isn't loud enough? Often it's a case of being able to hear it but not being able to understand. That can be caused by having lots of reflective sound from walls etc. in the area along with the direct sound from the speakers. If so, a narrower pattern, especially in the speech range, would help.

Chris
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

There are no walls around as it is outside in parks

I assume you're putting them up on stands that can get the bottom of the speaker a foot(or more) above people's heads.

If not, get some.

Second, what kind of mic are you using? What are you feeding the mic into, a mixer with outboard gear into the speakers, or directly into the speakers?

Depending on this, some improvement may be possible without resorting to buying new speakers, although 2k people with two smallish two ways is really not good practice.

Best regards,

John
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

You won't find anything much louder than the Mackies that will still sit on a regular-duty stand safely, at least not without spending lots of money (thousands). Of course, with louder speakers for the far people, you end up blasting the near people into next week, unless the speakers are up really high.

Some judicious EQ and maybe a better quality mic might make a difference. Another sound quality killer is the person making the announcements who wants to hold the mic a foot away from their mouth, and speak in a quiet voice. :?~:-?~:???:

One thing that often works for me is a cluster of 4 speakers in a tight circle with their backs to each other, right in the centre of the field. This decreases the distance to the farthest people by half. The other is a distributed system...more speakers closer to the intended audience.

Get those Mackies up nice and high. Height is your friend.

Good luck!
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Yeah swap those regular stands for ones that can do 8-9 ft adj makes a pretty affordable crank stand you can pop a speaker on. Really though the biggest issue I see at these type of events is announcers right on the mic basically yelling so distortion becomes an issue. You might want to look into dialing your mics in especially wireless units.
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

If you want to depress yourself, download a program like Ease and play with it. Free Downloads - EASE Focus - Generic Aiming and Acoustic Modeling Software

You can make pretty graphics like this and then come to realize that to get the magic "throw" to the people far away (without killing the people in the near feild) takes an enormous amount of resources.
 

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Re: Speaker recommendation

Get a pair of the passive Qrx 112/75 or 115/75 and feed them about 600watts each. Then get them up in the air as everyone suggested. You can get these used for about 600$ on eBay. They have done wonders for me in places where ev sx300 and my jbl mp412 have failed miserably!
Conrad
Www.kooleventug.com


Sent from my iPhone
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

300' deep coverage is really pushing it for a pair of powered two ways. I'd want nothing less than a pair of EV ZXA5-60s. As others have mentioned put them on tall stands, and use the 90 Hz high pass filter to cut the lows for more output and speech clarity.
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Tim, I agree with the others on the height, I do a 10k race and a 5k every year , the 10k has a lot more people than the 5k does. I think last year was 1,500 people. What i do on the 10k is this, I have a set of old CGM 15 inch cabinets and a set of pevey pv115 Cabs, I have to have coverage for one whole block , My coverage is about 300' . I place all the speakers about 50' from each other, I am running one side of a Behringer ep4000 and ones side of a Behringer epx2000. Last year the person over the event told me to do it this year just like i did last year. he was well satisfied with every thing. everything was really really loud, but they like it that way so that is what i am running for my 10k gig. the first year I did the gig was a learning experience for me. cause it was my first one ever, I had my speakers setting down low, the people e mailed me and said that i did a great job but they needed it louder, so i started thinking about the height thing and last year I put them above the people's head and that done the trick. it was louder and made the people happy. So get them things up high it will be a great improvement for you. and I would suggest adding a couple more and doing them like i told you earlier. Hope this works for you. :)
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

This is me last year. The Boilermaker one of the largest foot races in the country in its class. This is the 5k start with 2,500 registered runners lined up to a depth of over 500'. I am not saying this is ideal but it is what I could manage with available resources and limited budget. Setup time and strike times are very limited.
 

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Re: Speaker recommendation

This is me last year. The Boilermaker one of the largest foot races in the country in its class. This is the 5k start with 2,500 registered runners lined up to a depth of over 500'. I am not saying this is ideal but it is what I could manage with available resources and limited budget. Setup time and strike times are very limited.
What speakers and speaker stands are you using? How high can you get them with the stands? Thanks
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Tim, I agree with the others on the height, I do a 10k race and a 5k every year , the 10k has a lot more people than the 5k does. I think last year was 1,500 people. What i do on the 10k is this, I have a set of old CGM 15 inch cabinets and a set of pevey pv115 Cabs, I have to have coverage for one whole block , My coverage is about 300' . I place all the speakers about 50' from each other, I am running one side of a Behringer ep4000 and ones side of a Behringer epx2000. Last year the person over the event told me to do it this year just like i did last year. he was well satisfied with every thing. everything was really really loud, but they like it that way so that is what i am running for my 10k gig. the first year I did the gig was a learning experience for me. cause it was my first one ever, I had my speakers setting down low, the people e mailed me and said that i did a great job but they needed it louder, so i started thinking about the height thing and last year I put them above the people's head and that done the trick. it was louder and made the people happy. So get them things up high it will be a great improvement for you. and I would suggest adding a couple more and doing them like i told you earlier. Hope this works for you. :)
I've got a really good price on a pair of QSC k12's......Do you think they would do a better job then the Mackie 450's?
Thanks
 
Re: Speaker recommendation

Looking at the specs, the qsc seems to have 4db more spl than the mackie. 127db 1m vs 131. They both have 1.75" HF drivers. The power amp in the qsc is 500watts lf, 500w HF, while the mackie is 300w lf 100w hf. Qsc k12 may outperform the mackie but may still not meet the spl you require. I hate buying stuff only to discover that it doesn't meet the need. If there was a way to demo before you buy would be great.
Conrad
www.kooleventug.com


Sent from my iPhone