GSS Soundboard

New Powered Speakers from EV and Mackie

2011-02-07T14:12:00.000-08:00

When QSC released their K Series line a few years ago, they revolutionized the way people thought about powered portable speakers. No longer was it necessary to build a 4', 80 lbs cabinet to get the performance that you wanted. Now it was possible to pack 1000W into a box not much bigger than a studio monitor. Well everyone knew that it wouldn't take long for other manufacturers to follow suit if they wanted to stay competitive in the portable speaker market.

At the winter NAMM show in Anaheim, CA this past January, Electro-Voice (EV) released their new line of speakers; the LIVE X series which includes both passive and powered boxes. The powered line consists of a 12" ELX112P and a 15" ELX115P speaker, both with 1000W Class D amplifier and an 18" subwoofer with a 700W Class D amplifier that is optimized for performance with both the ELX112P and ELX115P.

These speakers start at just $599 for the ELX112P and the 15" EPX115P is just $699. The 700W subwoofer sells for only $799 which provides customers with an incredibly affordable option when looking into a fully powered, portable sound system. These models will be shipping very shortly so get your order in today! But it doesn't end there.

Mackie introduced their powered High Definition (HD) line back in 2010. They had tremendous success with their SRM series of powered speakers but needed to update their line with more power and function. The result was the HD series that packs a whopping 1200-1800W into their cabinets ranging from 12"-15" speakers and 15"-18" subwoofers. You have to see and hear these things to actually believe it!

The HD1221 and the HD1501 are 12" and 15" respectively and both offer 1200W of power. The 1221 is a full range, 2-way loudspeaker and the 1501 is a compatible 15" subwoofer. They start at $799 for the HD1221 and the sub goes for a mere $849.
Moving up the line to the HD1521 sees an increase in power rating with this baby packing 1600W. The neodymium woofers and compression drives with heat-treated titanium diaphragms are consistent with this line of speakers and deliver unsurpassed clarity, quality and power previously unseen in such a small cabinet.

The HD1531 steps up to a 3-way, 1800W speaker that sells for $1200. The 1521 goes for just $999. They also have an HD1801 18", 1600W subwoofer and an HDA 12 high powered line array to complete the series that sell for $999 and $1699 respectively. Never before has power and portability been so affordable!

Give us a call today at 1-888-346-0085 to order your Mackie HD speakers.

And remember:
If it can't be heard, it can't be Good!

QSC System for a new Mad Mex restaurant.

2011-02-07T14:02:00.000-08:00

I've just completed a design for a sound distribution system that will be installed in a newly constructed Mad Mex restaurant in Pittsburgh, PA. The foundation is built around the QSC Acoustic Design series of loudspeakers; specifically the AD-S282H dual 8" high powered cabinets. The expectation from the owner was that the sound be consistent throughout the space and perform well at volumes louder than the typical eatery. This system should accomplish that easily.

The main dining areas will be covered by 7 QSC AD-S282H dual 8" high powered loudspeakers, hung at 18' from the beams in the open space ceiling. The coverage pattern for these speakers is 90 degrees horizontal x 60 degrees vertical. The horns will be rotated on some of the cabinets in order to provide better coverage, based on the direction they will be mounted. These mains will also cover the small mezzanine section toward the back of the restaurant.

2 AD-S28Tw subwoofers will be mounted in the ceiling directly over top of the bar area, one facing the front of the restaurant and one facing the back. The speakers will be enclosed inside the overhang and ported with black mesh across the front of each opening. The architect included bass traps inside this area to help reduce unwanted reverberations. Mounted to the ceiling of the bar area will be 3 AD-S82H single 8" loudspeakers, arranged in a U-shape for the 3 active sides of the bar. This should help to fill in any gaps from the mains being blocked from the bar overhang.

Some AD-S52 s will be mounted in some private seating areas as well as a private room. The power will be provided by several QSC PLX3102 Powerlight amplifiers. The entire system will be controlled by the QSC DSP 322ua system processor. Some features of the 322 are:

Features:

Universal inputs – mic/line with pre-amps and phantom power
Configurable DSP functions and signal paths
Fixed latency DSP engine
Ethernet controllable
Each unit can store eight design configurations that can be changed on the fly
Snapshots can recall config or block and/or parameter settings
THX Approved

DSP Functions:

Matrix mixer – any size, up to 24 x 24
Automixers – gain sharing
Routers – any size, up to 24 x 24
Gain controls – any channel count, up to 24
Graphic equalizers
Filters – high-pass, low-pass, all-pass, shelf, parametric, parametric shelf, Butterworth high and low-pass, Linkwitz-Riley high and low-pass, Bessel-Thomson high and low-pass
Crossovers – Linkwitz-Riley, Butterworth, Bessel-Thomson in-phase, Bessel-Thomson symmetrical, 2-way, 3-way, and 4-way general purpose adjustable
Compressors, peak limiters, AGC's, gates, dynamics processor
Duckers – up to 8 channels, up to 60 seconds fade in and fade out times, priority mix
Pink noise, white noise, sine generators
Delays
Macros – user-definable custom blocks with password protection

As we progress through installation, I will update with pictures. Stayed tuned.

And remember:
If it can't be heard, it can't be Good!

PreSonus StudioLive 16.4.2 Digital Mixer Review

2010-09-22T07:03:00.000-07:00

The cleanest, most intuitive digital console I've ever used!

As a live sound engineer, I have to admit that I am one of those guys who has fought the transition from analog to digital with a vengeance. I love the digital world, don't get me wrong, but not in the live arena. And I'm sure it is for all the same reasons that every other sound guy fights it:

1. Too many menus/buttons to get what you want
2. Too many menus/buttons to get what you want
3. Too many menus/buttons to get what you want
4. Too many.........well you get the idea.

But along comes PreSonus with the determination to change the minds of us analog dinosaurs. And guess what? This old fossil has given in!

I recently brought the StudioLive 16.4.2 on board to add to our rental inventory and sound system packages. I figured I would give it a try and offer it to folks who wanted a digital console in their system. I even thought I may use it to run sound in a pinch if I had to. Well, I'm here to say that I don't know if I ever want to use anything else! This board is absolutely amazing for more reasons than I have time to explain. But I will give it a shot.

Great reasons to love these boards!

Intuitive-Intuitive-Intuitive

Upon opening the box, I was impressed at what a sharp looking console it is. I set it up and immediately began working through some functions ( without looking at the manual of course; what can I say, I'm a typical sound guy!) I was able to navigate very easily around the board because it reminded me so much of an analog mixer. After about 5 minutes I worked my way up to the Aux Sends section. This was where I was stumped for a bit and forced to look at the manual. I know, I know, I can admit it! But in less than a minute, and I'm not kidding when I say that, I figured out the Aux Sends and pretty much everything else that this board could do.

I think it is fair to say that 90% or more of this board's function lies on the surface, meaning that you don't need to access menus to do anything. Everything is there at the push of a button and I mean everything! You would swear that this is an analog board. I was blown away at how easy it is to navigate around and access any function you want, unlike so many other digital consoles out there where so much is hidden away in menus and sub-functions. Just this intuitiveness was enough to sell me, but it keeps getting better.

Functionality-Functionality-Functionality

When you look at this board, you are almost immediately drawn to this striking blue section in the middle PreSonus calls the FAT channel section. It is the heart and soul of their StudioLive mixers. This is where you will spend a great deal of time working and with a smile I might add. When I mentioned earlier that I had to look in the manual, this FAT channel was the solution to my problem, and man what a solution!

In a nutshell, this section provides you will all of your EQ, and dynamics processing. There are 16 different pots to adjust HPF, Gate, Compression, Limiting, and EQ for each of the 16 channels. That in itself is cool but what else it provides is really cool. Those rotary knobs convert to send knobs for each of the 16 channels when you push the SELECT button on any of the AUX channels. I thought this was fantastic. These knobs are also used for the 32 channel EQ for the mains. Again, very cool. PreSonus certainly made great use out of this FAT channel section.

I also like the bussing on this board and how the FAT channel can be assigned to every output including the aux sends, the group outs and the mains. You know how much gear you would have to use to get the same results, right?

And the FX are incredibly easy to use and route. This is really the only place where you need to use the menu (except for the 32 channel eq for the mains). In terms of capability, you are mostly limited by your imagination.

Expandable-Expandable-Expandable

Another function I love about these StudioLive boards is that they can be linked to expand your channel capability. You simply connect multiple units together with a firewire cable and assign master and slave status and off you go! The FAT channel functions are operational on each board and the outputs are operational on the master. Very simple and very cool!

I absolutely love these boards and highly recommend them to anyone wanting digital capabilities with the functionality of analog. PreSonus really hit a home run with these consoles in this price point. A StudioLive 16.4.2 (or StudioLOVE as I like to call it) can be purchased for under $2000 and considering what this board offers, that is a steal!

Do yourself a favor and check out these boards. You will fall in love with them as I did! You can see these boards at: http://www.goodsoundstudio.com. And remember, if it can't be heard - it can't be Good!