Building PA Question – First Time

Well there are 2 options you have when you are going to build your first PA. Since you already stated that this wont be for a live band and is soley for DJing purposes..you are correct and you will not need a full mixer with lots of inputs or anything like that.

Option 1 – Amps with a Crossover and passive Speakers
Option 2 – Just Powered Speakers.

Now ill discuss these further.

Option 1 is where you will have a Crossover which is what you will be plugging your controller into. Typically these are XLR. Since you are using a Kontrol S2 you will need to buy TRS to XLR cables…they are pretty cheap and you should never gig without them from personal experience. What the Crossover does is splits the signal for your highs and lows.
You will probably want 2 amps…or maybe even 3 amps which is what i use. The outs from the crossover which will be in XLR will connect to your Highs/Mid amp and another set will connect to your Bassbin Amp(s). I have 1 amp for my Monitors and 1 amp for each of my 20″ Double Bassbins (2 Bassbins with 2 subs in each)
You then connect Passive speakers to your amps and you are ready to go.

Option 2 is a little easier and more user friendly for people who do not really know how to set things up…I personally prefer using a Powered system which my company has as well. The Way a powered system works is like this:
Same TRS to XLR cables except 1 of the XLRs goes into 1 powered Monitor…the other XLR into the other one. Now most if not all Powered speakers have in and through plugs. The Cables from the S2 go directly into the Input, then you just grab another XLR to XLR cable and daisy chain it to the next speaker, and so forth.

So it goes S2>Monitor>Sub once for left and once for right channel.

I LOVE my passive system…but not because its passive…but because it really freakin thumps and you can really feel the bass. Had i had the exact same system in a powered version i would probably take it.

Now If i owned my own club or a full venue…i would take Option 1.

Here is my justification. Option 1 you can tweak a lot more of your sound…and in the long run is better overall if you are in a stationary setup…your own venue bar etc. Plus overall its cheaper…this is yet to be proven…i have heard.

Option 2 is GREAT for parties where you are going to have to setup and tear down, as well with Powered speakers you have more room if something goes wrong. Lets say you go and set up a huge party…and all of a sudden your Amp or crossover blows…you are totally screwed for your party using Option 1. With Option 2 that cannot happen as each speaker has a built in amp. If something goes wrong with 1 of your powered speakers..you can still passibly do your show with 1 less speaker.

Sorry for the long winded post but hopefully that gives u an idea on what you are looking for….oh and 1 last thing…Amps suck ballz they are soo heavy.

I think I’m using the LITE version of your Option 2 because I don’t use minitors in between. I go straight from the controller to the 15″ Powered Speaker. In the Restaurant/Bar I currently play, I really on need one 15″ Powered speaker for the room. However, I’m thinking about adding a second just to have a Left and a Right.

For any type of IDM or EDM or Dance Music in general I would go so far as to say you NEEEED bassbins.
Okay that might be a bit dramatic…but really yes you need bassbins.

There are lots of different theories that people put together regarding the amount of wattage and loudness needed but here are a couple of tips that i have used:

Size of room (capacity) x 25 watts so if u have a room that holds 100 people you will want at least 2500 watts of sound…that is bare minimum, You never want to go with just the min as you will be putting all your speakers at maximum strain for an extended period of time. This is also dependant on the type of show…if you are doing it in a wide open room space that is designed for a club…or is it a big empty room that is in a basement.

I can reccomend some good brands but that will do little to no good as it will probably cost you a big chunk of change.

Let me know your budget and i can out some makes and models together. The money you spend is the quality you get…This is especially true when it comes to Speakers…and its not just about the sound quality…its how long they last…how durable they are etc.

Oh I Forgot to add that you want a 1:1 factor Speakers/Monitors to Subs

Hee Won Jung, post: 30935, member: 948 wrote: I call anything that is not a Bassbin a Monitor…so in essence you are doing exactly option #2 without a bassbin 😀

Its always a good thing to have both left and right speakers as a lot of songs have panning and you can only hear coming out of 1 side of the pan, unless you are in mono and you would hear the panning effect at all.

Thanks. I’m looking at the Behringer and the Mackies. I’ve used the Behringers and they sound pretty good. However, some say the Mackies are better. Do you have an opinion on these?

Hee Won Jung, post: 30947, member: 948 wrote: Mackie Monitors are freakin Kick ASS…IMO they are the best bang for the buck. The Subs on the other hand are pretty bad imo.

I make it a point to never buy anything for Behringer.

The Equipment rental place the I rented speakers from rent me a pair of Behringers and they were ok. They had two other brands but they claim all of theirs were about the same. The Mackie Thumps aren’t much more. I’m going to try and listnen to them somewhere before I buy.

Thanks for your help.

A grand for a pair of active 15″ers is a good start, then save another grand for your subs. When you start getting gigs you will want to aim to spend a grand per speaker. (4 grand is my next goal for a PA- 2x JBL 515XT and 2x JBL 518S or spend just a bit more and go the jbl PRX range). My end goal is spend about 30 grand and get a nice line array happening!

There is a lot of win in Hee’s posts, I would listen to him, he obviously knows what he is talking about and I could not have said it any better…

No Worries!

Thats what we are here for 😀