ProSoundWeb Community

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Pages: 1 [2] 3   Go Down

Author Topic: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?  (Read 18588 times)

Mark Tansey

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 7
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #10 on: September 08, 2016, 07:08:00 PM »

Okay thanks Debbie, I was also looking at, RCF Art 712-A MkII, JBL PRX 712, and JBL PRX 715. Would does everyone think?
Logged

Robert Lofgren

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 959
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #11 on: September 08, 2016, 08:04:00 PM »

Okay thanks Debbie, I was also looking at, RCF Art 712-A MkII, JBL PRX 712, and JBL PRX 715. Would does everyone think?
I personally think that the rcf712 sounds really great and it goes very low and loud despite being only a 12".
Logged

Paul G. OBrien

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 1393
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #12 on: September 08, 2016, 08:15:20 PM »

I don't use subs.
That will have to change for those 400 person events, no speaker on a stand will deliver the sound you need/want. FYI.. my business is supplying SR for wedding DJ's for the most part. I'd give a +1 to the Yamaha DSR or DXR series or the JBL PRX or SRX series, but I would caution against everything Mackie. I own some DXRs and some Mackies. In all cases I'd suggest getting a pair of 12" tops and two 18" subs to start, yes the 15" tops give you a little more lowend but it's nothing compared to what even a single 18 sitting on the floor will deliver, so don't waste your time. If you insist on not using subs then you'll just have to get used to your party goers leaving for the event next door where the DJ brought a sub.. or four. ;D I have seen this repeatedly on numerous banquet centers here.. by the end of the night the DJ with the most thump ends up with all the guests and even the newlyweds from the other events in the same building, and that is usually one of my DJs.
Logged

Debbie Dunkley

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 6046
  • Central North Carolina
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #13 on: September 08, 2016, 08:32:25 PM »

Okay thanks Debbie, I was also looking at, RCF Art 712-A MkII, JBL PRX 712, and JBL PRX 715. Would does everyone think?

At the price of the PRX712 right now -$449 (PAS)- ... you could get 2, still be better sounding than the Mackies and maybe add in a PRX718 sub at $800 -$900.
All the PRX 700 series speakers are on close out so you can't go wrong. I agree with others that you will miss a sub (and so will your audience) if you don't get one - the low end on any 15" full range speaker can't match a dedicated sub - even the DXR15 won't fill the gap properly...
I love the PRX718xlf subs and use them all the time... I personally prefer the Yamaha DSR112 to the PRX712 but at $449, you could get 2, stretch to a sub as well and have a really decent sounding rig. Even better with 2 subs of course and well matched. If you chose to go this route though, if you want to add another sub down the road you might have to go used though with the PRX718xlf no longer being made.
Logged
A young child says to his mother, "Mom, when I grow up I'm going to be a musician." She replies, "Well honey, you know you can't do both."

Rob Spence

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3531
  • Boston Metro North/West
    • Lynx Audio Services
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #14 on: September 08, 2016, 11:57:36 PM »

Do you want more watts (heat) or more SPL (loudness) ?

You don't hear watts.

Watts are the wrong spec to be looking at.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Logged
rob at lynxaudioservices dot com

Dealer for: AKG, Allen & Heath, Ashley, Astatic, Audix, Blue Microphones, CAD, Chauvet, Community, Countryman, Crown, DBX, Electro-Voice, FBT, Furman, Heil, Horizon, Intellistage, JBL, Lab Gruppen, Mid Atlantic, On Stage Stands, Pelican, Peterson Tuners, Presonus, ProCo, QSC, Radial, RCF, Sennheiser, Shure, SKB, Soundcraft, TC Electronics, Telex, Whirlwind and others

Mark Cadwallader

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 1338
  • Helena, Montana USA
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #15 on: September 09, 2016, 01:44:02 AM »

Do you want more watts (heat) or more SPL (loudness) ?

You don't hear watts.

Watts are the wrong spec to be looking at.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

What Rob is saying is that SPL is a much better spec to look at than wattage, if you are interested in "how loud" a powered speaker will go. Max SPL is the most noise (sound) the speaker will make for an (usually) unstated time. It does not tell you the quality of the sound/noise being produced.

Please note that a 1 or 2 db difference is not particularly noticable for most folks.

What is your immediate budget? 
Logged
"Good tools are expensive, but cheap tools are damned expensive."

Luke Geis

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2356
    • Owner of Endever Music Production's
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #16 on: September 09, 2016, 03:35:02 AM »

In general:

12" speakers for quality of sound, but with a need for sub support if you want full range audio.

15" speakers if you must have low end content and will not, or do not have subs.

The smaller the speaker, the better the quality of sound ( in general ) potential there is. All that means is that the smaller speakers have less mass and therefore can react to the electrical signal better than a larger element.

As to wattage and SPL, that is a two way street. A speaker with 2000 watts may only produce 130db whereas a unit with 1000 watts may produce 133db. Whats the difference? Nothing more than efficiency. Wattage means nothing in reality. The peak SPL rating of the speaker is not a telling measurement either. Just because it will get that loud does not mean that it will sound good doing it. However speakers that get rather loud usually have the potential to sound better at reasonable levels. Why is this? They are not working as hard to produce the work that you're asking them to do.

How loud is loud enough? That is a math problem that you will need to learn. My theory is that if you plan on being loud and want it to sound good, you need a speaker capable of at least 135db. A speaker that will get to 133db is pretty darn close and I would say it is at the threshold of not loud enough for what most really want it to do. It is easy to turn a speaker down, but very hard to turn it up once it is near it's limits. So don't pick one speaker over the other because it is 2db louder. Pick the one that sounds the best at performance level.
Logged
I don't understand how you can't hear yourself

Mark Tansey

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 7
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #17 on: September 09, 2016, 04:51:38 AM »

Okay so it seems like it's down to JBL, The PRX712 Is 135db and the PRX715 is 136db. Where do ye find the cheapest place to putchase?
Logged

Don T. Williams

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 1064
  • Midas Pro 1 & 2, M32, dbTech T12, T8, S30, DM12
    • Q Systems Music & Sound
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #18 on: September 09, 2016, 05:52:29 PM »

I Think your getting good advise all around, and the JBL PRX at close out prices are real values.

I'm not trying to insult DJ's, or Hip Hop, or EDM, but with most of that type music you probably won't miss the smoother mid range that you might get with a 12" speaker.  Go with the 15's AND get subs (or rent them) for bigger events.  Maybe 100 people without subs, but Paul (and others) are right.  Subs make a huge difference for dance music!
Logged

Mark Tansey

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 7
Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #19 on: September 09, 2016, 06:08:22 PM »

Yeah normally I wouldn't be playing to over 100 people, but I would still love to buy a sub so I will when I get the money together for one. Where do ye all buy yere gear?
Logged

ProSoundWeb Community

Re: 12Inch or 15Inch Speakers?
« Reply #19 on: September 09, 2016, 06:08:22 PM »


Pages: 1 [2] 3   Go Up
 



Site Hosted By Ashdown Technologies, Inc.

Page created in 0.057 seconds with 25 queries.