Powered speakers are just passive speakers with amps screwed onto them. So don't prescribe them with unique qualities.
Absolutely.
The reason I mentioned they were passive (along with being driven by a Dx38 and it's i/o trim levels) was so you guys could get an idea on what sort of input the Dx38 accepts and what sort of levels it puts out (Info available in the manual - Very few powered speaker manufacturers list this info as far as I know). Maybe someone with some more experience on that particular DSP could've given me some insight on why I've had luck with that setup and not others. Only mentioned they were passive to separate them from other setups, hope this clears things up.
Almost all amps are full tilt when receiving an input below 8 dBu. Device output levels are not really a factor; SPL comes from amps and speakers, not from mixers.
Could you please explain a bit more on that? Don't faders essentially reduce the output level of the device?? Unless you mean it's the RMS signal that matters and not max output?
mix at 20 dB below your devices max output level. Another reason output levels don't matter for this discussion.
So should I match my console's max output to my amp's/speaker's max output or not? How do I get the exact same max level & headroom out of the speakers?
It's confusing me more and more over time.
I feel like I'm getting answers to more questions that I need...
My question basically is:
- There's a PA that's normally being run by a Midas M32; 21dBu max output, 4dBu nominal. Proper gain staging (Matched clip points).
- I come in to mix a show using my XR16; 16dBu max output, 4dBu nominal.
Do I turn up the speakers 5dB to get the same maximum output? Do I turn them up less? More? None at all? Or is there no way of knowing for sure without doing some proper gain staging (Matching clip points)?
I understand the concept of headroom, I am really not as much of a noob as I appear to be. I just have more experience with studio work (About 6 years, despite my age) as opposed to live sound - Never really had to deal with a console's maximum (or any type of) output.
Live sound is what I'm mostly interested in however, so obviously I've been reading and studying various stuff about system tuning, alignment, measurement, and so on, throughout all those 6 years. I just don't have enough practical experience to be in a position to answer some stupidly simple questions like these. Other than mixing, live sound requires a completely different set of skills and knowledge, I'm sure you know that
Cheers!
