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[Nathan Morefield]

My band's current PA setup is a pair of EV ZLX12Ps.  We run 4 vocals, acoustic guitar, mandolin and accordion thru the board for most gigs, which is fine for the pubs we typically play. 

But we have a few gigs coming up (larger venues and outdoors) where we'll need to also mic up the drum set.  Kick and snare for sure, maybe a mono overhead.  Plenty of inputs on our board, but I suspect the pair of 12"s won't have the bottom end to really round out the kick. 

Also might put the electric bass into the board too, though his rig is usually sufficient even for louder gigs.

So I'm looking at either selling the 12"s and buying a pair of 15"s or adding something like the EV  ELX200-12SP subwoofer to the existing 12"s. 

We are an Irish pub folk type band so we certainly don't need chest thumping bass, just need to have a balanced mix.

Would love thoughts on ways to approach this decision.

Thanks in advance!

[Mac Kerr]

My band's current PA setup is a pair of EV ZLX12Ps.

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[Luke Geis]

For band use, you will want the 15" or bigger option. The smaller 12" subs are good for spoken word or smaller presentations where volume isn't as big a deal and you just need to extend the low end to make an impact, not crack peoples ribs.

[Chris Grimshaw]

My recommendation, as various people said on the other forum, would be to simply add subwoofers as/when needed. If it's infrequent, you could just rent them in.

Don't bother with 15" tops, unless they deploy a large-format compression driver. A 15"/1" cab is never a good idea - rough midrange on-axis, and muddy off axis.

Chris

[Eric Snodgrass]

The EV ZLX-12P cabinets come with onboard DSP.  If you haven't already played around with different settings on this DSP, try the MUSIC preset and POLE position preset.  The MUSIC preset will extend the low-end frequency response of the speaker without overly hyping it (unlike the CLUB preset, which IMO does overhype the bass response).  The POLE position preset will not roll off any low-end frequencies (the BRACKET and MONITOR position presets do roll off low-end to compensate for the speakers proximity to either the wall or floor). 
Setting the speaker in this configuration should give you enough in the low frequencies to give a good mix when bass and kick are added.  I do concur with Chris that adding a subwoofer when you think it is needed is a good idea.  Run it on an aux at unity and just dial in the bass and kick. 
If you are hankering to make a speaker change, you could sell the ZLX 12Ps and upgrade to the EV EKX-12Ps, which are a wooden box, 1500w, and just sound better (IMO, based on a side-by-side comparison I did).  They have a smoother response and don't distort when really pushed, unlike the ZLX. 

[Mal Brown]

Personally I like modularity.  I would look at the compact 12” based QSC sub and leave it home when not needed.

[Jeff Bankston]

I use 12" for mids(130hz and higher). 15" or 18" for woofers(130hz and lower).

[Paul G. OBrien]

So I'm looking at either selling the 12"s and buying a pair of 15"s or adding something like the EV  ELX200-12SP subwoofer to the existing 12"s. 

Just add a 15" or 18" sub(12" is too small) and set a 100hz high pass in the ZLX's, you will be amazed at the improvement in clarity and the increase in SPL before limiting.

[Nathan Morefield]

Thank you everybody for the input.   It makes all the sense in the world to stick with the 12's and only lug out a sub when needed. 

I also appreciate the input on renting. 

I looked into local DFW places that rent and was surprised to see the pricing.  I found 3 with online pricing, all offered 18" powered subs, prices were between $60 and $90/day.  Looking at the mini-tours I would want a sub for, the first one is 6 days long and the second one is 4 days long.  Even the cheapest option is gonna be $600 which has me pretty close to buying my own sub.   

For portability sake, I don't think an 18" is an option, so I'm going to see if I can find somewhere around me that has a 12" and a 15" to listen to.  I love the idea of a 12" solely on its size but understand there are mixed feelings on how well they perform. 

Thanks again everybody. 

[TJ (Tom) Cornish]

FWIW I've never owned a 15" driver.  6.5", 8", 10", 12", 18" yes, but never 15s.

With a really large horn/compression driver where the crossover point is very low, a 15" driver can sometimes add a bit of midrange pattern control, but this comes at the cost of using the 15" fairly high in the frequency range and asks a lot out of the compression driver, not to mention the added weight/size of the box.  IMO 15" make sense in a 3-way box like the JBL SRX835p where the midrange driver spans between the horn and the LF driver, but 15" drivers are not a replacement for subs.

[David Morison]

Thank you everybody for the input.   It makes all the sense in the world to stick with the 12's and only lug out a sub when needed. 

I also appreciate the input on renting. 

I looked into local DFW places that rent and was surprised to see the pricing.  I found 3 with online pricing, all offered 18" powered subs, prices were between $60 and $90/day.  Looking at the mini-tours I would want a sub for, the first one is 6 days long and the second one is 4 days long.  Even the cheapest option is gonna be $600 which has me pretty close to buying my own sub.   

For portability sake, I don't think an 18" is an option, so I'm going to see if I can find somewhere around me that has a 12" and a 15" to listen to.  I love the idea of a 12" solely on its size but understand there are mixed feelings on how well they perform. 

Thanks again everybody.

FWIW, you wouldn't necessarily end up paying 6x the day rate for a 6 day tour - many rental houses have a price break where a week may be the equivalent of just 3 or 4 days rent. Definitely inquire before deciding that you still want to buy.
HTH,
David.

[Travis_Valois]

FWIW, you wouldn't necessarily end up paying 6x the day rate for a 6 day tour - many rental houses have a price break where a week may be the equivalent of just 3 or 4 days rent. Definitely inquire before deciding that you still want to buy.
HTH,
David.

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