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Community M-12 Wedges

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John Chiara:
Well, I used the M-12 for 3 acts this week.. running passive off 1 channel of a QSC PLX 3402..as well as one for a cue wedge for 2 nights. My other wedges are "home made" sealed boxs with a B+C 12"x2" coax..biamped. My DSP's are the QSC dsp-3's which are basically a PITA because I don't have the original files so I can't even tell what processing is running.
In every situation where I replaced my wedge with an M-12 the reaction was the same..everyone thought the M-12 sounded great and was giving them what they needed to hear their vocals over the music. A quick review of the mixes 31 bands showed the M-12 curve MUCH less hacked for feedback than my setup. So the M-12's sounded good with less EQ and also fedback less easily with less EQ. Tonight, a guitarist who was on IEM's removed them for a dual band jam, and said he thought the M-12 sounded great. The low profile and rugged construction is a plus and the fact that you can stand on these puppies with no fear.. as I did when I had to trace a faulty mic line during the show...makes them great along the front of a stage. The construction also makes them practically immovable when kicked. The horn design lets you get right on top of the wedge and still hear the horn clearly..good for when space is tight on a shallow stage. All good things for my tastes.

Now the beef...the cable setup for the NL2/NL4 connectors is a deal breaker in almost every situation. The only way I could use these is if they never got moved or unplugged. Details....

1. You have to flip the monitor over to get at the jacks..and I found no easy way..with one person..to do this balancing act easily.
2. When you get the thing turned over enough to get at the jacks, the next hurdle is getting the plug at an angle where you can actually insert it into the cabinet's jack..and the shallow angle of the jack plate make this..well..let's say I was using vocabulary usually not directed at speakers. With an NL4 plug and cable I had a VERY hard time getting the cable at an angle that would insert.
3. When I got the cable connected, I proceeded to route the cable through the onboard management system and again found myself uttering "flowery" phrases..what the f*#@!!!! It was bringing up feelings akin to the the ones I get when trying to mount Sennheiser 504's..with the old clips..on a rim mounted tom..which I also did last night..and said to myself..did the designer EVER try to actually do this operation with an actual plug and a wire that has no mind to bend to fit the countours of this very small cabinet? On the bright side if you get the plugs connected and go straight out the back of the wedge through one of 3 little cable "arches" it worked OK..but even then it was limiting. Wiring 2 of these was the most time consuming part of the whole setup.

Bottom line..

The M-12 worked well...looks great..is stable sonically and physically..well constructed...and has the cabling setup from hell.
When I get new wedges..they will be Microwedges..which I think have all the benefits of the M-12 and less compromises.
That's my impression..I will soon be passing them on to another for a fresh viewpoint. Hope I was helpful.
John

Bennett Prescott:
John Chiara wrote on Sat, 23 September 2006 03:04
running passive off 1 channel of a QSC PLX 3402

What about that Vortex amp I left you?

Rob Spence:
Probably keeping the amp  

Dave Howden:
John,
Thank you for your observations.

When we designed the M12 we were really going for the lowest profile, cleanest look possible which led us to the cabling system, connector location and the rubber handle.

We believe the M12 is very well suited in situations that do not require regular connecting and disconnecting like the touring word does, i.e. permanent installs, corporate AV, television production etc. The look is more important here.

We are open to suggestions for making it more of a touring wedge that is easier to use for 8 hours at a time then back in the case for the next show.

There are some limitations when working in fiberglass with regard to the shapes and pockets that can be achieved.

Handles could be fitted into the sides and the input scheme could be revised at the expense of it's "look" now.

Suggestions?

Dave Howden




 

Rob Spence:
Well, for one, the cable channels and little clips add cost but not much value for "non-installed" use.
I was the one who attempted to wire it up first at Wedgefest and after the guys stopped laughing at me trying to balance it on it's nose to hook it up and failing miserably, one came over to hold it    We then figured out that turning it turtle was the only way. Even then, it was a real pain to get the speakon connector aligned. I wouldn't want to do this on a dark stage.

Suggestion? Make the connector pocket a but deeper and wider so a normal male hand can fit with fingers around the connector.

I liked the look and sound but the connections were impossible.

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