Active Sub

[sparklingdiscos 0]

I am more than happy with my SRM450 V2's - great sound, output and unbelievable light and easy to carry.

 

I am considering having an active sub on 'standby' (for emergencies only where the room is huge).

 

I have 2 options - splash out on a quality active sub (but its money i dont need to spend really) or find a cheap active sub.

 

I only really want 1 sub if possible.

 

For expensive route i was looking down the new mackie route - but theyre fairly big and as i use an ultimax stand having just one would look out of place and i couldnt fit under the stand to hide it.

 

Has anyone any opinions, or know of any decent cheap active subs that will add more bottom end than the 450s in an emergency? or ones that fit under a deck stand?

[Raymilkybarkid 0]

I can recommend the Mackie SWA 1501's I run a pair of these.

I personally wouldn't go down the cheap route. you have spent £££ on a decent Mackie system.

IMO It would be like putting an Corsa engine in an Aston Martin.

[ChrisPeacock 0]

im actually selling an active sub at the moment on ebay, wharfedale evp-x15pb. its quite cheap but does the job when needed

[vokf 0]

I've got 2 x LD Systems Active Bass Bins (with my Mackie 450s)

 

http://www.djsuperstore.co.uk/LDEKA15A-15-...ass-Bin-450WRMS

 

I used them lots last year, but this year (so far) its been just the Mackies.

 

The Mackies are good for 90% of parties, but adding the "subs" does provide a nicer sound as I run the 450s in "low cut" mode, leaving the subs to handle that side of things.

Don't run the Mackies full range, it'll be too boomy!

 

Jason

[MintyDave 0]

The RCF 902as is a monster of a sub and you would only ever need 1.

 

£900....but worth it.

 

link - http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~R...-AS~ID~9260.asp

 

fits nicely under my 4' giraffe stand but as bass is omnidirectional i sometimes bung it out of the way as opposed to having it beside the rig. you also get more if you place it in a corner or against a wall

Edited March 1, 2011 by MintyDave

[sparklingdiscos 0]

thanks for your opinions - after a bit of deliberation, ive decided to go fora pair of the db12 subs as;

 

1. theyre small enough not be a pain - ie if i take them to a gig and dont use them its not a massive effort.

2. theres 2 so i can use them asthetically one a side with poles for the tops.

3. theyre small enough to use 1 under the deck stand if needed as a bit of backup rather than using both.

 

i think theyre more than loud enough when coupled with the Mackies for all of the gigs.

 

looking forward to them.

[mjmac 0]

The RCF 902as is a monster of a sub and you would only ever need 1.

 

£900....but worth it.

 

link - http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~R...-AS~ID~9260.asp

 

fits nicely under my 4' giraffe stand but as bass is omnidirectional i sometimes bung it out of the way as opposed to having it beside the rig. you also get more if you place it in a corner or against a wall

1kW & 130db thats monstrous for a 12" sub... are they sure?!?!?

ive been running some kx, kv2 & HK stuff of late and they have nothing to match those specs regardless of price - fro 899 that is the way forward if those specs are true :)

[MintyDave 0]

1kW & 130db thats monstrous for a 12" sub... are they sure?!?!?

ive been running some kx, kv2 & HK stuff of late and they have nothing to match those specs regardless of price - fro 899 that is the way forward if those specs are true :)

 

all i can say is that i always have the vol dialled back a long way. A couple of people have now asked where the real sub is to the point where one bloke was looking behind curtains etc.

 

 

[richard stringer 0]

If you're gonna get an active sub i'd stay away from Mackie because their product reliability is very poor these days. Ever since Greg Mackie sold the company to Loud Technologies, it's gone down hill and now the company in my and a lot of other people's opinions who i've talked to, is not a hell of a lot more reliable than Behringer. Loud Technologies moved manufacturing to China and then started using cheap quality parts in the Mackie equipment. I spoke to a shop about 3 months ago who said they had a whole bunch of Mackie SRM1801 subs come back in for repair because every single one failed. Then on youtube i've spoken to numerous people who've had repair after repair after repair. On other forums i've spoken to various people who've had enough because they've spent a lot of money on Mackie gear only for it to fail. My friend bought 2 Mackie HD1531 cabs and they failed on him. He had them repaired and they failed again during a gig that time. That was it, game over, gig over. That really P****d him off because he was lucky people at thge gig understood, you never know whether your gear failing could ruin your reputation.

 

Anyway, the best sub i've heard for it's price is the JBL PRX618S-XLF. It's quite expensive but it's an excellent sub and has JBL's fantastic 2268 driver in it, which is the same driver JBL use in their mighty SRX and VRX series subs. The RCF Art905AS is a great sub but the JBL goes down lower into the frequency response so if it were me, i'd personally go for the JBL.

 

mjmac,

The 130db spl output figure is a Peak spl rating, not continuous, so there's no way you'd actually get 130db out of it. Most specs for spl output are calculated, and calculated spl specs are wildly inaccurate. Mackie demonstrated this when they released their HD series cabs and subs. They measured the REAL maximum spl output of their cabs and subs alongside competitors and the REAL spl output figures wer as much as 14db lower than the calculated specs. Generally, if you take about 8-12db off the calculated Peak spl spec of a cab or sub it'll give you a good idea of how much spl you'll REALLY get. Like I say, Mackie measured their HD series cabs and subs, and also a competitors too. The Mackie HD1531 for example has a rated calculated spl output spec of 135db Peak, but when Mackie measured it's maximum spl output they saw a reading of 126db at the onset of clipping. This means that 126db is the REAL maximum spl output of that specific cab and shows you how inaccurate calculated spl specs are. Have a look here :

 

http://www.mackie.com/products/hdseries/pdf/HD_REAL_SPL.pdf

 

I did some tests myself on my JBL MRX515 cab which has a calculated Peak spl of 130db, and I measured the cab's maximum spl output, C weighted and in full space and saw a reading of 122dbc. That once again shows you that calculated spl specs can't be trusted. The reason why manufacturers use them is because calculated specs are a perfect way for the manufacturer's marketing department to make their speakers look louder (on paper) than other speakers.

Edited March 17, 2011 by richard stringer