Pete Alcock Posted November 8, 2004 Share Posted November 8, 2004 Learned colleagues... I have a lady client who has a small cabaret band (2 or 3 vocalists, guitar, flute + backing tracks) and I'm sorting a lightweight PA out for her. She's tried out all my mics and decided what she likes (Beta 58 in the end), and the mixer/amp will be a Behringer PMX2000 box. The speakers will be the plastic 12+1 cabinets that all the major suppliers seem to stock, the question is which of the cheap ones are best? My hope is that these will be better for the money than the cheaper carpetted offerings from Peavey etc. which are mostly MDF and weigh a ton. I've seen the LD series from Adam Hall which look OK (cast frame woofer etc) and I know Stage Line/IMG do some. Anybody had experience of how these low-cost lightweights sound and if there's anything to choose between them? Thanks, Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted November 8, 2004 Share Posted November 8, 2004 I did an A/B comparison with a pair of SX300's and Thomann's TB300's I found them to be almost identical with the TB300's being a little brighter if you listened hard... They are a little bit heavier though and I don't think they do the version I bought any more. James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted November 8, 2004 Share Posted November 8, 2004 I did the same test with mx 'real' EV300's and the Thomann old look alike copies. My ears couldn't detect and differences that weren't subjective. Setting them up next to each other sounded very close. so I set up one EV on a stand and sent it some pink noise and recorded the output through an AKG414 (not flat, but It was the one omni I had to hand. I then removed the EV and replaced it with the clone, without any modifications to amp volume, distance etc. The two frequency response curves recorded, were as close to identical as I could see, apart from a slight hump at 3.3KHz on the clones - probably crossover issues? The new 300 clones with the more curvy moulding sound the same to me, but I've not tested them. One area they fall down on is the speakons - not neutriks, and a little bit 'slack', and the screws pull out a little too easily. If you like the sound, they are a very useful piece of kit. for what it's worth, the powered versions are quite handy used as monitors. never found the adaptor brackets useful - they sit nicely on the floor without them. The 15" versions are a little boomy - I got rid of mine and bought more 12" ones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slim_mcslim Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 The LD systems speakers are excellent value for money, and if thats what you need then they are fine... We have 12 and none of which sound the same, but we only use them as stage monitors and with a graphic across them... We supplied 4 to robbie williams tribute act, and in 8 months he has blown two up, the crossovers not the drivers, however he does drive the system quite hard, we reset the compressor and have not heard from him for 2 months... The LD's come with a 2 year warranty but I am not convinced hoe good it will be, the two that we have without cross overs we now run active and they seem to sound better than the original versions. The other thing to bear in mind with them, is they are not very loud, they only have sensitivity of 101db which as 350w speakers makes them not so efficient. Personally I am not a fan of the EV SX300's anyway, but there is a reason why they are £380 each compared with the equivalent LD Systems at £80 and they are both more reliable, robust and provide more consistent sound.... I am not trying to be negative, and I will be quite happy to buy more, you just need to ensure they suit the application that you want them for. Paul.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Alcock Posted November 12, 2004 Author Share Posted November 12, 2004 Further to notes by Paul and Slim, I ordered a pair of the LD Systems boxes from Adam Hall and they are excellent. They are heavier than I'd expected but very well finished and sound natural and quite well extended bass-wise. The top is sweet and tingly without obvious harshness and the compression driver is small (maybe 3/4" exit) which probably contributes. Only daft thing is the blue LED (does everything have to have a blue LED these days?), which flashes with the music. That may need disconnecting. Value for money and quality of construction - 10/10. Pete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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