Passive and Powered Floor Monitors for Live Sound

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radiologic

New member
Hi everyone,

I'm planning on buying new monitors for my bands PA system. We have
a mixer, 2 speakers that run through a power amp.

Now, im confused on what monitor i should buy. We did a gig and the band
before us let us use their monitors and they plugged the 1/4 cable running
from their monitor to our speaker which ran through the power amp
into the mixer. Can you use that same method for passive and powered monitors?

If I were to buy powered monitors, my understanding is that I can simply connect them to the mixer correct?

What floor monitors do I have to buy to avoid buying a power amp?


Thank you everyone!
 
radiologic said:
We did a gig and the band
before us let us use their monitors and they plugged the 1/4 cable running
from their monitor to our speaker which ran through the power amp
into the mixer. Can you use that same method for passive and powered monitors?
Click to expand...

If you only have a passive monitor and no way of powering this is one way of running it (using the 'through' port on the back of your main speakers). However you need to make sure you've done the impedance sums to make sure you don't do any damage to your amp. The other limitation of this method is that there's no facility for the monitor mix to be any different from your FOH mix. That's probably not an issue if you're just using a PA for vocals in small venues though...

Never plug a speaker signal into an active monitor. They're designed to take a line-level input. You'll break it.
 
I tend to like active. but back in the day there was only passive with tons of amps to carry around and on top of it all I had them set up for 2 way with outboard x-over and separate amps for the speaker and horns.

What I really like now is I set up 2 Bose LS1s on either side of the stage for a side wash and there hasn't been anyone who has complained in about 4 years and hundreds of different acts.






:cool:
 
radiologic said:
...If I were to buy powered monitors, my understanding is that I can simply connect them to the mixer correct?
Click to expand...
Simpler setup in one respect, but then also a power cord and/or box to each of them.
Cabling is a fairly large chunk of the set-up tare down routine.
 
moresound said:
..What I really like now is I set up 2 Bose LS1s on either side of the stage for a side wash and there hasn't been anyone who has complained in about 4 years and hundreds of different acts.
Click to expand...

I'm working with a single Bose a fellow has for our low volume trio (drums only occasionally).
Are you using them in addition to floor monitors?
 
Goldilox said:
However you need to make sure you've done the impedance sums to make sure you don't do any damage to your amp.
Click to expand...


First of all thanks!
Just a follow up question to your response.
How do I figure out the impedance sums? I dont know if you have a link
where they explain it, I looked a little online and it just confusing.
Wondering if you could help with this.

Thanks
 
mixsit said:
I'm working with a single Bose a fellow has for our low volume trio (drums only occasionally).
Are you using them in addition to floor monitors?
Click to expand...

No, just side fills (and Dr. Bose hates that) along with a regular PA
I've only used them a few time the way that they were designed to be used but there are draw backs to that ....being if there is a large crowd you have to turn them up real load to get through them all and the performer is stuck with ear spliting volume ...ouch!







:cool:
 
radiologic said:
First of all thanks!
Just a follow up question to your response.
How do I figure out the impedance sums? I dont know if you have a link
where they explain it, I looked a little online and it just confusing.
Wondering if you could help with this.

Thanks
Click to expand...

If each of your boxes are 8 ohms (two total) then the ohmage is cut in half down to 4 ohms. Add one more and now your down to 2 ohms. Makes sence?







:cool:
 
moresound said:
If each of your boxes are 8 ohms (two total) then the ohmage is cut in half down to 4 ohms. Add one more and now your down to 2 ohms. Makes sence?
Click to expand...

Makes a little sense.
If by boxes you are talking about speakers i am using....and by adding "one more" you are talking about monitors then i get it, If i am wrong...then
I'm totally confused : / sorry
 
moresound said:
No, just side fills (and Dr. Bose hates that)
Click to expand...

'Cause he doesn't sell any side fill speakers and thus can't make any money that way. Where'd he get his doctorate, anywhere- what diploma mill did he send a check to?

OP- if going passive with amps, do NOT let your speaker line impedence get down as low as 2 ohms, even if the amp maker SAYS it can handle it- your amps will get hot, and could burn out. If you are driving many speakers, you can wire them in series, but doing so is a PITA- you gotta make up custom pigtails for the setup, and you often end up with very HIGH impedence- 16 or even 32 ohms, which will reduce your actual volume output. A series/parallel setup is the answer, but unless you simply MUST drive several speakers, and just can NOT afford more amps, it is not worth the trouble. Trust me on this.
 
radiologic said:
Makes a little sense.
If by boxes you are talking about speakers i am using....and by adding "one more" you are talking about monitors then i get it, If i am wrong...then
I'm totally confused : / sorry
Click to expand...

By boxes I mean monitors. The total number of monitors was just an example. How many monitors do you have?






:cool:
 
stevieb said:
Where'd he get his doctorate, anywhere- what diploma mill did he send a check to?
Click to expand...


I hope your joking, but just in case.................................................
He completed his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from MIT, writing a highly mathematical thesis on non-linear systems.







:cool:
 
moresound said:
I hope your joking, but just in case.................................................
He completed his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from MIT, writing a highly mathematical thesis on non-linear systems.

:cool:
Click to expand...

... then sold out and started selling over-priced speakers. ;)
 
They are expensive .... but when you consider that you get a 750 watt power amp for the tower, 2 mic pre-amps in, 2 line ins, direct outs on all of them, powered out put for 2 bass bins, compressor/limiter/gate/ on 60 different pre settings,and EQ all adjustable at the base of the unit or by remote control. And the ability to up grade those settings plus more at any time via the net.

I think you get what you pay for.

In my case I just set them to a flat setting and use a Klark Tecniks 31 band EQ between them and the monitor console.







:cool:
 
moresound said:
They are expensive .... but when you consider that you get a 750 watt power amp for the tower, 2 mic pre-amps in, 2 line ins, direct outs on all of them, powered out put for 2 bass bins, compressor/limiter/gate/ on 60 different pre settings,and EQ all adjustable at the base of the unit or by remote control. And the ability to up grade those settings plus more at any time via the net.

I think you get what you pay for.

In my case I just set them to a flat setting and use a Klark Tecniks 31 band EQ between them and the monitor console.
Click to expand...

In the case of Bose sticks you are paying for marketing. You can get a conventional system that outperforms the Bose stick for half, or even a third of, the price.
 
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