Members Ambugaton Posted April 16, 2014 Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 Hey everyone, I am looking to upgrade my initial PA system as my band is now getting pretty busy and playing larger shows (which is sweet!). I am looking at getting a pair of EV ELX115's and the ELX118 subs. I know it is not recommended to use the 15's with a sub but there will be quite a few times we play a smaller show and will not use the subs so I feel this combination will be more advantageous to our needs. My question is about adequate power for this set up. I plan on purchasing a QSC GX7 (1000w per channel at 4ohms), now would that be enough power to push these speakers. Each have 400w cont. / 1600w peak. I have heard the rule of thumb is generally amp = 2 times cont. power rating of speakers... but I am unsure if that is required or just recommended? I am new to live sound and appreciate any information you guys have. Have a great day! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted April 16, 2014 Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 PLENTY of power. That rule of thumb is even less valid now that speaker manufacturers have stretched the limits of truthful marketing. 2 boxes per channel on the GX-7 is ideal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ambugaton Posted April 16, 2014 Author Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 Thank you for the quick reply! I have read a lot about the flaws of manufacturers specs but didn't think of it in this aspect. If you don't mind I have a follow up question... Is the internal crossover on the GX7 all I need or is it recommended to purchase a separate unit. I have the GX5 and it seems like if you engage the crossover it is for both channels so would having FOH and subs on the same amp be a problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nchangin Posted April 16, 2014 Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 Going from memory it is about $100 box to upgrade to the same boxes with the P on the end. Since you are new to pro audio, keep it simple, go powered. The GX7 is a 600 dollar amp anyway, would probably be cheaper to buy the ELX115 P's and ELX118 P's in the long run. GX5 probably a better match if you go passive speakers, that GX7 has more juice than those will handle long term. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ambugaton Posted April 16, 2014 Author Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 The ELX115P is around $1400 a pair and the 118P is around $1600 a pair ($3000) total. If I use passive it will be $800 for the 15's and $1000 for the 18's, plus the $600 GX7 ($2400 total) this is the only reason for the passive speakers. Especially if I could use my GX5 for this setup instead of purchasing a bigger amp. Once again, thanks for the input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted April 16, 2014 Members Share Posted April 16, 2014 I would start with your GX-5, tops on one channel (high channel obviously) and the subs on the other channel (sub channel) feed the amp with either left or right channel from your board (you will be operating in mono but that's not a big deal) and set your sub level on the amp (input sensitivity control on the sub channel) to full clockwise and the high channel to 3 to 4dB back from full clockwise. Be sure the crossover switch is engaged, and only use the channel 1 input on the amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ambugaton Posted April 17, 2014 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2014 Ok, so I was reading through the GX5 manual and it says I can connect my mixer input into input 1 , switch to crossover, and then connect subs to output 1, and tops to output 2. Will this only utilize all power available from the amp or just from one of the amps? Will 700w go into subs and 700w go into tops? Or just a total of 700w into both? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted April 17, 2014 Members Share Posted April 17, 2014 700 watts split between the 2 subs, another 700 watts split between the 2 tops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ambugaton Posted April 17, 2014 Author Members Share Posted April 17, 2014 Thanks. I just realized that I repeated your advice from earlier just didn't notice (sucks being new to sound). So 700 watts split between two speakers with a 400 watt continuous rating seems like it would be fine. Would running the amp clocked out for 4-5 hours put too much of a burden on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted April 17, 2014 Members Share Posted April 17, 2014 Not having the ideal processing would cause me to recommend no more than the continuous rating of the speaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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