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Wharfdale Titans vs Alto Truesonic?


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I'm sure the RCF's would be a nicer sounding speaker but they are £800 a pair and heavier than both the Alto's and Wharfdales.

I already own a pair much nicer speakers for my main FOH pa duties. I also own a pair of the Alto TS112a's which I use for monitors and occasional FOH duties on smaller acoustic gigs. So far they have been great for this but I would ideally like something lighter as I am taking one of the TS112a's around most days to use as a keyboard amp and vocal pa for rehearsals and workshops. Whilst the TS112a is not a heavy speaker by most standards I am aware that some brands are even lighter and this would suit me a lot better as I'm carrying it around all the time.

 

I can afford up to £400 a pair as I would need to sell the Alto's to fund this purchase.

 

Has anyone had any experience with both the Alto Truesonic and Wharfdale range?

 

Another option I'm considering is saving up for an Alto TS110a though the bigger 12" in the Wharfdale Titan 312a may be a better bet?

 

 

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The Altos will be smoother/sweeter sounding, but I have already read of quite a few failures, mostly woofers - when the speakers are pushed. The Wharfedale Titans are reliable in my experience, but the sound quality of the horn is only so-so. (a little honky and very little of the sweet stuff up top). I have owned my Titan 12As for roughly 5 years now and I love the mixer section, compact size and low weight. They get very loud as well. The newer 312As (which stole the model number of a popular RCF speaker) have lower powered amplifiers, which will likely mean they won't get as loud as the Titan 12As or 12Ds. Agreed 100% the RCF 312As are significantly better sounding than the Titans and will be more reliable than the Altos. I own some RCF Art 310As and have tested the 312As. Simply fantastic speakers.

 

Al

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Thanks Al. I haven't come across any failures with the Alto TS112a's yet but have read two users who had problems with them. I've had one for around a year now and it has been used a lot and pushed pretty hard on some gigs! So far it's been great. My pair of Alto TS112a's cost me £300 for one brand new and and another "as new" speaker. If mine continue to be reliable then I think I'll stick with these and wait to see if a cheap secondhand TS110a pops up!?

 

 

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I'm also thinking about having a very small budget pa with one or two mini subs. I'm tempted to gradually put together an Alto TS110a + Alto TSSub12 system for some of the corporate jazz gigs I do. I only need to put, vocals, piano and a little upright bass through the system. I've actually been successfully doing this with a single Alto TS112a which has been used on the floor in the wedge position. We were all extremely surprised at how well the TS112a performed for this!

However, we will be doing some larger corporate jazz gigs and stand mounting the Alto's would project much better for larger rooms. The venues we're playing at are high end hotels and they want a minimum of gear. I don't want to use tripod speaker stands as they would have a larger footprint than a mini sub and would also look quite ugly and cumbersome. As a result, the Alto TS110a's + TSSub110a could be a nice neat portable solution. I have also considered using the TSSub12 with my TS112a tops but am not sure they would be able to keep up with the TS112a's? Another option would be the EV ZXA1 Sub but these are double the price and I wouldn't have the funds for one of these for quite some time!

 

 

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I sell Wharfedale stuff where I work.

The Titans are solid reliable speakers, no fuss and a workhorse. The sound quality isn't exactly up there with the more expensive stuff, but hey, they're really easy on the wallet.

 

As far as the the 312A's are concerned, you're better off with the 12D's if you can afford them. The 312A's have much less bass response and treble clarity compared to the 12D's. We A-B tested them. The 2 channel input on the 12D's just make them all the more versatile.

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The Wharfdale Titan 12D's cost the same as the Alto TS112a's at £249 each. From what I've seen, the Wharfdales offer more features for the money such as two band EQ, phono inputs, switch mic/line input selector and front LED on/off switch, Also the Titan 12D's are 4kg lighter and smaller. All of these extra features are welcome but I'm not keen on the look of the Titan's for corporate gigs. According to the manual the Titan 12D's have a maximum SPL of 128db!? The woofer also has a 2.5" voice coil compared to the 2" in the Alto TS112a?

It makes me a little nervous that a speaker at this price can have all those features. I'm wondering how the 12D actually sounds next to the Alto TS112a?

 

 

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I bought the Titan 12's for a new band project 5 years ago. As the band has grown I've added the Titan 15 subs and a spare titan 12 that gets used as a monitor. We play mostly weddings in quite large venues in the UK and they have performed faultlessly. We also run the electric guitar and bass direct to the mixer (no amps) and find it easy to get a good sound. We do this without the subs for pubs and they handle the bass fine. Unlike the system in our practice room that just rattles!

We also DJ with the system and do the odd acoustic show at holiday camps. I like the sound.

We have the fitted covers where the front is held on with velcro. Makes them look quite neat for corporate gigs.

We've used them at Business awards, Sporting events and minor celebrity weddings with nothing but good feedback.

I couldn't recommend them more highly.

Stay away from the cheap Wharfedale range though. I had to repair the wooden style wedge monitor when it shook the resistor of the board cutting out the tweeter.

 

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Here is an example of one of the spaces we need to set up in:-

 

1970401_864213493605289_2132250130_n1.jpg

 

So far the single Alto TS112a has worked extremely well for this gig and we have had lots of compliments on the sound. However, I would prefer to have the speaker up on a stand to project the vocals better. There isn't really space for a tripod and it would look particularly clumsy. I am considering getting an Alto TSsub12 and putting the TS112a up on a pole. This would have a smaller footprint than a tripod, enhance the FOH sound and look less clumsy! I may even get a TS110a if I'm using a TSsub12 as this would solve needing a lighter speaker for day to day rehearsals and workshops!?

 

 

 

 

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Just tried the Alto TS112a's as a pair in a small village hall that holds around 100 people. I was only able to play an iPad through it and solo vocal but I have to admit they really exceeded my expectations! They sounded clear and had plenty of bass extension for that hall! Also, I only had the speakers turned up to half and the fader on the mixer was around just over half and the hall was full of sound.

I'm now seriously considering getting a TSsub12 but am a little concerned that the TS112a will overpower it?

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A good friend of mine in town has a great little bluegrass act and he wanted to go with budget chinese

powered boxes. I suggested the Alto's because I heard good things about them on another pro forum.

I was mildly surprised at the performance of these boxes on sticks. To the OP you can squeeze the tripod legs down to get them to fit in tight areas. Absolutely get them up in the air above the crowd heads.

The horns are designed to provide coverage right up front with the boxes above head level.

 

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Yes I'm going to stick with the TS112a's. I will probably get a mini sub at some point later in the year.. From the various people I've spoken to I think I'll save up for something like the FBT Vertus CLA208sa or maybe a DB Technologies Sub28D. This will give me a nice light portable alternative for small acoustic gigs.

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Here is an example of one of the spaces we need to set up in:-

 

1970401_864213493605289_2132250130_n1.jpg

 

So far the single Alto TS112a has worked extremely well for this gig and we have had lots of compliments on the sound. However, I would prefer to have the speaker up on a stand to project the vocals better. There isn't really space for a tripod and it would look particularly clumsy. I am considering getting an Alto TSsub12 and putting the TS112a up on a pole. This would have a smaller footprint than a tripod, enhance the FOH sound and look less clumsy! I may even get a TS110a if I'm using a TSsub12 as this would solve needing a lighter speaker for day to day rehearsals and workshops!?

 

 

 

 

Looks like a good situation for a Bose L setup. But they're budget-busters relative to what you're considering.

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I would rather have the FBT Vertus but yes a line array would probably be a very good option. Unfortunately both of these are out of my budget and to be honest, I'd prefer to have the flexibility of having tops that can double as wedge monitors.

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