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Quick opinions on selling my PA, and value questions


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I received an odd call from a local church today, the pastor was interested in buying my entire PA. As in everything I currently have in the trailer; cables, cases, mics, electrical tape, everything. My band used this PA at his church a few times, at that time he told me it was a significant upgrade from what they have installed in the main sanctuary. Now it seems they need a portable PA for a new ministry and have no one that has any idea how to peice something like that together, so he was wondering if I would be interested in selling my entire setup since he knows it works well and is pretty much exactly what he is looking for.

 

Until that call I had not really thought about selling, or even upgrading. But now that I have an offer, the upgrade bug is starting to stir. So I am wanting opinions and thoughts on values.

 

What I have:

 

Two JBL PRX712

Four JBL PRX718XLF

Four RCF 312A Monitors

One MixWiz 16 channel mixer in Gator hard rolling case

One EWI 16x4 100 foot snake

Too many 20/30/40 foot mic cables to count, all EWI

Too many extension chords with three outlets on the end

One pair of Audiopile overhead condensor mics

Audix D6

Eight Audiopile V-1 mics

 

Everything is stored neatly in a 5x8 trailer that fits in my garage. All cables and mics are cased. Everything is in excellent condition and was bought new. Going through receipts last night I can see that everything above cost me roughly $11K, add $2K for the trailer and the total is $13K I paid for the entire kit and kaboodle. I did not ask if they also wanted the trailer, I was still in shock from the call.

 

Now I use this system with a traveling P&W band. We mainly do inside services at other churches throughout the state, with the occassional outside service and car show thrown in. Indoors we only use one set of the subs, but outdoors we use all four. As far as upgrades go, I am satisfied with the sound quality and volume indoors. But outdoors I would like the option of more volume when needed. Some of the carshows have exceeded the capability of our system and I refuse to push things to the point they might be damaged. In a perfect world I would also like subs that have casters, or less weight, to allow me to move them around the trailer on my own more easily than the current subs.

 

So my questions:

 

1. Is there anything that is even worth upgrading to that would be worth the cost and hassle of starting over? My "demands" would be less weight and more volume for our outdoor gigs, while still being useable indoors. Ease of setup should also be on par with what we already have so trusses are probably not an option. (The system I have now was kind of my dream rig two years ago and my wife was very supportive).

 

2. What is a fair price for both parties involved should I sell my current system? I am not wanting to profit, but I have no intentions of donating what I currently use, I truly want the "fairest" price for both of us.

 

 

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As a rule, the actual gear, if in VGC+ is worth approximately 60% of what the new, discounted price would be.

 

The only variation from this would be the passive mixer, which is worth $500 tops w/o the case.

 

Snake is worth $100, other cabling is virtually worthless, if sold by itself. You could add a little for it, in a package deal.

 

I'm not sure how taking a loss like that could help you make a significant upgrade, as you'd need to start from scratch?

 

How about just renting some stuff for bigger jobs and building the rental fee into the price for the gig? That would seem to be a better strategy than having to own a bunch of stuff you only need to use rarely.

 

MG

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I am by no means an expert on gear out there, but I've been researching what the next step is above the PRX level of speakers. What I am finding is that to move to the next level is a significant jump in price and there aren't many options for powered speakers. Also, you won't win on the weight either.

 

For what its worth, here is what I've found in my research:

The next step up in the JBL line is the STX series. These are all passive, and replaced the old SRX series. There are reviews of these being used successfully outdoors for good coverage. The cons are that not only are you putting out for the speakers, but you also have to buy amps, and apparently some hefty ones if you are powering the subs. You could also look into the VRX line constant curve arrays. There are powered models available.

 

You could look at other manufacturers, like EV QRX, but all these seem to be in the same price range. A speaker system that is getting a lot of attention on other forums is the Danley SM80 and TH subs. Passive as far as I know, but according the reviews, they work great outdoors and you need less of them for the same type of coverage you get with multiples of other boxes. I may move in this direction if I ever get to a point where the need/costs are justified.

 

If you are starting over with a mixing board, no doubt about it (imho), go digital. I have the X32 compact and X32 rack, and I have not looked back. No need with these to replace any outboard gear you are selling off.

 

Quick note on the PRX subs and wheels: I keep mine strapped to dollies. Makes them very easy to roll around. Either build or you can buy cheapies from a place like Harbor Freight.

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Not sure how to reply to a comment, but here goes:

 

Strangely enough, it has not been a problem. Roll them in, set the speakers on top, and they stay put. I only had one outdoor event where the patio was angled for water runoff. In that case, I placed a block of wood in front to keep them from rolling.

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Why don't they buy the same rig new? Moving up from PRX is very expensive, in addition to the loss you'll take selling your current rig for fair-market value. For them, your rig is ideal, but it's ideal for you as well. I truly doubt there's anything much to gain from upgrading to true pro-level gear...you're not in this for profit, and your audience really isn't going to notice enough difference (if they do at all) to really justify the massive outlay in cash to move up.

 

If they can't afford the 11-13K you invested for new, then offer to help find the same gear used, and let them buy cabling, etc. to put it all together. Your gear is common enough that you could probably find everything quickly.

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Why do you want more sound outdoors? Looking to cover a larger area? Or are you looking to cover the same area louder? Larger area would be easier just to add additional speakers. Just looking for louder, better speakers. One thing people frequently ignore or are unaware of, is that most of the audience isn't looking for louder and the 80+ dbc that they're getting is fine with them. I generally figure out how loud I need it be be in the back and work back from there as to how loud I need it to be at 3 feet. And honestly, nobody needs 100 dbc in the back of the area. Audiences always need some place where the levels are lower and conversation is possible. (And if the audience won't be talking, you can safely drop your volume an additional 15 db without losing listeners.) My take anyway. (Tired of unnecessary loud concerts and the older crowd might have trouble hearing very low sounds, loud sounds are worse for them.)

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Why don't they buy the same rig new? Moving up from PRX is very expensive, in addition to the loss you'll take selling your current rig for fair-market value. For them, your rig is ideal, but it's ideal for you as well. I truly doubt there's anything much to gain from upgrading to true pro-level gear...you're not in this for profit, and your audience really isn't going to notice enough difference (if they do at all) to really justify the massive outlay in cash to move up.

 

If they can't afford the 11-13K you invested for new, then offer to help find the same gear used, and let them buy cabling, etc. to put it all together. Your gear is common enough that you could probably find everything quickly.

 

 

Not sure why they don't just buy new gear, I am guessing budget, but I have no idea. I am thinking about offering to help them find some used gear similar to what I have and just holding onto what I have.

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On the should I sell question: I wouldn't, at least not your turn key system. No matter what you extract out of the gear, you'll still take a 4 digit loss. So don't sell anything you're happy with. Take it as a compliment that you "done good" on putting your system together.

 

On the upgrade question: I'm currently using the same FOH system of 718's over 712's. The subs aren't the highest SPL for the buck, but I do think they have the best sound of anything I've heard anywhere near the price point. Nothing I know of in the $1000 ball park goes lower or is more musical. You have 4 of them so you get a few extra dB's when needed.

 

If there were anything to upgrade at a reasonable cost and a simple no nonsense "swap out", it would be the tops. The 712's are "fine" and are what I use, but my RCF 522A's sound better. There are better sounding, louder, and longer throwing, options that would pair nicely with 2 subs per side when needed. RCF 745-A or FBT ProMaxx 14a would be options in the $1500 a box range. The downside is those options have aesthetics that are pretty subjective. You either like it or you don't. For more money you could move into the "next level" FBT Mitus or RCF TT. They are more traditional looking and wood boxes, but also substantially more expensive. You could move the 712s to monitor duty and maybe even buy 2 more. This way you still have a matched PRX set for when desired. Then sell them the 312's to the church.

 

If you've ever wanted to move to a digital mixer and unload an analog one easily, now is you chance.

 

How you can help: If you want to help them out, consider striking a deal where they pay you a flat fee for sourcing the gear, setting it up, and maybe even doing some training. You can get it all for 15-20% under MAP so they'll end up not truly paying any more than if they would have purchased it all new themselves as I doubt they know where to go other than their local Guitar Center or online retailer. Then if you want to shed a speaker or mixer you can just put that in the mix and source the rest new. Everyone wins and you end up with cash that you can use to upgrade or allocate elsewhere in your life.

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