Members Youthman Posted September 10, 2015 Members Share Posted September 10, 2015 Hi, we currently are using a pair of Community CSX28-S2 10" 2-way monitors powered by a really old Crown Power Base 1 amp in our youth ministry. Our main speakers sound very nice (Pair of SRX738 Mains and Pair of SRX728S Subs), especially since we added DIY acoustic panels in the room to tame the echo. The sound from our monitors however is pathetic. I'm not sure if it's the speakers, the amp or a combo of both. I'm looking on my local Craigslist and found a few things I believe should be a considerable upgrade from our current Community Monitors and Crown Power Base 1 amp. Here is what I found JBL Pro Series Speakers barely used for 6 months , like new.JBL Main or Monitor 2 Way Speaker 12" JRX 112M / 2 units available /150.00 eachJBL Main Speaker 15" PRX 415M / 2 units available / 300.00 eachJBL Subwoofer 18" PRX 418S / 2 units available / 400.00 each Crown Amp XTi 1002 300.00Crown Amp XT1 2002 400.00Crown Amp XTi 4002 600.00 Also there is another seller with (3) JBL MP415 M-Pro monitors. I do not know how these three JBL Monitors compare. I'm thinking the Crown XTI 1002 should sound better than the Crown Base 1 amp. I have $700 cash available to spend right now. Thank you in advance for your advice. Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted September 10, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted September 10, 2015 Don't bother with the amp, it's fine, and doesn't affect sound performance to any noticeable degree. You need better speakers, and the PRX and M-Pro are big improvements over what you have now. If you find yourself with more cash, upgrade the amps later, but only because they'll be lighter and might have more features. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Audiopile Posted September 10, 2015 Members Share Posted September 10, 2015 Don't bother with the amp, it's fine, and doesn't affect sound performance to any noticeable degree. If you find yourself with more cash, upgrade the amps later, but only because they'll be lighter and might have more features. I'll also offer: If you have the need to up the power, could justify upgrading the amp... I believe the Powerbase1 is rated 200W stereo 8 ohms. "More power" is one thing amplifier-wise that can affect sound performance to a noticeable degree. Of-course, on that same note: More power used with abandon can affect the sound performance to an extremely noticeable degree... especially concerning the speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted September 11, 2015 Members Share Posted September 11, 2015 Im with Craig. I doubt the amp plays a significant amount here. Even mediocre amps make little difference compared to speaker quality. I would suggest sinking your bucks into higher quality speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted September 11, 2015 CMS Author Share Posted September 11, 2015 I'd be quite fine with 200w per speaker for monitors in the OP's intended use. If he was planning for a touring setup on big stages with longer throw and levels, I'd certainly go bigger than that, but as it stands, given budget and use, he's okay with the Powerbase 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomm Williams Posted September 13, 2015 Members Share Posted September 13, 2015 I utilize plx 1602's on monitors which are around 300 watts @8. I've yet to get close to max output even with pretty loud stages. Be more concerned with quality wedges than the amps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Unalaska Posted September 13, 2015 Members Share Posted September 13, 2015 If you don't mind the size, the best bet would be the JBL mp415s. Power base 1 would be fine, the amp upgrade would be as significant as a speaker upgrade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Audiopile Posted September 13, 2015 Members Share Posted September 13, 2015 I'd be quite fine with 200w per speaker for monitors in the OP's intended use. If he was planning for a touring setup on big stages with longer throw and levels' date=' I'd certainly go bigger than that, but as it stands, given budget and use, he's okay with the Powerbase 1.[/quote'] Agreed. As I recall I owned and used a pair of Community CSX28-S2 monitors back 5 - 10 years ago. I'm pretty sure they were loaded with 12" cones... they were in cosmetically rough shape when I got them... but they worked "fine". I stripped them down and re-covered them... used them for a couple years... ended up donating them to one of my employees for his church praise-band project... and the church praise-band folks seemed thrilled with them. For the time I used them, I thought they sounded "ok" and put out "fairly well" SPL wise... just "ducky fine" as far as vocals go. Certainly not top shelf, but considerably better than pathetic. Maybe I had some different model, but if they're the same... I gotta be wondering if there's more to Youthman's monitor challenges than the monitors? If that's a maybe... then maybe consider renting some truly better monitors for a weekend or two and swap-out the Community's and see if that makes a noticeable improvement before buying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TimmyP Posted September 27, 2015 Members Share Posted September 27, 2015 I'm betting on blown horn drivers or really poor EQ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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