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MeyerSound, and the Weekend Warrior


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Ever since I saw a pair of MeyerSound UP Juniors at SoloTech yesterday, I've been trying to research these products, without much luck. There's certainly not much out there, in the way of chat, or personal reviews.

 

Have any of you guys gotten into the Meyers? What products/models have you looked at or worked with, and what were your impressions?

 

While I was Googling, I came across an old thread from here (2006), where Mark was describing his system, and Zeromus-X was looking at a used set of Meyers,,,, but that's about it.

 

I'd like to know more about their active portable PA speakers. There doesn't seem to be that many dealers,,, yet I'm sure there are. They apparently are not as visible to the weekend warrior. Pricing info also seems scant.

 

Anyone using the UPM-1P?

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The UPJunior is a great speaker. I don't personally own but work with these cabinets everyday. They sound good and perform quite well in smaller rooms and excellent as front fills with their rotatable horns. Pricing is much more than the average weekend warrior can afford. As far as the UPM's go they are a bit smaller than the UPJunior and not my favorite. (I prefer the UPJunior)

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The UPJunior is a great speaker. I don't personally own but work with these cabinets everyday. They sound good and perform quite well in smaller rooms and excellent as front fills with their rotatable horns. Pricing is much more than the average weekend warrior can afford. As far as the UPM's go they are a bit smaller than the UPJunior and not my favorite. (I prefer the UPJunior)

 

Yeah, I got quite a shock initially, when I saw the $3,999, price-tag, on one of the Juniors, when I visited SoloTech yesterday. I was told this was for a single speaker, and not a pair. ;) With that shock absorbed, I took a close look at it, and was amazed at how compact these boxes were. They initially looked to be roughly 1/3 the size of the typical 12" weekend warrior powered box.

 

Unfortunately, I didn't have time for a demo, but I'll be going back, that's for sure. I asked the rep if you could use a pair with a sub, for small gigs, and he said the matching sub would be around $4k, but didn't provide any details as to model number.

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Bobby... welcome to the world of high-end audio. Be prepared for some initial sticker shock.
;)

Although, as the saying goes --- and in this case, on the positive side of the saying.... "You get what you pay for."

 

I'm really anxious to give them a listen. I did find a couple of online dealers, selling used UP Juniors, and asking $1800/ea. Used always worries me though, especially if I can't hear them in person. One dealer is giving a 48 HOUR (yes, "hour") warranty,,,,, Oh, lucky me, ;)

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I heard a Train/Lifehouse concert on the beach in Cancun last year at which a Meyer system was used.

 

They used a pair of UPM 2p's (the narrow throw version of the 1p) on each side. Center stage they used a center speaker, and under stage, a pair of Meyer Subs.

 

I can honestly say it was the best sounding FOH I have ever heard. I was completely impressed.

 

It was a private event and only about 100 people were in attendance; however, the rig could have easily covered >500 IMHO.

 

I came home and looked up the information on these FOH speakers and found as you did that there isn't really that much out there on them.

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Meyer makes world class stuff, and the price reflects it.

 

Agreed. I have owned lots of them and they are among the best I've ever heard. That said in a straight side by side sonic comparison they are only a little better than other speakers priced at less than 1/4 the Meyer price. If you need that sonic improvement be prepared to pay for it. ;)

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Meyer makes world class stuff, and the price reflects it. Another fine American manufacturer is Renkus-Heinz. While they might not have the brand equity of Meyer, they certainly can give them a run for their money at a slightly lower cost.

 

 

Flogger, you're a Montrealer,,,, who the heck carries Renkus Heinz in our area (Montreal/Laval/St.Jerome/South-Shore)? What about EAW? I believe there's a Danley dealer in St.Jerome

 

I'm vaguely familiar with Renkus-Heinz,,, the IC-Live and IConyx. (digital steering/ RHOAN, etc)

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I heard a Train/Lifehouse concert on the beach in Cancun last year at which a Meyer system was used.


They used a pair of UPM 2p's (the narrow throw version of the 1p) on each side. Center stage they used a center speaker, and under stage, a pair of Meyer Subs.


I can honestly say it was the best sounding FOH I have ever heard. I was completely impressed.


It was a private event and only about 100 people were in attendance; however, the rig could have easily covered >500 IMHO.


I came home and looked up the information on these FOH speakers and found as you did that there isn't really that much out there on them.

 

 

OK OneEng, thanks for those comments. I can't wait to give them a listen. I'm not in the market quite yet, but once my home renovations are completed this year,,, we'll see.

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Agreed. I have owned lots of them and they are among the best I've ever heard. That said in a straight side by side sonic comparison they are only a little better than other speakers priced at less than 1/4 the Meyer price. If you need that sonic improvement be prepared to pay for it.
;)

 

Agreed Don,

 

but as you well know, that's the way it goes with this stuff. I try to not be influenced one way or the other by price. If it's the best,, it's the best, pure and simple. Price, is the reality-check. Those little differences (to most) can sometimes seem like a huge improvement, to someone who's capable of discerning the difference. You sure as heck don't audition these boxes with just your favorite rock n' roll CD.

 

Did you own any of the powered Meyers, Don?

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I heard a Train/Lifehouse concert on the beach in Cancun last year at which a Meyer system was used.


They used a pair of UPM 2p's (the narrow throw version of the 1p) on each side. Center stage they used a center speaker, and under stage, a pair of Meyer Subs.


I can honestly say it was the best sounding FOH I have ever heard. I was completely impressed.


It was a private event and only about 100 people were in attendance; however, the rig could have easily covered >500 IMHO.


I came home and looked up the information on these FOH speakers and found as you did that there isn't really that much out there on them.

 

 

You sure you don't mean UPA-1 & 2? The UPM's are pretty much a near field fill speaker for balconys and front fills and practicals. They work well for conference and corporate too BUT they do have limitations that I would not expect 2 per side to be nearly adequate for a band such as Lifehouse... and certainly not for 500 people.

 

I've owned the UPA's (unpowered versions) and they are quite a nice speaker, but they are very heavy too. I haven't owned any of the powered ones, but have used them several times and was pleased. Mark has a nice system with the same cabinets I owned and I think he's pleased as well.

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FWIW, Meyer rates the UP Junior at 126dB Max SPL, and 110dB dynamic range. I read basically the same as you're saying Andy, about balconies, fills, etc., but putting things in perspective, they're probably referring to that type of application, when used in conjunction with a large main set-up.(competing with and complementing that main,,, for that zone0

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You sure you don't mean UPA-1 & 2? The UPM's are pretty much a near field fill speaker for balconys and front fills and practicals. They work well for conference and corporate too BUT they do have limitations that I would not expect 2 per side to be nearly adequate for a band such as Lifehouse... and certainly not for 500 people.


I've owned the UPA's (unpowered versions) and they are quite a nice speaker, but they are very heavy too. I haven't owned any of the powered ones, but have used them several times and was pleased. Mark has a nice system with the same cabinets I owned and I think he's pleased as well.

 

I could be mistaken as you point out. I noticed that they were 2-way 12" Meyer speakers, but I didn't look behind them to see if they were powered or passive. I could look through my pictures and see if I can make out the number and size of cords going to each side ;)

 

As I said, it was a private beach party at an all inclusive resort south of Cancun for a group of ~100.00 (although it was open for those in the area of Xcaret park even though it wasn't advertised as such).

 

It was such a small group for two pretty big acts. As an aside, my wife had the hots for Pat Monahan of Train until we met the guy. A strong gust of wind would blow him over (he is about 130lbs and 5'5").... but boy can he sing.

 

I met Jason Wade in the john puking his guts up before the gig. I couldn't believe he actually went on and gave such a good performance.

 

Both groups were just roaming around talking to people before the gig. Pictures were taken afterward. They seem like really great guys.... particularly Jason Wade (who passed on the pictures..... I suspect he was praying to the porcelain God after singing).

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Mark has a nice system with the same cabinets I owned and I think he's pleased as well.

 

Yes... I run up-to 12ea. UPA-1A's over up-to 4ea. 650 subs for FOH and a Meyer monitor system.

 

I've never been in the least wanting for anything more, and the customer's checks always cash... and universally (as far as I know) I generally or possibly always set a standard by which all else is judged afterwards.

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Hey Andy ... do JM-3's count?
;)

No.. UPA's, 650's, 500A's and MSL-3's

 

JM-3's, Those were originally Harry McCune's boxes right? I kind of remember them as being a 2 way precurser to something like the UPA's or maybe the 500 series but in a rectangular cabinet and had power amps by John Curl (another real old timer). Now that I think about it, I wonder if those old MOS-FET 3 space amps from the 500 series were also designed by John Curl?

 

I owned 2 pair of 650-2's, 2 pair of UPA-1A's, and for a short time a pair of 500's with matching 501 subs and MS-1000 amps (though I thought they were MS-500's but I know they didn't have the sliding filters). Hey, I just looked and found the service manuals, don't see John Curl's name but the amp schematic has some of his hallmarks so who knows. It does have a very cool (to me) dual transformer isolated instrumentation amp front end that I haven't seen used before and it appears they received a patent on it.

 

This was pretty cool stuff and they were WAY ahead of their time regarding sophisticated design and equalization concepts and application.

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Yes... I run up-to 12ea. UPA-1A's over up-to 4ea. 650 subs for FOH and a Meyer monitor system.


I've never been in the least wanting for anything more, and the customer's checks always cash... and universally (as far as I know) I generally or possibly always set a standard by which all else is judged afterwards.

 

 

Mark,

 

I'm new to the MeyerSound product line-up, and unfamiliar with the various models. If you were building a new MeyerSound rig for small rock shows ( 300 or so), what components would you go with?

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Mark,


I'm new to the MeyerSound product line-up, and unfamiliar with the various models. If you were building a new MeyerSound rig for small rock shows ( 300 or so), what components would you go with?

 

 

Something designed around UPA-1P or UPA-2P would be the most similar to a lot of rigs described in this forum. They could be mated to 500HP subs (dual 12) or 600HP subs (dual 15). For a similar style system (mains on sticks) but more horsepower, you could do UPQ-1P over 700HP subs (dual 18). The UPQ is 15"+1.5"......this stuff is getting pretty big and heavy though.

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