Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

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RustyGadget
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2016 12:02 am
Location: Clarksville, TN

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#16 Post by RustyGadget »

What drivers will match or beat the cabs I listed in my original post?

PreSonus StudioLive 18sAI Subwoofers
PreSonus StudioLive 315AI Loudspeakers

PreSonus ULT 18 Subwoofers
PreSonus ULT 15 Loudspeakers

Yamaha CW218V Subwoofers
Yamaha C215V Loudspeakers

Yamaha DXS18 Subwoofers
Yamaha DSR115 Loudspeakers

Bruce Weldy
Posts: 8301
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2009 11:37 am
Location: New Braunfels, TX

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#17 Post by Bruce Weldy »

RustyGadget wrote:What drivers will match or beat the cabs I listed in my original post?

PreSonus StudioLive 18sAI Subwoofers
PreSonus StudioLive 315AI Loudspeakers

PreSonus ULT 18 Subwoofers
PreSonus ULT 15 Loudspeakers

Yamaha CW218V Subwoofers
Yamaha C215V Loudspeakers

Yamaha DXS18 Subwoofers
Yamaha DSR115 Loudspeakers
So, $1500 should get you a pair of each if you build 'em yourself. That's with 3012LF in the subs and 2512s in the OTops...3012HOs will be a little more.
I guess I wasn't clear. The ones I listed are the best options.

6 - T39 3012LF
4 - OT12 2512
1 - T24
1 - SLA Pro
2 - XF210


"A system with a few knobs set up by someone who knows what they are doing is always better than one with a lot of knobs set up by someone who doesn't."

RustyGadget
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2016 12:02 am
Location: Clarksville, TN

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#18 Post by RustyGadget »

I didn't get that from your post but that probably says more about me than about you. I appreciate your advice.

Any advice on amps. I'm not looking for bells and whistles. In fact the fewer buttons switches and knobs the better. This whole system will be left in the hands of high school kids to use for the marching band season.

Bruce Weldy
Posts: 8301
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2009 11:37 am
Location: New Braunfels, TX

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#19 Post by Bruce Weldy »

RustyGadget wrote:I didn't get that from your post but that probably says more about me than about you. I appreciate your advice.

Any advice on amps. I'm not looking for bells and whistles. In fact the fewer buttons switches and knobs the better. This whole system will be left in the hands of high school kids to use for the marching band season.
I didn't make that clear at all....

As far as amps, there are several good options. Stick with lightweight options from Crown, Peavey, Behringer, or QSC.

Get a driverack and the RTA mic. Use it to set the system EQ outside. Save it to multiple locations on the unit so that when some numbnut starts screwing with it, you can put it back where it was. :mrgreen:

6 - T39 3012LF
4 - OT12 2512
1 - T24
1 - SLA Pro
2 - XF210


"A system with a few knobs set up by someone who knows what they are doing is always better than one with a lot of knobs set up by someone who doesn't."

kkip
Posts: 172
Joined: Sun Jul 15, 2012 9:24 pm
Location: Dayton, OH

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#20 Post by kkip »

I've helped with a few marching band competitions and have attended may more. One issue that I haven't seen mentioned here is that the band can not count on having AC power available at every performance venue. At least that is the case for dozen or so venues where my son's school competes. Nearly all schools in my area use a bank of batteries and a large AC inverter mounted in one of the their carts to power the equipment. The power piece has to be properly sized and factored into the cost. One advantage to using horn loaded cabinets is that their relative efficiency would allow for a smaller amps, smaller inverter and batteries.

Another factor is that the crew only has about 5 minutes to place and setup everything in the pit. There's no time of a complex setup or troubleshooting. Everything has to be plug and play. Passive speakers work best and wireless for anything that is not in the power cart.
4 x T39 - 20" - 3012LF (Built 2)
4 x OT12 - 2512 - Melded/D220Ti
1 x TAT - GTO804

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Charles Jenkinson
Posts: 1125
Joined: Sat Aug 06, 2011 3:25 pm
Location: Manchester, UK

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#21 Post by Charles Jenkinson »

^^ I'm glad you mentioned this ^^

I didn't notice any cables in that video reference, so was wondering about power and signal. I also noticed they weren't school kids - that guy in the yellow had the best part - the camera seemed to know where to look and when, unless fixed in post production. Very impressive stuff, on choreography.

...overall then, what actual speakers you use are not a massive percentage of the cost and thought put into the system, but getting that bit right is a major bonus.
2xJ12L (3012HO) switchable/melded
2xT30

Words&graphics - Audio&Acoustics - Hardware&DSP; 3 different paradigms.

NukePooch
Posts: 371
Joined: Mon Jun 30, 2014 8:07 pm
Location: Berea, Kentucky

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#22 Post by NukePooch »

kkip wrote:I've helped with a few marching band competitions and have attended may more. One issue that I haven't seen mentioned here is that the band can not count on having AC power available at every performance venue. At least that is the case for dozen or so venues where my son's school competes. Nearly all schools in my area use a bank of batteries and a large AC inverter mounted in one of the their carts to power the equipment. The power piece has to be properly sized and factored into the cost. One advantage to using horn loaded cabinets is that their relative efficiency would allow for a smaller amps, smaller inverter and batteries.

Another factor is that the crew only has about 5 minutes to place and setup everything in the pit. There's no time of a complex setup or troubleshooting. Everything has to be plug and play. Passive speakers work best and wireless for anything that is not in the power cart.
Good point on the power aspect. If you use battery/power inverter, might want to make sure to get one of the 'sine wave' converters...they're quite a bit more expensive, but they'll put out clean power, unlike the cheap 'modified sine wave' inverters.

The local bands I've seen tend to use one or two Honda or Yamaha 2K watt inverter generators on the cart.
Built:
4 Jack 112L- 3012HO, melded array
17.5 wide AutoTuba with Infinity 860w
6 Wedgehorn W6 w/ Panel Mount Piezos
2 T48 Slims (15" wide) with 3012LF
4 T48 Fattys (32" wide) with 3015LF

RustyGadget
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Nov 06, 2016 12:02 am
Location: Clarksville, TN

Re: Marching Band Sound Reinforcement

#23 Post by RustyGadget »

Sorry I haven't been back to this post but life has gotten hectic.

Thanks for all if the info so far. Yes, power is an issue but I'm not worried about that. We have a generator available and use that with our current setup. We have had too many issues with the power supplied by the venue. Usually just one extension cord. I do want to go with passive speakers, only one cable per caninet and no extra buttons or knobs to check before each performance. We do only have 2 minutes max for set up.

I've been trying to read as much as I can on here just to learn what questions to ask. Thank you all for your advice. I'll be back asking for more.

Rusty

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