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What subwoofer?

aborgman

aborgman

Jun 12, 2007
4,000
1,158
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
#1
I'm looking to add a subwoofer to my bands PA.

This is for small venues (<200 person bars). Playing rock/classic rock covers.

We're currently just running some Community XLT43's

Link Removed

On a stick... with no sub, and basically only running vocals and a little bit of kick through the mains. We're carrying everything else from stage amps.

What I want is a small (most the stages we play are already cramped for space), lightweight subwoofer that can keep up with our mains and give us the ability to put a little more kick/bass into the mix.

...and I'd like to not spend too much money, because it's hard to justify a $1000 subwoofer to play gigs paying a few hundred bucks.

Want:

small - say less than 2'x2'x3' tall

lightweight - less than 70lbs

loud - at least loud enough to keep up with our current mains

Cheap - the cheaper, the better for my pocketbook.
 
#2
Just keep watching CraigsList. I'm sure you'll run across some used "budget" 15" or 18" subs in the $200 range. They won't be top-of-the-line but will more more than adequate for the job. I'm using 2 Yorkville Performance 18" subs which are about as compact as you can get. I can fit 2 side-by-side in my pickup bed.

If you're mechanically inclined, Bill Fitzmaurice has plans for compact enclosures that will blow the stock stuff out of the water.

Riis
 
#3
Look up the Carvin LS1801N ($438 shipped). Or the active version. I've used a 2xLS1801N and 2xLS1503 setup for many small gigs (mainly where smoking is allowed to save getting my higher end stuff all stinky and nasty). Worked better than any JBL system I've ever owned or heard.
 
#5
konodl18 said:
+1

You will eat it hard as a bar band if you pay retail or new internet prices for equipment. At this level, (Also where I'm at!) The best choice for any piece of gear is going to be the best used deal you can find locally that fits you needs.:bassist:

If you are patient you can snatch up some great stuff for half price

Derek
Click to expand...

Heh... I'm the king of used. Although I am strangely considering the idea of building a foam core fiberglass version of the fEarful sub, because I can basically get the fiberglass free... and I've never found it that hard to work with before.
 
#6
The active Carvin is nice. I have the model with the duratex coating. It is light (63 pounds) and thumps fine for the bass/kick in the clubs we have played. We only use that one sub (and 2 Yorkville powered mains) and honestly the system sounds clear and goes as loud as we need it for our rock band. Even outside it sounds good.
 
#9
Given your requirements and restrictions, this would be an ideal choice or, at least, representative:

YorkvilleSub-1.jpg


Yorkville Y118S (discontinued)

Dimensions: 25" X 23" X 24"
Weight: 73 lbs
300 watts

This particular model's 18" driver faces forward and downward at ~ 45 deg. which explains the compact design. Perfect for small / medium size venues where presence, not volume, is mission-critical.

Riis
 
#10
TimmyP said:
I don't mix as loud as a lot of guys, but still, the smallest affordable boxes that would give me what I want would be a pair of SP218s. It's a rare room in which less will do, unless you are quieter than any rock band I've heard (well, except for one or two).
Click to expand...

Well, lets put it this way -

Right now we're getting by with a pair of 2 way 15+horns on sticks with just the vocals and a little kick through them, so basically accoustic drum kit levels - and I'm not looking to get louder especially.

Here is a hint - we've never once, in 3-4 years of gigging, been asked to turn down.
 
#11
That's the same with us. We rock out, but at a level that people can order drinks. It is just the nature of the gigs we happen to have.

I always strive to set the sound so it is clear and people can still talk...but, there is a bit of thump in their chest that they get from seeing live music.

Whatever works for the gigs you have. It varies from band to band.
 
#12
Link didn't work :(

Realistically though, do you really need subs playing those venues? I've got a pair of Yorkville NX (720's I believe) sitting in my living room that were bought to pair with Yorkville mains. Yes, they do give more thump.......but honestly I probably wouldn't buy them knowing what I know now. A good pair of PA speakers (which I have no clue if yours are) plus a good bass amp carries a lot of thump. I'm only holding on to these in hopes I'll need them some day :). Outdoor gigs sound better with them, but the last band gig I did with the yorkville system we actually didn't bring the subs due to the threat of rain.....and it sounded fine.

But the yorkvilles are great subs....handles are in a bit awkward place for my short arms so I end up manhandling them as a giant box. But it says something that my weak butt can pick them up and put them into the bed of my pickup.... and they both fit in a Ranger sized truck easily side by side.

Maybe save your money and upgrade the PA speakers...... the venue isn't going to pay you more for having subs. :(

/devils advocate
 
#13
nsmar4211 said:
Link didn't work :(
Click to expand...

That should work -

Link Removed



nsmar4211 said:
Realistically though, do you really need subs playing those venues?
Click to expand...

Need? No - we've been playing 'em for 3-4 years without one, so we don't NEED them. I'd just like one.



nsmar4211 said:
I've got a pair of Yorkville NX (720's I believe) sitting in my living room that were bought to pair with Yorkville mains. Yes, they do give more thump.......but honestly I probably wouldn't buy them knowing what I know now. A good pair of PA speakers (which I have no clue if yours are) plus a good bass amp carries a lot of thump. I'm only holding on to these in hopes I'll need them some day :). Outdoor gigs sound better with them, but the last band gig I did with the yorkville system we actually didn't bring the subs due to the threat of rain.....and it sounded fine.
Click to expand...

Really I'm just looking to get a little more kick in the mix more than anything - I really don't have any problem carrying the room with my amp. They'd be nice for outdoors also.

nsmar4211 said:
But the yorkvilles are great subs....handles are in a bit awkward place for my short arms so I end up manhandling them as a giant box. But it says something that my weak butt can pick them up and put them into the bed of my pickup.... and they both fit in a Ranger sized truck easily side by side.

Maybe save your money and upgrade the PA speakers...... the venue isn't going to pay you more for having subs. :(

/devils advocate
Click to expand...

Eh... it's more to make my life easier/more pleasant as the guy running sound... which is really why I'm looking for a single sub that isn't too big/heavy.

We don't NEED it, and while I'm willing to spend a couple hundred bucks for better sound - I'm not willing to heft 150lbs, or take up more than about 4 sq. ft. of stage space... or hauling space - I already haul me, my wife (the drummer), my bass amp, my basses, her drum kit, and the entire PA - in our Ford Freestyle.

I'm seriously considering just picking a reasonable (and reasonably cheap) 15" neo driver and building a fiberglass enclosure.

I already have a mess of foam board for the core, my dad has a 50"x125 yard roll of glass collecting dust in his basement, and I've always found fiberglass relatively easy to work with... plus I've got most of the other components (corners, input jacks, etc.) sitting around too.

I figure I'm pretty much looking at a total cost of basically the driver... everything else I already have... and based on the weight of something like a fEarful sub done in plywood - I'd be looking at a 40lb subwoofer with about a 20"x20" footprint.
 

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