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Which speakers for playing music at a party |
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#1 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 2
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Which speakers for playing music at a party
I'm hosting a party in a community hall soon and need to buy some speakers that will connect to my iPod/ipad but am baffled by what type I actually need in order to get decent sound quality thats loud enough too.
Can anyone assist please? I don't have a budget in mind yet since I don't know what the difference is between the types of speakers and what makes it worth paying extra for. |
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#2 |
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Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 6,450
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Personally I'd hire rather than buy. You're more likely to get the right kind of gear at a sensible cost.
They way I'd look at it that the sort of gear required to fill a big hall with sound isn't typically the type of gear I'd like to have as a living room stereo system. The two applications are very different. To put it another way, if I wanted to move house I'd hire a van because it's the right tool for the job, but I wouldn't buy a van for that job and then keep it as a family car. For a hall I'd hire something such as this for around £70 - £100. It's not so much the wattage but the fact that it is the right tool for the job. The speakers will put out enough bass so that it'll still sound good in big hall. They're also rugged enough that they'll stand a bit of abuse if some of your music files are a bit ropey. You can run a microphone with the system quite easily if required, and the people hiring it too you will have have answers for all the sorts of questions you're likely to ask as well as being able to suggest ways of setting up that will help you get the best results.
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#3 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,902
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I second what Mr Frost posted. If it is a one off then there is little to zero point buying kit. As he says the sort of kit you need to play music in a big hall full of people is not exactly the sort of kit you would necessarily use for home listening. So as it's a one off gig, buying would be a waste of money frankly.
If you have a good disco/PA hire company nearby then have a chat with them. If they are any good they will show you how to set-up and operate the kit. |
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 2
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Thanks for your replies everyone.
The reason that I wanted to buy is because this will probably turn into a regular arrangements so in the long run it would work out cheaper to buy and then just keep in storage to use as and when needed. Having said that, even if I go down the route of hiring I still have no idea what I need so the above information has still been helpful. Thank you. |
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#5 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 11,688
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Quote:
I'm hosting a party in a community hall soon and need to buy some speakers that will connect to my iPod/ipad but am baffled by what type I actually need in order to get decent sound quality thats loud enough too.
Can anyone assist please? I don't have a budget in mind yet since I don't know what the difference is between the types of speakers and what makes it worth paying extra for. |
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#6 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 6,450
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Quote:
Thanks for your replies everyone.
The reason that I wanted to buy is because this will probably turn into a regular arrangements so in the long run it would work out cheaper to buy and then just keep in storage to use as and when needed. Quote:
Having said that, even if I go down the route of hiring I still have no idea what I need so the above information has still been helpful.
The speakers have amplification built in. This helps keep costs down and potentially makes setup simpler. The mixer provides volume control and the ability to add voice over the music if you buy a mic. A bigger mixer simply adds more channels so that you can fade from one music source to another without the sort of silence. Sliders (faders) on a mixer make that easier to do because they're easier to move than twisting a dial. Power: People starting out with PA gear get a bit obsessed with wattage claims from the budget manufacturers. They tend to quote in a way that produces a very big number without it being made obvious that the real wattage for everyday use will be much lower. The buying tip then is to take the wattage claims with a pinch of salt. Seek the advice of a good PA sales/hire shop. The stuff they'really putting out on hire needs to work reliably, so it's a reasonable indicator of what they have faith in and maybe too what you should buy. Now it's your turn to start filling in some blanks. How big is the hall and how many people are you likely to be entertaining? Also think about transport and storage. A small PA system might fit in to the boot of a Focus/Astra and be plenty powerful enough to keep 40-50 people entertained. The more people you want to play to (or the louder you want to play) then the bigger the gear is going to get. Playing to 200 people at rave party levels might mean you're filling a large estate car or small van. |
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#7 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,902
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There are any number of portable PA systems out there. For example this one
http://cpc.farnell.com/peavey/escort...00w/dp/DP34436 Which is a mixer unit with clip on speakers and storage built in for all the extras. It can play media files from USB and connect via cable or Bluetooth to other devices such as your iPad. If you need to add a mic then something like this would do http://cpc.farnell.com/akg/p5/microp...cal/dp/MP34422 plus a bit of wire to connect to the mixer. http://cpc.farnell.com/pulse/pls0024...-3m/dp/AV14372 All in for a bit under 700 quid for a complete PA system. I have used a smaller version of the Peavey "PA in a box" system before and it was pretty decent. |
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#8 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Derbyshire
Posts: 41,783
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Quote:
I seem to remember reading that Bose quality isn't what it used to be.
Bose is rather like B&O, a fashion company more than an electronics one. |
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,902
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Quote:
It never was - Bose have always been massively over priced for fairly mediocre quality.
Bose is rather like B&O, a fashion company more than an electronics one. . They sound a bit naff with out it.
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#10 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Derbyshire
Posts: 41,783
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Quote:
Albeit that they need a "controller box" between mixer and amp to modify the frequency response somewhat
. They sound a bit naff with out it.![]() Plus of course a large sub-woofer to get decent bass levels. |
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#11 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Scotland, Dunfermline Area
Posts: 10,699
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I have B&O sound on my HP laptop that I got about 5 months ago and the sound from it its very good.
Bose may have very good sound but like some of the B&O stuff is very dear. You can sometimes pay just under half the price of what Bose and B&O cost and still get some very good sounding speakers. The Amazon Echo has good sound and will connect via Bluetooth to any other Bluetooth device. May not be good for a large hall but a small to medium size hall should be fine for the Amazon Echo. I was surprised by the sound from the Amazon Echo that I got a few days ago. Darren |
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#12 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 11,688
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Quote:
It never was - Bose have always been massively over priced for fairly mediocre quality.
Bose is rather like B&O, a fashion company more than an electronics one. |
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#13 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 6,450
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Quote:
The Amazon Echo has good sound and will connect via Bluetooth to any other Bluetooth device. May not be good for a large hall but a small to medium size hall should be fine for the Amazon Echo.
I was surprised by the sound from the Amazon Echo that I got a few days ago. Darren
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