Hi All,
Nice responses...I also noticed yamaha coming out with the new system. I was planning on checking it out on Friday. I'll still look at it but i am all too familiar with weak built in effects in mixers....I have 2 of the Yamaha EMX powered amp/mixers.
I agree Gary, If you only use it for a year it paid for itself. The prob is...if there is any reliability issue...i'd have to carry two of them to be safe. Since I play guitar to backing tracks made on my psr and transferred to mp3, I wont have my onboard psr speakers to hobble thru the event. My yorkville powered sub is bulky tho. Can the z5500 sub be ran with my system to replace the sub. I know i'd still need to use my power amp for the mains, but at least the sub would be lighter. With a couple of AS108 yami speakers...it would still be small.
One thing i learned for sure...I've been setting my yamaha emx mixer/amp on my sub. Guess i'll rethink that!
Thanks, Larry :-)

Hey Don, do you mean z2200? Only reason I ask is because this is a thread about z5500 and I want to make sure you mean z2200 is louder. Three cheers for z2200 if so.

Right Z2200.
Don

Don,
You are right that the Reverb is more like a short echo mixed with reverb and there are no other choices. All in all, it's a good package with a lot of inputs and outputs and a nice small package. Here in my store the volume is quite loud, but I don't know how it would do in a large club without running additional speakers.
Your input is appreciated.
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California

For sure the best thing to do with any equipment is to get it from someplace that has about a 30 day return option.

I will tell you my experience with the z5500's. So far, I have found the best way for me to use it is to use only the sub along with my JBL Eon 10G2's. This sounds very good. The sub adds a nice bottom even in a small room. I like the feature of playing a demo on my Tyros that I recorded and step out into the audience area and use the remote control to fine tune just the right amount of bass. Not too much and not too little. I find that I need to do this because, so far my experience has been that the sub kicks out a lot of sound especially next to me. It really sounds kind of boomy and overpowering. But, out in the audience when set properly it sounds quite nice. I have noticed that the balance between different bass notes is not perfect. There seems to be a couple of notes that just kind of drop out. Seems to me "F" is one of them.

Now, I would hopefully expect this set-up to sound better that the z5500 out of the box because of the price and speaker and cabinet size of the JBL's.

As far as using the z5500 as a 2.1 or a 5.1, so far, I have been unimpressed. I can't believe that I'm the only one, but perhaps the one that's being vocal about it.

To me there is absolutely no mid-range.

I did pull out the satellite speakers the other day again just to experiment as a 2.1 set-up. I found that when I placed the speakers on the sub the way Richard Peck used to do with his Yamaha 2.1, that I didn't like the sound at all.

Then I placed the 2 speakers on top of my Tyros aimed directly at my face. I did find that the sound was actually pretty good sitting in front of the keyboard. Set up like this I almost didn't notice the lack of mid-range. I then let my onboard demo play and I stepped back about 6 feet. At this point the sound started sounding thin and small and undesirable to me, IMHO.

I have played with the EQ and the onboard compressor to tweak it so it sounds as good as I can get it.

I suppose I can again test it with the 5.1 setting, but, even with that number of speakers optimally placed, in my mind I can't see how those small speakers will ever fill a room with a sound I like where I am performing, regardless of the size of the room or the number of people. Unless those little satellites are aimed to such a degree that it actually would cover the entire area without any blank spots.

I am still open to any ideas or suggestions on how to optimize the sound of this to the point where I would be happy and comfortable about using these, but so far, even when I did try it as a 5.1 system which is how I did do the original testing, it is definitely not a sound I want to use.

I also found that the sound of the piano is a very noticalbe degradation compared to the JBL's.


So, these are my findings, IMHO. If they work for you and sound good to your ears, then I say, fantastic, good for you. I would love to be able to say the same, but so far it's been far from it.

I am open to any input and suggestions about my findings.

Best

Scott Langholff
http://www.ScottLMusic.com

[This message has been edited by Scott Langholff (edited 05-04-2005).]

I am happy with mine its working out nicely , played for a wedding couple weeks ago 120 people volume at half got nice , comments about sound ,BENNO

I am new here and I am preparing to buy my first arranger (right now I'm playing at home with a cheap Yamaha PSR-83 plugged into a Roland XV5050 sound module) so I am not qualified to address how a speaker sounds for an arranger in a club. However, I have done DJ and karaoke shows full time for 10 years so I can tell you about my speaker experience.

I started with 2 200W 15" non-powered EV speakers on stands powered by a Peavey XRD 680+ mixer amp with build in effects. Good sounding system for small gigs where you don't need a long throw. The Peavey had to be serviced once but the speakers still sound like when they were new--10 years later. Great sound for the money. 300W total.

My second system is 4 350W powered 12" EV speakers and 2 400W EV single 18" subs powered by a Crest CA 9. I got a Mackie 14 channel mixing board and a Rane crossover. This system gives me a lot more power. However, I had to have all the 12" speakers serviced because there was a design flaw where the heavy amp would fall out of place. They paid to fix it, though and the problem hasn't recurred. This system gives good clear sound, but I have occasional problems with humming. I would probably not buy another powered speaker for a mobile application. Total 2,200 Watts.

My third system is all big JBL SR II stuff. 2 JBL 1200W double 18" subs each powered by a Crest CA12, 2 1200W double 12" speakers with 2" horns powered by Crest CA9s, and a 600W floor wedge powered by a Yamaha 5000.
I mix with a Mackie Onyx and control with a dbx Driverack PA. Reverb and delay are with a Lexicon PCM 80 and PCM 90. This system is the best and clearest by far. 10,000W at full blast.

Here are some lessons I've learned.

Powered speakers are problematic at times and heavy.
Rack EVERYTHING!! or you'll be sorry.
Don't UNDERpower your speakers. In general you should have at least the number of watts going into your speaker that is in between the continuous rating and the peak. For example, my JBLs are 1200W continuous and 2400W peak. You should send them between 1800W and 2400W each. I send them about 2400W at peak. This prevents my amps from overworking. Underpowering will blow speakers quickly. I found this out the hard way. Check with your speaker manufacturer for specific recommendations.
NEVER clip anywhere. NO red lights on anything from the gain light on the mixer to the LED on your amps.
Don't buy cheap mics. You can't go wrong with a Shure SM58. You can pound a nail with one and it sounds like new 10 years later. I have one from the mid 80s that looks like a joke, it's so bent up. But it sounds great!
Better to have too much PA and run at 50% volume than too little and overmodulate. The latter will grate people nerves and ring in their ears and they'll leave your show early. Quality and clarity are what's important. The person who complains that a show (at 60 db) is too loud and loves an Aerosmith concert (98 db) is really noticing the difference in quality and clarity, rather than volume.
Don't skimp on subs or people won't dance. Try cutting your bass one night and watch people walk off the dance floor. Again, quality and clarity in your bass punch are important. Don't overmodulate.
Understand that at my shows I go from singing Elton John or Merle Haggard to playing 50 Cent and the Black Eyed Peas and with the hip hop stuff and dancers you need a lot more volume than one would need in a Piano bar, especially playing at dinner time.
My goal is to get a Ketron SD1 Plus, Tyros, or Pa1XPro and merge it into my shows. I play 6 nights a week and as I learn songs I'll just play them and sing them instead of singing a karaoke song. Hopefully, with a lot of hard but enjoyable work I'll be able to do a show of just me singing and playing.
I am lucky in that I DJ all the time so I have an instant outlet for playing in public even when I learn my first song or two. I can't wait. And this forum has been so helpful and informative for me as I make my decision. I can't be helpful on arrangers yet, but I'll chime in on ancillary issues where I can be helpful until I know enough about arrangers to speak from experience.

StPatrick, I trust you are paid extremely well, else you wouldn't haul all of that around. Whew!

Yeah, most on here are more intimate venues or smaller venue / lower volume stuff.

That is what they pay for, hauling it in and out. But these are three systems I bought. I wouldn't use them all at the same show. I make $125 - $150 per night at the nightclub shows sun-fri. If I book a wedding or anything on Sat (my only day off otherwise) I charge $500 for 1-4 hours and then $100 per hour over 4. I probably do 25-30 a year. I recently did a wedding where the couple was so late starting and taking photos that I played for 1 1/2 hours for $400. And then they tipped me $50! (They booked a year ago under my old rate.) Let me tell you, the list of things I wouldn't do for $300 an hour is short!
I have a 14 foot trailer to haul the stuff. It's not too bad since I move it every day. Keeps you in shape, lol.

Hi All,
Scott...I found your experience to be really intersting. I can really picture thinking the same thing. But just to get an idea...i'm going to try hooking into a Boston Acoustic computer system that i have. Its a good system, with subwoofer, and that should give me an rough idea of the kind of sound to expect.
I've found from doing dj work...my regular saturday thing...that the BBE sonic maximizer is really essential for good sound. Guitar center was selling some that were the size of and 8-track tape for about 80 dollars awhile back. It really defines the sound better then i could ever do with an EQ. Everything seems punchier too.
I fit all my stuff in a honda civic so i cant do what Patrick is doing. I always appreciate listening to a big sound system tho...its nice. I remember my days hauling around my cerwin vegas.....
Keep on Rocking! Larry :-)