New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

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gknoob
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New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by gknoob » Sat Jul 21, 2012 12:21 am

I just ordered my new speakers. I already have the amps I am planning on using, but I am wondering if I will be providing sufficient power to them.

The new speaker setup is 4x VR218 subs and 4x QW2 tops

Amplification:
6x PLX3602

1ea PLX3602 bridged mono into ea VR218

1ea PLX3602 bridged mono per side QW2 (2 speakers)

thanks for any help or advice

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SemperFiSound
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by SemperFiSound » Sat Jul 21, 2012 7:25 am

If you are an experienced sound engineer with years of gigs under your belt then:
gknoob wrote:1ea PLX3602 bridged mono into ea VR218
is fine. And
gknoob wrote:1ea PLX3602 bridged mono per side QW2 (2 speakers)
is NOT fine.

QW-2s in Full Range are looking for 1100-1300 Watts. This will be feeding them 1800 Watts. Recipe for blown horns and mids. If you know how to use limiters or if you have a DSP you can set then MAYBE you will be okay.

Cheers,
Steve
SemperFi Sound; the website
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"The Art of War teaches us to rely, not upon the calculated likelihood of
the enemy's coming or not, but on our own readiness to receive him... no
matter what he does." Sun Tzu

gknoob
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by gknoob » Sat Jul 21, 2012 10:05 pm

You are right. Misread the layout. It is a single 3602 to the tops in stereo and 3 per side. Should be seeing a 2.66 load per channel.

My question was the entire system seemed a little under powered.

Any input would be appreciated.

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SemperFiSound
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by SemperFiSound » Sat Jul 21, 2012 10:59 pm

Okay - the VRs are still fine. Program is 4800, 3600 is 75% . That's a good pairing - I use the same setup.

Your QW-2, 3 per side on one 3602 is a bit low.
3602 produces 1800W into 2 Ohms and 1250 into 4. A little interpolation, and we get about 1500W for three cabinets to divide amongst each other. 500W is a bit low for these cabs that are looking for 1100-1300Watts. That could be stronger.

Cheers,
Steve
SemperFi Sound; the website
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"The Art of War teaches us to rely, not upon the calculated likelihood of
the enemy's coming or not, but on our own readiness to receive him... no
matter what he does." Sun Tzu

1958sedwards
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by 1958sedwards » Sun Jul 22, 2012 1:45 am

Hi gknoob

The QW2 over subs (in you case the VR218) is a serious system. If you really want this to perform to their best you need to triamp them. Seeing you have QSC amplifiers then something like the following:
PLX 3602 bridged for the subs
PLX 2502 bridged into 4 ohms for the 15s
PLX 2502 in stereo mode for the horns.

Unfortunately QSC (in this range) do not have an ideal amplifier for the 15s to operate to their limit in stereo mode. As steve semperfi has stated, the speakers need an amplifier around the 1,000Watts (a little more) into 8 ohms. For example a PL380 (a little on the high side) would be a better match for the 15s.

Whatever you do, seriously consider the addition of a speaker management/processor. For Peavey systems you are much better off with the VSX26 or similar.

Regards

Steve

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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by gknoob » Sun Jul 22, 2012 1:29 pm

Looks like we are going with the PL380 for the tops. My only concern is the need for a 30amp plug, but working to find a way to make that work.

We run speaker management with the DriveRack PA+. It is better suited to the QSC amps all setting already there and will copy the settings over for the speakers.

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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by MusicproZ71 » Sun Jul 22, 2012 2:16 pm

GKNOOB -

I own a QSC pl380 to power 4 JBL srx 728 subs. yes, 4, 2 per side of the amp. Thats a 2 ohm load per side and that amp PUMPS.
All I did was cut off the 30 amp plug and wire a regular 20amp plug in its place. Most places do not have a power distro disconnect, and NO places EVER have a 30 amp plug on the stage.

Even powering 4 subs, I never trip breakers. Those amps are very efficient. The last show we played was for 700+ people, Drove it for 4 hours and never tripped a circuit. And, that amp has so much headroom we were never even close to clip.

Be prepared though - the amp runs very hot at idle. Make sure it has sufficient cooling. While in use, it actually runs cooler due to the design (class d if i remember correctly).

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SemperFiSound
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by SemperFiSound » Mon Jul 23, 2012 5:29 am

gknoob wrote:We run speaker management with the DriveRack PA+. It is better suited to the QSC amps all setting already there and will copy the settings over for the speakers.
The settings for the amps are nice, but the settings for the speakers is the important part. When you say "copy them over" - from where are you copying them? Is there a source for DriveRack settings for Peavey gear? Every DSP is different, and copying VSX-26 settings into a DR might get you close enough (same zip code) but nowhere near a "pro-Audio" setting.

Cheers,
Steve
SemperFi Sound; the website
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"The Art of War teaches us to rely, not upon the calculated likelihood of
the enemy's coming or not, but on our own readiness to receive him... no
matter what he does." Sun Tzu

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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by gknoob » Tue Jul 24, 2012 12:40 am

Steve

It won't just be a direct copy. It will just be a starting place. Love these subs by the way, and the tops are very clean. By the way this is a permanent install at a club and not a mobile or touring application and a new installation so I can get that 30amp outlet.

Sounds amazing already and way more than is needed in the 12,000sq ft that it is in, but have 3 weeks to get it set for the grand opening.

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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by SemperFiSound » Tue Jul 24, 2012 5:21 am

Cool. If it's an install, then a reference mic, SMAARTLIve and a few hours, you should be able to get that system to sing. Then LOCK the DR and throw away the key.

Cheers,
Steve
SemperFi Sound; the website
SemperFi Sound On FaceBook
"The Art of War teaches us to rely, not upon the calculated likelihood of
the enemy's coming or not, but on our own readiness to receive him... no
matter what he does." Sun Tzu

sndcntrctr
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Re: New Speaker setup are these amps enough power

Post by sndcntrctr » Wed Jul 25, 2012 12:30 am

I'd run your power in dual mono/stereo(not bridged) w/your QW2F's. BTW, you should order an additional (4) QW2F's..... that would match up with the VR 218's even more.

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