Jimbilly Posted September 30 Posted September 30 (edited) I recently got to use my old small PA: my daughter was singing/playing guitar at a wedding (2 songs, so fun to be able to help! and she sounded great, several attendees told us after that they realized partway through that it wasn't recorded music). My old speakers are Wharfedale Pro LA-15s, which are a lot like all the other stand/pole mounted powered speakers with a 15. I remember talking about them here when I got them, probably 20-25 years ago! I still like how they sound and they are loud enough, but at 60+ pounds each I'm thinking maybe I'm getting a bit old to be hauling them up and down to stairs to my basement. A few days ago I found a near-new pair of Mackie Thump215 for a very good price, I think they will be fine, and they are really light, I realized I was carrying one down my stairs easily with one hand, claimed weight is a bit over 30 pounds each. I was hoping to find QSC or EV, but these Mackies were too good to pass up. Just this afternoon I saw a Behringer powered sub, 15" speaker (b1500 Pro iirc), very clean and tagged at $200, which was a very tempting price, but heavy!, I did not buy. Published weight is about 95 pounds. I don't really need a subwoofer and I certainly don't need a 95 pound subwoofer! It looks like the newer Class D powered subs are also very light, - pretty neat stuff! Are you guys using the newer lightweight powered PA gear? Edited September 30 by Jimbilly 2 Quote
hamerhead Posted September 30 Posted September 30 I sold off a pair of powered EVs and unpowered subs(w/amp) that sounded great but were heavy. I replaced that with the Harbinger MLS900 pair, then added a 12" Rockville powered sub for fun. Couldn't be happier. Not quite the blasting power but it more than covers what I need. And at about 1/4 of the weight. The Harbingers have a really nice uniform sound 180° in front, which I didn't expect. Aim them right and you get PA + stage monitors in one. There are far better ones out there that get pretty pricey, but for the money these work great. Rockville sub: https://rockvilleaudio.com/products/rbg12s Price has gone up (of course!) but it adds a nice little thump for such a small package. It's decently built, and at 46 lbs, it's about 20 pounds lighter than one EV. 3 Quote
scottcald Posted October 1 Posted October 1 The QSC CP8 is about 20 lbs. and you could probably find them used for under $400. Also, haven't heard them, but as far as small, around the same weight is the Mackie DLM8 which is basically 12" in all dimensions. They also have a 12" sub for that series. Bose S1 Pro and EV Everse8 are around 15lbs. Alto makes some similar types of things that cost about half, but haven't heard those. 4 Quote
BoogieMKIIA Posted October 1 Posted October 1 Even with a modest powered speaker, any type of subwoofer is a great add. 4 Quote
jwhitcomb3 Posted October 2 Posted October 2 On 9/30/2026 at 8:46 PM, scottcald said: The QSC CP8 is about 20 lbs. and you could probably find them used for under $400. Also, haven't heard them, but as far as small, around the same weight is the Mackie DLM8 which is basically 12" in all dimensions. They also have a 12" sub for that series. Bose S1 Pro and EV Everse8 are around 15lbs. Alto makes some similar types of things that cost about half, but haven't heard those. I have three QSC CP8s. Loud, clean, wide dispersion, light, dependable and versatile. I use 'em for mains (paired with a small EV sub), floor wedges, and FRFR for guitars and synths. Did I mention they sound great? 4 Quote
veatch Posted October 2 Posted October 2 Our band is in between - still using the classic unpower JBLs with neo drivers. F'n heavy, but there are 6 of us, and we have a cart with wheels. : ) On the amp side though, yes, definitely class D. Crown amps - XLS series, if I remember correctly. Much lighter, one person can carry the amp rack in a pinch. Back in the day, that was a three-man job. 5 Quote
scottcald Posted October 2 Posted October 2 5 hours ago, veatch said: Our band is in between - still using the classic unpower JBLs with neo drivers. F'n heavy, but there are 6 of us, and we have a cart with wheels. : ) On the amp side though, yes, definitely class D. Crown amps - XLS series, if I remember correctly. Much lighter, one person can carry the amp rack in a pinch. Back in the day, that was a three-man job. The old Peavey, Crown and Crest amps were beasts to carry. 5 Quote
HamerHokie Posted October 2 Posted October 2 We use an EV powered sub, not sure of the model number but it's 700 watts. Not hard to haul around, I handle it without a hand truck. 4 Quote
Jimbilly Posted October 2 Author Posted October 2 2 hours ago, scottcald said: The old Peavey, Crown and Crest amps were beasts to carry. Yes they were! Quite a while ago (25 years?) I bought a used Stewart Audio World 1.6 power amp, that was a pretty early 'lightweight' rack amp, it worked great for PA or bass guitar. It's sitting in a case 'just over there' in case I need it. I haven't used it in a year or two, and for a long time before that 2 Quote
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