Active versus Passive

[CRAZY K]

Well just before I go off to my Burns Night gig heres an interesting---well more interesting than usual--point to consider.

My son purchased a small QTX plastic active speaker to use with his Rodeo--last week his inflatable Marquee collapsed with everything else inflatable because the customers power supply was not good enough and suddenly failed.:eek:

When it all went limp---so to speak--the plastic marquee crashed down and sent his active speaker flying.

It has cracked the plastic body and now plays with unacceptable distortion:eek:

Not unexpected.

However heres an overlooked point--if an Active Speaker goes over at a Disco it might damage the amp as well as the speaker and the cabinet, if plastic possibly breaking the casing.

If a passive goes over its only the speaker at risk.

In my case I only use timber speakers and two smashes to the ground have resulted in no damage to the wooden cabinet and one broken solder joint that was rectified with my soldering iron---possibly an exisitng weak solder joint.

Just thought its worth registering these facts for those making the comparison, I agree the chances of a speaker going over are very slight---but it happens and they do get dropped.

Waits for offers of wooden active speakers for sale:daft:

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

If a marquee collapsed then an amp or any other piece of equipment is just as likely to be knocked over as a speaker.

As a company, we have had 3 x actives knocked over in the last 5 years and all have survived.

Perhaps it was the fact that it was a £100 cheap QTX speaker rather than the fact it was an active speaker?

[DeckstarDeluxe]

My Mackie has fallen over once because of a drunken young lad, carried on working ok.

[axeman]

If a marquee collapsed then an amp or any other piece of equipment is just as likely to be knocked over as a speaker.



while it is possible - it's unlikely that your amp would be mounted on a pole 6 or 7 foot up in the air...lol

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

while it is possible - it's unlikely that your amp would be mounted on a pole 6 or 7 foot up in the air...lol

Possibly not, but if a marquee comes down then it could knock everything over - tripod, deckstand, lighting etc

[CRAZY K]

Possibly not, but if a marquee comes down then it could knock everything over - tripod, deckstand, lighting etc

Obviously I understand this incident is not something that would happen to a DJ although in some of the gigs in pubs involving drunks I guess its quite possible.

Interesting that other plastic cabs have withstood the impacts---in my sons case it smashed on to tarmac which obviously is worse. :eek:



This is not to provoke yet another debate---just an observation.

My own view is that if the amp is onboard ( active) its going to be heavier so the risk of damage is higher than a speaker alone, considering the cheapness of the product I agree its more likely to break though.

Thanks for the feedback so far.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

My own view is that if the amp is onboard ( active) its going to be heavier so the risk of damage is higher than a speaker alone

And that is where you'd be wrong (in some cases) :D

Is it Peavey you use?

Pro 15's are 22Kg
Mackie 450s V2 - 18Kg

My QSC tops are 13Kg. ;)

[CRAZY K]

And that is where you'd be wrong (in some cases) :D

Is it Peavey you use?

Pro 15's are 22Kg
Mackie 450s V2 - 18Kg

My QSC tops are 13Kg. ;)

Oh Yes ---cant disagree with facts--I just wonder if a Peavey type timber mdf cabinet though would be stronger than moulded plastic---even if it weighed a bit more.

We are talking smaller cabinets though with the QTX--not received any offers of a cheap ACTIVE 8 INCH speaker yet---anyone?;) ;) ;)

[paulg]

Well just before I go off to my Burns Night gig heres an interesting---well more interesting than usual--point to consider.

My son purchased a small QTX plastic active speaker to use with his Rodeo--last week his inflatable Marquee collapsed with everything else inflatable because the customers power supply was not good enough and suddenly failed.:eek:

When it all went limp---so to speak--the plastic marquee crashed down and sent his active speaker flying.

It has cracked the plastic body and now plays with unacceptable distortion:eek:

Not unexpected.

However heres an overlooked point--if an Active Speaker goes over at a Disco it might damage the amp as well as the speaker and the cabinet, if plastic possibly breaking the casing.

If a passive goes over its only the speaker at risk.

In my case I only use timber speakers and two smashes to the ground have resulted in no damage to the wooden cabinet and one broken solder joint that was rectified with my soldering iron---possibly an exisitng weak solder joint.

Just thought its worth registering these facts for those making the comparison, I agree the chances of a speaker going over are very slight---but it happens and they do get dropped.

Waits for offers of wooden active speakers for sale:daft:

I agree, you're right. It's one of the drawbacks of actives. A knocked over speaker or a pint spilt on a sub all have a higher chance of costing you more. If I had the choice I would put amps somewhere as safe and dry as possible rather than on the edge of the dance floor.

[Excalibur]

My own view is that if the amp is onboard ( active) its going to be heavier so the risk of damage is higher than a speaker alone, considering the cheapness of the product I agree its more likely to break though.

Thanks for the feedback so far.

We've had the "mine's lighter than yours" debate more than once, as Darren has highlighted in his post. The most important point perhaps isn't the overall weight of the cab, but the weight of individual components inside it, and their support mechanisms. The amp is perhaps a bit of a red herring, as it's likely to be firmly fastened to the case. When I dropped a large Class D from a great height, the weight of the HF driver snapped the fixing clean off the plastic horn assembly.

[katman]

There are so many factors that can influence the damage.

1. the height of the fall and what it lands on. If all the force is distributed along an entire side of the cabinet it it less likely to suffer damage than a single point of impact.

2. in the case of plastic cabinets the ambient temperature can also be a factor. The lower the temperature the more brittle the plastic becomes.

3. quality of manufacture. Brands at the budget end of the market are likely to use thinner materials in the construction of the cabinet.

I once had one of my 2 x 12 cabinets knocked over backwards and the back of it hit the stage with a mighty thud. The cabinet itself was undamaged but the uppermost speaker had its magnet assembly ripped off by the force of the impact. Sent the damaged driver back to Fane and they repaired it free of charge :)

[CRAZY K]

We've had the "mine's lighter than yours" debate more than once, as Darren has highlighted in his post. The most important point perhaps isn't the overall weight of the cab, but the weight of individual components inside it, and their support mechanisms. The amp is perhaps a bit of a red herring, as it's likely to be firmly fastened to the case. When I dropped a large Class D from a great height, the weight of the HF driver snapped the fixing clean off the plastic horn assembly.

Thats considerably bigger heavier and LOUDER than my 8 INCH active Peter
but as I have suggested, wood may withstand impacts better than plastic with or without an amp inside---the current damaged cabinet has a crack in it which resembles the GRAND CANYON.:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

As well as sounding like Sixty Quid Sids outfit.;)

Can you share the "dropped from a great height" story---sounds interesting. :D

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

There are so many factors that can influence the damage.

1. the height of the fall and what it lands on. If all the force is distributed along an entire side of the cabinet it it less likely to suffer damage than a single point of impact.

2. in the case of plastic cabinets the ambient temperature can also be a factor. The lower the temperature the more brittle the plastic becomes.

3. quality of manufacture. Brands at the budget end of the market are likely to use thinner materials in the construction of the cabinet.



Stop being so bloody objective and let us carrying on arguing...:D

[CRAZY K]

Stop being so bloody objective and let us carrying on arguing...:D

Yes this is getting a bit too technical for me;)

Anyone got a reasonably priced 8 inch active cab out there--:D :D :D :D :D

[Kernow]

--last week his inflatable Marquee collapsed with everything else inflatable because the customers power supply was not good enough and suddenly failed.:eek:

Well, a fall in inflation had been predicted by City analysts :confused: ..... but he must nevertheless have felt really let down ?:D


As a company, we have had 3 x actives knocked over in the last 5 years and all have survived.

Perhaps it was the fact that it was a £100 cheap QTX speaker rather than the fact it was an active speaker?

It would certainly appear that the quality and thickness of ABS is reflected in the price. Perhaps it was recycled material which is common in some geographic areas of manufacture ?