Hi boys & girls I want to improve the quality of our sound as you do, at the moment we're using full range speakers with a view to adding a bass bin soon . Will a crossover alone improve the sound or will I need anything else. any advice cheers !!

Hi there...you'll need something else...probably.

Unless you've got lots of spare capacity in your existing amp(s), both in terms of Wattage and impedence (ohms), you'll probably need another amp to drive the bass bins.

However, if you can post details of your existing sound system...we "might" be able to find an alternative.

Use these sample details below, as a guide to what we need.

Amplifier = 250watts RMS per side into 8 ohms
Speakers = 350watts RMS at 8ohms

This information will normally be in the instruction books with the gear, or on stickers on the gears rear.

Ok
at the moment wer'e using 1 pair of 250 8ohms speakers driven by an amp 2x400 watt @8ohms/2x650 watt @ 4ohms/1200watt @ 8ohms bridged.

Also 1 pair of 150 8ohms speakers driven by an amp 2x 200watt @ 8ohms/2x250watt @ 4ohms/500watt @ 8ohms bridged.

We also have a spare amp which is only 2x60watt @ 8ohms/2x110watt @ 4ohms/200watt 8ohms bridged.
thanks.

hi guys any advice on what we need to get ????
thanks Adam & Mike

Depends on how you would define quality. Obviously your system has limitations in it's power output, and although your system would be prefectly adequate for most average sized venues, it is after all a medium range (with regard price) system, so you couldn't expect the preformance of a 2kw £1500 system!.

Given the spec, you are slightly limited in what you can do - uprating the Amps would overload the speakers, and uprating the speakers would be overkill since you would only have the same power driving them.

As Gary mentioned, you could add Bass Bins - I say BinS, since you aren't really going to get much of difference using only 1, and the actual set up would look lopsided .

The common way of doing this, is to have a pair of good quality Bass bins driven from their own amplifier which is fed from the mixer through a cross-over. Most Bass Bins are fitted with a tophat into which a small pole (1 - 3ft) can be securely placed in the fitment. Then a pair of full range (Or Bass & Mid) cabs are placed on the top of the pole. This gives a similar effect to having them on stands, but is slightly safer, and it looks quite professional.

For Average Sized gigs, I simply use a pair of Ohm RWS (Subs) with a pair of Ohm RW3 (Full Range) mounted in the method described above. For gigs with upto 200 Guests I just drive these from a single 1kw Amplifier. The advantage of the RWS Subs is that they have a reasonable quality low pass crossover built in which means that they can share a single Amplifier and give a better bass response than just a bass driver mounted in a cabinet with no x-over!. It's not the most efficient way to add bass bins (The dual amp system is better) but it does give excellent results, and avoids the use and expense of an additional Amp. However, you really need a 500W - 1000W per channel Amp to benefit from this combinaton.

If you want to enhance your exsiting system on the cheap, then consider purchasing a Sound Enhancer (Behringer for Example) these fit between the output of your mixer and input of your amp(s) and surprisingly they do work quite well . They also increase the bass response of your system slightly without draining the power from your Amplifiers.

Thanks Chris
most of the time we play to 100 or so punters or less, but New Years Eve we've got one about 200 hence the need for a bit more oomph. Also this hall is a bit bigger than we've played before and it's full of hard materials eg. wall's, floor etc. so the sound always seems very echo'y.
Another prob that we have is cost & cramped transportation so we were bearing those two points in mind. How about if we used one good bass bin from the smaller amp in bridge mode and use our bigger amp at 4 ohms into the remaining 4 speakers. Are the bass bins with built in crossovers ok and can you use them with an active crossover also ??? Thanks for your advice Adam & Mike

Ideally what you need to be aiming for is to run a 4 ohm load onto the larger on your two amps - i.e to get the full 650 Watts per channel. Technically you are only getting 600 watts in total by running two amps into 8 ohms! and having to lug around a 2nd Amp to do it!. If you ran four speakers from just the larger Amp then you would actually get 2x 650 Watts - just from using the one amplifier - an increase of 100 Watts total on your current configuration just for leaving one amp at home!.

The drawback of doing this currently, is that your speakers would be overloaded - A 250W Cab + 150W Cab = only 400 Watts of handling power @ 4 ohms from an Amp capable of 650 Watts.

Adding A Bass bin won't really increase your overall output power, since Bass isn't directional, and will only add more thump to your system and not actually raise the volume by much. You also have to be careful that you don't end up with more bass than full range.

If you intend on doing venues with 200+ people on a regular basis then you really need to be aiming to get the full potential from your 650W per channel amp, in whatever combination you choose. But that is what I would do.