DJ Speakers

Choosing a new or first time PA System can be a nightmare, we hear the same questions every time;

1. Should I get Active or Passive Speakers?
2. What is RMS and Peak Power?
3. How many watts do I need?
4. What are ohms and what Amplifier do I put with 'x' Speaker?

These 3 simple, but very common questions are the main things we feel you not only need to know, but that most of customers usually want to know as well. So we'll start from the top and work down.

Should I get Active or Passive Speakers?
Different people have different needs, and Active & Passive speakers both offer Pro's & Con's.

An Active speaker, is a speaker with it's own independent amplifier built into the back. This amplifier will be perfectly matched for the speaker, so you chances of over driving/blowing it are minimal compared to a passive model. It will have multiple inputs, and usually feature an EQ section. Active speakers require mains power, unlike a passive speaker which just plugs into your amplifier, an Active speaker needs both an audio signal and mains power to drive it's built in amplifier. Due to the amplifier being built in to it, Active speakers are normally a good 7kg heavier than the like for like passive model.

Passive Speakers are un-powered, so although they are cheaper you will need to purchase an amplifier to run them. Although there is the extra cost of an amplifier, Passive Speakers are generally a lot cheaper to repair should you run into any problems with them. They are also lighter, and there is a lot choice in the Passive Speaker selection.

So to work out which is best for you, the questions you need to ask yourself are;

Is weight a problem, do I need something light?
Can I afford the more expensive repairs associated with Active Speakers?
Can I afford the more expensive option of pairing Passive Speakers with an Amplifier?
Do I have access to mains power for each Active Speaker?


What is RMS and Peak Power?
RMS power ratings refer the continuous power than the speaker or amplifier was designed for. It will run at RMS all day, everyday and this is the value you need to be looking for when assessing what equipment you need.

Peak Power refers the spikes in music signals (or louder bits of the song to me and you, a bass drum, crash or special effect maybe). The Peak Power rating is not for continuous use, and prolonged over driving at the Peak Power will mean either your Speaker or Amplifier, or BOTH will fail and need repairing. Peak Power ratings can be used from a little as 20/30 seconds to a maximum of 5minutes.

All our products will show a Peak Power ratings as supplied by the manufacturers. We will never recommend the use of Peak Power ratings when assessing what equipment you need, as Peak Power does not reflect the true capability of the Amplifier or Speaker under normal everyday use.

A good example to use would be if your Speakers where 100w RMS and your Amplifier was also 100w RMS, in theory this should be a perfect match and both pieces of gear will run at their best.

How many watts do I need?
A good rule to aim for is 3-5watts of power per person. So if you are playing to 100 people at your next Disco you will need a minimum of 300-500watts. This again is RMS, do not try to cut corners and and aim for Peak Power, because if your Speakers fail at a gig, that's your gig that failed as well! Obviously room acoustics, ceiling heights, furniture etc... all soak up sound, so a 3-5watt rule is as general as we can advise. Every venue you play at, your speakers will sound slightly different in.


What are ohms?
To make things easy, Ohms is a measure of resistance, and we will leave it at that for beginners to ohms. What you do need to know is what ohms you need to match to up from your Speaker to Amplifier. Most Amplifiers show a rating for both 4ohm and 8ohm. So if you have a set of speaker which are 100w (each speaker) @ 8ohms, you need an amplifier which will be 2 x 100w @ 8ohms. We recommend that you can go 25% higher in power when choosing your amplifier, so on the above example the amplifier could be a maximum of 2 x 125w @ 8ohms. Do not put larger Speakers on a smaller Amplifier though, as it is easier to stress and Amplifier and it try to produce more power than it is capable of, than for a Speaker to take a little more power than it is rated for.

Most Speakers are 8ohms, although we do still stock the occasional 4ohm model. Amplifiers will sometimes give a power rating in 4ohms, and you might have already purchased 8ohm speakers and think this 4ohm Amplifier will not work. This is not the case. Here's a little example;

An Amplifier designed to put out 200w @ 4ohms, will also put out 100w @ 8ohms. The Amplifier does not decided what ohms it will work at, it will produce the correct ohms for the Speaker, but as shown above the power will be reduced if going from a 4ohm rating to an 8ohm rating, and vice versa, if your Speakers are 4ohms and you purchase an 8ohm Amplifier.

So the rule to remember is half the power rating when going from 4ohm to 8ohm.
And also double the power rating when going from 8ohm down to 4ohm.