Over the last 10 years, we all have seen the market for self-powered speakers grow to the point where they are now at least as popular as nonpowered speakers. For someone like me, who has a small regional company and a relatively limited crew, using powered speakers makes my setup faster, easier and requires less thinking than a traditional passive speaker, amps and crossover system (the less-thinking part is very important for me and my crew). So, the next obvious question is: Why not use this self-powered speaker technology in a permanent house of worship installation?
The simple answer is that you can permanently mount self-powered speakers in any location where you would install nonpowered speakers (given that you have available Edison plugs). But why would you?
Early Experience
When I first began my career as a sound system installer, self-powered speakers were more of a novelty than anything else. Installed sound systems were about matching the amp to the speaker’s resistance load and power-handling capabilities, making sure you set your crossovers properly and that you used good speaker wire. (Young sound guys, who have only ever used self-powered speakers, look at me like I am from another planet when I ask them about the ohm load of a cabinet.)
The first time I installed powered speakers in a church was about eight years ago. The church already had a speaker cluster hanging above the stage. I never have really liked this type of install, but it was a very popular way of hanging speakers, and I guess it still has some fans. At any rate, the cluster was blowing the sound right by the people in the front rows, so some additional boxes were needed to augment the system.
I suggested mounting one full-range powered speaker box at either side of the stage, at about seven feet above the stage deck. These speakers could be directed at the front couple of rows of the church, and I used a separate send from the mixing board to drive them. This way, I could turn the powered speakers up, down or off, independent of the main speakers. I had a separate graphic EQ for the powered speakers, which allowed me to EQ them completely separate from the mains. Basically, the powered speakers acted as front fills for the main system. This worked very well and gave the church the flexibility necessary for the congregation’s listening needs.
My next use of self-powered speakers was with a couple of powered wedges that I added to a monitor system. This house of worship had four monitors on its stage and needed some additional coverage. The monitor system was matched to the power amps, and adding new nonpowered speakers would upset the ohm (that word again) load. The stage also was prewired with speaker wires from an amp room a fair distance away. It was impractical to add another power amp and run the new speaker wires down the hall from the amp room to the worship stage.
So, I used an extra aux send from the board, which arrived at the stage via a hardwired snake. I just needed some Edison for my powered monitors, and I was set. These particular monitors had their own volume control, EQ and limiting, so nothing else was needed to get them up and running. Since then, I have added powered monitors to probably a dozen existing monitor systems. As a matter of fact, when I get a call to mix, I bring a couple of powered monitors with me in case I need some additional coverage.
From the Sanctuary to the Street
Of course, if you read my “Out Reach” article from last month’s FOH, you can see how easy it is to take a self-powered system and move it outdoors or to some other location. But to be fair, I am talking about permanently installed worship systems and the pros and cons of powered versus nonpowered.
One of the potential cons related to self-powered systems is servicing. If your speaker box fails to operate, you’ve got to uninstall it to service it. With a nonpowered system, you can usually get to a power amp much more easily than getting to a speaker box. Of course, powered or nonpowered, speaker components usually fail before an amp fails. I am obviously talking in general, but the reality of planning a sound system is that you must plan for repair and replacement. You also have to be certain to plan out your Edison. Powered boxes need power.
As far as picking out your system component manufacturers, I believe just about every speaker manufacture builds powered and nonpowered boxes. Once you have decided what manufacturer you will be using, you can price out the difference between powered boxes versus nonpowered boxes, amps, crossovers, etc. I actually would be very interested in somebody putting together an entire system — one powered and one nonpowered — using the same manufacturer’s products. I think it would be very interesting to see where things add up as far as price goes. If anyone out there decides to do this type of research, please e-mail me with your results. I would be very curious to know.
Anyway, back to my subject. I have been leaning toward using powered install boxes for my latest projects, except in the case of wall- or ceiling-mounted speaker installations where the project requires four, six, eight or more speakers in a particular room. Finding Edison for all those speakers could be difficult. Needless to say, anytime I put something into a wall or ceiling, I will continue to use a nonpowered speaker.
I think the bottom line here is that one type of system probably doesn’t sound better than any other type, but it may be easier for a church volunteer to operate a powered system rather than a nonpowered system. The plug-and-play aspect of a good powered system can really shine when you have a non-pro operating it.
Send a letter to Jamie at jrio@fohonline.com
