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Hi all!

I'm jamming with in a band at a local theatre. At the moment all our stuff goes into a small PA (backing, guitars, bass, voice) but I will take my guitar out when I can afford a Marshall!

I have a Phonic powered mixer (1060's) which claims to put out 2x200watt for FOH speakers and 200watt on a monitor channel. At the moment I only have 4 x 8" 100w speakers to go with it (two of which are borrowed.)

I'm looking for a bigger pair of speakers to be getting along with. If I use my Goodman's as monitors, that leaves 2x200watts left on the amp to play around with. However, I'd like to get 15" speakers because I don't have any bass subs.

Could anyone tell me whether the old Peavey SP2 (the seller says they are about 5 years old but used to be top-of-the-range) would be any good in this setup? He says they are 300watts each. I looked on the 'net for info, but could only see SP2X, and other newer versions.

If anyone can help, I'd be very grateful. He's selling the pair for £150 / $262. Does this sound good?

Thanks alot, Ben

The older SP-2's & there were several variations before the current line, should still sound fine with your set-up. Peavey was pretty conservative with their power ratings in the 80's & 90's so they will actually handle a tad bit more than 300 watts. A company I worked for used to have a set of SP-2ti. They were rated at 350 watts, we were pushing around 500 watts into each with no problems. As far as them being top of the line, I wouldn't have ever called them that - there are FAR better speakers out there, but for the money, reliability, durability & sound quality overall, they couldn't be beat.
BTW I looked on e-bay & if it's the set from Wood River, IL or St. louis, MO, those are ALOT older than 5 years. That style was changed about '91.

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Ben,
Be carefull!
Whenever I buy anything that is used I try to look for a savings of 50 cents on the dollar, however...
When it comes to buying used speakers that I can't listen to from a stranger the term "as-is" kills the deal. If they have been stored in a garage and exposed to a lot of dampness in the winter, and then baked in the summer they may be in dire need of retirement.
I haven't heard SP-2's but even if they are in perfect condition and that they have a quality sound you might not be able to get very much bass from them due to your amp. You said that you'll have 200 wattsx2 left on your amp. Most amps rate thier power output at 4ohms. My guess is that you'll have around 135 wattsx2 at 8ohms.

There is a corelation between a speakers power handling and its min. power requirement. Though you will have enough power to run the
SP-2's, you won't have enough to get any real bass from them. Adjusting the low EQ won't be much help because every bass note will draw power from the high end. If your going to use the monitors for voice and plan to use the SP-2's for reg guitar, you won't be to far off, but you could do better. If your plan is to run a bass guitar through your system, you're heading for a disapointment. The real problem is the fact that you can't try these speakers out for size before you buy.
Kojak

Lonman - thanks for the advice. That is quite re-assuring! Its not a set on ebay though...their in a local paper here in the uk. I'm hoping I could know the price down a bit too.

Kojak - again, thanks. You are right about the power rating on the ampifier-"maximum power output" is 2x200w at 4ohms. On this basis, it seems you're right - I wouldn't get that output in practice.

Hmm. I could take my amp and monitors with me to test the SP2's out, as its a private sale in a paper. Assuming the seller agrees to this, is there any way of telling how good condition they are in from listening to them...or any clues I could find by inspecting them?

I don't know where got the idea you getting them off of e-bay. Oh well. Try to find out the exact model number of these. SP-2, SP-2A, SP-2ti, SP-2G. You said he quoted they were only around 5 years ols, so they should either be the ti or G series. The G series took over right around that time, so I imagine the ti series would have still been available on closeouts.
When testing, listen at a low level. You don't want to hear any kind of distortion or rattle from the cones. Then turn them up to louder levels. Like stated they may not sound as good as they could with your amps power, but just make sure you like what you hear. There really isn't anything else, if you hear highs & lows, that's pretty much it.

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Ben,
'Twas rather foolish of me to assume that you were buying off of Ebay.
Since this was a newspaper ad., and the seller is local, the bottom line is how well you like them when you hear them in real life.

Good Luck!
Kojak

Many thanks guys! I am really grateful for all the info and tips!

Happy Christmas!