TopherM @ Fri Jul 07, 2006 11:32 am wrote:
I actually have a dual 12" deep throw bandpass box that I won in a karaoke contest. How in the world do you hook a car stereo component up to a PA system, though??
You would hook it up as any speaker in a PA - the speaker cord would need to be configured to plug into the speaker jack or rewire the box to use 1/4" or Speakon connections. Although these types of speakers really aren't designed for for the riggers of PA use & make sure you have an external crossover and an amp properly rated for the Program power rating of the sub. Bandpass boses are VERY limited in the frequencies they project, they were basically designed to give more bass out of lower quality speakers, these boxes generally are bigger & don't have a long throw. Yes they can create more sloppy bass (found in many vehicles for the boom boom) & sound loud but if the subs start distorting, you may not even hear it, but the projection will not be there & and again, very limited on the frequenies it passes - hence "band pass". Also if the box isn't properly tuned to begin with, you are getting the full benefit from one.
As far as subs go however, with your Yamahas, I would go with the Club series 18" (generally only need 1 on most venues)
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i- ... --d-2.html and an amp bridged
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i- ... --d-2.html with an external crossover such as the dbx 223
http://www.americanmusical.com/item--i- ... 7_384.html. The sub & amp listed would be perfect power rating, already matches the rest of your system & if you wanted to add 2 subs, both subs would be ran bridged into 4 ohms - still a perfect match for the amps bridged rating.
Speakon connectors can make a slight difference in sound provided your amp has Speakon outputs as well, if not it's kind of defeating the purpose for sound quality - however Speakon connectors are nice because they are a locking connection - no kicking the wire out of the speaker if someone accidently stumbles or steps/trips on the cord. Speakon connectors can handle nearly 10X the amplifier power over standard 1/4" connectors without any major signal loss. You can actually custom wire a speaker so you can bi-tri amp a speaker using 1
properly configured cable - in typical bi or more set-ups you'd need 2 or more wires running to each speaker. Most speakon wires are set up for standard use.
As far as mics, the SM86 is a great mic, that's up to you if you want to switch to a more expensive mic, it may make a slight crisper difference in sound that some of the drinkers may or may not notice. I would honestly stay with the SM58's for now & add the subs & crossovers first - this will take some of the bass out of the main speakers making the vocals stand out a little more crisp.