Small portable pa

[Adam Tracksler]

Looking for a small portable PA. I've seen the Fender Passport and read about the Mackie SRM150.

Portable and powerful are the two things I'm looking for.

Anything else I should be looking at?

Thanks, ad

[MikeEdgerton]

I had a Kustom Profile that I wish I'd never got rid of. It worked great and everything fit in one case. I felt the need to go larger and now I'm humping three times the stuff into the same small venues.

[allenhopkins]

I've had good luck with the Fender Passport P-150; only has three channels, so I got a little Behringer 5-channel mixer, plug it into the auxiliary (tape) inputs of the Passport, and have eight usable channels.
I also have a Passport P-250, which is more powerful and has four channels. But the P-150 is my everyday little PA, and I've used it for up to 200-seat venues with no trouble. Only caveat is that if you're trying to project strong bass, it may not be all you need. I've used it for a bunch of dance gigs, but others have said that when they want a strong "beat" the little speakers don't provide enough low end.
Fender now has several models of "Deluxe" Passport, which supposedly have redesigned speakers. Haven't tried them. They're significantly more expensive than the regular models.

[mandroid]

to run how many channels? and will a single cabinet do? or do you need a to have 2 FOH speakers?

Galaxy audio makes a small 140 watt portable 3 piece set, mic stand mounts, but only 1 line and 1 mic input. 5 5" speakers handle 100w ea.

I, now, have a Roland AC 60, theres a lot of input options on the back, adding a sub mixer for more channels can be done.
then its a powered stereo speaker and features a 1_1/2" speaker stand socket in the bottom, so thats 2 pieces and the stand.
and the case for the microphones and cables .

Behringers larger ,heavier acoustic guitar amp has additional inputs too.
[pickin' buddy got one of those]

The other piece of gear I tried: ETEK NoteMix, a quite small 10 channel powered mixer.6mic 2 stereo, control panel in the lid has lots of slider controls in a very small space. that and 2 Carvin 8ohm mic stand speakers is quite compact. over time notemix showed it needing to be handled very carefully ; heat sink shifts around slightly , and solder to power transistors weaken with handling.
after re-soldering all I now have it in a larger foam padded bag.

[Adam Tracksler]

Just looking for something small-ish to run vocals and a fiddle through.

I dont need anything remotely professional, its for a jam at a Sr. Citizens center...

Anyone used this one?
Nady

[mandroid]

The Macki's SRM 150 does seem a good piece of gear.
It is integrated around the Microphone stand, and does say it has a number of bells and whistles
http://www.mackie.com/products/srm150/index.html

well proven Galaxy pas 140 Core http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product....=601482
would do, on its own, at similar price, smaller and made in Kansas. separate mic stand,
sits on top of it, or it can sit on a chair, of course.

even smaller Micro spot powered monitor is a newer offering.

or Crate's 'Limo' floor wedge like format, thats rechargeable battery operated

[Tim2723]

That sort of one cabinet design could work very well for you. I see that Musician's friend doesn't have a rating yet on that one. You might want to check the reviews on other Nady gear. Some of there stuff gets pretty low numbers.

[hdfixer]

I have a pair of JBL powered EON 15's that I love.

They are internally bi-amped, very powerful and lightweight as well. They have been through all sorts of hard use over the past 8 or so years and still sound great. I usually run them through a small mixer, but you can also plug directly into them, or run them one at a time. You can also daisy chain them together. I got carry bags for them and you can sling one easily over your shoulder. They tilt back so you can use them as monitor system and they have built in mounts for optional stands if you need them. There's also a 10" version that sounds great. Mackie has clones of them that are supposed to be pretty good as well.

Chris.

[MikeEdgerton]

Anyone used this one?

I bought one piece of Nady equipment. A single powered monitor to use as a stage monitor. It lasted half of the first show I tried to use it on. It looked decent, didn't sound too bad but I'm a little frightened by what I perceive to be the quality or lack thereof. YMMV.

[PhilGE]

well proven #Galaxy pas 140 #Core http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product....=601482
would do, #on its own, at similar price, smaller and made in Kansas. #separate mic stand,
sits on top of it, #or it can sit on a chair, of course.

even smaller Micro spot powered monitor is a newer offering.

I've used these in the past in church settings and think the Galaxy (link is to Full Compass - I've had good service and pricing from them) is a good deal if all you want is the two inputs. It has a nice sound for the price and size.

-Phil

[Django Fret]

Just looking for something small-ish to run vocals and a fiddle through.

I dont need anything remotely professional, its for a jam at a Sr. Citizens center...

You might want to check this one out if you can find one:

http://www.ion-audio.com/ipa03.php

I just used one for a small wedding this past weekend and it worked just fine set up with two microphones for vocals in a small venue. # I also used it this past weekend in a small club as an amp for my fiddle and mandolin using the line out. #The weekend before, I used it at an outdoor event as a stand alone amp playing with three plugged-in guitars, electric bass, and drums, and it held it's own no problem.

The battery lets you play where there is no power outlet and it is supposed to hold a charge for over 5 hours at full power usage. #It can also be used plugged in and that is how it charges up the battery. The built-in handle and wheels make it easy to get around which is a good thing since it weighs in at around 35 pounds.

They can be pretty hard to find since they seem to sell out within days when they come in. #It's all I think I'll need and have been very pleased with it, since it seems to be a very nice, versatile package.

[cooper4205]

we use one of these Bose PA's with the ETSU bluegrass program- its pretty sweet and easy to set up

[Richard Russell]

Take a look at the Yamaha Stagepas 300. Musicians Friend has a lot of reviews on this one. I've had one for about a year and I love it. It is one of the easiest systems to run and it has plenty of power and super sound quality. It's also a classy looking system, something some of the small portable pa systems lack. I mount the speakers on stands in most settings, but, I have used it with the speakers on the floor, they tilt back like monitors(this system could be used as monitors for a larger sytem if I ever expand). Highly recommended great sound, and the price is not bad to boot!

[TonyP]

I've been looking at the Stagepass too, it has great reviews and I love those smaller Yamaha speakers. It is a little pricey compared to the others, but I think I'd go with that than the other stuff just because it's Yamaha. Their stuff usually sounds good and is bullet proof. It's nice to hear one of our own review it. I already have a great sys. so I don't need it but if the guys start bugging me for a reg. monitor sys.(we use IEM's) I'd tell them to get that.

[Dan Adams]

We've been using a Crate Limo; One DI and two mics. Works on AC or is battery driven when necessary. Works as a monitor when the other PA is in use. What a pleasant surprise for a small PA. Pushes across a sizable room! Dan

[Fuzzyway]

I have a Mackie SRM150 on order..they are not shipping those yet. I ordered it to use as a onstage monitor but am hopefull that it might serve as a small portable PA as well....we'll see. I'll let you know after I have had a chance to use it.

Best, fuzzy

[Jim Nollman]

If portable is the critical adjective here, I'd like to add that i have used the fender passport a lot in the past few years and it sure makes lugging equipment a whole lot easier to take for small gigs. It works just fine for a small club, a gallery, a restaurant, a party for 50 people. If you want to play outside for something like a wedding, you might consider something with a little more beef, and a whole lot more of a hassle to lug. The sound of the 2 different sizes of Passport I use, is just fine, although i never did use the mics that came bundled with it.

[Shana Aisenberg]

I have a Fishman Performer amp which works nicely as a mini PA with 3 inputs for many gigs.

Seth

[MWM]

I have a set of small powered speakers made by Crate. 80W each - PSM6P. I carry both in a single box and use them with a passive mixer. We've used them to play to crowds over 200 and been quite pleased. I've hauled enough large PA's to have learned smaller is better. The StagePas looks good but I don't believe it has phantom. Yamaha also makes some nice smaller powered speakers.

[Steve Williams]

We have used a Behringer KH1200 Keyboard Amp/Portable PA at small gigs for several years now with excellent results. Along with a single Kustom monitor, total cost was well under $300.00 and it works just fine for our duet. You can find them at MF, Music 123, Sam Ash, etc.

Steve Williams

[funkyfinger]

+1 on the stagepas. Incredible sound.I don't think any other systems in this size/price come close.

[Richard Russell]

I found out recently that Yamaha now offers the slightly larger Stagepas 500, which offers more power, more inputs and phantom power on the mic channels. Nice for those playing larger venues.

[siren_20]

At a recent gig my guitar player buddy and I used a small Centaur Acoustic PA amp... good power and it sounded quite nice for what it was.

[Ed Goist]

Thread bump.
Any good, new portable PAs come out since 2007?
I'm looking for a decent, very portable PA for small venues and open air performing for my four piece acoustic ensemble. We'll need at least 5 inputs (3 vox & 2 instruments). Right now, my front runner is the Fender Passport 300 Pro. Any other possibilities I should look at in the "up to $650" price category?
Thanks!

[Tim2723]

Plenty of new packages, but that "Up to $650" is a killer. The hot runners right now in small and portable are the tower systems, and they start at a grand plus a mixer for the extra inputs. The suitcase systems like the PassPort and StagePass are still as strong as ever with a couple of larger models available, but there hasn't been much actual development in the category since the tower systems took so much attention.

Any way to up the ante?