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PA/mixer combo with Bluetooth.

We're sharing space with a few bands and everyone is keen to go in on an upgraded, shared PA. Should be able to keep up with multiple guitar and bass players. Bluetooth for sharing demos or jamming along. Bells and whistles would be pretty nice, but some eq and reverb is all we'd really need.

GuyLaCroix wrote: Mon Apr 21, 2025 4:40 pm PA/mixer combo with Bluetooth.

We're sharing space with a few bands and everyone is keen to go in on an upgraded, shared PA. Should be able to keep up with multiple guitar and bass players. Bluetooth for sharing demos or jamming along. Bells and whistles would be pretty nice, but some eq and reverb is all we'd really need.

Not to muddy waters, but you can buy a little Bluetooth dongle for probably $50-80 on it, with an output so if you find a steal on an otherwise awesome PA you can just add Bluetooth.

losthighway wrote:

GuyLaCroix wrote: Mon Apr 21, 2025 4:40 pm PA/mixer combo with Bluetooth.

We're sharing space with a few bands and everyone is keen to go in on an upgraded, shared PA. Should be able to keep up with multiple guitar and bass players. Bluetooth for sharing demos or jamming along. Bells and whistles would be pretty nice, but some eq and reverb is all we'd really need.

Not to muddy waters, but you can buy a little Bluetooth dongle for probably $50-80 on it, with an output so if you find a steal on an otherwise awesome PA you can just add Bluetooth.

+1 to the latter. There's no real reason to pay extra for this feature. There are plenty of sub-$50 options for a bluetooth dongle + cable adapters to input to an open channel.

Regardless, you can get Mackie 808 or Yamaha EMX powered mixers for peanuts and unpowered PA speakers also going for pennies. For speakers, Yamaha S112iv (or v) or S115iv (or v) will go a long ways. Your local musicgoround is probably dying to get rid of used PA. Craigslist or FB marketplace also probably an excellent source.

You could also get a small mixer and powered speaker combo as this is more the current methodology. A lot of powered speakers these days even have built-in preamps and bluetooth if you don't need a ton of channels. Recommend EV ZLX-112P or ZLX-115P ( think the newer bluetooth ones have "BT" at the end).

I like those EV monitors that Garth recommended, and bought some years ago when he first mentioned them. A guy at a studio borrowed mine to monitor vocals live in the room for a controlled bleed effect and ended up buying one for his studio as well.

If you wanted to get going cheaply you could get a couple of those or similar and then add to it piecemeal-like. Probably wouldn’t be ideal if you had more than just vocals going through the PA, though.

RMA: 12” speaker for an ampeg VT-22 that would be articulate and clean for bass. For folks unfamiliar, a VT22 is an ampeg V4 but as a 2x12 combo.

twelvepoint wrote: Tue May 06, 2025 6:05 am RMA: 12” speaker for an ampeg VT-22 that would be articulate and clean for bass. For folks unfamiliar, a VT22 is an ampeg V4 but as a 2x12 combo.

EVM-12L or its Eminence equivalent EM-12. They do have a breakup point but for moderate volume bass it should do the trick.

penningtron wrote: Tue May 06, 2025 6:33 am

twelvepoint wrote: Tue May 06, 2025 6:05 am RMA: 12” speaker for an ampeg VT-22 that would be articulate and clean for bass. For folks unfamiliar, a VT22 is an ampeg V4 but as a 2x12 combo.

EVM-12L or its Eminence equivalent EM-12. They do have a breakup point but for moderate volume bass it should do the trick.

Thanks!

penningtron wrote: Tue May 06, 2025 6:33 am

twelvepoint wrote: Tue May 06, 2025 6:05 am RMA: 12” speaker for an ampeg VT-22 that would be articulate and clean for bass. For folks unfamiliar, a VT22 is an ampeg V4 but as a 2x12 combo.

EVM-12L or its Eminence equivalent EM-12. They do have a breakup point but for moderate volume bass it should do the trick.

Nobody likes the Weber option anymore? Weber Michigan (edit) used to be the EV 12L replacement, but never compared the Eminence model side by side. Have owned the Webers and EVs though.

I don't know the Chicago but I had a Michigan briefly and thought it was dull and flabby (which surprised me at 100w). I've liked most Weber guitar speakers under 60w though.

Eminence basslite a contender?