Need help with big budget!

opeala · February 2015

Hi everyone,

I work for a school as an ICT apprentice, and I've just been tasked with sorting out an outdoor sound system for the playground that is loud enough to fill the whole playground and more. I've been given a budget of £1000 to £1500. However bare in mind that it will often be children operating this so it needs to be as simple as possible, basically they just wanna plug in an iPad and be ready to go. Also it will likely need to be repeatedly packed up and unpacked as it will need to be stored within the school rather than kept on the playground so something with a relatively simple setup process would be appreciated. There isn't already anything in place so this is a completely fresh thing. I hope someone can help me.

I basically just thought to post on this website because my dad is always on it (not sure what his username is lol) but I know there are some people who know their stuff on here so I thought this would be a good bet. Sorry if i'm posting this in the wrong place or i'm missing out on some kind of way of doing things but there you go:-)

Many thanks!

EDIT: Yeah it will literally just be iPads, or maybe the headmasters iPhone on occasion:')

EDIT: This is the size of the playground that needs to be covered, this kind of budget is probably overkill but I'm not gonna complain. Cars for scale

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2rS9IFCo3n5c09hNWZ0V0MzWWs/view?usp=sharing

usedtobe · February 2015

You've come to the right place, and someone with the appropriate knowledge, will no doubt be along shortly!

BigMonka · February 2015

If it needs to be regularly packed/unpacked by various people then I'd suggest something like the Peavey Escort series where it all clicks together to look a bit like a wheely suitcase.

To give you an idea of the wattage required I think we'll need more information about the size of the playground (maybe a photo?), and will it just be plugging in music sources (like ipads) or does it need to be able to take instruments too?

piercelmno · February 2015

Don't know how good these really are but I was in the market for a PA system a short while ago and was considering this

http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/PPA2000BT.aspx

http://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lighting/Behringer-Europort-PPA2000BT-8-Channel-Portable-PA-System/XPD

would be a very simple set up, is cheap, portable and even has bluetooth (though depending on how savvy your kids are that could be a disadvantage if one of them decided to hook their phones up to it!)

HollowAxis · February 2015

Maybe post this on the SoundOnSound Forums also.

http://www.soundonsound.com/

Nerine · February 2015

In this scenario id look to spend approx 8/10's of the budget on a pair of good, decent active PA tops with decent sized drivers.
I don't think I'd mess around with subs and everything else as that just will add complication and mean that each speaker will be of considerably less quality to fit into the budget.

The remaining 2/10's of the budget would go on speaker stands and a very small compact mixer that an iPad etc can be plugged into.

I wouldn't go separate power amp and passive speakers in this setup I don't think.

Mind you, if it's going to be used outdoors, it's less cables actually if you do get a power amp and passive speakers, as each speaker won't need power cables too.

Just aim for as much bang for your buck as you can.

Mackie
ElectroVoice
JBL
HK
QSC

Etc etc all have products that would be useful. Especially Mackie.

Beexter · February 2015

For a really simple set up, a couple of powered/ active speakers would do the the job. If it is just to amplify an ipad, you wouldn't even need a mixer, many powered or active speakers can take an input directly from the ipad (using a small cable from the headphone out) and still have a socket spare for a microphone. You can also simply connect more powered speakers if you need more volume but a pair should be sufficient to start with. Get a couple of speaker stands to get them off the ground and your good to go. Something like the Mackie DLM series are small and lightweight too, making it easier for kids to move them around and wont take up too much space for storage. Here's an example where you can get a package of everything you need for smack bang in the middle of your budget - £1,300

Scroll down to PA Bundle 1

http://www.gak.co.uk/en/mackie-dlm12/73638

xJonnysixstring · February 2015

FBT Vertus would do, Maybe a little over budget though

opeala · February 2015

Hey thanks everyone, you're all being really helpful, gonna try and compile this stuff into a powerpoint and i'll probably show the headmaster after lunch to see what he thinks. So if anyone thinks of anything else then please feel free to say something. Hopefully he orders it all today so I can get a look at it before the half term lol.

But yeah thankyou everyone, I really appreciate this, and i'm sure it'll make all the kids happy too:-)

Here is the schools current solution for anyone interested, this is for the whole playground... http://tinyurl.com/mamjzah

IanSavage · February 2015

I'd be tempted by a Bose L1, personally - on the pricey side for what they are and I was initially VERY skeptical about them given the size and weight but the one that's in my local blues club is amazing.

For more traditional 12" + horn actives, the usual suspects have already been mentioned (Mackie. EV, QSC) - that DLM looks too good to be true (I'm somewhat skeptical of the 2000W claim, but if it's even a quarter of that RMS per speaker it'll do the job)...

EricTheWeary · February 2015

Beexter said:

For a really simple set up, a couple of powered/ active speakers would do the the job. If it is just to amplify an ipad, you wouldn't even need a mixer, many powered or active speakers can take an input directly from the ipad (using a small cable from the headphone out) and still have a socket spare for a microphone. You can also simply connect more powered speakers if you need more volume but a pair should be sufficient to start with. Get a couple of speaker stands to get them off the ground and your good to go. Something like the Mackie DLM series are small and lightweight too, making it easier for kids to move them around and wont take up too much space for storage. Here's an example where you can get a package of everything you need for smack bang in the middle of your budget - £1,300
Scroll down to PA Bundle 1
http://www.gak.co.uk/en/mackie-dlm12/73638

Mark from GAK , that's @MarkGAK to try to get his attention, if you want any more information about the Mackie bundle. He might even give a discount for those working in our under funded education system

If you go into your user name, inbox and create a message you can just type @MarkGAK in and he should get a private message.

MarkGAK · February 2015

Hey!

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. @opealaI - I can definitely help out. Your best bet is to drop me a private message and we can go from there. We also offer a discount for educational institutions.

M

bossarb · February 2015

I had a similar request recently from our school PTA and under my guidance they bought a Yamaha Stagepas 600 plus a wired mic and a radio mic for use on sports days and quizzes etc. It's a neat system that is easy to store and transport and connect to.

BTW your budget is rather small if you were hoping to fill a large outdoor area with high volume music - but I'm assuming that isn't really the aim. Physics means that you need a lot more power outdoors than indoors. You also need to think about the angle that the speakers cover and the fact that water (rain) and electricity are a very bad combination...

knuckleberryfinn · February 2015

I'd go for 2 x Yamaha DXR-8s, 10s or 12s, an XLR cable to link them in stereo, and a couple of stands. I've been using these for the past couple of years and they are brilliant. The DXRs have a very simple integrated mini mixer, so easy for kids to use. And as mentioned above, if they're being used outside you might want to get some waterproof covers too, and some kind of circuit breaker - just so you don't kill any of the kids.

opeala · February 2015

Hey everyone, you are all being incredibly helpful, which is not something I can actually say about what the head actually wants. I showed him some of the ideas I got from here, and whilst they are all great he basically said no. I'll paste what I said to @markgak here so you can get an idea of whats going on:

"Hi there, just getting back to you about this, after putting all this time and effort into finding just the right thing that was asked for and specified (which I am very thankful to you for) the head has essentially changed what he wants quite a lot now. Apparently they would like to be able to plug guitars and stuff in the future, and they want basically what they had in this cupboard upstairs but a modern equivalent and for it to cost over a grand. This is whats in this cupboard: http://tinyurl.com/kvuezra which is something like 30 watts I think, so whilst I know what you suggested is infinitely better and more suited to the school and easier to use, it turns out that's not what he wants. So any ideas now lol? I had a look at GAK and thought maybe something like the Fender passport or the Yamaha seem like a modern equivalent?"

But like I said everyone is being really helpful and I appreciate that, so thankyou:-)

Beexter · February 2015

opeala said:

Hey everyone, you are all being incredibly helpful, which is not something I can actually say about what the head actually wants. I showed him some of the ideas I got from here, and whilst they are all great he basically said no. I'll paste what I said to @markgak here so you can get an idea of whats going on:

"Hi there, just getting back to you about this, after putting all this time and effort into finding just the right thing that was asked for and specified (which I am very thankful to you for) the head has essentially changed what he wants quite a lot now. Apparently they would like to be able to plug guitars and stuff in the future, and they want basically what they had in this cupboard upstairs but a modern equivalent and for it to cost over a grand. This is whats in this cupboard: http://tinyurl.com/kvuezra which is something like 30 watts I think, so whilst I know what you suggested is infinitely better and more suited to the school and easier to use, it turns out that's not what he wants. So any ideas now lol? I had a look at GAK and thought maybe something like the Fender passport or the Yamaha seem like a modern equivalent?"

But like I said everyone is being really helpful and I appreciate that, so thankyou:-)

Stick with powered speakers (like the Mackie bundle suggested above) and add a simple mixer like either of these:

http://www.gak.co.uk/en/mackie-mix12fx-12-channel-mixer/105208

http://www.gak.co.uk/en/mackie-profx12-live-usb-mixer/22742

If it is just to play an ipad or plug in a mic, you can just plug straight into the powered speakers but when you need more inputs, plug into the little mixer first. This sort of system will give you a lot more power (which you'll need for using it outdoors) and is more flexible as you can always add more speakers down the line if you need to. The "all-in-one" portable systems like the Yamaha Stagepas and Fender Passports won't have the same amount of power or flexibility.

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Need help with big budget!

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