I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I alone?

Tremonti

Tremonti

Fractal Fanatic
Brought my Axe Fx and guitar down to the local Sam Ash store and tried out a K12...was nice but the sales rep said he preferred the EV sxa250 better. We went back and forth listening and cranking and I agreed. Anyone else use this? Seems like it handles power better even though less wattage?? I know it is a 15 inch speaker vs a 12........weighs only 8 lbs more.......and only $50 more. Anyone?
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

in the end it's what you like, dont fall into the bandwagons around here. some dude on a youtube clip was playing through a set of behringer powered wedges, and it sounded great. any speaker difference you will / can adjust for via the global eq.

i've heard guys with tons of the best gear around and have horrible tone.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

You are indeed alone. There is no one else exactly like you, who likes exactly what you like, all the time. :)

There may be no one else on the forum who's had exactly those powered cab models in an A/B test scenario.

If it works for you, then go with it!
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Tremonti said:
Brought my Axe Fx and guitar down to the local Sam Ash store and tried out a K12...was nice but the sales rep said he preferred the EV sxa250 better. We went back and forth listening and cranking and I agreed. Anyone else use this? Seems like it handles power better even though less wattage?? I know it is a 15 inch speaker vs a 12........weighs only 8 lbs more.......and only $50 more. Anyone?
Click to expand...

I think you may be alone on this one. I haven't seen any threads on the SXA 250. Regardless you and the sales person did a comparison and you agreed that the EV speakers sounded better then the K series which quite a few around here use. Maybe you have stumbled onto a better mouse trap. What sounded better on the EV's that made a difference?

Looking at the engineering data specs if there's any reality to it there is a pretty good dip in the 1.2K area and gets worse in the vertical beam width chart.

http://www.electrovoice.com/sitefiles/d ... 50_EDS.pdf
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Never herad the SXA250....but I did hear the little EV ZX1 recently (or is the model number ZXa1)?? Can't remember.
I was comparing it to a Verve 8ma at a music store. Just tried it because it was sitting next to the Verve and it was the same form factor....so I wanted to see how they compared.
The ZX1 had nice bottom...but was too sizzly for my taste on the top end. The Verve sounded amazing...so I ordred the 12ma.
Sorry...not the same amps in your post, but that's the only EV I've been able to try.

P.S. - I had a K12....wasn't my favorite. I like the QSC HPR and even the Verve 8ma, more than the K12.

Just my opinion...
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

I own a pair of SxA100's (the predecessor to the SxA250), and I love them. They sound great with the Axe-Fx and with all sorts of program material, from classical to rock and beyond. I've never heard the K12, so I can't compare.

I couldn't pass up the SxA100's. I found them at a second-hand music store for $500 a pair.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Other than handling power better, what else did you like about them? More amp cab like? Better bottom end? How would you describe the differences. BTW, when I looked them up they were a lot cheaper. I only did a cursory Froogle search and the cheapest, new for the K12s I saw was $689, whereas the EV sxa250 was $549.

But how loud is it in comparison?

It looks like the EV is 350peak/150 continuous to the woofer and 80peak/50 continuous to the tweeter according to the spec sheet, but the main page for it says 350 continuous, 1400 peak???? The QSC say i think 1000 continuous (500/500).

considering its a 15" and the enclosure is 7ply wood, I'm surprised that its only 8 lbs more
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

I've had a pair of SXa250s for several years serving as mid-hi FOH boxes for the bar PA. This was the first box I ever plugged my Ultra into when I first got it.. that first 'Holy Sh@t!' moment when I was shocked to be hearing a 'real' amp coming out of a powered PA speaker. June 2008.

Anyway, it's a very nice full-range speaker. One nice thing is the onboard 2-knob EQ for really quick and dirty bass/treble adjustment. I wound up trying a QSC HPR 12 later on and liked that even better for the Axe but I've never tried a K12 so I can't compare. EV makes excellent stuff. I also have SXa100s for monitors, some Eliminator passive 15/hrns and some old EV T18 passive subs. I also have the SXa180 powered subs.. those suck, frankly. But all the other boxes are pretty great.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

How do the SXa100s stack up against the SXa250s, both for PA/monitor use and for use with the Axe-FX?
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Rex said:
How do the SXa100s stack up against the SXa250s, both for PA/monitor use and for use with the Axe-FX?
Click to expand...

Over a year ago I lined up the SXa100 and 250 side-by-side on the floor next to my then-new QSC HPR12 and did a pretty extensive A/B/C shootout. For the Axe, my order of preference was QSC HPR12 first, then the EV SXa100 closely followed by the SXa250. They weren't miles apart.

The 250 has more power and low end as you'd expect from a 15". Both EVs sounded very good, but both seemed 'slightly' hyped or hi-fi compared to the QSC HPR12. Easy to compensate with EQ.

The 100s have plenty enough power for Axe or vocal monitoring on stage IMO but the 250 is the clear winner for small FOH PA in what is still a very small portable box. As an Axe monitor, the 250 was overkill as was the QSC HPR for output power. I'm not playing stadiums mind you.

The 100s are LIGHT, they feel like half the weight of the 250. The 12" driver in the 100 is a non-reconeable stamped frame. I know this because one of mine blew up and I had to replace it. This was after MANY years of abuse. I bought used from a DJ who ran them hard every weekend before I started abusing them. Pretty sure the 15" in the 250 is a cast frame and they sell recone kits.

To use as a wedge on the floor at the perfect angle the 100s require these goofy plastic feet things that fall out and break eventually. Mildly annoying. Other than that I'd strongly recommend the SXa100 for Axe FRFR. Especially if you found a great used bargain :)
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Thanks, Robboman.

I actually did find a great used bargain on the SXa100 at the local Music-Go-Round — $500 for a pair. I couldn't pass it up.

What kind of EQ do you use to tweak out the "hyped" sound? I have nothing to compare them to, so my ears don't know what to look for.

Ditto on those silly plastic feet. What were they thinking? And only one of them has the plastic guard on the heat sink. The heat sink fins on the other speaker snag on everything. I like how they sound, though.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Geez, with crappy plastic feet, and non-reconable speakers, other than price and weight it seems like the 250s would be BETTER.

So comparing the 250 to those other two, which were 12s did you hear any advantage in the 15s? IIRC the SXA250s are still just under 50lbs, right? Not too bad for a 15" powered speaker w/ a box made of wood. Does the wood box have much of an effect on these PA speakers?

And can someone tell me the difference between the QSC HPR 12 and the K12s? They are right around the same price when I look on froogle...
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Difference is the HPR is a wood box, and has the RMX power amp module.
K12 is plastic box and newer lightweight Class D power amp module.
So obviously the K12 is much lighter....but in my opinion, thinner sounding.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

brain21 said:
So comparing the 250 to those other two, which were 12s did you hear any advantage in the 15s?
Click to expand...
In a word, no. I liked the sound of the SXa100 slightly better with the Axe. Hard to quantify specific reasons why. The 250 is a better PA box for sure, more power, extended bass freq from the 15. Music from a CD sounds better thru the 250, hands down. The limited freq range of guitar probably can't benefit from the 15. Hence you don't see a lot of guitar cabs with 15" drivers :)
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

Code: 
Speaker  | Price | Size | Weight | Construction | SPL | HxV angle | comments
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
QSC K12  | $715  | 12"  | 41lbs  | Plastic      | 131 |  75*x75*  | Light, but a 
         |       |      |        |              |     |           | little thin sounding
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
QSC HPR  | $692  | 12"  | 60lbs  | wood         | 131 |  75*x75*  | fuller sound than
122i     |       |      |        |              |     |           | the K12, maybe nicer
         |       |      |        |              |     |           | for the AxeFx than
         |       |      |        |              |     |           | the EV 250s?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EV       | $550  | 15"  | 49lbs  | wood         | 126 |  80*x55*  | best sound for CDs
SxA250   |       |      |        |              |     |           | Fuller than K12
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EV       | $474  | 12"  | 43lbs  | composite    | 124 |  65*x65*  | Possibly best sounding
SxA100+  |       |      |        |              |     |           | for AxeFx?? Or HPR?
         |       |      |        |              |     |           | cheap brackets needed
         |       |      |        |              |     |           | for floor monitoring
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So I am assuming that the Sxa100+ and the SXA100 are the same thing? I can't find anything on a plain sxa100, new or old. And these are non-reconable speakers? Ditto with the QSC HPR12 and HPR122i?

Another thing. A lot of poeple say that the K10 really isn't loud enough for some high volume gigs. The specs say it puts out 129Db peak. The K12 is only 2 louder, and the EV contenders are all lower. So it seems like the EVs might not be loud enough for a bigger gig w/ no PA where the speaker acts as the guitar cab? In the past I've played outdoor gigs w/ no PA other than for vocals ONLY (they had a really cheap 4 channel mixer). Some gigs I can see myself playing are bar gigs where there is no PA provided, and you have to be loud because you aren't the main attraction. There are people talking, drinking, etc. and the place is just a loud room to begin with (in terms of patron chatter, etc.) So the purpose for me would NOT be limited to onstage monitoring.

And so wood cabs tend to sound better (sxa250 and hpr) but the SXA100 sounds better than its wood counterpart (sxa250 - again, a subjective opinion) and it is a composite cab?

Just trying to get all this straight.

Considering SPL, weight, and price, and lets assume that the order of preference otherwise is HPR122i then Sxa100, then sxa250, then K12 I think I'm leaning towards the sxa250. Its 10lbs lighter than the HPR, and $150 cheaper. The non-reconable stamped frame speaker of the EVsxa100 and cheap, breakable plastic feet leave me thinking that the sxa100 isn't the right one for me. So for the speaker, you can't re-cone it, but can you get it replaced, or is it somehow built into the cab itself? Just wondering if getting an SXA100+ at the cheap price and buying a standby replacement speaker might be financially doable too.

Thanks, guys.
 
Re: I liked the EV sxa250 better than the QSC K12....am I al

I'm running a pair of EV SX300's " Passive " through my standard . Power comes via a Art SLA-2 amp. I'm very pleased with my sound . Picked them over the passive Atomic wedges.
 
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