Turbosound iQ12 - Anyone checked it out with an AxeFX yet?

So, I pulled the trigger on one of these just to see what the story is. For some context, I currently play Atomic CLR wedges which have been the best FRFRs I have used from a sound perspective. But I have other issues with the CLRs. I have also had a Matrix Gemni 2 (hated it).

So back to the IQ12. It's loud, well built and looks great. But out of the box it doesn't sound as good as the CLR. I haven't spent any time trying to dial in the sound with the onboard adjustable DSP. I do feel like there is potential here but it was just too easy for me not to use it.

Friedman FRFR en route soon so we'll see what they are all about!
 
secondruleis said:
So, I pulled the trigger on one of these just to see what the story is. For some context, I currently play Atomic CLR wedges which have been the best FRFRs I have used from a sound perspective. But I have other issues with the CLRs. I have also had a Matrix Gemni 2 (hated it).

So back to the IQ12. It's loud, well built and looks great. But out of the box it doesn't sound as good as the CLR. I haven't spent any time trying to dial in the sound with the onboard adjustable DSP. I do feel like there is potential here but it was just too easy for me not to use it.

Friedman FRFR en route soon so we'll see what they are all about!
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What issues do you have with the CLR's?

Also, can you describe the IQ12 vs. the CLR?
 
I have 4 CLRs, two for each guitar player in my band. The CLR is the best sounding FRFR I have heard but I have had the power section on 2 of the 4 units fail. Tom is great and although challenging to get a hold of at times, he makes it right and stands by his product. So I don't have an issue with the sound of the CLR, I question the reliability.

The IQ12 sounded very dull in the high end and lacking in the bottom end compared to the CLR. It was very loud and I didn't tweak with the DSP EQ although I did audition various emulations in it. Truth be told, it was just easier to plug into the CLR :)
 
Our band replaced our PA system with the Turbosound gear. I haven't tried the speakers as a stand alone FRFR for the AFX, but as a PA system, it is good gear for the money. I have used the CLR's for a few years now. RCF is still my favorite though for AFX monitoring.
 
I just bought a couple of the iQ15 cabs for my studio live room. I think they sound great.
Will get around to trying them with the AxeFx next week.
As far as the network side of the questions are concerned, as far as I see it, if running each speaker on a different ID, in a live monitor setup, you can send an individual mix to a specific ID all down single daisy chained cat5 cables.
That's the way I understand it anyway.…
 
I spent 6 hours at Sweetwater yesterday trying to decide on a FRFR speaker to pair with a (soon to own) Fractal unit. In all fairness, I have to say that we did not have a fractal to use but other lower end processors to demo, like the TC Electronics G System and the Boss GT100. They had their wall of speakers setup in such a way that with the flick of a couple switches, we could A/B between different brands/models instantly. They had the Turbosound IQ15's next to the QSC K12's. I thought it was odd all the others were 12's and they had the Turbosound 15's out instead - but anyway ....... every tech that came through to play marveled at the sound of the IQ15's. At $150 less than the QSC's and with a load of additional EQ/DSP features, it really stood out as a great value. To me, that made me very interested in hearing the 12" version - so I asked them to haul out an IQ12 from the warehouse. We hooked it up to the board where we could pan left to the IQ12 and right to the IQ15. The 12 seemed very mid-range heavy to all of us. The 15, while obviously having a much better low end, oddly enough seemed much brighter and fuller in the high range as well. I was hoping the 12 would blow me away since I wanted something more portable - but for $50 more, and far superior sound in my (and every other salesman's) opinion, I walked out with the IQ15. It's heavy and seems to be VERY well built, 2 handles in great placement (one on top, one on side) for one man operation. By the way - what I came there to try out was the QSC K12's and the Matrix Gemini 1 cab. I was disappointed with both. At the end of the day, I feel I definitely got the best value for the money, and truth be told, the only speaker that I felt sounded comparable or better was the Bose F1 model 812 - which is a completely different category I'll admit - but it still sounded amazing. I'd have bough it had it not been twice the price.
 
Good review. Not everyone is so methodical.

One thing to watch out for when auditioning a wall o' speakers is placement. The way a speaker sounds can be hugely influenced by where it is on that wall. For example, speakers placed closer to the floor, to a side wall or to the ceiling will sound fuller than those placed near the middle of the wall.

To even the playing field, it's good to pick a spot on the floor that's away from all the walls, and haul the speaker of the moment into that spot.
 
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Rex said:
Good review. Not everyone is so methodical.

One thing to watch out for when auditioning a wall o' speakers is placement. The way a speaker sounds can be hugely influenced by where it is on that wall. Speakers. For example, speakers placed closer to the floor, to a side wall or to the ceiling will sound fuller than those placed near the middle of the wall.

To even the playing field, it's good to pick a spot on the floor that's away from all the walls, and haul the speaker of the moment into that spot.
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Absolutely - very good point. While I was unable to pull speakers down from the top row, I tried my best to even the playing field by stretching a long guitar cable across the room and making sure that I was standing directly in front of each one as I played, so I wasn't hearing them from an angle and I was only a few feet from the speaker being demo'd. That put me at head level with 6 of the 12 speakers and about 3 feet lower than the other 6. I guess I could have asked for a ladder too in order to even the playing field vertically too, huh? :) (there's a great visual image) They had Mackie, Turbosound, QSC, JBL, Yamaha, and Behringer on the wall, all in pairs What a beautiful sight. If I weren't new to the forum I could post a pic! I've never been to the Sweetwater headquarters before - goodness gracious - it's like a city! That was a fun day. And by the way - even with all the processors they sell - TC, Boss, Line 6, Zoom, Vox, etc ...... as soon as I mentioned Fractal, no one suggested another processor to me, not even the Helix. One guy said, "I hate to admit this, but there are guys working here that are on the waiting list" (for a Fractal) That sealed it for me. I've been on the waiting list for the AX8, but truthfully I was kinda hoping I'd go to Sweetwater and find something that was "good enough". Well, I've had "good enough" for 15 years, now I'm selling all my stuff because I want better. I'm going completely on reviews and others opinions here - I just wish so much I could find one within driving distance to demo first. If anyone is reading this and not far from Hannibal, MO - I'd be glad to swap - you let me try out your Fractal, you can try out my new Turbosound IQ15.
As for replying post - good point Rex. The listening angle and distance makes a huge difference.
 
I also bought a pair of the Turobsound IQ18B subs to go with the pair of IQ15. The whole system sounds great. Just using an X32 Rack and SD16 breakout box for inputs. Have it setup with a Prophet 08, Nord Electro 5D73 and a Moog Minitaur hooked up to some Roland PK-5 bass pedals for writing in my live room at the moment.
Still not tried my AxeFX through them yet as it is still in my control room for a current recording. Hopefully, my AX-8 will be here very soon so I can hook it up through this system.
 
jc_prodigy said:
Absolutely - very good point. While I was unable to pull speakers down from the top row, I tried my best to even the playing field by stretching a long guitar cable across the room and making sure that I was standing directly in front of each one as I played, so I wasn't hearing them from an angle and I was only a few feet from the speaker being demo'd. That put me at head level with 6 of the 12 speakers and about 3 feet lower than the other 6. I guess I could have asked for a ladder too in order to even the playing field vertically too, huh? :)
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Yeah...there's the ideal auditioning situation, and then there's what reality hands you. :)


jc_prodigy said:
...as soon as I mentioned Fractal, no one suggested another processor to me, not even the Helix.
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Teehee...
 
Can you list some of the other speakers you tried?
Curious if you tried the Yamaha DSR112, JBL SRX812 ??
 
Sure, I did try the Yamaha DXR12, and there were at least 2 different JBL models out there that i tried, but I'm not sure now which models they were - they were 12", so you could probably take a good guess. I've always been a fan of Yamaha gear, but I didn't care for these speakers too much. I don't know how to describe it other than "limited" - I know some of that could be helped with tweaking, but even listening to the online demo's of Yamaha with a guitar modeler, they sounded thick and boxy, kinda muffled, not very transparent. To my ear, the JBL was kinda on the other end of the spectrum; like the Behrenger, they sounded kinda thin, I had a hard time getting a nice full, rich tone out of them. I'm not kidding when I say that every tech that walked through (and several took a whack at them with my Peavey Wolfgang guitar), ALL of them preferred the sound of the Turbosound IQ15. Maybe it's not a fair comparison because it's a 15 and everything else was a 12, but since it's price was less than many of the 12's, I certainly think it's a valid comparison.
GOOD NEWS! My AX8 is on the way! I will soon be able to try it out with my new speaker. Now to find a good affordable expression/wah pedal. i know Mission is good, but also big, heavy, and pricey. Any other suggestions?
 
jc_prodigy said:
.....the only speaker that I felt sounded comparable or better was the Bose F1 model 812 - which is a completely different category I'll admit - but it still sounded amazing. I'd have bough it had it not been twice the price.
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I've been very interested in the Bose F1 system as well, though I've yet to actually try one out. Can you tell me more about what you liked about this system? Was the Bose sub connected?
 
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