Update on the Alto TS215s

[rickryan.com]

I'm just starting an outdoor event, about 150 guests. I'm using 2 QSC K10s (each edge of my table) at about 66% with 1 Alto TS215s (under my table) at 75% up. This system is perfectly balanced and sweet-sounding. Haven't cranked it into dancing yet but I'm encouraged. I had to run 150 feet of electrical cord and running on a single circuit so I dropped back to a single sub tonight. The rig is pulling about 3.5 amps. Here's a look at my setup:

Just wanted to share about the Altos. They look like they're going to be winners. What a great tone. I'm very pleased.

 

[rickryan.com]

Wow, had a first tonight. I have the K!0s on tripods right beside my table and off to the edge of the dance floor. Had a guest fall into one of my tripods and knock it over. Bent the leg, knocked the chauvet colorstrip off the top. The speaker never stopped playing. Got it all put back up, bent the leg back in place and kept the party going. Just when you think you've seen it all.

 

[steve149]

Wow, had a first tonight. I have the K!0s on tripods right beside my table and off to the edge of the dance floor. Had a guest fall into one of my tripods and knock it over. Bent the leg, knocked the chauvet colorstrip off the top. The speaker never stopped playing. Got it all put back up, bent the leg back in place and kept the party going. Just when you think you've seen it all.

For those that don't have it ... THAT's what liability insurance is for ... (and also the reason you buy quality gear, so it takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin')

 

[sonic-vision]

Nice clean setup Rick. Nice call on the electric power limit.

I have to agree Steve. Good quality stand for a $650.00 speaker.

 

[DJ Ricky B]

For those that don't have it ... THAT's what liability insurance is for ... (and also the reason you buy quality gear, so it takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin')

Yeah, but that is totally the guest's fault. The Tripod and Speaker was in place

You can't walk or stumble into a parked car, fall to the ground, and sue the car owner's insurance company.

DJ Insurance would deny this claim completely if the guest bothered to make one. The speaker stand/speaker did not fall over onto a guest who was just standing there.


...Glad to hear the Alto TS215S sub sounds sweet! I love my TS212S. People who claim Altos suck, and are terrible speakers/subs don't know wtf they are talking about. or than likely mad that people are buying much lower priced gear, saving money, less weight to worry about and having the same results with their gigs.

 

[rickryan.com]

I have to be honest, this situation has me nervous about going to totems. I likely would've lost a speaker last night if a couple of guests hadn't been there to help me catch it. The only other thing I know to do is move the speakers further back, but that puts them squarely in MY earshot, which would get rough after 5 hours.

Ricky, depending on how long they last, the Altos are possibly going to prove a huge value. I keep a dbx166 between the mixer and sub and I never once saw any kind of limit light on the sub or the tops, and I was cranking them pretty hard the entire time (rowdy crowd). I'm hopeful that by keeping a well-tamed signal in them, they should last a long time. I can tell you that I like the tone a lot better than my yorkie ls801ps. Mucher tighter and well-defined. The groom last night was an audio engineer and he was gushing the whole time, even asking me if he could go get me something to eat or drink.

 

[rickryan.com]

BTW, I meant to also tell you guys, I kept the kill-a-watt meter inline the entire night. Even when the system was bumping full volume, bass-heavy material, it was only spiking to about 5 amps (at least what the meter was showing). This was 2 K10s, 1 TS215s sub, mixer, compressor, wireless, 2 laptops and 2 colorstrips. It ranged 2.5-5 amps the entire night.

 

[Handinon]

I also think Rick's setup is great, but I shall play the Devil's Advocate with Ricky B's answer strictly for learning purposes -

Let us assume for argument someone did get hurt when the speaker went over.

Yeah, but that is totally the guest's fault. The Tripod and Speaker was in place

Lawyers answer - Yes it was, and it has also been modified by having a light strip added to it's top, adding too much weight up high. The tripod stand was designed to hold a speaker or a light, not both.

You can't walk or stumble into a parked car, fall to the ground, and sue the car owner's insurance company.

Lawyers answer - the car, while parked and not moving, was parked in a way that you had to maneuver around it, causing injury.

Be wary of the simple answer, there is no such thing as "never" and "always", and be ever vigilante with speaker placements and wire management, because we live in a litigious society.

In the picture Rick has, if the tripod legs were spread out further, it would be more stable, look worse, and have a higher "tripping" factor.
What it needs is weight added down low.

 

[DJ Ricky B]

BTW, I meant to also tell you guys, I kept the kill-a-watt meter inline the entire night. Even when the system was bumping full volume, bass-heavy material, it was only spiking to about 5 amps (at least what the meter was showing). This was 2 K10s, 1 TS215s sub, mixer, compressor, wireless, 2 laptops and 2 colorstrips. It ranged 2.5-5 amps the entire night.

Yup...Powered speakers actually "SIP" Power. They don't suck energy like the old HEAVY Sound Amplifiers from the 70s, 80s and 90s before Class D power was available.

I ran my small system at an apartment complex off of a 15 amp circuit that also was shared with the motor of a Garden Water Fountain. THe Maintenance guy told me the motor was a 15 amp motor. I plugged my sound system into the same circuit and had no issues. The other option was running over 100 feet of extension cord into the building. So, I am glad it worked out.

 

[DJ Ricky B]

I also think Rick's setup is great, but I shall play the Devil's Advocate with Ricky B's answer strictly for learning purposes -

Let us assume for argument someone did get hurt when the speaker went over.

Lawyers answer - Yes it was, and it has also been modified by having a light strip added to it's top, adding too much weight up high. The tripod stand was designed to hold a speaker or a light, not both.


Lawyers answer - the car, while parked and not moving, was parked in a way that you had to maneuver around it, causing injury.

.

Total Nonsense, and any judge would throw that argument out in court if this scenario ever went to court.

The Speaker stand has a weight limit. As long as weight on the stand is within limit, there would be no argument.

Contracts state that clients are responsible for guest behavior. They are also responsible for any damage inflicted on equipment by a guest.

I know a Band that sued a client and the guest who was drunk, and ran into one of their speaker stands years ago, and cracked a passive speaker case.

Actually, the court case never went to court. The guest at the party settled, and ended up just paying the repair bill for the speaker plus the band's attorney fees (which wasn't that much).


If any DJ is worried about a guest suing them over their speaker stands hurting them, then maybe it's best to wrap caution tape all over the stand, and put Construction cones and Yellow Caution Signs around each one for the extra protection!

 

[steve149]

Yeah, but that is totally the guest's fault. The Tripod and Speaker was in place

You can't walk or stumble into a parked car, fall to the ground, and sue the car owner's insurance company.

DJ Insurance would deny this claim completely if the guest bothered to make one. The speaker stand/speaker did not fall over onto a guest who was just standing there.


...Glad to hear the Alto TS215S sub sounds sweet! I love my TS212S. People who claim Altos suck, and are terrible speakers/subs don't know wtf they are talking about. or than likely mad that people are buying much lower priced gear, saving money, less weight to worry about and having the same results with their gigs.

Someone would argue the speakers were too high and an "accident waiting to happen", or they weren't weighed down by sand bags, or whatever .. today, it doesn't really matter who is at fault, you still MIGHT be sued, so better to CYA.

 

[steve149]

Total Nonsense, and any judge would throw that argument out in court if this scenario ever went to court.

The Speaker stand has a weight limit. As long as weight on the stand is within limit, there would be no argument.

Contracts state that clients are responsible for guest behavior. They are also responsible for any damage inflicted on equipment by a guest.

I know a Band that sued a client and the guest who was drunk, and ran into one of their speaker stands years ago, and cracked a passive speaker case.

Actually, the court case never went to court. The guest at the party settled, and ended up just paying the repair bill for the speaker plus the band's attorney fees (which wasn't that much).


If any DJ is worried about a guest suing them over their speaker stands hurting them, then maybe it's best to wrap caution tape all over the stand, and put Construction cones and Yellow Caution Signs around each one for the extra protection!

I look at Rick's speaker stands and can tell the legs were NOT extended all the way out ... BOOM .. failure to take adequate preventative measures to ensure correct usage. You won't win in most cases if someone truly gets hurt.

 

[Jeff Romard]

\

Yup...Powered speakers actually "SIP" Power. They don't suck energy like the old HEAVY Sound Amplifiers from the 70s, 80s and 90s before Class D power was available.

Class D has been around since the late 50's it's just more widely used and less expensive now. They don't sound as good as A or A/B but they are more practical for what we do

 

[Handinon]

I look at Rick's speaker stands and can tell the legs were NOT extended all the way out

I also noticed this, but (as I wrote earlier) think that is a trade-off for better looks and less off a "tripping" (not tipping) factor.
Since the Altos subs weigh 62 pounds (not insignificant, and he has two of them), another possibility is to always bring both, pole mount the K1o's, but only power one sub if the electrical supply is deficient. Since most bass frequencies are non-directional, it should still sound the same as having the one centered sub.

 

[SEDJ]

I kept the kill-a-watt meter inline the entire night.

Which one are you using?

 

[Albatross]

I'm just starting an outdoor event, about 150 guests. I'm using 2 QSC K10s (each edge of my table) at about 66% with 1 Alto TS215s (under my table) at 75% up. This system is perfectly balanced and sweet-sounding. Haven't cranked it into dancing yet but I'm encouraged. I had to run 150 feet of electrical cord and running on a single circuit so I dropped back to a single sub tonight. The rig is pulling about 3.5 amps. Here's a look at my setup:

Just wanted to share about the Altos. They look like they're going to be winners. What a great tone. I'm very pleased.

Is the mic out in front for you or guests? I generally try not to have a mic right in front of my speakers if I can help it. Just curious how you're using it.

 

[rickryan.com]

Just another note on last night. I've been running my colorstrips, angled down at the guests.

Is the mic out in front for you or guests? I generally try not to have a mic right in front of my speakers if I can help it. Just curious how you're using it.

It was for blessing and speeches. It worked perfectly, no feedback issues. It was removed as soon as speeches were done.

 

[steve149]

I also noticed this, but (as I wrote earlier) think that is a trade-off for better looks and less off a "tripping" (not tipping) factor.
Since the Altos subs weigh 62 pounds (not insignificant, and he has two of them), another possibility is to always bring both, pole mount the K1o's, but only power one sub if the electrical supply is deficient. Since most bass frequencies are non-directional, it should still sound the same as having the one centered sub.

The comment wasn't about aesthetics (it might look better and be perfectly stable), it was about the potential liability factor .. not using a safety feature in its fullest is surely something a lawyer would point out if there was an issue. Was just pointing that out.

 

[rickryan.com]

The comment wasn't about aesthetics (it might look better and be perfectly stable), it was about the potential liability factor .. not using a safety feature in its fullest is surely something a lawyer would point out if there was an issue. Was just pointing that out.

A lawyer is going to argue any point that he can to win his case. If I'd had the legs fully extended, he could argue that they were a tripping hazard. I also don't think the other suggestion of putting out 2 subs with a top over each would solve it. Those subs are about 2 ft high and are likely more of a tripping hazard than the stands. I wasn't mentioning this to ask for how to fix it. Accidents can/will happen and the best we can hope for is to minimize them and make sure we have insurance in place, in case we get unlucky enough to end up in court. I've always been one to want to be right up against the dance floor but it's nights like this that have me thinking it's probably better to have the gear off to the side and away from the guests.

 

[Jas]

I have an on-stage stand that has a stripped thread on the knob that tightens the legs. I still use it sometimes since it tightens somewhat and my speakers aren't very heavy.

I recently did an event with lots of older folks and the shaky speaker stand was close the the main entrance. I didn't foresee this, but a few people gathered next to the speaker which caused an old timer (that could barely walk) to go between the speaker and group of talkers.

I could see (in my mind) this guy tripping over the leg of the stand and the whole thing collapsing on him and the folks next to him. Luckily, that didn't happen, but I'm now considering getting those K&M gravity stands to eliminate the tripping hazard.