Okay... Here's the deal...
This setup would be for acoustic music... I went and listened to all kinds of systems- both powered and
passive and found that for acoustic music,
passive has a warmer fuller sound...
That probably has more to do with the setup and listening environment than with the speakers. In many cases the speakers are the same, the active versions just incorporate the required signal processing and amplification that would normally be provided externally for the passsive versions. If you are listening in stores just keep in mind that what you hear in an outdoor environment may sound very different.
Our theory on acoustic:
Flat and true as possible--- I don't want to have to eq the speakers to get what I want to hear...
But you may want to EQ to make up for high frequency loss outdoors, off axis response, interference of other noise sources,
etc. Again, a
speaker that sounds one way in a store (and make sure there is no processing applied) may sound quite different in a larger, outdoor
venue.
I'm thinking of 1 single 15" two way, 1 18" sub, and 1 Dual
15" two way on each side of
stage. I can always add another dual on each side for the size of crowd or area dispersion.
How did you arrive at this arrangement? Why do you feel that both a single and dual 15" are required? If you need wider coverage than just one
speaker can provide, then do the speakers
array (work together) well or are they really intended more to work alone than as part of a multiple
speaker array? If you use two speakers to
cover the same area that may sound worse than using just one due to the interactions between speakers. If you are going to always use subs, I would tend to avoid dual 15" mains and even consider single 12" mains. The only real advantage to many dual 15" mains is typically if you will use them without subs.
What I'm confused about now, is how much
power is needed. Do I run 1 amp for subs, 1 for singles, and 1 for duals-- subs=400w program,8ohm, singles=350w program,8ohm, duals=600w program,4ohm.
That all depends on the speakers and how you run the
system. You are probably either going to run a single
line to the subs and use their internal
crossover to feed the mains or you are going to have to invest in an outboard
crossover or even better, a
speaker processing
system that also incorporates limiters, EQ, delays,
etc. to help protect your investment and get the most out of it. You also may want to consider the sensitivity or output of the speakers, you may have to provide a lot more
power to one
speaker to match the output of the others. So the specifics of the application, speakers and the
system configuration will drive this and there is no good answer without knowing more.
I would like the best quality at a mid money budget. What are your ideas?
What is roughly your idea of "mid money"? And don't forget that you likely need to
purchase not only the speakers and amps, but also an amp rack,
speaker cables, interconnect cables,
power cords, maybe
speaker stands,
etc. Those items can add up.
The
point is to keep in mind the actual application and that you are putting together a
system. What really matters is how the
system performs, not just how individual components sound in an often totally different environment. Unless you are familiar with audio systems and their operation and want to spend the necessary time at each event, then simpler is often better. It is often better to have a simpler
system that you are comfortable with and can use effectively.