You noted "I've been in almost every seat in the
auditorium and there is currently no
pink noise in any seat at all. I'm really looking for just a little more SPL." There may be some confusion in terminology occurring, can you clarify
pink noise comment? Are you saying that the coverage with the
current speakers is good throughout the
house at all frequencies? Are you saying that the existing speakers are flown left and right and that there is no
combfiltering or other anomalies resulting from this stereo configuration? That you have good intelligibility everywhere in the
house? In addition, do you have any idea of how much additional
level you want or if it is perhaps more a factor of the
system response than just the overall
level? Has anyone verified that what you have is properly adjusted and operating optimally? Unless there really is only one factor that could stand to be improved, then it seems that if you are going to spend money on an 'upgrade' it would make sense to
address as many existing issues and incorporate as many improvements as possible.
Specific to the speakers noted, getting rid of the MTX speakers is probably a good idea. MTX does not offer much data on the PWR115, although providing any information on an older model is better than some manufacturers, however I see nothing that indicates these are intended to be flown, so unless this is imply not
identified or they were properly modified to be flown, they should really come down. The HPR153 does have rigging points and there is a rigging kit available, but you are limited to two points on the top of the box towards the front and one
point low on the back, so not a lot of flexibility in rigging.
The HPR153i is a good
speaker for many applications. However, a
speaker or
system approach that is good for a band performing in a club is not necessarily a good choice for an
auditorium where the sound
system's primary
role may be for speech reproduction and where factors such as intelligibility and coverage may be much more important. Similar to how you probably consider the use when purchasing a car, you should also consider the use when looking at audio
system designs and components. Identifying and addressing the intended use of the
system is important in making any equipment or
system choices and our not knowing the intended use or expectations limits the relevant comments or suggestions that can be offered.
I would think twice about temporary subs unless you can easily configure the
system for the different operating modes and are able to support the related setup effort. Being a high school
auditorium, you may be much more concerned with supporting a wide variety of events for many different groups, and often on short notice and with limited resources, than you are about factors such as deriving revenue from the
system. And while putting subs on the
ground can potentially provide 'loading' for more output (at least at some frequencies and often less than expected), this is also often at the expense of issues such as the levels varying quite a
bit more over the seating area versus a flown sub. Having subs to either side can create a '
power alley'
effect with a lot of
bass down the middle with areas of low and varying levels due to interference between the two subs outside that center area. These issues may not be a factor in a club where people can move around to find the sound they like, but they can be much more of a factor in an
auditorium with fixed, and often assigned for some uses, seating.
Maybe you have considered this aspect, but it could be a critical consideration. Looking beyond the equipment itself, what will be involved in effort and cost for rigging the new speakers, getting
power to them, running
line level cable in place of the existing
speaker cable, tuning the
system and adjusting any
system processing after the speakers are in,
etc.? The speakers are likely just a portion of the total cost involved and if you are having difficulty getting the funding for the equipment then you may be quite a
bit short for the overall effort involved. And when trying to make improvements it usually makes little sense to spend money on the equipment and then cut corners on how it is implemented.
