TAKE IT OUTSIDE

An alternative to having the amplifier in the mixer is using self-powered, or active, speakers. Compared with passive (without internal amplification) studio monitors, active studio monitors are more consistent in their sound. There are equally impressive-sounding active P.A. speakers available. The best of these speakers contain a built-in crossover that splits the incoming signal across two amplifiers, one for the high-frequency driver and another for the low-frequency transducer (the tweeter and the woofer, respectively). Active P.A. speakers have their own volume control, and some have basic EQ (high and low, cut or boost). Their inputs are usually balanced XLR (-inch may also be available), so connecting them to your mixer's main stereo outputs is a snap. As you might imagine, a speaker enclosure housing a 12-inch speaker and built-in amplifiers can be awfully heavy. Fortunately, some manufacturers have designed manageable enclosures, such as Mackie's SRM450, which weighs in at a reasonable 51 pounds and sports well-designed handles for easy carrying. When connecting the mixer's main output to the speakers or any other processing gear, always make sure to use balanced XLR connectors. If your mixer doesn't have balanced XLR outputs or your powered speakers don't have balanced XLR inputs, you may want to consider trading up to better gear. If you're using EQ and compression between the mixer and the speakers, don't connect the gear with adapters or unbalanced cables; doing so will degrade your sound quality. Make sure that any processors used after the mixer's main output also sport XLR connectors. In addition, XLR connectors are good for live setups because they are more difficult to yank out (should somebody trip over the cables) than -inch connectors.