Korg Forums

[Satori]

Hello everyone,

I recently made a thread about what powered speakers should I buy and as always, this forum was very helpful. I'm still on my search and I see that the market nowadays is filled with them (active speakers) compared to passive ones.

A few people I met recommended I should research the passive speakers + amp combination. From what I understood, the fact that they are customizable and upgradeable whenever I feel that I need a different amplifier, is a big bonus.

However, I didn't expect that there is little information on the internet about the above combination, especially regarding musicians that play at home, compared to the endless powered speakers reviews.

So, here I am again asking you, does anyone use passive speakers + amp at home? What brand? Do you recommend it or should I go down the easy path of powered speakers?

My priority is to play the Kronos and have a rich ambient sound, textures that fill the room and create an atmosphere. Recording is second on the list but I will most probably take my music to a professional audio engineer if I ever want to publish something instead of doing it at home.

Thank you again

[tunaman]

I do. I actually have my keys (currently Kronos, T Ex, and two DX7 (FDIi)) cabled into an older non-amplified Behringer 16 channel Eurorack MX 2004A, the outputs of which are cabled into a stereo channel of a Behringer Europower PMP2000 powered amp, which is connected to a pair of Peavey PR12 passive speakers.

I did this several years ago so that I could use the passive board when playing gigs where I was being fed into a house setup, or alternatively use my powered amp when playing without house sound.

The added benefit is that I can have my bass player come practice without having to lug an amp, and we can pipe stems or practice tracks to play along to.

[Falcon2e]

I too am using some really old stuff that is no longer suitable for anything other than a home setup. A 6 channel Peavey stereo mixer feeds a Peavey bi-amp crossover. From there the signal is wired to a rack mount RA100 watt stereo power amp. The speakers are a pair of bookshelf type speakers. Alesis full range with 8 inch woofers. The low end signal goes to a QSC rack amp (2400 watts, yeah I know, way over kill). The subwoofer (only one) is a Peavey 18”. I’ve been using this setup for a long while. My thought is....if it works, don’t fix it.
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Kronos2-61..(2) Triton Classic, Nord Stage 2, Previously owned lots of other gear dating back to the 70’s.

[ChrisDuncan]

Back in the day I had the Yamaha NS-10s, which are passive speakers that required a power amp. I eventually supplemented the NS-10s with a pair of powered Mackie HR824s. In the end, I sold the Yamahas, and don't miss the passive / power amp combo. I still have the Mackies all these years later.

Among the things I like about powered speakers is their simplicity. Turn the speakers on, make music. Also, powered speakers are designed as a complete package, so the internal power amp is made to complement the speakers. Additionally, many speakers like the Mackies have switches on the back with some filters to accommodate how close you put them to the wall.

There's certainly nothing wrong with going passive / power amp, but to me the extra bit of things to fool with doesn't really buy you much. I mean, are you really going to audition many different power amps and see if you can tell a difference between them in the context of your playing environment? Under what conditions would you feel that you need to buy a different amplifier? I think if you go this route you're buying flexibility (or lack of simplicity) that you're not really going to need or use. It may also be a more expensive solution than powered speakers. I just don't think the bang for the buck is there.

My recommendation would be to by a good pair of powered speakers and call it a day. If you want to improve your listening environment beyond that, I'd look at room tuning gizmos such as the Sonicworks Reference 4 vst plugin for DAWs, or what I use in my studios, the DBX DriveRack PA, a rack mount hardware unit that does the same sort of thing.

But honestly, for where you're at right now I think a good pair of powered speakers will suit your needs in the easiest and most cost effective manner. Beyond that, you can go back to having fun with your Kronos.
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Studio: Cubase 13 | Windows 10 | Yamaha TF5 | Mackie MCU | CMC AI, QC
Keyboard Station: Kronos 2 88 | Fantom 7 | JV 2080 | Cubase 13 | Windows 10 | Focusrite 18i20 | CMC TP
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Chris Duncan
Atlanta, GA, USA, Earth