Passive,Active,Powered??

[Buck_Choi]

so what is the difference in all these?

Passive speakers

Active speakers

and powered speakers?

what is the best.?

whats good for just bedroom dj use? but the occasional house party?

[SourceRaver]

Hey B...

Pasive speakers are powered by a separate amp so you have your amp on under your DJ booth and two cables heading out to your left and right speaker.

Active/powered speakers have an amplifier built into the speaker itself and require a power cable as well as data.

Both have pros and cons.

Passive speakers only require one cable each but if the amp and speakers are mismatched in terms of power, one may damage the other.

Powered speakers are a lot heavier and require a power cable/source. But generally the amp and speaker are matched to provide the best quality sound. They also cost more.

[Cupe]

+rep for SourceRaver

[SourceRaver]

Both can sound equally as good depending on brand and set up.

I have some early model active Mackie SRM450s and they rock. Unfortunately the later Chinese made version sucks big time.

Decide on your budget and head out to the stores and take the time to listen to a few brands before you buy.

[pill]

I would personally reccommend going for passive speakers in order to seperate components, i.e., if the amp blows, you can hire another and still use your speakers rather than losing an amp and a speaker if an active speaker blows.

You'll find that most clubs and permanent installs use passive speakers for this reason. I beleive this also allows you to get much more powerful amplifiers as they can be alot larger if they do not need to fit in the back of a speaker cabinet.

That being said, as Sourceraver has pointed out there are some very good active speakers, I personally love using mackie SRM1500 or 1800 powered subwoofers. However, cheaper 18 inch passive subwoofers coupled with a powerful amplifier and an appropriate crossover system can also sound very good at a lower cost.

Also, active speakers will of course take up a smaller space and therefore be easier to transport.

One example: JB Hifi sell Audioline PA Speakers. Their 15 inch active model with a built in amp, in my opinion, sounds no where near as good as the 15 inch passive model with my peavey 8.5C amplifier.