I’ve been hired as a DJ for a 200 person party in a space that is about 50ft x 100ft with a approx. 15ft ceiling. I’m mainly a producer so I don’t own equipment for live sounds (e.g. speakers, microphone, etc.). What I’ll be bringing is headphones, laptop, and a Kontrol S4. Basically, I’m trying to get a solid sound setup similar to what they would have in typical clubs (e.g. Amnesia, Space).
As of now, I have placed a rental on a subwoofer (Yorkville LS801P), 2 mid sized speakers (Yorkville NX55’s I believe), and 2 monitors.
So my questions are:
How should the speakers/subwoofer be placed? Should they create an equilateral triangle with the dancefloor like a studio? Where should the subwoofer be (I’ve had problems with putting the subwoofer near the DJ booth because it makes it extremely difficult to hear)?
Any tips concerning that actual sound? Is there some sort of guideline I should be following for making sure everything is balanced (e.g. EQing)?
Possibly more questions to come, thanks!
P.S. My S4 will be going through a mixer before the speakers.
The sub placement shouldn’t be a problem - as long as it doesn’t cause unwanted vibration (if you’re using TT’s) you should be alright. The human ear can’t really tell where bass sounds are coming from…
I’m no pa guru, but have heard the sub should be against a wall or in a corner on the floor, if possible. The tops should be at least 25ft apart, if possible, and slightly above head level.
I am an expert - placing the subwoofer in the corner is a common technique if you are lacking in bottom end, no sense in getting into the theory but what you are trying to do is get the room modes in phase with the source to reinforce the bottom end, play around with the distance from the wall and see if there is a change in output.
The construction of the wall plays a role as well, a dense and sturdy wall like an exterior works better than an interior wall that is not so rigid.
Of course, if you have enough rig you don’t need to employ such tactics, the LS801P is IME not enough rig unless you are running at lower volumes. Two would be adequate, something with some real power (EV, JBL PRX or VRX, etc) would be even better.
Edit: Have to add, don’t corner load the tops, you are only going to reinforce the wrong frequencies, requiring eq to correct…
Rotebass said everything I was going to say with the exception of leaving QSC, which I find better than the brands he listed. If you want club sound, you need to at least get one more sub if you are going to have 4 tops cranking out high end.
Well, it’s a fairly small venue but from what I’ve read, I think you’ve misinterpreted me. I’m using 2 speakers that will be facing the audience and 2 monitors that will be facing me. But your saying that if I want a club sound, I should consider getting 4 speakers facing the crowd as suggested by aarondavid and 2 subs?
EDIT: The dancefloor is probably max 20ft x 50ft anyways, the rest is just chill out area.
You should probably save a few bucks and just go with one monitor for yourself. Double monitors are usually a courtesy to accomodate different DJ’s who might monitor from different sides.
A little off topic (Sorry OP), but there wasn’t really any need for me to start a new thread on this and will probably apply to others…
@Rotebass, I’m a mobile DJ and have 1 sub and 2 pas (mid+high) - Are you saying that i can actually get more out of my system if i have all the speakers in corners or just the sub? Normally i just put them on stands above head height and put them either side of my table without any real thought to the placement in the room. How much extra low end / overall volume could you actually steal out of this kind of trick? - Anything else placement wise / sneaky tricks to get more out of a mediocre system?
if your a good enough dj, it does. I play in a smaller venue with a similar system to the one he is going to be using, and never use monitors. I have the speakers on either side of me, and slightly tweaking one is usually good enough due to the QSC system being balls loud and crystal clear.
Monitors are a great way to expedite hearing loss! Mix with IEM’s.
Take the money you save from renting monitors and rent another sub.
Also, keep in mind that while corner loading can increase output, it can force you to place the sub further away, canceling out any gains you made. Play around with placement at the venue and see what works best.
Typically just the sub, mid-high boxes should be placed for best coverage in the room. The gain is very minimal, but it is noticeable and can be the difference between blowing and not blowing your subwoofer in some cases.
- placing the subwoofer in the corner is a common technique if you are lacking in bottom end, no sense in getting into the theory but what you are trying to do is get the room modes in phase with the source to reinforce the bottom end, play around with the distance from the wall and see if there is a change in output.