Need help from DJ's and other serious Audiophiles

I was at a pool party with a DJ this weekend and from way across the pool with a zillion kids screaming (OK, I've been told a trillion times not to exhagerate) he had "DJ" speakers that were just booming serious sound to me above all that noise, at more than the length of a rope away from the speakers.

These were not a car or a marine speaker in a can, but a true "DJ" speaker with a horn designed to do just what it was doing - lots of good sound in the open air. WOW - I want those on my tower now in a big way. These things were born to light up the open are with tunes.

They are made by www.ElectroVoice.com and they were the EVID 4.2 (see photo % specs below).

So here is my question. Could these or any other serious outdoor "DJ" speaker be used to really fire up the sounds to the rider? They all have horns instead of tweaters and can someone edumicate me on the benefit of a horn over a tweeter for the wakeboarding application.

There is probably some reason why I am way out in left field on this but these things were amazing crisp from about 100 feet away with tons of background noise and I'm hoping to find a way to make them work (and they are only like $250/pair).

Go easy, outside of "More amps and speakers are good" I am not a stereo expert.

Bill

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Perfect for a variety of environments where full-range audio is needed but space is limited: restaurants, bars, bistros, department stores, and out door venues. Offering the bass response of a much larger speaker, dual 4-inch woofers make the 4.2 a phenomenal performer. The 1-inch waveguide coupled titanium tweeter delivers controlled clean mids and highs. Combine it with the 12.1 subwoofer for an amazing listening experience. Full system protection and EV's unique Strong-Arm Mount™ (SAM™) make the EVID 4.2 a solid choice in any environment.

Bill,

Using pro-sound or mobile audio speakers is certianly an option you have. You say taht they have tweeters instead of horns, but that's not really correct. The whole assembly is called a "horn loaded tweeter." It is a tweeter afixed to a dispersion device called the horn (for obvious reasons.) Horns aid greatly in throwing focused sound long distances. Instead of radiating in all directions, they throw to a specific area (great for covering a dance floor, where you don't need sound off on the sides, or for throwing sound back to border.) Horns also tend to VERY efficient, meaning that your amp doesn't have to be as strong to produce the same amount of volume. That's a plus when it comes to your pocket book.

The downside of horns is that they tend to have a very "bright" sound to them and their crossover capabilities are extremely limited (you're not going to be able to get bass out of them) and they do take up a considerable amount of space. Obviously, since almost every serious pro-sound cab uses horn tweeters, these deterrents aren't a big deal in a lot of situations. In fact, Klipsch (which I own) and a few other companies use horns in home stereo to reap some of the same benefits, especially with regard to efficiency.

Now, to boating. If you want the reader to hear some music, horns are an excellent way to go. However, they're only going to be hearing the upper range of music, as many of these will have crossover points from 500-800 hz, which is pretty high. In layman's terms, they're going to get a lot of treble and not much bass. Also, they can take up a lot of space with a true horn. The speaker you've shown has a sort of psuedo-horn, that will give you some benefits of a horn. However, a horn that short can't really do all that horn should. Also, I thought the 4s looked a little funny and actually were fairly large.

A buddy of mine was not deterred and has two HUGE horns and 10 inch subs (to help compensate for that lack of bottom end) on his tower, and I'd put his tower against anybody's in terms of SPL (Volume). It is AMAZING. The box he's built also weighs 200 pounds (the horns are each loaded with a 12 lbs. tweeter magnate!!) and requires an extra brace for his tower.

Anyway, long story short, horns are the way to go to throw sound long distance, and can do so with fairly regular amps. Getting the most out of your horns takes a little planning. If you like the Evids I would encourage you to give them a shot. (In my spare time I am the managing partner of a DJ company called TDS Audio in Knoxville, TN. If you're really serious about seeing what can be done with horns, you may want to come up some time and see my buddies boat and catch a ride with us.)

TA biggs uses horns on his tower setup.
http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65921/59456.html

take a look at the SX-80 and the Xi-1082

also EAW UB82e or UB42 (www.eaw.com)

jbl ms-28

a horn is beneficial because it takes the sound 'energy' and focuses it in a direction, rather than letting it radiate in all directions.

the big problem with using this type of speaker is getting the lower impedance commonly found in mobile audio. most pro stuff is 8 ohms. getting a hefty amp to put out a lot of power to these speakers makes the cost go up a lot.

I looked at the Evid line when it came out. Nice stuff. The biggest problems I see are mounting the units to the tower securely and overall durability.

In the EV line, I'd favor the SX80pi. This is the weather resistant version of the SX80. These speakers are time proven and bullet-proof.

Still, they are big and heavy, and a truly secure mounting system will be a challenge. Also, they are 8 ohm. Look here for specs:

http://www.electrovoice.com/Electrovoice/products.nsf/allpages/066D59279DD6D93886256B96005D4B0A

I have some EV horns that I used to have in my boat> I tried to design a system to put them on the tower> but never did it because I would have to throw a lot of weight up on the tower> and never wanted to crack the tower or the gelcoat.
They are a few years old> tweeter horns from EV. I used to run them with a 5" mid> and have run them with a 6.5" mid before. VERY effecient> I think the ratings were like per 1 watt per 100db.
These things will ripp your ears off. In my old truck> I had to run 12 -5" mids and 4-6.5" mid drivers to keep up with 4 EV horns. I still have some left over> Cant do anything with them anymore> theyre too loud!
Great speakers tho.

Just another perspective on Tim's post:

I actually like the higher ohms of drivers in pro audio as it gives you more wiring options. For instance, you easily could mount two of the 8 ohm Evids on your tower and wire them in parrallel for a 4 ohm load. Many car audio amps (which we use in boats) are most efficient (produce the most sound) bridged into a 4 ohm load. I think that 8 ohm speakers often are ideal for tower speakers with one amp.

most mono amps these days are set up for 2 or 1 ohm loads. of course if matt is talking about a bridged 2 channel amp that is true. good point matt.

Bill,

Check out this thread for compression driver horns that fit into a 6 1/2" enclosure.

http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/3183/69077.html?1054614386

These would work great inside empty Mako cans, and would work great along with a separate 6 1/2" mid-bass driver.

this is how the west marine speakers need to be wired since they are 8 ohm, run them in parallel then bridge two channels of the amp, you wont be noticing its not in stereo anyway at 60-70'