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I'm thinking of adding some some Mackie powered 450's as my mains to my mix and a sub. That is what I' thinking of using for my set up. My question is... I have an 808s Mackie mixer/amp 2x 600 watts stereo. I don't think this can be bridged but will this amp power a sub effectively? This is mostly for parties but also an occasional bar gig. Thank you...

That mixing amp is actually putting out 450 watts/channel @ 4 ohms and 300 watts/channel into 8 ohms. The 600 watts/ch is into 2 ohms. Another case of misleading advertising. ALWAYS look at the official documentation, NOT the advertising!

And those numbers are NOT even the full frequency ratings. At full frequency, both channels driven, it is putting out 340 watts/ch @ 4 ohms, 240 watts/ch @ 8 ohms. This is closer to the real world numbers when you are driving speakers.

Anyway, you are correct in that this mixing amp can't be bridged, so you would be looking into a sub with a CONTINUOUS rating around 400 watts @ 4 ohms or 300 watts/ch into 8 ohms (most subs are 4 ohms, but some are to drive off one channel of this amp. That's a pretty low power output for a sub, but there are such a thing, so if you want to do it, go for it.

If I were you, I'd sell that Mackie unit and get a shiny new mixer to go with your new speakeres, then save up for a powered sub. You could probably get about $450-500 for that mixing amp, buy a good mixer, and have a little bit of $$$ leftover to start saving for a powered sub.

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C Mc
KJ, FL

Is it a powered sub - if so you don't need to worry about the internal amps at all?

The Mackie amp on that particular board is not bridgeable. The amp itself only pushes 300 watts per channel @ 8 ohms, 450 watts at 4 ohms. The 600 watts is at a 2 ohm rating - it's just a sales technique.
So you can look for a sub that is 4 ohms with a program rating of 450 at 4 ohms (or close to it), the JBL JRX 118 would be suitable. But for best sound, you'd be better off getting a powered sub with built in crossover to run the SRM450's as well. This way you have a balanced system with no frequecy overlap or cancellation.

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Actually while looking for 4 ohm single driver subs, I found only one that was 4 ohms.


Don't necessarily have to do that, the mixer is a decent little board which can be expanded upon by connecting external amps or powered speakers (like he's suggesting). The internal amp could be configured for monitors if so desired.

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Thanx guys... Appreciate all the info... Everyone is always so helpful when someone has a question. Just curious... would you guys recommend the mackie 450's for a powered speaker or are their more economical substitutes for a powered speaker? Also, what mixer would you recommend that does what the 808S does. Again, thanx for the info.

The Mackie 450s are really good 12" powered speakers. They are definitely in the top 5 in that category in the $500-800 per speaker price range. I can tell you are worried a bit about bass response with the 12", but these things will bump better than most cheap 15" drivers, so just know their limitations and don't boost the bass too much and you'll get a great full-frequency sound from these guys.

I think the best in the price range is the QSC HPR122i, but they are about $700.00 per speaker. Lots of people swear by the QSC K12s, which is basically the replacement of the HPR122i. With the K12s, I think you are basically sacrificing a bit of performance for weight, as the K12s don't sound quite as good, but they are more than 1/2 the weight.

Anyway, you really can't go wrong with the 450s either. If you can, get the Mackie 450v2s. Older Mackie 450s were the industry standard for powered speakers for years and years, but then they shifted to chinese manufacturing and used cheaper components for a couple years (They stopped using Italian RCF drivers, for instance). The sound quality didn't really suffer that much, but the build quality did. For that reason, some people will tell you to stay away from Mackie anything that was manufactured from about 2004 to around 2008. In the last few model years, however, Mackie seems to have gotten their s**t together and are again producing top-notch products. Anyway, point being, it would be worth the extra hundred bucks or so to get 450v2s instead of the older model 450s.

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C Mc
KJ, FL

Mackie SRM450 vs. QSC HPR122i. My vote goes to QSC.

I agree with TopherM. I used Mackie with sub SWA1501 for 8 years, never failed me & loved them, until I replaced it with QSC HPR122i with sub151i. Cleaner & better sound, the bass fuller & tighter. I also bought the K12 for floor monitors, only 40 lbs, they’re good but not as good as the 122i. I end up buying another pair of 122i & use the K12's for my home system.

Another sound improvement was when I added DBX DriveRackPX. If you have powered speakers I highly recommend this unit. (but don’t use the EQ function).
Cons:
1. Price – I paid $799. Sub $999. after rebate.
2. Weight – 60 lbs – I was going to buy the 152i but that’s 100 lbs
3. No longer in production, replaced by the KW series
(a lot of retailers still carry them & also ebay)

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