Karaoke Forums

Hi Everyone,

My budget is $1,500 for a complete karaoke setup. This will be for home use only. My living room is about 26'x15' and connects to the kitchen.

Alright, so through my research on this site and since I want a simple setup, I think I should go with a powered amp like the Yamaha EMX312SC. But it seems everyone is also recommending the more powerful EMX512SC. I guess it depends what speakers I get right? Unsure which one to get.

Well based on what I read I want something compact but also sounds really good, the S112V looks like the best choice. In my living room I really don't have that much room for big speakers. So I am hoping 12" speakers will be good enough and sound great. I'm going to put the speakers on stands next to the TV so I want them to look good too. So maybe is the ZX1-90 better for me? We don't have many places like Guitar Center or speaker stores in Hawaii so I do not actually know how the speakers look like in real life. I can read the dimensions and looks at pics but seeing them in real life is different. I really just want compact speakers that sound good for karaoke and willing to spend up to $700 for a pair.

Mic wise, I am going with the Shure SM58. Just want to make sure but is this the correct SM58 microphone that is so highly recommended:
http://www.amazon.com/Shure-SM58SLC-Voc ... 463&sr=1-2

Also, since I live in Hawaii everything has to be shipped here. Amazon is like one of the only sites that offers free super saver shipping to Hawaii. Every other website that people use to reference items do not offer free shipping to Hawaii. I really envy everyone living in the mainland. Must be so nice to get free ground shipping.

I am unsure if I even need a subwoofer or not in the karaoke setup. What I read was that most home setups don't have one and that the karaoke music doesn't really take advantage of it. But if you think it will make the system sound a lot better I am all for it.

Another thing about making the music sound better, being very new at everything I have no idea how to configure the mixer, vocal effects, etc. My dad is not very technical with anything at all too and putting in a dvd and pressing play is pretty much all he knows how to do. Therefore, I would appreciate the most simple setup that requires the least customization to sound great. I know it's a little naive but I'm hoping that a mixer like the Yamaha EMX works great right out of the box.

Cables and the player I think I can handle on my own. It's basically finding an amp and speakers is the only thing I am unsure about. As I mentioned in the beginning, this is purely a home setup and will never be taken outside and I want them to look good as well since they will be next to the TV. So if anyone has suggestions/comments they will be greatly appreciated.

Mahalo nui loa (thank you very much)

Thomas,
I have some good and some bad news. The band news is you've asked some questions that many of us could write an entire book to answer (there's just a lot to know). The good news is you've come to a good place with some great people who will help you out every step of the way. Now you're going to get a lot of opinions about a lot of different ways you could set this up. You could go with a powered mixer (amp built in) and passive speakers or a passive mixer with powered speakers. There are many different brands and models as well.
My suggestion to you, given your space limitations, would be to look at a set of powered monitor speakers. Something like these JBL's would be perfect: http://www.amazon.com/JBL-LSR2325P-Powe ... 294&sr=8-5 You can do a search on Amazon for Monitor Speakers and get a lot of different options for the speakers and subs. With monitor speakers you'll definitely want a sub.
Then for mixers you can look at the Yamaha MG series for a good quality console at a fairly reasonable cost. The 8 channel version would probably work for you but you need to decide how many channels you want. Remember that you need either a single Stereo Channel or two mono (mic) channels for each stereo input you'll have (karaoke music, DVD Player, cable, etc). Microphones are mono and only need one channel. So figure out how many channels you want and I would suggest buying a mixer that has a few extra in case you decide to expand in the future.
The microphone you linked to is indeed the SM58 that everyone talks about. It is a rugged workhorse that sounds really good. For the price my opinion is there isn't a better mic out ther (again for that price).
As far as how to setup the mixer, this is a very broad question that requires a lot of explanation. My suggestion to you is, get the equipment first and read up on it (the manuals). Yamaha has some pretty good explanation of how to set it up in theirs. Then come back here and let us help you the rest of the way. I'll try to find you some links later to good basic references that are on the web, although I'm sure some other folks here will have some good links for you too.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

Thank you very much for the quick reply. That really helps a lot. The studio monitor speakers look like a good idea. I know you are not supposed to keep speakers on the ground so I need to get a stand for them too right? Would you recommend the stand below?
http://www.amazon.com/Quiklok-BS300-Mon ... m_dbs_MI_3

Also, I did a search on subs and wondering if a 10" sub would be good enough for my home? Would you recommend the following sub? Since the speakers were powered I searched for a powered sub too.
http://www.amazon.com/JBL-LSR2310SP-Pow ... 743&sr=1-4

Finally, would you recommend the MG82CX mixer below? It says 8 inputs and I would only have 1 dvd player, 1 karaoke player, and 2 mics for my setup.
http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-MG82CX-Ste ... 125&sr=1-2

Just to make sure, buying powered studio monitor speakers and a powered subwoofer means I don't need to buy any amplifier right? Or would you still recommend I get an amplifier for this setup?

Thanks!

My advice, (being such a small room and for home use) would be to skip the sub and instead spend the money on better amp & speakers. You will get more bass than you can handle in your living room with a good amp and decent set of 15" mains. Even 12's will do just fine in such a small area. My first "basement system" was a set of Yamaha BR12's and a 100w per channel amp. Woefully underpowered for a bar, but in my basement with the friends and family I was a hero.

Besides...if you really want cardiac arrest inducing bass, you could always add that later when the addiction really takes hold.

If you were considering putting speakers on stands, I'd look at the JBL EON 10" speakers, they've just been put on the discontinued list, and you may get LUCKY, and get a good deal on a pair of them. I'd hook them to a Mackie Pro FX8 mixer, a karaoke player, and the Shure sm58's, and forget the sub, your dad will REALLY believe in Santa Clause.

Rosario
Serenity Now Karaoke

At first I disagreed with cueball. The bass is the bomb at home. I just found out I had neighbors 2 blocks away hearing mine when I used to keep my set up at home. However, use the money as he said instead for quality speakers, add the bass later.

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KingBing Entertainment C'mon Up! I have a song for you!!! [font=MS Sans Serif][/font]

Ripman, how did you know I got a haircut? It's way shorter than my avatar, but DEFINATELY longer than Cueball.

Rosario

Tivo those stands would work great and the Yamaha MG8 would be a good match for what you're looking for. I'm thinking you could get that board, the JBL LSR monitors (plus the matching LSR sub) and the stands and everything all within your budget. That'd give you a great system with quality components (the JBL LSR's are pretty nice monitors) and still leave you plenty of money left over. You wouldn't be skimping in any area, I think you'd be very happy.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

I think I am going to go with the LSR's. However, I just noticed that there is also an 8" model (JBL LSR2328P). The price difference is about $300. Do you think getting the 8" is worth it for my home setup? Or will the 5" LSR's be enough?

Also, I am a little confused on which cables to buy for the speakers and sub. I took a look at the JBL Manuals and according to the system configuration setup for a two-channel setup. It says to use XLR cables from the speakers into the sub and XLR cables from the sub to the mixer. Is this correct? I also read in other posts that I should be using 1/4" TRS cables.

I am unsure which ones I am supposed to buy and how many cables I need of each.

If I need to buy XLR cables is it this one?
http://www.amazon.com/Stage-Ninja-SXC-1 ... 234&sr=8-7

If I need to buy the 1/4" TRS cables is it this one?
http://www.amazon.com/CBI-BL2A-Inch-Bal ... m_dbs_MI_5

And how many of each cable do I need to buy?

Thanks!

Yes if you can swing it, definitely get the 8" over the 5". Either will do the job but the 8's would be a little better as frequencies near the crossover point between those cabinets and the subwoofer and they have almost twice the power overall.

For cables I would recommend getting XLR's all the way around. The LSR 2300 series sub has only TRS inputs, the outputs that then go to the top end cabinets are still going to be XLR. So you need a minimum of six XLR cables. Two to go from the mixer to the sub (one for L and one for R channel). Then Two more to go from the sub to each of the 8" cabinets (1 to each). Then you said you'll have 2 microphones so you'll need two more XLR cables for them. I'd recommend getting a few extra as well.

The XLR Cable you linked to is fine, just make sure you buy the length that you'll need, I would honestly recommend testing with a string to figure out the length and always give yourself plenty of extra length in case you need to move things or shift it around temporarily.

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

If you're going to use studio monitors speakers, may I suggest these from Behringer

http://www.amazon.com/Behringer-Active- ... =1-2-fkmr0

And if you need more bass
http://www.amazon.com/Behringer-Truth-B ... 006&sr=1-4

I'm no fan of Behringer... but these Truth speakers are not really studio monitors but more like powered speakers, they are VERY generous in the low end and powerful

I've used a pair for home karaoke for about 2 years and they did a great job, it's one of their best product at Behringer

Have fun!

I have found these to be an excellent deal in XLR cables:

http://www.zzounds.com/item--WHRMC20

I bought an 18-pack and have been extremely satisfied. Whirlwind is an extremely reputable brand -- their snakes are well-known. I have gigged out dozens of times including outdoor gigs, and haven't had one fail yet. I have used one of the cables daily for a year, connected to a mic. It has been stepped on and strained many times, no failures.

As far as length goes, if you want to make long runs to your speakers you just keep connecting them together until you get the length you need. I do PA things for volunteer work in large halls, and can handle any run. I still have 5 of them unused for spares.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

I didn't know that JBL made an 8" speaker either, so, definately, I agree with you and letitrip that's the way to go, the 8" with the sub.

Rosario