Portable Party Speakers?

[Knowmadic 10+ year member]

I've been tasked by my college dorm to figure out how to build a portable party system, almost like a DJ setup. The goal is for this to be easy to assemble and move around, maybe even fit it all onto a dolly. I'm not exactly sure where to start or what I'll need for this application. I'm thinking about two towers and then something to power/control it all with.

Somewhat like this -

Doesn't have to be very sound quality oriented, primarily just getting loud and clear. Not sure what the budget is going to be as I have never tried anything like this, but was wondering if someone has or can point me in the right direction for what I'll need.

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[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

Parts Express is a good place to start shopping.

you can get fairly inexpensive horn tweeters and waveguides, PA woofers, crossover networks, terminals, etc. Then get an amplified mixer used somewhere so you can accept line level and mic level inputs (for impromptu karaoke).

just build them out of 11-ply birch, seal them with a bedliner product, add some handles and/or integral wheels on the back so they have an integral dolly.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

for the lowest stuff i'd consider:

two of these:

Selenium DH200E-E 1" Titanium Horn Driver 1-3/8"-18 TPI | 264-225

with two waveguides:

Selenium HM17-25 1" Bi-Radial Horn 60x40 1-3/8"-18 TPI | 264-308

woofers:

Dayton Audio PA255-8 10" Pro Woofer | 295-030

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

it'll probably be cheaper to buy some used PA speakers and a used mixer/head amp and make a frame to bolt them together then add wheels and a handle.

 

[Knowmadic 10+ year member]

Parts Express is a good place to start shopping.
you can get fairly inexpensive horn tweeters and waveguides, PA woofers, crossover networks, terminals, etc. Then get an amplified mixer used somewhere so you can accept line level and mic level inputs (for impromptu karaoke).

just build them out of 11-ply birch, seal them with a bedliner product, add some handles and/or integral wheels on the back so they have an integral dolly.

EDIT: I'm kind of playing with the idea of a 12 or 15" Subwoofer on the bottom, 6-8" midrange in the middle and a horn tweeter at the top, and have that same thing in both towers. What are your thoughts? I'd like to be able to get a pretty good bass response from the speakers, will the 10" you recommended be able to do the trick?

 

[Buck 5,000+ posts]

Dude, we make suitcases with small 12v batteries, sometimes ran a 24v and we have little amp and an aux or usb cable you can plug into your phone or iPod. Plays for hours and hours and will play at a fairly high volume.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

nah, he's wanting a lot more than a suitcase.

if you want bass output outside you need a horn that is bigger than you are. that is not portable. your budget for this will need to be $500 or so. the crossovers will be $50 each, $30 or so for each tweeter, $50 or so for each mid/woofer, and $100 or so for each larger woofer 12" or larger. Then another $200-$400 for an amplifier/head.

course, that is how I would do it so people would be impressed and not make fun of your output. but you can buy used speakers for less than that. I think you will find there is little cost savings for building your own PA speakers that are of decent quality. You can go cheaper but they will just fail when you push them harder.

but to be simple, some 6x9's in boxes can play to a field of people just fine. a few batteries, a small amp and a source (or even a head unit) can work for smaller areas like yards.

if you cannot do a bass horn, a ported enclosure can suffice.

and you could probably use some bullet tweeters and PA mids and get decent output but highly directional. the purpose of the waveguide is to get good high frequency coverage.

 

[Side Show 10+ year member]

have seen some party systems built into the big green wheelie bins... havnt herd one befor tho

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

all depends on budget