my powered PA speaker and whether or not I killed it

[KRStudio]

I would try turning the knob on the speaker 3/4 of the way up or at unity oif it shows where unity should be. Bring your board fader up as needed. See if that helps.

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by KRStudio

I would try turning the knob on the speaker 3/4 of the way up or at unity oif it shows where unity should be. Bring your board fader up as needed. See if that helps.

the knob goes from zero to 50db (intended to be able to hook up a mic if you are so inclined). no mark for unity unfortunately. thanks

[ray_subsonic]

Originally Posted by chopsy

the knob goes from zero to 50db (intended to be able to hook up a mic if you are so inclined). no mark for unity unfortunately. thanks

That seems a bit odd. See the 2 pole switch next to the input XLR. Does that select between a line or mic level input? Most boxes like this have some kind of switch to select mic or line level.

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by ray_subsonic

That seems a bit odd. See the 2 pole switch next to the input XLR. Does that select between a line or mic level input? Most boxes like this have some kind of switch to select mic or line level.

nope, no switch. take a close peek at the back panel @2mins into this sweetwater walkthrough video of it

[ray_subsonic]

Yeah .. It was hard to get a clear and up close picture of the back panel off of the website.

I've dealt with meltdowns on a few different brands of self-powered speakers. I've heard of lots of probable explanations for these kinds of failures .. Some likely and other's very unlikely.

2 of the most likely have involved either the switch-mode digital power supplies, or the PCB's with their plethora of surface mount design (SMD) components that are found inside the guts of most of these boxes. I'm not sure about these Samson Auro boxes but for now I'm assuming they're switch-mode. Some boxes have torroidal transformers which are much more forgiving.

1. "Dirty Power". "Noise" or Oscillation from other devices or machinery on Mains Power lines can cause switch-mode power supplies to literally burn out. This can sometimes burn out the amp module itself. That doesn't sound likely in this situation.
2. Other Equipment in the signal chain with faulty power or grounding. Stray voltage or DC from other equipment can sometimes carry down audio lines looking for a path to ground. SMD PCB's operate within fairly tight voltages and stray voltages can "Zap" individual components. Maybe your mixer is a culprit? Possible.
3. You've driven too much signal, or a square wave signal into the preamp section of the box. This can sometimes "Zap" part of the input circuit. Possible.
4. A Faulty Item with poor build quality or lack of quality control. Possible.

Any others that other minds can think of ??

[chopsy]

thanks Ray.

we had 4 mics, 2 acoustic-electric guitars and 1 acoustic bass hooked up to the mixer at the time.

Are there any ways I can check the mixer myself to see if it could be the culprit? One band member has a nice digital multimeter which we were using to check the fuse during the time of the failure so if there are any troubleshooting steps we can take with the mixer I'm all ears.

I could also take it to a professional... what would I ask them to specifically examine?

[KRStudio]

OK, looking at the site the XLR is for mic input only. You need TRS for line input from the board. The amp is shutting down as it was designed to.

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by KRStudio

OK, looking at the site the XLR is for mic input only. You need TRS for line input from the board. The amp is shutting down as it was designed to.

the instructions say

"XLR input connector: This female XLR connector accepts either a balanced microphone or live level signal"

"1/4" input connector: Use this 1/4" input for connecting balanced microphone or balanced and unbalanced line level inputs"

do you think it would be wiser to use the 1/4" TRS?
I do have 1/4" outputs on the mixer. They are labeled +4db 1000k ohm. Is that ok to use or should I get a male XLR -> TRS cable and hook the 600 ohm line output up instead? not sure which is more desirable.

[zlaya]

Maybe you just asked the speaker to do too much, and I can easily see this happening while using just one speaker.

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by zlaya

Maybe you just asked the speaker to do too much, and I can easily see this happening while using just one speaker.

If that's all it would be sort of comforting regardless of how dumb I feel for doing that

I don't want to have to deal with changing mixers although I'm pricing a non-stoneage replacement now.

I'm surprised the speaker couldn't take what we threw at it considering all the marketing talk about optical limiters and it's not like we are a broooootal death metal band trying to pump triggered kickbass through it.... but I guess I should remember that you get what you pay for and this is budget gear.

[zlaya]

Yes I didnt want to call it buget gear, since I dont know much about it, but its not a brand that i think of when i hear "reputable". I dont think its stupidity on your part, just hyperinflated power ratings causing you to have expectations which are above what the product can deliver.

[chopsy]

and now the plot thickens... the other speaker has arrived.

still feeling gunshy about hooking up the mixer but I am inclined to agree that we asked too much. going to bring my bass amp and keep that out of the PA... hopefully one speaker can handle two acoustic guitars, a banjo and group vocals

[KRStudio]

After downloading the manual I see the XLR and TRS are the same connection. Run the Mic/line level knob at 10 O'clock. If you have both speakers hooked up and one is shutting down it has an issue. Hope you get it figured out.

Good luck!

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by KRStudio

After downloading the manual I see the XLR and TRS are the same connection. Run the Mic/line level knob at 10 O'clock. If you have both speakers hooked up and one is shutting down it has an issue. Hope you get it figured out.

Good luck!

this will be first time using the new speaker that just arrived today. the other one was toast after the 2nd shutdown... Samson is sending FedEx to pick it up tomorrow under warranty (would've went with an exchange from the place I bought it but it they don't have any until mid-Sept)

10 o'clock it is and we will keep it quieter this time + keeping the bass out of the mix. thanks again to everyone for the help and suggestions.

[KRStudio]

Gotta respect a company that takes care of issues like that. Good job.

[zlaya]

Glad you were able to catch the issue before the show.

[drbob1]

It doesn't sound like you killed it if the clipping light wasn't coming on. Sounds like some component just gave up the ghost, and they're not going to trouble shoot it, just replace the amp board and send it out a B stock...

[chopsy]

Originally Posted by drbob1

It doesn't sound like you killed it if the clipping light wasn't coming on. Sounds like some component just gave up the ghost, and they're not going to trouble shoot it, just replace the amp board and send it out a B stock...

that's my line of thinking.

I escaped from the hotseat... they had a soundguy last night so the PA stayed in the car! first show went great and we have been invited back.

one of my bandmates raised a good point: if the mixer was the culprit it probably would've fried the speaker during our first practice. anyway, next practice is Sunday so we can ease into the new one and give me a chance to learn the run the mixer better before then.

[chopsy]

one practice down with the new speaker. running the mixer better now... and I noticed when we powered this speaker up this one didn't have a hiss that the other one did and which I had attributed to the gear being a bit on the cheap side. I am now more confident I just got a bum speaker the first time!