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| EAW LA 400? [message #172534] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 11:40  |
 Sean Brown
Messages: 67
Registered: August 2005 |
Should Get Out More |
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Any one use these subs. What are the pros/cons etc? I'm still thinking of upgrading my 728s in the future. How would they compare?
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172551 is a reply to message #172534 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 12:33  |
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I happen to really like the LA400.
I find them smaller, lighter, cheaper, and more efficient (at the right frequencies) than most of the other usual suspects.
The only con might be LF extension, but I will gladly trade a couple Hz of response for all the cool stuff you get in return.
They will be different than your 728s. Only you can decide if it's a better different.
Dave Dermont - Chief Lizard, LAB Lounge
"I wouldn't work with that band again if you paid me!"
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172570 is a reply to message #172534 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 13:37 |
Ryan McLeod
Messages: 372
Registered: August 2004
Location: Toronto, ON Canada |
Has No Life |
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Hey Shawn -
I have 8 of the LA-400 and enjoy them quite a bit (I have used them for both live productions and DJ systems)
Pro's :
- Very loud on little power (107db sensitivity, I believe)
(I drive 4 with an IT4000, technically twice their rated power of 500W RMS)
- They get directional when properly coupled and used in multiples of 2 or 4 (which may or may not be a Pro....)
- Sound quite good and work well for me, mainly in outdoor applications
- a lot of "oomph" in a package that requires very little amplifier power compared to their output. (read: economical for amp requirements and the electrical requirements at the gig)
- "Dancy" sound.
Cons:
- "Dancy" sound.
- don't do well in a "single-sub-per-side" scenario.
- they don't go as low as, say, a typical dual-18 like an SB1000 or your SRX728's.
- in sets of 2 or 4, they take up more space when in use and in the truck, which for some users may offset the "lower power" requirement.
In a (very rough, off the top of my head) comparison my experience is that you would require 4x SRX728 with 3200W of available power for each to get the same useable output as 4x LA400's driven with 4000W of total power, but the dual 18's will go lower.
Your best option? Beg, borrow or rent a set and compare for yourself to see if they are right for you.
[Updated on: Sat, 23 December 2006 13:39]
"If I can't change the people around me, I'll change the people around me"
- Chuck D.
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172577 is a reply to message #172534 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 14:10 |
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Sean,
I have 4 LA400s. I use them mostly for rock and blues. I've ocassionaly done some jazz and some death metal with them.
They really work well with the rock and rhythm and blues type stuff. Stuff like Chicago, Wilson Picket, Van Morrison, Motown. I've used them in 800 person rooms (just 4 center clustered) for hard core, metal, and alternative and they do very well.
I powered them with 2x PLX3002 bridged (2 per amp) for a while. That worked very well, but I never got out of -20 on the front panel. From this, I surmised 1500W per cabinet was overkill. I got a good deal on an RMX4050 and now I run that in 4 ohm stereo and each cabinet gets around 700W. It really rocks, and it was after that point that I ran sound for the heavy metal/alternative bands.
I think a really good match for these would be a Yorkville AP6040 in stereo, or a PL 6.0 II. From what I've read on EAW discussion board, if you are properly processing the LA400 with a HPF and parametric EQ, they say you can safely raise the RMS rating to 800W. That being the case, 1500-2000W per cabinet is probably ideal in order to give yourself some headroom. But if you know your limits, 700-1200 watts per cabinet is enough for most applications.
As for a comparison with dual 18's. 4 LA400s will outrun any set of 4 dual 18's in their price category. Which is around $900-1000 new $600-700 used. I wouldn't say they are twice as loud or anything. But noticably cleaner for this price category at full tilt boogie.
WRT how low they go... A set of dual 18's for $900/box is NOT going to go noticeablly lower. I would say that at set of dual 18's for 50% more than that won't go noceably lower. Sure, you will get output, but it will be mostly in the form of distortion. Some people like that, YMMV. In general you have to spend a lot of money go to clean, loud, and low.
As for a comparison to LAB subs. I've heard 4 LAB subs. They do go a bit lower, and are damn near equal to 2 LA400s per box. The LABs will out perform any dual 18 at the price point and probably double.
As I recall from discussions previous to this, the inherent advantage of a horn loaded subwoofer is the fact that it more correctly matches with the impedance of the air. This leads to better efficiency and less distortion.
I also would vehemently agree with Ryan McLeod's assesment. You will need darn near 12,000W of LF power on 4 dual 18's to even begin to compete with 3-6000W of power on 4 LA400s. In equal price categories and even slightly higher.
[Updated on: Sat, 23 December 2006 14:13]
Ryan Lantzy
"In the beginner's mind the possibilities are many, in the expert's mind there are few."
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172600 is a reply to message #172577 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 16:36 |
Ryan McLeod
Messages: 372
Registered: August 2004
Location: Toronto, ON Canada |
Has No Life |
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I always wondered how to spell that....!
Also, I forgot about the quasi-800w power rating scheme. With 1000W of available power per box, I've been nothing but happy.
(I also enjoy using them at reasonable-size outdoor events in two clusters of 4 or a single cluster of 8 - someone will always tell me that those look like really strange dual 18's during soundcheck, and when I tell them that they are listening to 8x 12" drivers at 100-or-so feet and they feel it in their chest I thoroughly enjoy the look on their face...
"If I can't change the people around me, I'll change the people around me"
- Chuck D.
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172607 is a reply to message #172570 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 16:58 |
Bob Kenton
Messages: 381
Registered: May 2005
Location: Sandy beaches of OC |
Has No Life |
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| Ryan McLeod wrote on Sat, 23 December 2006 19:37 |
Hey Shawn -
I have 8 of the LA-400 and enjoy them quite a bit (I have used them for both live productions and DJ systems)
Pro's :
- Very loud on little power (107db sensitivity, I believe)
(I drive 4 with an IT4000, technically twice their rated power of 500W RMS)
- They get directional when properly coupled and used in multiples of 2 or 4 (which may or may not be a Pro....)
- Sound quite good and work well for me, mainly in outdoor applications
- a lot of "oomph" in a package that requires very little amplifier power compared to their output. (read: economical for amp requirements and the electrical requirements at the gig)
- "Dancy" sound.
Cons:
- "Dancy" sound.
- don't do well in a "single-sub-per-side" scenario.
- they don't go as low as, say, a typical dual-18 like an SB1000 or your SRX728's.
- in sets of 2 or 4, they take up more space when in use and in the truck, which for some users may offset the "lower power" requirement.
In a (very rough, off the top of my head) comparison my experience is that you would require 4x SRX728 with 3200W of available power for each to get the same useable output as 4x LA400's driven with 4000W of total power, but the dual 18's will go lower.
Your best option? Beg, borrow or rent a set and compare for yourself to see if they are right for you.
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Question,while running a single LA400 per side, you mentioned it doesnt work well, will it out perform a single 18" box like a SRX 718 and not a dual box like the 728? Or does it just not work well by its self and needs to be coupled to get a decent sound?
Just wondering, Ive been considering a pair of these boxes myself and have been doing some searching. I really dont want to have to run two per side right now because of truck room.
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172635 is a reply to message #172607 ] |
Sat, 23 December 2006 20:39 |
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| Bob Kenton wrote on Sat, 23 December 2006 17:58 |
Question,while running a single LA400 per side, you mentioned it doesnt work well, will it out perform a single 18" box like a SRX 718 and not a dual box like the 728? Or does it just not work well by its self and needs to be coupled to get a decent sound?
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I've used them one a side for small gigs. You can't expect miracles out of anything one per side. In the end it would depend on the style of music, size of crowd, and desired SPL.
There is a post in the LAB archives from Dave Gunness specifically addressing the LA400 and it's feature set. One of the design criteria he menitioned was that it must work well one per side.
So will the issue a brown note one per side? Probably not. Will they work? Definitely yes, depending on you requirements.
Ryan Lantzy
"In the beginner's mind the possibilities are many, in the expert's mind there are few."
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172686 is a reply to message #172534 ] |
Sun, 24 December 2006 02:50 |
Ryan McLeod
Messages: 372
Registered: August 2004
Location: Toronto, ON Canada |
Has No Life |
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I should have clarified myself -
Yes, depending on the application and the SPL required, one per side is just fine in many applications. I've done it before, but I have other options I prefer in this case, or I use two LA400's in the middle rather then one on each side.
My main issue is that a one-per-side application for me usually means "a top on a stick", and I prefer to use a pole rather then a stand to use up as little real estate as possible, so I usually use an SBX220 with a K&M crank-up pole.
What's funny is that a pair of SBX220's gets an IT4K, just like four LA400's. I like the VLF of the 220's, but we already know which one is more effiecent... 
Bob - I would say that it will outperform an average single 18" box easily (and again, get louder with less required amp power applied to it) and in some cases keep up with an SRX728 - it all depends on the application. Keep in mind that it is not as tall as a 728, so if using the sub as a base for your mid/hi box is an issue....
"If I can't change the people around me, I'll change the people around me"
- Chuck D.
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #172800 is a reply to message #172788 ] |
Sun, 24 December 2006 13:34 |
John Chiara
Messages: 1117
Registered: April 2004
Location: Troy, NY |
Has No Life |
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| Sean Brown wrote on Sun, 24 December 2006 13:31 |
Well, I don't dislike the 728s. This all started as an upgrade/amp issue. I wanted two more subs (728s) but didn't want to carry around four amps just for subs or two very powerful/very expensive amps. So I decided to look into more efficient horn loaded subs and keep the same amount of amps that I currently have. The LA400s were just one choice. I was also leaning toward BFD's Tuba 30s or Tuba 36s amoung others.
So there's the backround info.
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I don't know your budget but I am an advocate of the Danley subs. The TH 115 goes lower..also runs on small or large amps..and can be used in singles. Price is at least double the LA 400 but having heard both the TH 115 is a more hifi sounding box..and the impact..I beleive because of the near zero group delay ...is more even across the operating range.
"mix is a verb, not a noun"
John A. Chiara aka. Blind Johnny
Albany Audio Associates Inc.
Troy, NY
518-961-0069 - cell
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| Re: EAW LA 400? [message #184961 is a reply to message #172534 ] |
Fri, 02 February 2007 19:18 |
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Mike Butler (media)
Messages: 2393
Registered: October 2005
Location: southern connecticut |
Has No Life |
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Hey, I want a t-shirt for all the people I have told about the LA400. Hell, a jacket for that matter! 
http://www.mikebutlermedia.com
Mike Butler Media * AV/video production * corporate event production * presentation services * marketing support * creative research * graphic design * photography
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. I don't know if upgrade from 728 a good decision. What you didn't like about 728?