Which PA System?

IMHO i say neither but if I had to choose the Yamaha. Try to look for a powered mixer, like the Yamaha EMX5000-12 I owned one at one time and loved it. You do just about as good piecing together a system then buying a package plus then you get exactly what you want. Try this.

Emx5000-12 powered board (500 per side) plus can be bridged
Buy some speaker and Mic Cables Musicians friend sells 10 for like 25 bucks.

Dive in and purchase the Club V Series Yamaha 12" speakers (the BR series is cheaper but not as good they dont' hold up too well plus distort easier for some reason)

Then Behringer makes the most incredible mic 3 for $50.00 can't beat it, this mic is 6dB hotter than the standard 58. Also built just as heavy I bought 6 and love them. :D

Speaker Stands are cheap.

U can use ur old speakers as monitors that board is very cable of that.

So this is my 2 cents I think you would be happier going this route, not neccisarily this equipment but this is a good start. But If I have to choose the Yamaha Package.

oh and i forgot this way you can sell that old PA and get some cash

Of those two choices, I would go with Peavey... more mic inputs, more power, and much better sounding speakers.

I like Yamaha (I own some), but those Peavey PR speakers are about the best in their price range, better than those Yamaha BR speakers. The more expensive Yamaha Club series speakers are great, but much more expensive.

Peavey and Yamaha both make good sounding reliable gear.

You want as many mic inputs as possible, you can never have too many. :D

I agree with Leear on the Behringer mics, they are great, I like them more than my Shure SM58s (I own both).

Behringer XM8500 Microphone

Read the reviews, these are great mics.

Thanks for the insight. I was just about to buy the Yamaha with one of those Behringer mics when a vote came in for the Peavey.

So, the vote is 1 to 1 ..... hmmmmm, what to do?

I won't bash peavey i don't like them because well its made in mississippi i live in mississippi and everybody down here uses peavey its a bit aggrivating because most of them buy Sp2's and always complain about the horns going out... I tell them because peavey crosses it over wrong but they don't believe it so oh well... Anyway if you want to buy a packaged system and like the option of more inputs then go Peavey, anything is better than those BR series Yamahas, If you got the dough I'd buy that Yamaha EMX5000-12 its a powered mixer and its awesome. Also Look into Behringer Pro series Speakers they are good and in a decent price range like Peaveys. As for the PR speakers I own a pair, they actually used to be my mains before I upgraded now they serve as monitors yes they are a geat sounding speaker.

I'm just biased of buying packaged PA's i'll be honest I'd much rather piece me one together but thats me.

No matter which you choose that Behringer Mic is bad @$$ for its price

So I didn't help any guess its still tied Peavey 1 Yamaha 1....LOL If there is a music store local to you I suggest going there and looking see if they have this equipment get a little hands on see how they are built and such.

I am with Leear again. I often recommend Behringer gear, folks must think I work for them. :D

But really, I own lots of Behringer PA equipment, it is great in it's price range, about the best bang for the buck you can get. You can get better gear than Behringer, but you'll pay 2-3 times as much to do so.

Behringer speakers do get very nice reviews. Here are the speakers Leear spoke of:

Behringer B1520 Pro Eurolive

These might be better than both the Yamaha and Peavey speakers we've been discussing.

A very nice powered mixer with plenty of mic inputs and features is the PMH2000:

Behringer PMH2000

Do not worry that this mixer cannot keep up with the Yamaha and Peavey powered mixers. I've owned one of these for 4 years now and it has amazing power. Our band is very loud and it has provided plenty of good clean volume. I know another very loud Rock band that uses this same powered mixer as well. This is a excellent powered mixer at a fantastic low price, read the reviews.

You would need to buy Speakon speaker cables which tend to be expensive, but if you shop around you can find some good deals like this:

Speakon to Speakon 30'

Pros will always recommend you use 12 gauge cables, these look like 16 gauge to me, but they will work just fine. I wouldn't go lighter than 16 gauge however. I have both 12 and 16 gauge, I actually prefer the 16 gauge as they are more flexible and easy to work with. I do not believe you lose any signal at all, except maybe very long runs 50' or more.

Anyway, it's all what you have to spend. If you have lots of money you can get some really great PA gear. But if you are on a budget, this is all quality gear that will get you very good sound.

Edit: Here is a nice Behringer package in the same price range you were looking at. You get lots more with B.

Behringer PMH5000 PA Package

OK, now you have me seriously looking at that Behringer package. It looks like an awsome value compared to the previous two packages, plus I get the mics you both recommended.

Thanks a lot guys! I really appreciate the help. We want to make sure we get the most bang for the buck and $1,000 is about our limit right now.

MrJonesey

Yeah, don't be afraid of Behringer. At this time I own a powered mixer, power amp, crossover, dual 31 band EQ, subs, and several mics by Behringer. I have honestly never had a single problem with any of their products and they sound very good to my ear. I have owned and used PA gear by Mackie, Peavey, Yamaha, Carvin, and others and my Behringer gear is every bit as good as any of them.

Read the manual. If you read the manual and operate the gear properly you will get many years of dependable good sound. It is people that do not read their manual and do not operate their equipment properly that have problems.

I TOTALLY agree with WES i started with Peavey went to Behringer. Behringer makes great gear. The only problem I have with it is in doing all the live sound I do alot of venues do not want any Peavey or Behringer gear used. Now this doesn't mean everything, all they care about is speakers and amps. So a lot of my rack gear and mics are behringer. Example we did Staind on the coast just recently and I was about to pull out Behringer wedges and I was stopped by the guy in charge saying they do not allow Behringer at all.... So for my application I can no longer use it but BEHRINGER IS AWESOME!!!!!!!

Behringer made a big move into PA gear about 7 or 8 years ago and ruffled some feathers. There was a big campaign by some of the major companies to slam their gear. But the fact is Behringer makes excellent sounding PA equipment at the best prices around. A lot of these companies claimed Behringer copied their designs. Only thing is, Behringer has probably been the most innovative company in the past 10 years. Now companies are copying Behringer.

You can't go by that Staind example. Groups are funny. I have a flyer from Iggy and the Stooges, where they say they won't use any Yamaha gear. But Yamaha makes excellent gear.

When I joined my band they were using a Mackie powered mixer. I brought my Behringer to a practice and the whole band said it sounded better and had far more power (and this Mackie was rated higher watts than my Behringer). That Mackie is collecting dust in my bass player's basement, never used it once since then. :wink:

Behringer made a big move into PA gear about 7 or 8 years ago and ruffled some feathers. There was a big campaign by some of the major companies to slam their gear. But the fact is Behringer makes excellent sounding PA equipment at the best prices around. A lot of these companies claimed Behringer copied their designs. Only thing is, Behringer has probably been the most innovative company in the past 10 years. Now companies are copying Behringer.

You can't go by that Staind example. Groups are funny. I have a flyer from Iggy and the Stooges, where they say they won't use any Yamaha gear. But Yamaha makes excellent gear.

When I joined my band they were using a Mackie powered mixer. I brought my Behringer to a practice and the whole band said it sounded better and had far more power (and this Mackie was rated higher watts than my Behringer). That Mackie is collecting dust in my bass player's basement, never used it once since then. :wink:

Behringer is a little like the Hyundai cars - late to the game, and a bit derivative. Now they are a real player.

Umm, I'll take that Mackie mixer...

I love it guys! Great stuff. As of right now (barring a late entry in the mix) I plan to buy the Behringer package before the end of the month.

OK - so I bought the Behringer package. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't we get some kind of case to transport and protect the mixer? The mixer dimensions are 4 7/8" X 23 1/2" X 19 1/2". Any suggestions for an affordable option?

Thanks!

i love my Gator rolling Mixer case they run about 129.00 or so. its dimensions are 20x30 by 8 i think? i know the 20x30 is correct.