Drum Amps

[chongo25]

I have been looking at DA200s by Simmons for my TD20, and was wondering if anyone has used them at home. I am looking for something to sounds good without spending 1000's of dollars, there was QSC at guitar center that someone was rocking when I went it the other day, but I think that is like 900 bucks. I would really like to find something that you can hear the music and drums together without hearing the stick taps on the pads.

[perceval]

Search is your very good friend. Of course, plenty of people have / had the DA200.

I would really like to find something that you can hear the music and drums together without hearing the stick taps on the pads.

Then you need IEMs, not a drum amp.

[yzf125]

Those drum amps sound terrible, Get a powered speaker. I have the JBL EON 515XT and they sound incredible !

[Vectron]

Those drum amps sound terrible, Get a powered speaker. I have the JBL EON 515XT and they sound incredible !

Is the 515XT discontinued aleady?

[jammin777]

Those drum amps sound terrible, Get a powered speaker. I have the JBL EON 515XT and they sound incredible !

sheesh, i'm glad i'm not the only one, i had one for a week and sold it a week later!
that being said i think edrums sound terrible thru an underpowered amp in a undersized room' meaning a small room in a house.but that's only my opinion. drums need room and power to breath. cans are they way i go at home.

[yzf125]

Is the 515XT discontinued aleady?

They are but you can still get them new at some places for cheap you just have to do a search, The 615 took its place and offers bluetooth connection.

[grog]

The Simmons DA200S does not "sound terrible". It is more than enough for a room in any house. KAT Percussion also makes equivalent drum amps that sound a bit different but also do the same thing.

As mentioned above, the search engine is your friend. I've written extensively about the DA200S here. Search under my handle and "DA200S" and you'll see the couple of tomes I've written on the gear. I've also done formal reviews of the Simmons and KAT amps at dD Mag:

May 2013: http://issuu.com/digitaldrummer/docs...rummer_may2103
Feb 2014: http://issuu.com/digitaldrummer/docs...b_2014_issuu/0

Also too, go to the On Stage section here at vdrums and read thru at least the first dozen or so entries in the "Once and For All PA/Monitors" sticky.

Yes, the powered speakers mentioned all sound awesome but for many edrummers, they're overkill in instances for those of us in less than perfect places like "undersized rooms". I've been using a pair of DA200S as a small PA for many years now. The audience, while small, is fairly discerning when it comes to sound and nobody has ever said to me "your PA sounds terrible."

Finally, go back to Guitar Center and demo a DA200S for yourself. Ultimately it's your ears that need to be satisfied with the sound, don't take my word for it or anybody else's.

www.digitaldrummermag.com
www.dauphinehotel.com

[chongo25]

Thanks for all the advice. I will search around and see where to go from there.

[jimorlando]

The EON 615 blue tooth app is forecast to be available in April. If it is anything like the forecast for the speaker itself, it may be a year before we see it.

[Rushfan74]

Ive had the DA200s and it was awesome but moved on to the QSC K12 and will never move back.

[Kenster]

I JUST ordered a Behringer Eurolive B212 powered speaker. They're only $250 and pack 550 watts. Great to decent reviews. Granted I'll be using it as a vocal monitor with my A kit, however, I WILL hook up my ekit to try it out. They also make a larger one, a B215 for $329. Same wattage, 15 inch speaker vs 12 inch.

The overall theme with e kit monitors is low end, hence, a lot of folks like a 15 inch speaker or can use a 12 with a 15 to 18 inch subwoofer. But then you're back to a $1000 price tag.

My guitar player just bought a Rockville 15 inch powered monitor for $189. A lot of DJs reviewed it and love it, which mean it has good low end and punch. I won't know until I hear it at our next practice when my guitar player brings it. One big difference between that and the Behringer is WEIGHT...66 pounds vs 33. I went with the Behringer because of the size/weight issue of lugging it to all my gigs and pound for pound, bang for buck, seems to be a great option.

Like Grog said tho, go LISTEN to some options as YMMV as to what your ears like. Keep us posted!!

K ;-)

[EssKayKay]

What do you think about the JBL EON 515XT? I believe it's a 15", 625 watt, 33 lb. PA style amp. I've seen them used on eBay for around $300.

[grog]

The 515XT is very nice. I just checked ebay and getting a used one for as low as $300 seems a tough thing to accomplish. Good luck if you can.

https://www.digitaldrummermag.com

https://www.dauphinehotel.com

[Tommy_D]

I have a DA200S and I think its okay. Not good or even great. Its a bit too bass heavy with very few mids and a tinny top end. Snare hits have a good initial attack, but fall flat immediately afterwards. With a decent set of headphones the same snare sound has more body and sustains quite a bit more. Cymbal crashes are okay with the amp, but sound a bit thin. The bass drum sounds great, but when the snare and the toms sound weak, and the cymbals sound thin, you have to ask yourself, is there a better way to spend your money? I am keeping the monitor, though, as I use it for occasional amped "performances" for friends and family. But, I prefer to play with headphones as they just sound better.

[jpsquared482]

I have a DA200S in our jam workshop studio (for teaching), and suits the purpose. It's a great overall little amp, but HEAVY for what it is. I really don't like lugging it around. Bought two JBL 515XTs and they're great. Tons of power but not too heavy. On the other hand, they don't have a lot of mid-range punch. The Simmons does a better job there IMHO. My favorite compact setup for small gigs (local bars, open mics) is my HPD-20, FD7 HH pedal, KD-7 kick and one JBL. I can set up as fast as our bass player, and the sound is awesome overall. I don't need to go through the PA wich simplifies things just a bit for everyone during setup, etc.