Any good active speakers that play LOUD?

[Mr. Widget]

Hi

the OP mentioned EDM Concert Level... I'd guess 110 dB at the listening postion? Full range ... That wouldn't be Genelec 8361 territory but 1238 or 1236. He would need speakers capable of 120 dB + at 1 meter.. That is not something one gets with simply crossing over to a pair of Rythmik Home subwoofers and calling it a day.
I would suggest and there, the budget is at least 5 times the Kef LS60...

• JBL M2 with a pair of JBL SUB 18... put the Crown amplifers in a cabinet, in most cases the fan would not be running. When they would the general SPL would mask them.
• Genelec 1238 or 1236A.. again, serious budget.

No! the Kii3 + BXT can't touch these. Nor would most any home or studio-centric speaker systems, The Rythmik subwoofers would not cut it either.. Think pair of JTR Captivator or Danley DTS-10 subwoofers . then you are talking that kind of language... for "EDM-converts levels".. and mains capable of keeping up with these subwoofers.. that wouldn't be the 8361 or similar...
my $0.02.

Happy holidays

Peace.

You don't need to spend that much in cash or real estate.

For kicks I queued up SHOUSE Love Tonight and was able to get a "comfortable" 105 dBC (slow meter) with my admittedly under sized subs. The room was pressurized and the Meyer Sound Ultra-X20s had headroom for days. Personally I could only enjoy this for a few minutes, but if this is what the OP is into...

I don't know what the Rhythmic subs the OP is considering are capable of, but I concur the subs will need serious capabilities as well as the mains.

 

[FrantzM]

In my small rooms, with 3 JBL LSR308 + 2 x 305 + 2 Subs. I was able to reach 110 + dB on peaks. The sensation was very far from what I get on a recent trip to a dance floor. Not the same thing! Absolutely not. My bowels and my entire body felt the waves of sound. I would guess the average SPL to be around 110 dB …

 

[BDWoody]

As you discovered, the LS50's can't handle even close to 106db output in the bass region and mind you that rating is for SPL levels at just 1meter.

I kept my LS50s for basically nearfield listening, and moved to the JBL708Ps for the bigger room (14' to listening position). Huge difference. I like it fairly loud, and these have no trouble keeping up. The M2s would give that next level capability that I don't need, but may have to find room for one day.

"General Specifications
Frequency Response
-1.5 dB @ 45Hz – 23kHz
Frequency Range
35Hz – 36 kHz
Max SPL
(80 Hz - 20 kHz) >108 dB SPL / 1m
Maximum Peak SPL
(80 Hz - 20 kHz) >114 dB SPL / 1m"
https://www.jbl.com/studio-monitors/708P_.html#:~:text=General Specifications,114 dB SPL / 1m

 

[blueone]

In my small rooms, with 3 JBL LSR308 + 2 x 305 + 2 Subs. I was able to reach 110 + dB on peaks. The sensation was very far from what I get on a recent trip to a dance floor. Not the same thing! Absolutely not. My bowels and my entire body felt the waves of sound. I would guess the average SPL to be around 110 dB …

I hope you were wearing hearing protection.

 

[hege]

In my small rooms, with 3 JBL LSR308 + 2 x 305 + 2 Subs. I was able to reach 110 + dB on peaks. The sensation was very far from what I get on a recent trip to a dance floor. Not the same thing! Absolutely not. My bowels and my entire body felt the waves of sound. I would guess the average SPL to be around 110 dB …

I play bassy stuff 110dBZ slow avg with 120dB peaks all the time in my basement. That's some decend sensations, but the clubby waves of sound you are describing is atleast +15dB more.

 

[Sancus]

The risk of hearing loss is a function of exposure over time. OSHA recommend limiting exposure at 100 dBA to 120 minutes, and that time is halved for every 5 dBA increase. Nonetheless, as another suggested, investing in a sound meter isn't a bad idea.

One very, very important thing to keep in mind is that those types of workplace hearing standards are not designed to prevent all hearing loss. They're designed to limit the likelihood of hearing loss so that only a low percentage of workers have "compensable hearing loss". OSHA does not even require a hearing injury to be logged unless there is a 10dB threshold shift between annual audiograms as far as I can tell. In addition, audiograms themselves are not comprehensive tests targeted at music enjoyment. They're intended for human speech perception. They typically don't test frequencies above 8khz at all.

So what I'm saying is, if you really want to avoid hearing loss, you should probably stay *really* far away from the OSHA guidelines, especially if you listen frequently(daily or multiple times per week). I've never found any guidelines that are actually designed to prevent any hearing damage, but maybe there is a study somewhere.

All that said, dB(A) is fairly forgiving compared to real peaks. It varies by content but typically I'd say dB(A) is 10-15dB lower than dB(Z), which is unweighted SPL or the real SPL that your speaker is actually playing. Personally I don't have much trouble staying under 80dB(A) listening at home. It's probably OK for brief transients or loud passages to exceed that, but if you're averaging higher than that for long periods I would personally expect there is a possibility of hearing damage.

The one time I exceeded 90dB(A) for a loudness test, the music was FAR too loud to be tolerable and required earplugs to even sit in the same room.

 

[RobL]

Just get yourself a pair of 8361A’s…
When you’re not doing this:

You get this:

They’ll hammer you or astonish you…depending on your mood.

 

[FrantzM]

I hope you were wearing hearing protection.

I wasn't , it was on a request from some people on this forum. I went ahead and blasted for a few seconds..so that I could measure it with an IOS app. it is was unbearable.. I will never again, subject myself to such..
On that trip to the dance floor, I was wearing earplugs...

Happy holidays!
Peace.

 

[blueone]

On that trip to the dance floor, I was wearing earplugs...

Smart man.

 

[BigFKahuna]

Thanks! I would very much like to know how they work out for you

LS60's and KC62 arrived yesterday, my first impressions are very good! No issues with sound level at all, very impressive for such small drivers! The soundstage extends beyond as well as in between the speakers, the clarity and detail is amazing. Where the guitar strings sounded excellent on the Q950's, now I know what is meant by hearing and even feeling the pluck of the strings. Voice detail is stellar. As for the bass....very detailed and precise, and as loud and deep as will be allowed in my house. I look forward to some late night sessions, picking out sounds I have never heard previously.

 

[Purité Audio]

They are excellent I have been extremely impressed with the LS60s, they have exceeded expectations.
Keith

 

[nerdoldnerdith]

Consider investing in a pair of good subwoofers and spending the rest of the money on good speakers that were designed to be crossed over with subwoofers.

JTR makes great speakers that get very loud. The 212HTR is excellent for crossing over to subs.

Data-Bass: Subwoofer Measurements

data-bass.com

Here are measurements of the woofer section. The speaker is pushing 122+dB from 70Hz on up at 2m without any heavy compression. That's 128dB at 1m. They can get even louder and peak power will be even higher. That is seriously impressive. This is possible because the speaker is tuned to about 50Hz and reaches peak efficiency around 70-80Hz where you would be crossing them over. The horn section will be just as capable as it uses a very high quality coaxial compression driver. The dynamic capability of these speakers is very impressive and they will crush smaller bookshelf speakers designed to play closer to full-range. Subwoofers are a must though.

 

[HeadDoc12]

If you are willing to wait a few months, the recently announced JBL 4329p might also fit the bill. It hasn’t been released yet, but I would expect it to meet your needs. Also, as a psychologist specializing in neurodiversity, I congratulate you on finding an effective self-soothing strategy that also involves rocking out.

 

[Rednaxela]

My objective review of the Genelec 8050b

Preamble: While waiting for a pair of G Five's I ordered in Jan I purchased a used pair of used 8050b's. They are pretty much the same thing with the G Five you also have a RCA input and the ISS I believe is a bit different. I'll be selling the 8050's in Aug/Sept so watch for the listing if...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[nat1]

Lots of over the top recommendations in the thread (people trying to find the biggest and loudest thing possible) but realistically I think a pair of JBL 708P's crossed over to the Rythmik F12's is all you will need. They will be significantly louder than the LS50 setup you previously had.

 

[WillBrink]

Thank you all for the suggestions! I didn't realize there was that much demand for volume and SQ. Probably should have mentioned my ideal budget is <$12k (including the used market), but still a lot of suggestions that fit that bill. This forum delivers like no other; wish I'd found it sooner.

ATC SCM 40A is rated for 112db and close to that $ last time I looked.

 

[WillBrink]

Nice 15" woofer and mid too... nice...

ATC Loudspeakers - SCM150ASL Pro Studio Monitor (single)

ATC Loudspeakers - SCM150ASL Pro Studio Monitor (single)

www.long-mcquade.com

That price is per speaker, so over 2X his budget. The SCM 40A is a tad over his 12k budget.

 

[Purité Audio]

I don’t have a pair here yet but the Sigberg SBS.1 appears to amply fill the loud requirement.

SBS.1 Active Speakers (pair)

SBS.1 is an active speaker built to play with a subwoofer. High end audio made in Norway. Neutral, balanced and engaging sound signature.

www.sigbergaudio.no

Keith

 

[nerdoldnerdith]

Consider investing in a pair of good subwoofers and spending the rest of the money on good speakers that were designed to be crossed over with subwoofers.

JTR makes great speakers that get very loud. The 212HTR is excellent for crossing over to subs.

Data-Bass: Subwoofer Measurements

data-bass.com

Here are measurements of the woofer section. The speaker is pushing 122+dB from 70Hz on up at 2m without any heavy compression. That's 128dB at 1m. They can get even louder and peak power will be even higher. That is seriously impressive. This is possible because the speaker is tuned to about 50Hz and reaches peak efficiency around 70-80Hz where you would be crossing them over. The horn section will be just as capable as it uses a very high quality coaxial compression driver. The dynamic capability of these speakers is very impressive and they will crush smaller bookshelf speakers designed to play closer to full-range. Subwoofers are a must though.

What's more is that when you compare the measurements of the 212HTR to the 215RT, JTR's flagship speaker that uses dual 15's, the dual 12" 212HTR actually gets louder than the 215RT from 80Hz on up. That speaks to the importance of optimizing a speaker design for efficiency over the bandwidth where it will be used.

I don't know how much output you want, but if your budget is $12k you can get speakers and subwoofers that will play so loud with extreme fidelity that you will never think about output again. It's something to consider.

 

[Berlin]

Geithain RL 901 K https://www.me-geithain.de/en/rl-901k2.html or (to be on the safe side) Geithain ML 811K1 https://www.me-geithain.de/en/ml-811k1111.html...