Gear Alert: new QSC K8.2

[cphollis]

For those of you looking for small, powerful amplifiers for small venues that make your Nord APs sound stellar, I'd recommend checking out the new QSC K8.2s

I have a ridiculous collection of keyboard amplification gear, but have always liked the original K8s as both a keyboard rig and for vocal PA. Small size, good clean power, wide dispersion, decent bass, crisp sound, etc. They're quite nice, even after several years.

Well, the new K8.2s sound about 50% better to my ears at the same price point. More power, deeper bass, crisper midrange and highs, more sound control, etc. It's not a minor refresh, it's an entirely new speaker system.

Took them to a rehearsal tonight, and I loved them. The band loved them too, as in "you sound so good, can you turn those up even more?". I was loving my Nord acoustic pianos all night long, and that's not easy for a speaker system to do. Of course, all the other Nord sounds (DP, B3, samples) sounded utterly impressive.

Yes, I have better stuff in the inventory (RCF TTO8-a, Fulcrum Acoustic FAS12ac, etc.) but -- for the price -- I haven't heard anything better. And I've heard a lot.

Let's see if my initial impressions hold up.

[Quai34]

Hi Cphollis,
If we would have to get a first impression about the new QSC models, it has to be coming from you only, thanks a lot...I will have to check them compared to my Parasource Yorkville because, even if I had two Parasource 10', I might buy a personal monitor to hear the singer form an AUX sned on our A&H QU16...And the one we have in our band and that belongs to my guitarists are really crap...And maybe, if I found them better (And smaller?) I might exchange them (Or keep them for floor monitors and buy a pais of K8.2?).
Thanks again, it's always a pleasure to read from you, here on the forum or on your blog, such good analysis about amplification...
Sincerely

[Johannes]

Hi cphollis,

thanks for the report! I am seriously considering them since they came out as IMHO they addressed the very minor issues I had with the K8. Notably, if I read it correctly (never actually saw them in person), they can now also be used as a floor monitor, is this correct?
Would be interesting to hear what exactly are the differences to the K8 soundwise and design wise, really surprised you say they sound completely different!

Yeah, they are not the cheapest solution, especially if you go stereo, but as you say there are even more high end solutions...

cheers

[cphollis]

Hi cphollis,

thanks for the report! I am seriously considering them since they came out as IMHO they addressed the very minor issues I had with the K8. Notably, if I read it correctly (never actually saw them in person), they can now also be used as a floor monitor, is this correct?
Would be interesting to hear what exactly are the differences to the K8 soundwise and design wise, really surprised you say they sound completely different!

Yeah, they are not the cheapest solution, especially if you go stereo, but as you say there are even more high end solutions...

cheers

The original K8s did not have a notched cabinet, so if you wanted to use them as floor monitors, you'd have to create your own cradles for them. Not out of the question, though.

The new K8.2 have a steep notch so you can place them quite close to you on the floor, pointing upwards. There are also two presets for use as stage monitor that control the amount of bass in the presence of floor coupling.

My thinking is that QSC poured some serious development money into the entire K.2 line. The original K series was a huge moneymaker for them, and put them on the map in this category. No surprise, really, that they invested to bring game this time around.

[DJKeys]

Hey CPHollis, I just picked up a pair of these and they are amazingly loud and clear! Just curious as to what settings you are using for the Nord keyboards. User or Factory preset? EQ settings? I played around a little last night but did not have a lot of time. I am going to use 1 for my keyboards (L+R summed) and one for my vocal monitor.

Any input appreciated-

-dj

[cphollis]

Congrats. I thought they offered something quite new in terms of price/performance, so they got my hearty recommendation. Glad your initial impressions are the same.

With speakers of this quality, I generally am playing with flat EQ. The K8.2 "default" setting is flat as a board. "Live" seems to emphasize highs and lows, but it's an interesting sound against an electric band. The other ones look, well, uninteresting for the most part.

When playing with a group, I usually roll off the bass to keep the bass player from getting violent with me. Even these little 8" units put out serious bass all the way down to 50 Hz and beyond.

As far as using a pair of them, my suggestion would be to maybe think about getting a small mixer and playing in stereo. No matter what I do, mono Nord keys just don't sound right to me.

All my Nord voices are user (EQ, reverb, effects, layers, etc.) but I bet the factory presets sound good as well.

Best of luck!

[DJKeys]

Thanks! I did notice that even a single cabinet had more low end than I expected. The clarity of the speaker is incredible for the price.

Will let you know how my tests and gigs work out-

-dj

[DJKeys]

I did my first gig, outside at a City Town Fair. I used just the single K8.2, Not only was it plenty loud, the amount of bass response from the tiny cabinet is just hard to believe. It looks like QSC has another great update to the K Series-

-dj

[afroskully]

Is the line out of the electro 5 hot enough to run a single K8.2 without a mixer? I'm seriously considering upgrading from my current rig but would rather not use a mixer.

thanks!

[DJKeys]

Is the line out of the electro 5 hot enough to run a single K8.2 without a mixer? I'm seriously considering upgrading from my current rig but would rather not use a mixer.

thanks!

I tested it this way in my studio, and it seemed plenty loud, but there were no other instruments playing. Maybe you can arrange a 30-day return with a vendor and try it out that way-

-dj