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Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 10:55 am
by JonnyAngle
Brands has a jbl speaker that he plugs his op-1 into. I love this idea but I’m wondering if I would want a stereo set of speakers.

I’d prefer to have a passive set, so I don’t have another thing to charge.

I’ve got an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator that I’d use the speakers for.

Any suggestions?

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 11:18 am
by Bartimaeus
How portable do they need to be? Will you carry them on the subway, or just throw them in a car?

Do you have a mixer already? Do you want a speaker with multiple inputs?

Since you mention wanting a passive set, do you have an amplifier already?

Do they need to be loud enough to play with a band, or just so that you can hear yourself clearly at home?

For a synth I generally find that PA speakers are the best option, but it really depends on what you're willing to spend and carry.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 11:21 am
by JonnyAngle
Just me on the couch. I’ll bring them to a hotel when I travel. So not very loud at all. I’ll keep them in my backpack

I’d prefer to not need an amplifier. Back in the day we used to plug speakers into the headphone jacks of our Walkman without needing additional amplification.

Being passive isn’t a dealbreaker, but preferred

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2018 7:47 pm
by mcatano
I'd probably just get whatever portable bluetooth speaker wirecutter recommends and double check that it has a 3.5mm input.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2018 8:05 pm
by Achtane
Or even maybe a decent PC speaker?

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2018 9:29 pm
by WORMDIRT
JonnyAngle wrote:Brands has a jbl speaker that he plugs his op-1 into. I love this idea but I’m wondering if I would want a stereo set of speakers.

I’d prefer to have a passive set, so I don’t have another thing to charge.

I’ve got an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator that I’d use the speakers for.

Any suggestions?
The mini boom bluetooth speakers are stereo, and you can link 2 for true stereo.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2018 11:39 pm
by odontophobia
WORMDIRT wrote:
JonnyAngle wrote:Brands has a jbl speaker that he plugs his op-1 into. I love this idea but I’m wondering if I would want a stereo set of speakers.

I’d prefer to have a passive set, so I don’t have another thing to charge.

I’ve got an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator that I’d use the speakers for.

Any suggestions?
The mini boom bluetooth speakers are stereo, and you can link 2 for true stereo.
The UE Boom can link like 150 with an app. Kinda nuts. Seems up Jack's alley considering all the KVLT.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2018 2:22 am
by manymanyhaha
Can verify the UE Boom, had two and those sound great in stereo. There are some other knock-offs I've seen recently though can't find the link at the moment.

But a mixer will be needed if using an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator in parallel.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:56 pm
by baremountain
I dunno about passive but I got a JBL flip 4 after seeing brands' & I've been in love with it since. The sound is super clear & full-bodied, and I only have to charge it (via USB mini) about once a week with very regular use (I think it's about 12 hours battery life?). It's also stereo, but you have to have it aimed pretty much at the dead center of your head to get the effect. I got mine on eBay for like $50 shipped and you can chain multiple together if you feel so inclined, but I have no clue if you can do true stereo that way.

If you're wanting passive, theoretically you could just harness any old toy keyboard speaker to a 1/8" plug and go straight in like you were saying you used to do with Walkmans back in the day, but based off my experience using it with my mixer I don't think the OP-1 pushes the volume necessary for sonic clarity. That's the tradeoff though, I can't imagine you'll find a scenario in which a passive speaker setup will do any justice to a full-bodied mix like you can achieve with the OP.

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2018 8:39 pm
by fcknoise
JonnyAngle wrote:Brands has a jbl speaker that he plugs his op-1 into. I love this idea but I’m wondering if I would want a stereo set of speakers.

I’d prefer to have a passive set, so I don’t have another thing to charge.

I’ve got an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator that I’d use the speakers for.

Any suggestions?
Dude the speaker I have is semi-shit. it's good For a cheap Little thing but there are so many possible better ones in just the JBL range. My neighbor has an upgrade that looks like a tube of sorts and we could throw small parties with that shit. Buy anything and amplify that's all that matters

Re: Portable Synth Speakers

Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 9:09 am
by JonnyAngle
fcknoise wrote:
JonnyAngle wrote:Brands has a jbl speaker that he plugs his op-1 into. I love this idea but I’m wondering if I would want a stereo set of speakers.

I’d prefer to have a passive set, so I don’t have another thing to charge.

I’ve got an op-1, modal skulpt, and kaossilator that I’d use the speakers for.

Any suggestions?
Dude the speaker I have is semi-shit. it's good For a cheap Little thing but there are so many possible better ones in just the JBL range. My neighbor has an upgrade that looks like a tube of sorts and we could throw small parties with that shit. Buy anything and amplify that's all that matters
I’ve got several “big options” via keyboard amps and hifi stereo systems. So I went to target and bought the best $25 option. The next price point was close to $100, so I said duck that.

Pretty happy with what I got, but I’m scheming something else now too!