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Recommendation On Active Crossover

kjello said:
Hi all

I need some recommendation of a good active crossover. SS, 2 or 3 way, high sound quality, low THD unit.
I found the rather vintage Pioneer SF-850, but not much else.
Also could use a preamp/crossover combination
What are the options here ?

Thanks
KO
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Just go to MCMElectronics.com or Partsexpress.com or even Amazon.com. There are tons of Linkwitz Riley two way (three way in mono) active crossovers in the $100 to $140 range for professional use. I used to use one and highly recommend them. Even Behringer...

BTW, Linkwitz Riley is the methodology used in the crossover, not a brand name.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linkwitz–Riley_filter
 
I would recommend getting a new active crossover. If you buy used on the auction site you may end up with one that's been totally abused by some stoned sound guy.

Pro sound guys don't treat their gear the way we do. Luckily I was able to get my money back on the one abused Rane unit I bought off eBay but it was a difficult process.
 
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Poultrygeist said:
I would recommend getting a new active crossover. If you buy used on the auction site you may end up with one that's been totally abused by some stoned sound guy.

Pro sound guys don't treat their gear the way we do. Luckily I was able to get my money back on the one abused unit I bought off eBay but it was a difficult process.
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Yep. Also, the new ones are so cheap there is really no compelling reason to get a used one.
 
I don't like my DBX 223, and have relegated it to PA duty only. Haven't heard the cheap Behringer. A DBX DriveRack lives in my PA rack, and I'm not a fan of its sound, but it does its job.

I do like my Ashly XR-1001, 2001, and am experimenting with an older XR-4000.

Rane AC-22B, 23B's, and 22's and 23's are excellent units, often used in professional cinema, live sound, and studio installations.

An oddball that I have and like is a Yamaha D2040. It's an older digital unit, but sounds good.
 
The Rane crossover advertised as in good condition on the bay had rust and one output control stem was rattling around inside the case. I had to send pictures of the rust and broken stem to eBay to get my money back.

"How would one abuse a crossover?" You gotta be kidding. It takes zero imagination to visualize a drink being spilled or the Rane spending it's life bouncing around in the back of some roadie van.
 
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Poultrygeist said:
...You gotta be kidding. It takes zero imagination to visualize a drink being spilled or the Rane spending it's life bouncing around in the back of some roadie van.
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Meh. That's normal wear and tear when dealing with a tool, not somebody's "baby". LOL. If it can't take a bit of road duty it's a POS not worth having.
 
Folks, just like anything you can stumble across a junk unit like Poulty did. And, actually, his beef should be about a seller misrepresenting the unit, not used pro gear in general. You can read all about misrepresentation of condition of consumer gear in any number of hundreds or thousands of threads here in AK.

I have more than 12 pieces of pro gear I've bought used at a fraction of original prices. Most you wouldn't know had ever been racked or professionally used. A couple of the amps were old bar house system pulls so they were smokey and dusty and not in pristeen appearance. But, personally, I'd rather clean smoke and dust from a pro amp than some of the stuff I read about like cat pee in odd examples of home gear.

As far as function? Yup it all works just fine.
 
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I've got one of these 3 ways sitting in the attic which I was stupid enough to buy at a local flea market. In spite of all the scratches the pro sound guy assured me it worked fine and for $20 how could I go wrong? Got it home and it was unlistenable. Wouldn't have bought it had I not gotten good service from a "new" CX-2310.

I think whoa must sell used pro gear.



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whoaru99 said:
Except they're even cheaper.

I'm sorta wondering just how one would "abuse" a crossover?
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I can speak from experience here: Pro gear gets beat up physically. One example: I learned the hard way that stepping on microphone cords on a regular basis can cause in-line breaks in the signal.
 
whoaru99 said:
Nope, not a seller, but apparently a more savvy buyer.
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Buying used pro gear makes as much sense as buying a former taxi. They're both used professionally and not sold until they're used up. Pro sound guys don't upgrade for that last 5%. For them it's a living not a hobby.
 
RobRoy said:
I can speak from experience here: Pro gear gets beat up physically. One example: I learned the hard way that stepping on microphone cords on a regular basis can cause in-line breaks in the signal.
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Yeah. However, I'd consider a mic cable a generally different situation than what is typically rack gear. I have not purposely bought used mic cables.

That said, with the last piece of pro gear I bought the seller included a bag of odds and ends with the sale. Inside was a pair of 40ft balanced cables made from Belden 8412, terminated with Amphenol XLRs. The cable alone is worth more than what I had originally thought I was getting, and seem to work fine.

The point here is not quibbling over bad sellers. The point is there is opportunity for really good deals. It's just caveat emptor as with any used gear sale.

All my pro stuff, sans the couple bar smoke amps I mentioned earlier, have come from midline owner/operator pro sound companies. These folks earn their living with this stuff and generally don't beat the **** out of it because it's money out of their pocket if something goes wrong or resale is lower than normal.
 
Poultrygeist said:
Buying used pro gear makes as much sense as buying a former taxi. They're both used professionally and not sold until they're used up. Pro sound guys don't upgrade for that last 5%. For them it's a living not a hobby.
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I do agree they don't upgrade for that last 5% that's an "audiophile" thing. But they do change gear for any number of reasons. However, to say it's like buying a taxi is nonsense. But, of course, this varies too. If you buy some 10th hand ****, well...you got what you paid for. No different than anything else.

Buying right it's more like buying a used car with a good track record of running to high miles to use as a taxi. Get it inexpensively and run it for a few hundred thousand more miles for minimal cost of ownership.
 
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Lots of good pro audio options. Ashly gear is very well made. If money isn't an option, I would recommend a Bryston 10B crossover.
 
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