I have a feeling that this has been discussed before - so apologies if I'm causing duplication.
What PA systems do you use?

I'm looking for something:
portable
cheap! (good value)
with neck mike
can play CD
can attach ipod

any recommendations? (I'm UK based)

thanks

Waldorf

Not cheap but the coomber system I've been using since I started and they supply all the school market as well. If you need repairs etc they guarantee a very quick turn around.
I must also point out that the last one I had was sent back about 4 times due to the cassette being switched off everytime I spoke into the mic. They kept telling me this was impossible and the system went back & forth until they told me, we've never had that before. I got so fed up I got my money back. I've had 3 coombers over the last 20 odd years.

We use a Peevey Pod for small/young shows - its fantastic at about £300ish (believe me as he ran a disco for years we have a few bigger and heavier ones if required).

It is only a PA system so you have to add your own cd players etc but we use portable cd player and portable mIni disc players you can also add your ipod as long as you have the leads and any mic you want - it has 3 mic channels and 2 inputs and is 75 watts stereo, but has a mono button which will give you 150 watts ( who knows the difference at a kids party).

It looks like a big suitcase (and has wheels) and the lid is the Speaker cabs with the the mixer and stands in the base and space for your cd/ipod cables and mics.

We also have a tape playing old Coomber and agree Graham they are workhorses and you can plug in your ipod in the aux input I think , not used it for ages.

Beware the Speekeezy's we bought one - comes with hand held radio mic all for about £100/£150 sounds good close up but has no distance, so depends on how close your audience are to you. We got rid of ours.

Pam

Hi all I have recently purchased a pa system by skytronic got it with 2 wired mics  and2 wireless mics then bought seperate headset mic for under 300 pounds it ok for small to medium venues but can be linked up with more systems for larger venues it's got cd player USB and memory card input but cannot link my iPod but overall a pretty good system. It also doubles as a karaoke system just need a tv.

Hi Waldorf, what exactly are you after the PA System for? ie In what environment are you going to be using it? (Childrens Parties, Busking, lectures etc)

Depending on how your intending to use this will affect greatly the most suitable system for you. Also when you say Cheap (Good Value) what sort of budget to you have in mind?

The Peavey escort system Pam talks about is fairly nice, clips together and is very easy to transport, but is essentially a powered mixer with 2 speakers, and as she says it has support for CD, iPod etc but doesnt have these features built in.

Depending on the application you have in mind the Carlsbro Speakezees are OK. There are 2 models available the first with a cassette player, the second with an onboard mp3 with SD expansion slot. Both offer a 20 Watt Powered Speaker, built in VHF radio mics (handheld, headset and tie clip), and inputs and outputs for connecting to a larger system or connecting external equipment. However they are really only idea for very small venues with low level background noise.

If im thinking of the correct product that magic_moonie had purchased the Skytronic system is essentially a larger version of the Speakezee, A single large speaker (75 Watts RMS if i remember correctly), with what an onboard CD player, (the one we had instore also featured a USB for playing music from Mass Storage Devices), the audio quality was very good for the money, with the basic unit costing just under £250.00, as well as an extremely long battery life. Although a tad heavy with regards to lifting, it comes with a very sturdy handle and wheels.

Other products worth mentioning would be the Carlsbro Wanderer, a further enhancement on the Speakezee design, it features 2 8" drivers, approx 100 Watts RMS output, built in vary speed CD Player, and i think it was UHF Radio mic systems, again with inputs and outputs for your CD players etc, again on very strong wheels, but is again heavy if lifting is required at any point. This system will comfortably fill a small size venue, and we have successfully supplied these to aerobics instructors etc with no issues. However the unit sales at around the £500 -£600 mark.

Other units to look out for would be the alesis TransActive Mobile a small powered speaker with an iPod dock mounted in the top. As well as the ION version of the product. Both coming in at under £200.00 but neither are supplied with microphones.

And then of course we can expand on the Peavey Escort system with units from ALTO offering power outputs suitable for Medium to Large Halls, that you could DJ to a wedding using,

As you can see from my long-winded explanation, there are a lot of Portable systems available, the hard parts is finding the best for you, instore i would draw as much information from you as possible to identify the best one, so if you are happy to elaborate further im more then happy to assist,

Pete

*On a side note Pam, the MONO switch on your peavey system shouldnt  increase the output of your speakers in any major way. The system consists of 2x 75 Watt RMS Speakers, so you are always outputing 150 Watts. If the system is set to Stereo, each speaker will be outputing slightly different audio signals to give you that 'Stereo' effect, placing it in Mono just merges those 2 signals and makes each speaker reproduce exactly the same signal. You may notice a slight increase in audio level, but only because both speakers are playing all the sounds, not each producing just sections of it,

However you have raised an interesting point about people noticing Stereo Sound at a party and one i often discuss with customers.

Why does a DJ need to operate in Stereo? How often is a person exactly half way between these speakers at a gig, and surely MONO allows everybody to hear every sound from the speakers - but thats a discussion for another thread lol

Kindest Regards

Pete

I use a Mipro 705 http://www.jpleisure.co.uk/item796.htm#aJP81015 not cheap, but it's perfect for most gigs.

You can put 2 radio recievers in it, and a CD player, it will run off the battery for 4-5 hours .

Also when working laces like holiday camps you can plug it into their system so it acts as a simple reciever so you can use your normal mics / headsets.

I used to use a coomber, but these are far superior.

Hi Waldorf

When you say neck mic do you mean head set?

Why do you need to play cd & ipod surly more kit to carry & to go wrong?

I have been using soundplus Tramp & Champ and they are brilliant lots of combinations here //http://www.soundplus.co.uk/.

For music I use a MP3Tech fully remote controlled //http://www.wirelesswizardry.com/mp3tech.html

Both of these items are in the higher professional bracket (Ie Not cheap)

I have a Peavey Escort good sound but too many leads to plug in & go wrong also bit on the heavy side and no built in mic.

I have a Coomber which is very portable with good sound was a great work horse until Soundplus came along.

Finally I have an Apollo 5400 //http://www.biz2bizonline.com/apollo/pa5400.htm this is a brilliant pa for the house or small hall show.
Even used it for mini discos.

Not sure where you....I am happy to let you view and listen to all the above so you can get a live feel so you can decide your needs.

Fuzzy

I found a Amplivox SW222 Sound System on ebay - got it for 250US - then I found out it was worth way more than that... its awesome -

Wow, what an informative batch of replies! Thanks folks.

I speak for a living so tend to use conference centre / training centre kit for my 'professional work' but I sense I'll need something for my (upcoming) children's entertainment stuff.  It's very early days so I guess I'll walk before i run - I have a fairly booming voice and have spoken at after dinner events to 100 plus people without PA support and I'll try to get by unaided (apart from cd player or suchlike for music support),

I'll restrain my urge to spend money until I see the profile of my future gigs but I'm going for the children's party marketplace.  Probably groups of 20, 30 kids?

Thanks again for your information and advice; I'll talk to you again soon.

Cheers

Will