P E AV E Y P 2 : £ I love to review products. I enjoy prising new toys out of the box and getting handson with the gear, but I have to say that when I get speakers to review I inwardly groan. Another black box with the same inputs and outputs as everything else on the market! If I’m honest there is very little difference between many cabinets these days.

There really is only so much you can say about another black box that sounds slightly different to, but equally as good as, the last… Fortunately, for this issue, I’ve been given something a little different. 8844 The P2 Powered Line Array System is Peavey’s first ‘stick’ speaker system, so I am well placed to review it as I am a bit of a column speaker whore! I’ve previously already owned a Bose L1, FBT Vertus, RCF Evox 8 and a LD Systems Maui!! This portable PA format has been around for some years now, so you could say that it’s taken US audio giants Peavey a while to catch up with the majority of the industry.

However, on the other hand it’s not really too surprising either as, other than US-based Bose, the column loudspeaker format has been favoured by European manufacturers. Perhaps this is more down to vehicle size or the fact that the Yanks generally prefer to supersize everything! The P2 comprises of a 12” sub enclosure and 8 x 4” drivers loaded into a column that splits in to two for transportation. The column is made of aluminium extrusion and attaches to the bin using a unique connector that I have never encountered before along with a thumb screw to secure it in place.

It works well but is not quite as cleverly engineered as its competitors; it does the job but, personally, I would have preferred to have seen something fixed rather than a loose thumb screw as I have a terrible habit of losing them! In the first instance, I usually test speakers at our office in Preston once everyone has gone home, I then take them out on a gig to give them a live test. The P2 arrived at a great time to do the latter on a really busy week when I had a real variety of gigs.

That week I had a marquee wedding, an outdoor fun day and a hotel wedding, a really good mix, but how would the P2 stack up on the road? The first thing I noticed when I setup the system for my initial test in the office is how short it is – it’s quite tiny really, standing at 1.74m when fully assembled. This has its advantages and disadvantages as you will find out as I put it through its paces on the road. Another important point to mention is that this thing is not light, weighing in at 33kg!

Obviously, this splits down in to three sections but still the bin is heavy for its size. I am not saying this is a bad thing, merely just pointing it out. In fact, for many, this will be reassuring as it probably means that it has a dirty big magnet on that 12” driver! It also reflects the fact that the enclosure is made of solid wood, which also means that it has a quality feel.

THE ART OF ADPVEEARVTEISYI NPG2 Peavey P2 The rear panel is pretty standard with a three-channel mixer comprising of Mic, Line and Phono inputs. It also has basic DSP, with a switch to enhance the bass (or cut it) and another to add clarity to vocals. Peavey have always done internal EQ processing well and this is no different, you can clearly hear the change to the sound as you flick the switch. It is effective and sounds good.

As I mentioned in my Peavey Dark Matter review (Issue 77) I have always liked the Peavey Sound; it’s rich and suits recorded music. The P2 sounds great, it really well EQed internally and sounds fab when ran flat. In my opinion, the designers have also chosen just the right crossover frequency for the system (150 Hz), although it’s worth noting that this is pre-set and cannot be changed. So, having got a feel for the system in the office, was time to hit the road for my first gig of the bumper weekend.

First stop was a simple hotel wedding at lovely venue, Mitton Hall, in the Ribble Valley near Clitheroe. It doesn’t need much sound as it has sound limiter (Grrrrr – don’t get me started!) so the P2 should have been more than enough for the job and I can report it was. It sounded great and was perfect for this 80-person wedding. I only had one system for this review and it needed no more, partly down to the Sound Police, but actually it was loud enough for the size of party.

Next stop was Redcar in Teeside for an ‘It’s a Knockout’ style event. This was booked via an agent and to quote their contract ‘required a small PA’ so I gave them exactly that! I mentioned earlier that the P2 was short and at this outdoor gig I pushed it within an inch of its life. I am never a fan of going in to clip but, on this occasion, I needed to.

Realistically this was not the PA for the job, however it was contractually correct. For this event the P2 really didn’t have the power to carry the sound to the audience and I suspect that part of the problem was the lack of height. Unlike other systems on the market there is no way of raising the tops, but I really needed the column to be foot higher. As I said, the P2 really wasn’t the system for this job, but the agent was to blame for that!

My final event of the weekend was over in Anglesey Wales (yep I get about a bit!). It was a marquee wedding for a long-time friend and I used the P2 as part of multi-speaker set up that covered the whole of the marquee. I positioned the P2 next to the dancefloor and covered it nicely. Being in a marquee, the event really did need the supplementary sound from the other systems PEAVEY P2 but the P2 handled the dancefloor well, particularly as was on a stage giving it an extra bit of height.

To sum up, it’s good, in fact sound-wise it’s very good. It’s not going to suit everyone, particularly down to its fixed height, but if you are a fan of the Peavey sound then you’ll be pleased to hear that the designers have managed to package it beautifully in column format. As with all speakers, sound is a very personal thing, so get to your local dealer to hear it for yourself. Howis ever, at £839, it is well priced to set the cat amongst the pigeons… it a a a in a it 01 \ Ariana Grande ft.

Nicki Minaj – Side To Side 02 \ Bruno Mars – 24K Magic 03 \ Sia ft. Kendrick Lamar – The Greatest 04 \ Lady Gaga – Perfect Illusion 05 \ Michael Buble – Nobody But Me Rnb/hip hop 06 \ Zara Larsson – Ain’t My Fault 07 \ NEIKED ft. Dyo – Sexual 08 \ Sean Paul ft. Chi Ching Ching, Chimney & 09 \ Usher ft.

Young Thug – No Limit 10 \ Mura Masa ft. A$AP Rocky – Love$ick indie/rock 11 \ Coldplay – A Head Full Of Dreams 12 \ Kings Of Leon – Waste A Moment 13 \ Lower Than Atlantis – Work For It 14 \ Sundara Karma – She Said 15 \ A Day To Remember – Naivity house/dance 16 \ Calvin Harris – My Way 17 \ Craig David ft. Sigala – Ain’t Giving Up 18 \ Kideko & George Kwali ft. Nadia Rose & 19 \ Years & Years – Meteorite 20 \ The Chainsmokers ft.

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The systems use a combination of 4 x 2ft and 2 x 2ft panels all finished with a sloped aluminium edge trim. 11/10/2016 15:52