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Speakers for live piano performance

Does anyone know about speakers for live music?

I'm an amateur jazz pianist, and I want to be able to perform high-quality acoustic jazz using a portable keyboard. For example, I'd like to be able to play at local coffee houses and restaurants, most of which don't own a piano but would love to have live music. The keyboard I'm using is a Kawai MP8, which I think has an excellent "acoustic grand piano" sound (when I listen to it through headphones).

My question is, what speakers should I use for performing?

I've tried the typical keyboard amps that rock bands use (Hartke KM series, Roland KC series), but they don't come close to achieving the warm, realistic piano sound I'm looking for.

I'm sure I could get more accurate sound reproduction using home/studio monitors, but I'm worried that those will be (1) too near-field (not intended to be heard more than ~20 feet away) and (2) too fragile (not intended for being bumped into and tripped over and transported around).

So I think that leaves PA speakers. I just bought a pair of QSC K8 speakers, and they sound excellent above middle C but rather thin and muddled below middle C.

How can I do better?
wolfbear

Showing 1 response by wolfbear

wolfbear OP
1 posts
 
Thanks for the link to gearslutz.com, Timrhu. Asking there is a good idea.

Martykl's suggestion to try the QSC KSub sounds very reasonable, but I'm wondering --- since my K8 speakers start to sound thin and muddled below 440 Hz, and the KSub has a frequency range (-10 dB) of 44-148 Hz, doesn't that mean adding that sub (or any sub) won't improve the 150-440 Hz range by much? If so, then I need to try something else.

Could EQing help improve that low-mid range? Or do I need to return/sell the K8s and explore other options (like the ones suggested above)?
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