Mobile DJ Review of the QSC K12.2's

A quick review, of the ridiculously awesome QSC K12.2 speakers. QSC REALLY outdid themselves!

[@billylindsey3678]

Those sound unbelievable! While There's plenty of bass, a lot of times people forget how important the clarity of the mids are. These don't sound at all like your typical portable PA setup. They sound like a permanent install at a night club. I can only imagine how they'd sound paired up with quality subs

[@shinta201]

Great review! Most impressed that you answered all the questions asked. Most people don't take the time to answer.

[@zibbezabba8190]

Great review. Music with real instruments now theres a novelty. I get my K12.2s in two days time. Can't wait to use them. The Mackie srm450s have served me well for the last 7 years but a QSC upgrade will be welcome.

[@user8002]

Dude I'm impressed with the quality of audio and video on your phone. Speakers are nice too...LOL

[@ricksingh3671]

I dont know much about speakers, but I love these speakers- forest gump. I own 2 k12.2 and a k181 (which is not needed in a home) the two speakers are more than enough. All in all would highly rec.

[@storm1437]

Dud you say it might sound like crap, I still can't believe it's from your phone I subscribed to your channel one time, and yes they sound great... Lol

[@djrukusvibe]

just found you review. No words Jeff. I just bought a pair k12.2's and cant get them optimized with my Driverack pa2 and XR18. I am wasting the investment. Thanks for your review

[@earljaxfl]

All I can say is Wooow!! I'm sold man thanks for great Video review..

[@dirtybusiness7452]

Thanks Jeff. Just got a pair! Gonna try them out paired with JBL SRX Dbl 18's, for a school dance tomorrow 300 + Kids! Cant wait!! GREAT VID!!

[@DjLtizzzle]

i was looking at the new 12's also. I have the OG 12's and i just added the K18. but after this video will be getting the new 12's. Thank you for the video

[@precisiondjservicesdjcam7711]

You get a thumbs up for the second song alone!

[@derickrose663]

Awesome I own four of them and two QSC 181 bass bottom

[@jambam6176]

0:18 : -O You just snitched on Jeff @ Sweetwater......... Unless you are Jeff @ Sweetwater. : -D Nice video review. Thanks!!

[@OMALIE360]

What speaker stands are you using? dude you said u suck at reviews but thats the best review out here

[@djjeffrichards]

thanks man! the stands i have are the Gator Frameworks. They kick ass, they're nice looking AND they are hydraulic. speaker raises up on it's own. since I have them set up, I'm going to do a review of the stands as well. Stay tuned!

[@djjeffrichards]

OMALIE 360......here ya go! kzbin.info/www/bejne/aYG0fGiap8trgdE

[@brianreynolds188]

Just bought these your review was awesome!

[@djlobb]

I would love to personally compare these to my DXR12's as I originally picked the DXR12's over the K12's because at high volumes the K12's wouldn't keep up and would sound unpleasant, despite the higher stated power rating.

[@b3owu1f]

Nice review. I just ordered these very same speakers and stands.. the stands were $350 for the pair. I wasnt sure if they were worth it or not given the price, but I liked the way they fold up in to a tiny package vs other stands, and they seem to make it easier to lift the speakers in to position. Mine arrive tomorrow (speakers), so anxious to hear them as I have never had any sort of PA speakers. I mostly do outdoor movies for neighborhood kids, and will probably do some small gigs but I am no DJ. I also was torn between the K181, KSUB, etc. I have to move this stuff in a car, so the 181 was too big. I ended up ordering the EV ETX15SP, which I am reading is on par if not better than the K181 (same price), but small box size.. hoping it will fit in my car or trunk!

[@djjeffrichards]

Kevin Duffey ...i put up a video on the Gator stands, yesterday. They are incredible stands! kzbin.info/www/bejne/aYG0fGiap8trgdE

[@b3owu1f]

The stands are slick. Very easy to set up. They even lift the 12s without any problem. I will say I was not sure how to lower it at first. I didnt realize (without speakers) how much force you would have to push down with to get it to lower.

[@teclairedikoume7266]

Great video thank you 👍🏾

[@earljaxfl]

Thanks for great video I'm getting ready purchase two of them

[@stevenrandall3439]

Picking mine up next week. Thanx for info

[@HitSquadDjsTv]

We did a side by side with the original K12 and found that the original had more bass.

[@djjeffrichards]

Hit Squad Djs Tv ..... I disagree, but to each his own.

[@spillwill72]

I just demoed them today. The bass response from them is 3 times the amount of the original on default setting. You must have had the presets for no bass on.

[@djlobb]

How? The woofer is receiving more wattage and the specs say it goes 3Hz lower, if anything they should AT LEAST be on par, while the K.2 series goes louder.

[@silviutanase4754]

I consider that the bass is better for K12 vs K12.2. The acoustic of the cabinet is a little bit changed. The bass reflex ports are moved in the midle of the cabinet and this influenced the way how the sound is reflected inside de cabinet

[@djjeffrichards]

if you think the bass is better on the k12's...you obviously have hearing issues. But, again....to each his own.

[@edmarporras4862]

Because of this review subscribed im looking what to buy, qsc cp8, qsc k12.2, power on this i like it

[@cal_blac]

Love the song choice!

[@djtonyguzman7998]

Wow 🤩 that song!!!…

[@Fizyxx]

feedback isnt a speaker issue - its a mic issue with the speaker proximity

[@paulosergiooliveira1724]

Sonho de consumo parabéns

[@djlobb]

Now that the K series is competitive and decent, has anyone put them up against other speakers? It would be interesting to see how these compare to the Yamaha DSR112's and EV ETX series.

[@shinta201]

I don't know about the newest versions, but I have owned the Yamaha DSR and the QSC, and I would say they are equal in quality.

[@ddavid122]

Electro voice is lower tier in quality when compared to qsc and Yamaha.

[@VINZBROWN]

I just saw the OPAZ side by side review. From what "I" sawww.... I'm giving EVERYONE slight edge. Build quality. PLUS I hear some LIVE yesterday. Crazzzzy GOOD. As these are TOO. Sound quality wise.

[@gigiknight4936]

WoW really like it planning to buy one ☝️

[@kellyaustin7487]

Good review man thanks for sharing.

[@OMALIE360]

best review ...Thnks

[@ricosauve8266]

Got mine 2 now I need to learn how to set them up

[@Thegreatdon2023]

Sounds amazing!

[@RC75]

Would the have enough bass for techno and house?

[@PabloMartinez-zv4gp]

Hey Jeff, I'm just curious to know what kind of stands you have your QSC K12.2s?

[@storm1437]

It sounds great from your phone 🤔

[@DJBomBay1996]

Good vid man. I definitely agree with these being very bassy at low levels, I love it bass I'm a Hiphop DJ. I bought my pair from Guitar Center with a 15% off coupon. 240$ off :) I traded in a pair of Mackie Thump 15s, boy at I happy. Haven't had a chance to turn them pass even a 1/4 of the way up on the volume bcuz I live in apartment. Should be able to blast them this weekend. Question: I want to get a sub to compliment these. I know that they're pretty bassy themselves, but I really want the crowd to feel the bass. Is the K-sub sufficient or should I go with an 15" or 18" subwoofer? I'm still working out of my car, so I can't go with the huge 18" subs yet. Any suggestions?

[@claudiovalero6449]

Hey there Jeff do you have a video of how did you hooked up the touchmix and what presets you use during your gigs. I recently bought one and i do a lot of outdoor and indoor venues but im having a hard time getting the right sound I have exactly what you have 2- qsc 12.2 and a touchmix 8

[@kooldjdre1200]

awesome!!!!!

[@fernschannel]

Nice and simple

[@ega0117]

Awesome review! What did you use to record this vid?

[@djjeffrichards]

Samsung galaxy s8

[@ongke100]

Awesome

[@JoshTorresDJ]

Nice!

[@afinomusic]

ayyy lol

[@dirtybusiness7452]

Hey Jeff, What kind of speaker stands you have here??

[@SanFranciscoFatboy]

i owned 4 k-12's n a couple k-subs. i got lucky and sold them, they just didn't have enough umph. i bouhght jbl srx 800's. they r and extra 500 buck more per cab ............. now qsc has jumped up to 2000 watts. and i am diggin the new ones. what do you thin about the k-8.2's? they look like you could travel w/ a pair easy. thanks 4 the review, it helped me get goin on these

[@b3owu1f]

The 12s are not that much bigger than the 8s from what I can tell. But, for my own purposes I am almost thinking the 8s would have been plenty. With a sub or two, the 8s would probably sound fantastic! I have the K12.2s and I am at 0db on the gain, and putting about -15db on the signal and they are really loud. But more so, very clean and articulate at those volumes.

[@SanFranciscoFatboy]

thanks. i am sittin in my hotel room in ecuador. guayquil. and belive it or not i am in the music store district. what a trip. people got all kinds of brands u never see at home. all kinds of solutions including build em while u wait shops. But PA's and all guit amps, drum kits , everything is taxed like 30%. it's terrible. The k-12's would be over a grand here. maybe even 1300. so bringing something is definitly a good idea. something big enough for maybe 100 people. two k-8's and some sorta punchy lil sub. maybe get that here. or bring a sub speaker from home n build a box here. so, i should check out th new k-8.2's?

[@djlobb]

I'm yet to hear the K.2 series in person but from what I have seen they are a decent improvement over the K series and don't have the infamous harsh sound when at loud volumes, and are more composed, so I've heard. The SRX speakers in my opinion are better for FoH bands etc, plastic boxes will never be as good, there will always be coloration and losses from the box. Still it's good that QSC have followed EV, Yamaha etc and given the HF and LF section a more sensible power split as opposed to lazily just throwing in 2 500W amplifiers and putting a bunch of protection on the HF (meaning a lot of the 500w on the HF is wasted)

[@la_lomacity]

More bass really? At what setting? I have the original K12 listened to this k12.2 and I believe the old version has more bass.

[@jerrycast3610]

Hey Jeff, thanks for the review. I just got a pair of the K12.2s and used them at 2 diff gigs. the first was indoors for about 150 people and they sounded great. The second was a backyard party but I noticed that the limiter indicator came on at one point and afterwards, I had to keep the volume or bass lower to keep the light from coming on. I was kinda disappointed since I was sure these had more headroom than that. Have you ever had the limiter light come on during a gig?.

[@djjeffrichards]

Jerry Cast .....what preset did you have them set to? i noticed when it is set to "dance" the bass pushed harder and I did get the red lights on, but ONLY for certain songs. I set it to "live" and it barely ever comes on. also, once you add a sub, those lights will never come on.

[@jerrycast3610]

I used the speakers with the "default" preset out of the box. Both times I used the speakers, I did so without a sub (since they were both small parties). when you set yours to "Live", did you still get enough bass out of them?

[@jerrycast3610]

Also, I read in the QSC forums that the limiter light being on isn't necessarily bad since this feature of the speaker is intended to keep them from clipping altogether. Probably not good to have the limiter light on constantly though

[@guambalati]

hey jerry, i have both the k12 and k12.2s and do experience the red light limiter coming on but only for certain songs. what i read from a qsc forum is to not worry about the red light coming on as long as you don't run it for long periods of time with it staying red the whole time. jeff is right. if you have a sub, select 'default' and not the 'no sub' feature and the red light will never come on. if you have a dbx driverack it'll make these sound sooooooooooooooo nice.

[@jerrycast3610]

Thanks Guambalati, I feel like my knowledge about the K12.2s is still pretty limited. I also was advised to check my gain structure

[@spillwill72]

Jeff, would you say that these k.2's are without a doubt worth the upgrade from the original in every aspect of sound quality? When you gigged with them did the highs and mids distort at all? I ask because the specs say just 225 or something to the horn which the older k series had 500 to horn and 500 to sub. Did you noticed a difference at high volumes during dance time. Thanks

[@djjeffrichards]

spillwill72 .....get them! they SMOKE the originals. No distortion, they sound incredible! the point of me getting these, was twice the power & I had NO IDEA how much the overall sound would greaten! I promise you, you will be blown away!

[@spillwill72]

Thanks my man. I ordered.

[@djlobb]

500W to the horn was a really stupid and lazy decision so they didn't have to make 2 different amplifiers. The high frequency driver never actually got more than 200W because of all the protection in place. All they've done with the K.2 series is split the power more sensibly so that the HF (High frequency) driver only gets as much as it can handle (less complicated protection DSP needed) and that means the rest of the wattage can be allocated to the woofer. Far better utilization of the 2000w (peak power, realistically around 1000w)

[@jlmusic674]

Quick question What type of music playback software are you running? and what soundcard do you have in your PC?

[@djjeffrichards]

In this video, i was just using OTS to play the music. I'm a Serato guy, though. As far as soundcard....I use an external Gigaport soundcard.

[@jlmusic674]

Jeff Richards thanks for the reply just trying to get my rig sounding as best as possible :)

[@yvenskylebrun]

If I have 4 of these can it play outdoor for about 500 people

[@Unplugged704]

Question. Do you have trouble with hum noise? I am getting hum on mine. i just bought 2 QSC k12.2. I connected speaker cables, turn on, set input B to instrument, set level to 0 (from off)..and i get the hum. I unplug the cable and I just get hiss (at 0). I tried XLR, speaker and instrument cables..with the same results. This was in my office where I have a mixer, arranger keboard and desktop pc. All were off. Except cable modem and router which were on different side of the room. Then I took the speakers out to the larger living room where only a tv was on the other wall. Same test same hum noises. I don't get it? note.. I tried direct to wall outlet and regular power strip. Friend of mine said to try using Noise Filtered power strips.

[@djjeffrichards]

never had any humming, but then again, I use a furman power strip that noise suppresses. HIGHLY recommend using one!

[@Unplugged704]

yeah.. that's what a friend of mine uses and he did a live demo via Facetime... and it was quiet. With my test.. I plugged directly to the wall outlet and a cheap Walmart power strip... Will consider getting a noise filter strip.

[@djjeffrichards]

for $39, you can't go wrong

[@robertpurvis6106]

the furman power strip fixed my problem. tried balanced cables of different brands and in the end the furman did the trick. when my roommate would turn on his bathroom fan my speakers would pop. not bad, just annoying. i would say 8 times out of ten a power conditioner will fix the hum and who doesn't need a new power strip. also have a furman rack mount one. the strip works the same.

[@gigiknight4936]

But can’t afford the mixer can I just used ipad to this is it working?

[@Borderlands808]

You could with the right adapters but, you should Get a DJ controller. You can get one for 1-2 hundred or less. Just look up “DENON DJ controller” or “pioneer DJ controller”. 👍🏽

[@jamessantos880]

did you have to bring your ksub to your gigs or does it have enough bass

[@djjeffrichards]

not for the gigs I mentioned. I'd only bring the ksub if it's more than 175 people.

[@JerrysHouseMusic1]

Are they good for movies ?

[@elishasoussan798]

IT'S NOT A 2000 WATT SPEAKER. it's peak, the same power as the old K12

[@djjeffrichards]

Elisha Soussan ....do more research. It's NOT the same power as the originals. That's a foolish statement.

[@elishasoussan798]

Jeff Richards You're funny, Check the specs. 2000 Watts peak the K.12.2 and the old ones are 1000 Watts RMS and 2000 Watts Peak. The only thing they changed is not the Wattage amount, rather the DSP processors and many internal pieces which enable it to have a higher SPL and Louder. I know speakers real well, worked in Yorkville Sound as a sound engineer and know exactly how it works.

[@ludman2299]

You "know speakers real well." ?

[@ddavid122]

Elisha is right, the power module has the same output 1000~rms and 2000~peak. But the distribution is different peak 225 to HF and about peak 1800 to LF. So it’s like 900 to woofer and about 100 to the cone. It’s supposed to help with the dB boost.

[@Joseluis-dh4mo]

@@Bambino007 Unless you only work well paid events otherwise it's not worth spending I mean you do not show up at a birthday party with fbt speakers

[@NancyMendozai]

Thompson Barbara Anderson Timothy Hernandez Maria

[@byromtaylor6482]

I do not like it when they say 2000 watt peak ...(It might 'peak for a few milli secs) man its the RMS that matters these are 1000 watt RMS with a 2000 watt peak...so basically they are not twice as powerful as the old speakers they replace K12s they are probably just routed differently.... the advertising is misleading...the old K12's are probably just as good? just without a DSP which most dj or singers sort through a mixer anyway. But hey what do I know...

[@SwinburneAlan]

Anderson Dorothy Perez Nancy Smith Richard

[@ricosauve8266]

Hey have u played them with a sub yet ? How did it go

[@djjeffrichards]

Rico Sauve ....not yet, but I will be this weekend. Can't wait! 2 k8's sound incredible with a sub, so using these should be insane!

[@augu5682]

Jeff Richards hey great review!!! I have a question I literally got 2 of these baby's today and I'm wondering what is the best preset when you have 2 subs and these 2 running

[@theperformancelocker744]

You a mobile DJ amigo?

[@seanfried5583]

The irony of listening to this on my stupid laptop speakers.

[@djflex83]

so they are better than the Bose model 2

[@djjeffrichards]

VDJ FLEX ...in my opinion, yes. I love my BOSE, but I REALLY love my QSC systems

[@djflex83]

i do more of dance arty of 500 people the L1 lake heavy punch

[@adamlooze99]

QSC K12.2 x 2 + QSC KLA181 x 2 Plenty of bass for your crowd

[@antoniodelgado1516]

Whats with all the messy wires, a couple of wide strips of velcro would fix that.

[@djjeffrichards]

Antonio Delgado ...as I stated in the review, it's set up in my basement. if I had shot this at a job, you wouldn't see any wires.

[@kanyaugatiejagwo]

talks forever... for those who want to skip the oratory and plethora of youtube ads, skip to 4:11 to listen to the PAs

[@djjeffrichards]

My experiences with these speakers and how they operate are considered "talks forever"?? I would say, (other than you) people want to know personal experience vs. Jumping to how they sound, since you can't judge by a phone microphone.

[@johnnycarroll6592]

Cerwin Vega