LIST PRICE: $1,249
Yamaha has recently released some new additions to its portable PA lineup. The Stagepas 600BT and Stagepas 400BT portable PA’s are very similar products that vary a bit in overall capacity. For this review we examined the Stagepas 600BT, the larger of the two. Both units are well suited for events where entering a room and deploying a PA needs to be simplistic and fast. Both systems are capable of supporting spoken word engagements as well as small ensembles or musical affairs.
In Action
The functionality of the 600BT is fairly robust with 10 inputs that represent a mixture of capability. The first four inputs support both mic level and line level inputs, with channels one and two capable of supplying phantom power and channels three and four able to accept instrument inputs (Hi-Z) via combo jacks. The next six inputs (5-10) are line level inputs that can be run as either mono inputs, three separate stereo pair, or some combination thereof based upon your needs. These accept various combinations of ¼-inch, RCA, or 1/8-inch mini input connections. Inputs nine and 10 also double as the input for the onboard Bluetooth capability, which is ridiculously easy to setup and use.
Once at location you simply pull the mixer off the back, plug the speakers into the mixer, and plug the mixer into the wall. It’s a very easy affair and Yamaha has already provided the necessary cabling.
Each of the inputs has a three-band equalizer with controls for high shelf (set at 8Khz), a peaking band (centered around 2.5Khz), and a low shelf (set at 100Hz). Each input also has a dedicated send control that allows the user to specify how much of that channel is fed to the onboard effects unit, which itself has four settings from which to choose. The effects unit gives you options between hall, plate, room, and echo, with some timing variability for each. There is also a place to plug in a foot switch so that an on-stage performer can enable or disable the effects as needed. The output side of the system is fairly flexible and contained some options that were unexpectedly nice to find. The unit has the ability to support an additional subwoofer through a dedicated subwoofer output. If used, the subwoofer output will cut the low frequencies from the amp-fed mains and send them (in mono) to a user-supplied powered subwoofer. This could come in very handy when trying to fill out the bass frequencies in larger space. The system also provides two (unpowered) monitor sends for performance monitors with their own dedicated level control. This feed sends out a duplicate of the main signal and would allow self-engineering performers to not only hear themselves but to know what it is that they are sending out into the house. Capability is rounded out with an onboard feedback elimination function that performed acceptably, even when testing it with somewhat abusive level settings and mic placement. Lastly, a simple tonal control on the output section allows users to adjust the system for the task at hand, with labels giving inexperienced users hints towards targeted program types such as music or spoken word.
Summing it Up
All in all, the system is very compact and lightweight. The mixer portion of the system easily snaps into the back of a speaker for transport, while the other speaker contains a storage locker for holding cables and a microphone. Once at location you simply pull the mixer off the back, plug the speakers into the mixer, and plug the mixer into the wall. It’s a very easy affair and Yamaha has already provided the necessary cabling. The Stagepas 600B evaluated for this review showed a spritely system capable of a moderate amount of output. It should have no problems handling a normal size conference room or cafeteria. It uses a 340W amplifier for drive and the speakers are two-way boxes made up of a 10-inch woofer and a 1.4-inch HF driver. The specs on the 400BT show it to be a slightly smaller system. Once powered up the 600BT did sound a bit mid forward as one might expect for a two-way portable PA, but the overall sound quality was good and very respectable. For the church market, the overall win for this system, and I think it’s a big win, is its simplicity. The Stagepas has a very usable amount of capability and a good feature set, yet Yamaha has done a very good job of packaging it in a way that just about anyone can use it.
They have kept the knob count down and have combined some of the more confusing aspects of PA into a simpler set of controls. Having a single knob control for the effects unit is a perfect example. In addition, the integration of its Bluetooth capability was very well done. I was able to pair it to my phone in under 60 seconds and, once paired, it never lost the connection. With this type of capability, the days of needing to carry around a music source with the associated cables and need for power are gone. Playing some background music at an event or even referencing a track during rehearsal are now as simple as pulling out your portable device and touching play. Most churches have a frequent need to facilitate an event that requires the support of a simple PA without the need of bringing in a sound team or an experienced engineer. These are the cases in which the Stagepas will accel. With a very small amount of effort anyone from staff to volunteer should be able to make quick use of the Stagepas system in a self-sufficient manner—and do so while being satisfied with the results.
