Alto TS408 - Lovin' It

[Zydecat]

Alto TS408 - Purchased this little powerhouse a few weeks ago for rehearsals and small gigs.  Used it a few times at a local blues jam where LOUD guitarists are the norm.  No problem cutting through the bedlam - this small 2000 watt 8" speaker kicks, and with very good sound quality.  A couple of guitar guys commented on the great sound, including one of the loudest players, who couldn't believe the power and sound quality from this little guy.  May be the best $300 I've spent in a long time.

 

 

 

[Reezekeys]

Nice to read your endorsement! I have a pair of the 408's baby brother, the TX308. $139 apiece and 12 lbs. I'm happy with them too. On paper, the 408s look like direct competitors to the QSC Ks and similar speakers at half the price (or more than half the price? I haven't checked lately). Pretty sweet if these hold up.

 

My little 308s won't be making an appearance at any blues jams, but I've done some jazz sessions hitting pretty hard with a loud drummer and they deliver, although I hear moments when I'm close to hitting the headroom ceiling. Using two helps, I'm sure. I also have K8s so the 308s were mostly an investment for my back!

[Morrissey]

Thanks for the report.  I have its predecessor, TS308, and have been pleased with its "bang-for-the-buck" in similar use applications.

 

50 minutes ago, Zydecat said:

Alto TS408 - Purchased this little powerhouse a few weeks ago for rehearsals and small gigs.  Used it a few times at a local blues jam where LOUD guitarists are the norm.  No problem cutting through the bedlam - this small 2000 watt 8" speaker kicks, and with very good sound quality.  A couple of guitar guys commented on the great sound, including one of the loudest players, who couldn't believe the power and sound quality from this little guy.  May be the best $300 I've spent in a long time.

 

 

 

 

[ElmerJFudd]

Can you comment on what timbre you’re mainly using them for?  Hammond organ, Rhodes and Wurly, acoustic piano?  Aside from being able to push volume and cut, how do they sound without the band?  

[Stokely]

I'd be interested to know as well.  In my experience, acoustic piano in particular is a "cheap speaker" killer.  Not saying these are the "cheap speaker" in the vein of my ebay special Podium Pro brand ones, or Mackie thumps/Behringers, but they are cheaper!   I don't need much volume but I do crave clarity.  We occasionally have gigs where I can't use my in-ears and I like to have a speaker (or two) as an "amp" in those cases.

[Zydecat]

For blues jams, I play a Hammond SK Pro - mainly organ as I prefer weighted keys for piano and the Pro piano sounds are not the greatest.  Gigged with it last weekend using the Pro and a Kurtz SP6 with the 408 as my monitor and a line out to FOH.  To my ears, the AP snd Wurly sounded very good, and having two channels and a line out is a big plus.  No experience playing LH bass yet, but to me the 408 handles low notes on organ and piano well.

[AnotherScott]

My experience with its TS308 predecessor (nearly identical, I believe) is that it is very nice sounding. It is the least expensive speaker I've found that I could happily play piano through. A little less open on top than the EV ZXa1, but otherwise, competitive with that.

[ElmerJFudd]

2 minutes ago, Zydecat said:

For blues jams, I play a Hammond SK Pro - mainly organ as I prefer weighted keys for piano and the Pro piano sounds are not the greatest.  Gigged with it last weekend using the Pro and a Kurtz SP6 with the 408 as my monitor and a line out to FOH.  To my ears, the AP snd Wurly sounded very good, and having two channels and a line out is a big plus.  No experience playing LH bass yet, but to me the 408 handles low notes on organ and piano well.

Interesting. These are suddenly easy to find, I saw delivery at the guitar center nearby.  When I get a chance I’ll ask them to set me up with one to demo. 

[Zydecat]

The TS408 is rated at 2000 watts - I believe the TS308 is rated at 1000.  

[Al Coda]

40 minutes ago, Zydecat said:

The TS408 is rated at 2000 watts - I believe the TS308 is rated at 1000.  

 

1000 W RMS ... 2000W Peak !

 

It´s class-D "show up" rating anyway.

 

No single 8", 10", 12" or even 15"/ 18" speaker´s voicecoil can handle such power,- a 1.4" horn driver less than ever.

I guess  it´s 1000W RMS into 2 ohms rating, 500 into 4, 250 into 8 ohms,- and the woofer is always an 8 ohms device.

The horn driver might be 16 Ohms and DSP limiter protected.

 

Nonetheless, Altos sound usually really good for the money !

OTOH, some Thomann customers report a very audible amp-noise/hiss across the entire range of TS4 speakers which seems to be annoying at low level music or between songs.

Dunno if it´s true, but worth to mention IMO. 

 

 

A.C.

[Reezekeys]

2 hours ago, Zydecat said:

The TS408 is rated at 2000 watts - I believe the TS308 is rated at 1000

 

They appear to have the same amps, at least the website shows identical specs for both: 

 

650 RMS (woof)+ 350 RMS (horn)

1300 peak + 700 peak

 

As Al pointed out, their marketing dept went with peak power. Bullsquat numbers of course, feed a sine wave at 650 watts into an 8" speaker and the voice coil will likely melt.

 

Interestingly, they seem less forthcoming with the specs for my TX308. First they say "the TX308 features a bi-amplified 2-way design" but give no separate power figures for the LF or HF amps; just a simple "175 watts continuous, 350 peak" so take a guess how those watts are apportioned.

[Stokely]

Heh, I mentioned those "ebay specials" I got (Podium Pros) and my 12" pair list some ludicrous number for power...can't remember what it is but it's baloney.  My band's K10.2s absolutely obliterate them in volume and clarity despite being a fair bit smaller and lighter.  But i paid like $320 for two so...yeah.   They haven't held up either, so that's another consideration.

I have more than a couple gigs coming up this year filling in with another band and they don't run in-ears at all.   Or, if I found a way to use mine, the rest of the band is used to hearing the keys on stage and not in monitors.   These definitely have my interest.  I was thinking I'd get a K10.2 but was dreading shelling out that much for something I don't use all the time.

[RandyFF]

These look nice for the price if they have close to K8.2 clarity, piano reproduction and volume!  Esp at 20 lbs!

 

Was surprised:

- BT audio in with volume knob!

- comes with an app for remote control of volume and settings!  I don’t want to buy another speaker without this capability

- most of the back panel settings are well-thought out, helpful

[Al Coda]

15 hours ago, Reezekeys said:

nterestingly, they seem less forthcoming with the specs for my TX308. First they say "the TX308 features a bi-amplified 2-way design" but give no separate power figures for the LF or HF amps; just a simple "175 watts continuous, 350 peak" so take a guess how those watts are apportioned.

 

 

AFAIK, the entire TX series isn´t bi-amped at all.

The TS series is.

 

Check Thomann site for active PA speakers > Alto.

When it´s bi-amped,- you´ll read "Bi-Amp" in 4th row of advertisement.

This is not w/ TX series speakers.

 

TX 308 / 10 / 12 are rated @ 175WRMS / 350W peak.

Only TX315 is rated q 350WRMS / 700W peak

 

ALL are advertised as "2-way" but NOT as "Bi-Amp".

 

 

A.C.

[stoken6]

1 hour ago, Al Coda said:

AFAIK, the entire TX series isn´t bi-amped at all.

That was my guess also. But Rob posted that Alto advertise "the TX308 features a bi-amplified 2-way design". It could be an over-excited marketing department, of course.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Al Coda]

1 hour ago, stoken6 said:

It could be an over-excited marketing department, of course.

 

 

A.C.

[HSS]

OT:  I have a couple Alto TS310's.  They're lightweight, sound good, and can get loud.  IMO they're good value or the money.  

[Reezekeys]

4 hours ago, Al Coda said:

AFAIK, the entire TX series isn´t bi-amped at all.

 

ALL are advertised as "2-way" but NOT as "Bi-Amp".

 

https://www.altoprofessional.com/products/tx308

 

On that page, near the top:

 

"Bi-amplified design with precision active crossover and EQ"

 

Further down:

 

"The TX308 features a bi-amplified 2-way designs, with a long-excursion woofer and a 1-inch titanium compression driver in a precision horn."

 

It's odd that they don't give separate power figures for LF and HF amps (like with the TS series), but maybe having separate numbers doesn't sound as impressive as "350"! 🙂 

 

Also - how do you have an "active crossover" in a non-biamped powered speaker?

[rockinroller]

I have been performing live in a classic rock trio (I play LH bass as well) for the past 6 years exclusively using Alto's for live output on stage and without connecting into the FOH system (also Alto's btw).  Currently been gigging with a pair of TS312's and am impressed with not only the punchy power and tons of headroom, but also how those two speakers enhance the sound of both my B3 as well as "real" piano settings.  For almost 1/3rd the cost of a QSC K10 or 12 (had them--returned them),  the Alto TS series flies way under the radar and arguably represent one of the best values out there in sound reinforcement.  The ONLY issue I had was blowing a tweeter as the highs are really hot coming out of these speakers.  Easy adjustment since I use a small form mixer with 3-way EQ in between my keys and the speakers.

[Paul Henry]

I had QSC CP8s for a while in my studio for light jamming with acoustic guitar and single vocalist. I just play keys through my monitors.

One of the CP8s died and I had it fixed and sold them both, as I wasn't pushing them at all, and I lost my trust in them.

Enter the Headrush FRFR 8" versions. My guitar playing friend brought his over and I loved how they sounded, so I bought two of them.

I think they sound very good, better than the CP8s, with APs. I have a Nord, a Roland Fantom and a Korg Nautilus for reference.

The Alto line, HeadRush line and Alesis speaker lines are born in the same place as far as I know. They are voiced differently, but all have the same power ratings

for the given series. To me they are like playing through monitor speakers, although for an FRFR speaker they do have quite a bit of bass, especially for an 8"

 

Cheers

Paul

[Al Coda]

8 hours ago, Reezekeys said:

 

https://www.altoprofessional.com/products/tx308

 

On that page, near the top:

 

"Bi-amplified design with precision active crossover and EQ"

 

Further down:

 

"The TX308 features a bi-amplified 2-way designs, with a long-excursion woofer and a 1-inch titanium compression driver in a precision horn."

 

It's odd that they don't give separate power figures for LF and HF amps (like with the TS series), but maybe having separate numbers doesn't sound as impressive as "350"! 🙂 

 

Also - how do you have an "active crossover" in a non-biamped powered speaker?

 

Well,- that´s weird.

Now I wonder why they released the TS series then,- just only for the bigger "show-up" wattage ?

 

 

A.C.

[AnotherScott]

20 minutes ago, Al Coda said:

Well,- that´s weird.

Now I wonder why they released the TS series then,- just only for the bigger "show-up" wattage ?

I think they might have wrong info about it being a biamped design, but regardless, the other specs are still very different. 114 db max SPL vs. 129 dB. Down 3 dB at 75 Hz vs. 62 Hz.

[Reezekeys]

1 hour ago, Al Coda said:

Now I wonder why they released the TS series then,- just only for the bigger "show-up" wattage ?

 

There are other diffs too, it's not just power.

 

The TXs back panel has only an XLR input, a pass-thru, and a level control - that's it. I can tell you that the XLR jack on my TX308 is probably not Neutrik - I plan on being very gentle with this speaker! 🙂 

 

The TS3xx  speakers have two inputs, switchable line/mic, each with separate level control. They're combo jacks so take 1/4" cables unlike the XLR-only TX. And they add a "contour" switch, looks like a simple eq that scoops out some mids. There's also a ground lift switch.

 

The TS40x have the TS3xx features plus add a bluetooth channel and smartphone control of different preset eq curves along with being able to program a custom curve. Also, a switch to select different HP filter freqs for using the speaker with a sub.

[Reezekeys]

1 hour ago, AnotherScott said:

I think they might have wrong info about it being a biamped design, but regardless, the other specs are still very different. 114 db max SPL vs. 129 dB. Down 3 dB at 75 Hz vs. 62 Hz.

 

"They" are the manufacturer of the speaker - not some independent website. All the TX speakers' web pages on the Alto site say they're biamped. Seems to me it would be pretty egregious to mischaracterize an entire product line this way, whether intentional or not.

 

Couldn't the TX vs TS amp specs account for the differences in max SPL? 175 watts vs 1000 watts sure seems a logical reason the TXs max SPL is 114db rather than 129db.

[AnotherScott]

14 minutes ago, Reezekeys said:

"They" are the manufacturer of the speaker - not some independent website. All the TX speakers' web pages on the Alto site say they're biamped. Seems to me it would be pretty egregious to mischaracterize an entire product line this way, whether intentional or not.

Agreed. But that doesn't mean it couldn't have happened.

14 minutes ago, Reezekeys said:

Couldn't the TX vs TS amp specs account for the differences in max SPL? 175 watts vs 1000 watts sure seems a logical reason the TXs max SPL is 114db rather than 129db.

If the speakers are equally efficient, then if my math is right, the 1000 watt model should have a peak of about 9 dB more, which gets us from 114 to 123, so it would seem there is more than that going on. Maybe someone else can confirm the math here.

 

Regardless, part of what you're paying for in the pricier model is greater SPL, no matter how they got there.

[ElmerJFudd]

Standardized testing methods and data sheet formats for all!  
In an age when many people have to buy to try, proper data sheets can be really helpful when narrowing down to a few models that may possess traits your looking for. I suppose the fear of providing comparative numbers for manufacturers is that users might ignore certain models - but I’m not sure if that’s true, YouTube reviews and feedback from owners seem to weigh heavier these days.  
 

Inconsistent methodology makes it difficult to compare specs in some pretty important areas. There’s a lot of similarity between these models.  Price is not one of them (unless under a grand is the category).  
 

 

[DJkeys]

15 hours ago, Al Coda said:

 

Well,- that´s weird.

Now I wonder why they released the TS series then,- just only for the bigger "show-up" wattage ?

 

 

A.C.

And the Bluetooth features-

 

-dj

[Reezekeys]

This caught my eye -

 

These both use class-D amps, no? Wonder why the big discrepancy in that spec. Maybe someone isn't being honest? I know that with class-D, power consumption varies depending on the program material. QSC gives this spec at "1/8 power" which I assume is "typical" or "average" use:

 

 

So the K.2s use about 250 watts of mains power.

 

If that Yam is really as efficient as that spec says, it would make a great speaker to use with one of those lunchbox battery banks. An "1100 watt" speaker using 90 watts of AC power sounds pretty fishy to me though.

 

[Stokely]

Typo, maybe?


Any thoughts on the ts408 vs 410?   I don't really need much in the way of bass or mega volume.  Clarity is far more important, and smaller/lighter would be nice too.  

289 is very low if the speaker is decent.  I've used Mackie Thumps and Behringer something-or-others in the past (for wedges, with keys and other stuff) and they were not great.  Those are in that price range though not 8" I don't think.

[Bill H.]

16 hours ago, Al Coda said:

 

Well,- that´s weird.

Now I wonder why they released the TS series then,- just only for the bigger "show-up" wattage ?

 

 

A.C.

 

More robust drivers also: 2.5" voice coils on the LF driver vs. 2", 1.4" voice coils on the compression driver vs. 1". Personally I would not get a speaker with 1" voice coil compression drivers. it's just too easy to fry them (personal experience).