QSC HPR122i

Separate power amplifiers are used to drive the LF and HF components; the low-frequency amplifier is a Class-H design with a rated output of 400W, and the HF side uses a 100W Class-AB+B circuit. The power amplifiers contain the same components used in QSC's well-established RMX series and employ the same proven design technology, using discreet components rather than all-in-one amplifier chips. Both the LF and HF drivers use neodymium magnet structures, which help to keep weight to a minimum, and the built-in signal processing functions are designed to protect the drivers, whilst allowing them to operate as efficiently as possible for maximum safe performance.

The HPR122i has a taller and thinner shape than most 'twelve-plus-one' speakers, but with the drivers and ports arranged in the usual fashion with the horn at the top. The tall design means that, for any given standing surface or pole height, the horn assembly sits that little bit higher than most speakers of this type, which is an advantage when it comes to getting the higher frequencies above the heads of your audience.

The front of the cabinet is completely covered by a really solid steel grille, which wraps around the vertical edges so that there are no protruding cabinet sides. It's a very neat design and pleasing on the eye, and the wrap-around sides add rigidity to the grille — much better than a flat panel, which would be more susceptible to being pushed in or dented. I also like the fact that the grille covers the entire front surface of the speaker enclosure, ports, horn mouth and all, thereby protecting cabinet and components from any physical damage or ingress of foreign bodies.

The two side handles are very easy to use. If the speaker is standing upright, it's not too far to bend down and lift it, and because of its relatively slim shape, the handles aren't very far apart either, which I found comfortable and secure. There's a handle built in to the top of the cabinet too, of the same design as the others.

Sticking with the theme of sensible design and quality, even the underneath of these cabinets is worthy of mention. Instead of the usual three or four rubber feet, they have two rubber strips set into the base, running front to back, plus a single stabilising foot at the back where the cabinet tapers. The boxes, therefore, sit very securely, and the rubber used is soft enough to avoid damaging your best dining table should you have to use it.

The enclosure is designed to be used upright as a main speaker, standing on a flat surface or pole-mounted using the good quality built-in mounting, or as a floor wedge monitor. It can also be flown using the integral M10 threaded fly points, which permit vertical or horizontal orientation.

One interesting thing about the heat sink is that the HPR series user manual warns against using any of the HPR speakers on their sides — except for the 122i — because unless the heat sink fins are vertical, the amplifier might overheat. The HPR122i appears to use a similar power amp module to the other models in the range and was, of course, designed to be used on its side. According to the man at Shure in the UK (who checked with the man at QSC), it's perfectly OK to use the 122i on its side, and the same would apply to the other HPR models too, except that (because they're not shaped to be used as floor monitors) people would tend to prop them up to obtain a 45-degree wedge angle, and in doing so would place the heat sink so close to the floor that sufficient ventilation would not be possible.

The HPR122i is equipped with three LED indicators, which tell you when the unit is powered up, when a signal is detected at the input and when momentary clipping, limiting, or protective muting occurs. There's a good deal of automatic protection built in, and the amplifiers will reduce gain or mute the output completely depending on the abnormal conditions detected.

Bearing in mind that I was using them without subs, the low-end output from these cabs was pretty impressive, and the perhaps overused word 'tight' really does apply to the bass you get out of these. Everything from high to low and in-between was clear and crisp, and the open-air CD test was a very enjoyable half hour. The HPR122i speakers are very good with vocals and there's no shortage of mid-range wallop to project instruments — particularly toms — with a real dynamic edge.

Overall, I think the most impressive thing about the HPR122i is its even-ness of coverage. Perhaps this is because of the unusual conical horn design or some other design aspect, but intelligibility over the entire coverage area was very noticeable. In the conference room setting, I asked a few colleagues to walk around the room with a single speaker set up halfway along a long wall, and they all commented on the fact that speech and music were very clean and clear until you were standing practically behind the thing.

One big advantage of using all-in-one powered speakers is that the electronics and driver components are designed to work together, and that built-in signal processing can eliminate the requirement for much, if any, external signal manipulation. In the case of the HPR122i, the switchable high-pass filter rolls off signals below 100Hz, so you could get away without an external crossover, and there are various non-adjustable optimisation and protection features within the amplifier module. Things like phase correction, internal crossovers and equalisation are designed in and are just 'part of the package', whereas the operation of the protection features can be observed by means of the indication LEDs on the control panel.

In terms of self-defence, the HPR122i provides active power limiting and thermal management, so it should, in theory, require deliberate (or just plain ignorant) mishandling to over-drive or overheat this unit.

If you're into using self-powered monitors, these will kill, and they have a nice low profile when laid sideways. They also look a lot more like 'real' monitors than some of the moulded plastic competition, and there's no issue about rotating the horn to alter the coverage pattern.  0