Mackie SRM150

In my never-ending quest to get my gear as compact as possible, I am constantly trying to find ways to reduce equipment size without sacrificing sound quality. The advent of plastic moulded composite cabinets has seen a plethora of PA speakers on the market that are lighter than their wooden cousins and, in theory, harder wearing. I swapped my HK LUCAS rig for a pair of Mackie SRM450s a number of years ago and have not looked back since. However, the SRM450s are overkill for some of the smaller venues that I perform in, such as wine bars and hotel restaurants. So imagine my excitement when Mackie announced their SRM150 compact active PA system, which claimed to be both mini PA and personal stage monitor.

At the rear of the cabinet, there is a standard three-pin IEC power connector, a Fuse circuit breaker switch, a three-pin XLR Thru connector, a line/mic button for the main input, and an additional Neutrick combo connector.

After a quick phone call to Mackie and an anxious week-long wait, two small packages arrived — and I mean small. When you think of PA systems, even ones that claim to be small, you still expect a hefty couple of boxes, but each box, including the packaging, was not much bigger than a box of A4 copier paper. Out of their cardboard packaging, the units seem absolutely tiny. They are small, light and compact — not many active PAs on the market could be carried all at once by a five-year-old, but my daughter managed using the built-in carry handles! Measuring 28.4 x 20.3cm (11.2 x 8.0 inches) and weighing in at just 3.4kg, I instantly presumed there was no way these units would cut the mustard. But oh how glad I am to have been proved wrong!

Resembling a miniature wedge monitor, the moulded composite cabinet has been designed to look like the rest of the Mackie SRM range. The front panel houses a 5.25-inch (134mm) speaker with a power handling of 150W. To the right of the speaker there is a small mixer panel with Main volume control knob, three-band active EQ and three separate inputs. Inputs 1 and 2 each have a Neutrik combo connector, which accepts balanced microphone inputs from an XLR connector, or balanced and unbalanced line-level inputs from a quarter-inch TRS or TS connector. A push-button switch below the Main volume control allows the use of 48V phantom power on both inputs 1 and 2. Another push-button switch toggles input 1 between mic/line and instrument, allowing you to plug a guitar directly into the unit (effectively a built-in DI box). The third input has a stereo pair of phono connectors. Each input has an individual level control knob. The three-band EQ has been optimised by Mackie to work independently of each other, allowing the user to cut or boost each 100Hz (bass), 2.5kHz (mid) or 12kHz (high) band without affecting the others, thus providing "more tone-sculpting latitude and feedback control than you'll find in any other product in its class."

The rear of the cabinet houses a standard three-pin IEC power connector. Mackie don't skimp on the length of the supplied power cables (you get both European two-pin and UK three-pin wired cables), which are 3m long! Next to the power connector is the 'fuse' — a resettable circuit breaker that will pop if you experience a voltage surge. Switching the unit off and pushing Fuse to its up position resets the breaker. Next comes the power switch, followed by another line/mic button (for the main input), three-pin male XLR Thru connector, and an additional Neutrick combo connector for the main input on the rear of the unit.

The underside of the unit has a receptor that allows it to be mounted on a microphone stand using the supplied adaptor, whilst the top of the cabinet houses a threaded insert for mounting the supplied boom extender. The combination of these allows the unit to be mounted on a microphone stand with a microphone boom on top of the cabinet, cutting out the need for separate stands for monitor and microphone.

I have used a number of personal monitors that fit on stands and I was not convinced by Mackie's blurb that reads, "Don't be fooled by the small size" Experience tells me that everyone 'bigs up' their product in some way or another. However, on plugging a single unit to my system and feeding a full mix signal from my mixing desk, I have to say I was quite literally blown away. I ran some good old white noise through the unit and held a decibel meter 1m from the driver. As the manufacturer claims, it managed to put out around 120dB.

For such a small unit, it really does pack a punch. Whilst working as a solo singer with backing tracks running from a laptop, the SRM150 gave me immediate control of my foldback. I took a monitor send from my desk carrying backing tracks and vocals, and connected via the rear connector on the unit. This gave me overall control of the volume of the mix and also the EQ using the knobs on the front of the unit. By mounting the unit on a mic stand, it can sit right in front of you on even the smallest stage and be tweaked at will without having to bend down like you would with a floor monitor. Although they suggest that the unit can be used on the floor, I'm not convinced a single unit gives enough of a kick to get the sound from floor level up to the performer's ears, but three or four across the front of a stage would give great reinforced foldback.

When the unit is plugged in and turned up without any signal running, it is as quiet as its larger cousin's negligible hiss. When it is cranked up, the sound quality is solid, clear and definable. The mid- and high-range frequencies are smooth and accurate, and the in-built Class-D amplifier with its limiter does a really good job of coping with very high levels before clipping. Mounting the unit on a microphone stand means that you don't have to crank it up as loud as a floor monitor, therefore reducing the chances of feedback from your microphone or guitar.

At my next gig, I tried the unit as an all-in-one mixer monitor. I connected the microphone to the second input on the front panel and my acoustic (Martin) to the first channel, and activated the instrument switch. I then took a feed from the rear of the unit direct to my small PA via the Thru XLR out on the rear of the unit. Genius! It works really well, once again giving you total control of your mix right in front of you. I attached a boom stand to the top of the unit, so I had the monitor and microphone all on the one stand. Again, with a guitar, the unit didn't struggle or distort; it just gave a really good representation of what was coming out of the front-of-house PA.

Impressed thus far, I took a pair of the SRM150s along to a gig with my five-piece rock and soul party band. We were playing at a typical student pub venue with about 300 people in attendance. One problem we always have with monitors is the lack of space at the front of the stage. However, that isn't a problem with the 150s, since they are small enough to be mounted anywhere. My guitarist was ecstatic. We connected his mic to the first input and took a thru connection to the front-of-house mixing desk, meaning he had total control of his own vocal monitor. Considering how loud the band can get, he didn't have a problem throughout the whole gig hearing his vocals because he had total control of his monitor mix. I used the second monitor in the same way and was equally impressed.

Finally, I got Mackie to put their money where their mouth is and used a pair of the speakers as my main PA for a gig in a five-star hotel restaurant. I kid you not, people, when I tell you that I fed stereo backing tracks and vocals via a mixer left and right to a pair of the SRM150s and they performed like a dream. OK, let's not pretend that I had thumping bass. However, what I did have was a very impressive sound and quite a high volume, which wasn't distorted or tinny as one might expect.

Mackie have truly come up with a wonderfully portable piece of kit that most solo entertainers and small bands would benefit from using. I have often used in-ear systems when space has been at a premium, but in-ears can make you feel a little detached. These units are a great alternative. The best advantage as a singer is that you can really hear what is going out the front-of-house PA, meaning you don't have to rely on hearing your ambient vocal from the PA, which in turn means you don't push your voice too hard. I've already started saving my pennies for a pair. Perhaps I could get the band to pay for them... Now there's a thought! 0

Mackie SRM150

Compact active PA system