Active Speakers

Active speakers have an in-built power amplifier and just need a power source (or battery) to operate, where passive speakers require an external power amplifier to operate. In short, you need an amplifier for passive speakers, you don’t with active speakers. An active speaker is essentially an all-in-one system that powers your speakers, just like a combo amplifier that guitarists or bass players use. The amplifier is built in to the speaker cabinet, so all you have to do is connect the PA speakers to power (or use a battery) and feed a line-level signal into it. This could be a vocal microphone, a guitar or even an MP3 player. A selection of active PA speakers also include mixers already built in, with EQ settings and even microphone pre amps, so you can mix the sound directly on the speaker to professional standards easily. These are ideal for bands, DJ’s, professional public orators and the likes of café owners or schools who want to be able to play both live and pre-recorded music, without too much fuss. There’s also a huge range of battery powered and portable PA’s that are ideal for buskers, public speakers and even functions. There are blanced leads and will not work on pasive speakers.