Headrush FRFR 108 vs. Yamaha DXR 10 - my impressions

  • Please post your impressions! ;)

    It´s my first FRFR and i have no experiense with this kind of speaker type. Its far better then my Behringer 12 active PA speaker.

    At the moment i have tested the 108 with my FGN Les Paul with Seymour Duncon Classic -i thought:/. I only decrease the Bass in the Outputsection because it was to much for me. But it depense on the situation/ room ... i think?

    One question . Can i put the Monitor Signal in the second input of the 108, while the first gets the Signal direct from the Kemper ? Because i´m singing ad playing guitar in my band?

  • One question . Can i put the Monitor Signal in the second input of the 108, while the first gets the Signal direct from the Kemper ? Because i´m singing ad playing guitar in my band?

    You mean a monitor feed into one input and the Profiler into the other? Yes you can.

  • Just got an 108 myself after depending on monitor mixes (my own) for a couple years. My (former) rationale was why drag more gear than I already am? At the time I got my first Kemper I was lugging both PA and my Bogner Shiva 2 x 12 combo around...and wasn't getting any younger!


    I never owned the Yamaha so can't directly compare, but my impression is that for the Headrush 108, Ingolf is spot on: nicely transparent and plenty loud, especially when mixed with with any monitor presence at all. Got to agree, that's a surprisingly huge sound coming out of a such a tiny box!


    No hiss at lower volumes, some at high volume, about what I'd expect for a powered speaker at this price point. I did notice the back panel was getting very warm (could till hold my hand against it) after 2 hours of nearly constant playing. Not too worrisome yet, that's probably normal for fanless I guess. Still...I wouldn't leave it unshaded at a gig in the summer sun.


    I don't think it really gives an authentic "amp in the room" sensation, but it was shocking to realize how much impact it has on my ability to really PLAY against a dedicated monitor-I love having feedback easily available again!


    In retrospect, I don't know what on earth I was thinking not running a dedicated monitor all this time. :)


    Cheers!

    Nick

  • I finally used mine with the band last night at practice and it worked really great. It was less sterile sounding to me than my EV, the highs weren't as present, but I was able to EQ or switch profiles to fit my needs when I needed more highs. I was also surprise with the amount of bass I could get out of it (not that I needed it). I had the volume halfway up, and it was plenty loud for practice (monitor output at -13.6, rig volume at 12 o'clock). It was so easy to carry too. FWIW, I play blues/rock rhythm so YMMV. It held it's own with the lead players Marshall 2550 and his 4x10 cab and the drummer (granted, we weren't playing super loud, but loud enough). They were able to hear me no problem (we only PA vocals at practice).

    I bought it from Guitar center so I could return it easily if needed, but it looks like I'll be holding on to it now.

  • ...and wasn't getting any younger!

    Same here. As I am still draging around by ENGL 4x12 PRO cab. Did I say I drag it around? Well, me and my friends do it. And you need good friends to carry this monster cab 8o


    Ingolf 's argument of lightweight equipment is really also killer for me. So the comparison and all the opinions here are quite helpful. Think I will give the 108 a try as well in the next weeks.


    Does the sound suffer a lot if a bit of vocals and a bit of bass come over it as well? I love the idea to control my own monitor mix with the two inputs and separate volume pots.

  • ... Does the sound suffer a lot if a bit of vocals and a bit of bass come over it as well? I love the idea to control my own monitor mix with the two inputs and separate volume pots.

    You might as well give it a shot, worst case scenario is just roll your non-Kemper channel back to zero :)

  • New guy on the square here!


    So onto business, I had a lot of hesitation about my purchase on the FRFR108, but originally I bought it to use as monitor in my home studio with some Amp VSTs. I got into a store that had a yamaha DXR10 and was not impressed by the price. I have to agree that the section of 1000Hz to 1500Hz feels not so flat on the Yamaha (Felt better on the DXR12, but it needed more volume to breath naturally and I was bothering some people on the store). I stayed on playing trough my DT770s at home. They were way overbudget at the time, so I passed.


    Fast forward one year and I decided to get my current kemper, so started looking around for some cheap investment into a powered CAB, and truly I ordered the FRFR108 thinking I would eventually get a DXR12 or something at some point (temporary solution). Long story short, I am getting the second one pretty soon.


    Main considerations:


    Miced the speaker response with a RE-20 into Ableton Live frequency analyzer, when you correct the mic response here are the results:


    Bass:

    Recessed bass below 52Hz, looks good even for bass reproduction

    Non expected sharp drop 120-125Hz, thats good for guitar, signaling good voicing

    Range 90Hz - 200Hz slightly bumped (looks to me like +2dBs)


    (There is a big bump while laying horizontal on floor, small bumb with displaced frequency response to the mids standing on the floor. Original method was with a stand)


    Mids:


    Relatively Flat section up to 1200Hz (Small +1dB curvature from 300Hz to 700Hz )

    Small valley starting 1000Hz


    Highs:


    Nothings spectacular, some small peaks in the realm of the 6000Hz up to the 15000Hz, it seems relatively flat.


    Additional considerations:

    It has a noticeable noise floor around 2 thirds of the gain in, nothing really bad, as the headroom of the device is pretty huge for its size.

    Seems it has good voicing but gets considerably hot after 3 hours of testing, I believe this equipment might not be as longlasting as some might want, maybe better heat dissipation would help.



    My final note is, I am impressed by what I got for the price, it really sounds better to my ears compared to what I remember back then, if anything it sounds a bit thinner than the DXR10, but thats not really noticeable with some EQ managing, BASS sounds good(on a stand, vibration transmission makes it boomy on floor, use a rubber pad in vertical position, or a stand), MID looks voiced properly, mostly flat, TREBLE section I think it could look cleaner, but for me it sounds fine, very detailed with the evo pickups on my schecter (unbereably so, but thats fault on the pick and amp config, not the speaker).


    If the small noisefloor does not bother you, I think it might be the best bang for the buck you could find. It sounds juicier than my monitors in the studio, thats a pretty good signal, as they are not for mastering or mixing, but for performing.

    The answer is 42

    Edited 3 times, last by Alfahdj ().

  • I only decrease the Bass in the Outputsection because it was to much for me. But it depense on the situation/ room ... i think?

    It´s actually a volume issue as on almost every Alto Speaker I´ve tried so far. The lower the volume, the more enhanced is the bass. Once, you get louder, it smoothens out. In my case: when I´m at live Levels, the Sound is well ballanced and thanks to KPAs seperate EQs, it´s perfect to set the Sound for the specific situations.

  • After reading this thread i bought a FRFR-108 and i'm really hapy with it. I have two Kempers, one Toaster from the ancient times when they were only available in white that i play at home. The second one is a rack which i use for rehearsals and gigs. As monitoring solution i started with a Yamaha DXR-10 and after it started to make strange noises I replaced it with a Dynacord AXM 12A. I was looking for a small, portable monitor for home playing and jam sessions and so I bought the Headrush.

    When I compare the three monitors the Dynacord is still the best sounding one, but the Headrush beats the Yamaha for me. ImM not going into details, I just can confirm what others wrote, no need to repeat it.

    Many thanks to Ingolf and the others, this thread really helped me to find a perfect solution for my needs.

  • After reading this thread i bought a FRFR-108 and i'm really hapy with it. I have two Kempers, one Toaster from the ancient times when they were only available in white that i play at home. The second one is a rack which i use for rehearsals and gigs. As monitoring solution i started with a Yamaha DXR-10 and after it started to make strange noises I replaced it with a Dynacord AXM 12A. I was looking for a small, portable monitor for home playing and jam sessions and so I bought the Headrush.

    When I compare the three monitors the Dynacord is still the best sounding one, but the Headrush beats the Yamaha for me. ImM not going into details, I just can confirm what others wrote, no need to repeat it.

    Many thanks to Ingolf and the others, this thread really helped me to find a perfect solution for my needs.

    Really, I dont know how can any guitarist go wrong with this product, unless there is some performance issues long term, this is as good as a deal gets. Glad to hear more satisfied users. I just bought the second one last week, stereo sounds awesome.

    The answer is 42

  • I'm using an old Laney TM 300P as Monitor. The Laney sounds well, when it is loud. I searching for a monitor I can use at home "in bedroom" which sounds well in lower volume. Can anyone give me a hint, whether Headrusch 108 works well in this situation?

  • I'm using an old Laney TM 300P as Monitor. The Laney sounds well, when it is loud. I searching for a monitor I can use at home "in bedroom" which sounds well in lower volume. Can anyone give me a hint, whether Headrusch 108 works well in this situation?

    The Headrush 108 will be great for this.

  • I'm sure it will do the job.


    But, if it's only to be used at bedroom, wouldn't you consider to get a pair of powered studio near field monitors?


    You could play in stereo and they could be used for some other things like hearing music with good quality, mixing...


    Just an idea.:)

  • This will be accomplished by two 108's as well. ;)

    And they are definitely not much more expensive than a decent pair of studio monitors.

  • This will be accomplished by two 108's as well. ;)

    And they are definitely not much more expensive than a decent pair of studio monitors.

    I'm with Ingolf on this. I prefer to use my DXR's, so the same would apply to the 108's.

    Go for it now. The future is promised to no one. - Wayne Dyer