Alto TX 210

I needed 2 (possibly light-weight) active speakerboxes for the following situations:

- Live stereo-amplification of ...

1) Electric guitars (Stratocaster & Les Paul), speakers replacing Roland Jazz-Chorus in the backline;
2) Western guitar;
3) Classical guitar;
4) A four-member semi-acoustic ensemble including male and female vocals;

- 5) Home amplification of individual and group teaching sessions.

... where the signal for (1) is taken directly from the outputs of a Zoom G3Xn multi-effects-processor, and for (2) to (5) from the outputs of an Alto ZMX122FX (small) mixing device.

After reading a lot of reviews (and somewhat influenced by the good quality of my Alto ZMX122FX mixer) I ordered, received (thanks for reliable deliverance, you Thomann people) and tested 1 Alto TX 210 ... after which I ordered the second one the same day. These are my findings:

- Good solid building quality, and volume control knob perfectly within the protection of the casing;
- An amazing amount of sound, more than sufficient for (1) as well as (2) to (5);
- No noticeable hiss or hum when operated at standard line-level input signal;
- The sound quality is good, no undesired distortion within RMS.

As to be expected considering such a small casing, the frequency-response is not entirely flat. These are PA-speakers, not studio-monitors. Of course there is, unavoidedly, a slight resonance-peak in the lower end of the spectrum. But this I anticipated before buying, and it can very easily be corrected with a little (parametric, when strongly amplifying acoustic instruments) equalisation.

This fact reflects the choice I made to absolutely NEVER buy any active speaker that has 'tone controls' on it: Such 'tone controls' will always be useless because they never provide what one really needs, and on the real downside they produce extra vulnerability, especially in (on-off) stage-situations. I prefer the clear simplicity of this Alto TX 210.

Some other pro's:

- It has a (grounded) power connector instead of some stupid internally connected power cable;
- There is a power fuse which can easily be reached and replaced, which is a MUST on any device.

Long story short: I am perfectly satisfied working with these Alto TX 210's.