PA speakers have come a long way from the days of basic boxes and woofy speakers. Gemini’s GD 115BT steps things up, with an active unit and plenty of real-world applications.
The enclosure seems quite rugged and robust, with a slightly textured black finish and has handles built into the design, along with a black metal grille. The sides are angled for use as a wedge monitor, and for traditional PA use, a recessed mounting point for being placed on a stand. With a 15” driver the unit weights in at about 35 pounds, which isn’t bad as it also contains a three-channel mixer and a 1000-Watt Class D amplifier. The controls are recessed into the back panel so if it’s being used as a wedge, there’s no chance of getting in the way of power or audio cable connections or any damage to the knobs.
The 3-channel specification, however, is slightly misleading. Channel 1 is strictly for a Bluetooth device to connect to the unit. Channel 2 has a selectable 1/8” aux in, as well as a 1/4” and a XLR connection. Channel 3 has the same connections as channel two but swaps out the 1/8” for a pair of RCA inputs. Each channel has its own level control and clipping LED indicator. EQ wise, it has treble and bass adjustments along with a master volume control. For true stereo, a pair of these speakers can be wirelessly connected in tandem.
There’s plenty of power in here to cover a large room; any good size function hall will certainly be shaking with even one of these installed. There’s plenty of thump and defined bass, with enough top end to cut and project.
For a singer/songwriter who has a vocal mic and an instrument, this can be a pretty potent setup for any gig. It’s not quite an all-in-one solution for a band, unfortunately. We found that for even a duo type gig, we would need an additional mixer to sub mix down to 2 hardwired channels. Yes, there are Bluetooth connections for backing tracks and some microphones, but they’re not as common as standard, hard-wired devices. Using these as a wedge isn’t a bad concept, with a 15” speaker that has plenty of bottom end and EQ that could tame any feedback issues.
However, for a Party DJ event, or EDM performers that might only need two inputs, a pair of these could easily raise the roof. The simplicity is quite fantastic, and the overall low-end response would be perfect for that kind of application. For a road-worthy powered speaker, it can make life easier for these kinds of performances, and even the most technically challenged users can make these work without a lot of hassle.
PROS:
Bluetooth, easy to use, plenty of power, works great as a wedge
CONS:
somewhat limited I/O options for larger groups and combos
STREET PRICE:
$299