Reviewed: Alto Professional TS312 Powered Speaker
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Reviewed: Alto Professional TS312 Powered Speaker

The TS312 is a member of the Truesonic 3 Series, all of which feature varying sizes of main driver and a high-temperature voice coil. The TS312 can deliver 2000 watts from its 12-inch low frequency driver and 3” voice coil. This loudspeaker is powerful, pleasing to listen to and unapologetic in its delivery, reproducing everything from 53Hz to 20kHz. This ensures a clean and precise bottom end that doesn’t get muddied by super low sub frequencies. The TS312 is solid and sturdy, but lightweight and portable enough to move around as part of a live guitar rig, or for musicians to own their own monitor that they feel at home on. Alto has custom-engineered super-efficient class D amplifiers with a passive cooling design that ensures the speaker runs quietly without a fan, and will work as a mainstay of your rig for longer. The back panel features two combo XLR/jack inputs, with independent volume controls and an XLR mix output. There’s a ground switch to prevent earth hum, and a contour switch that gives the speaker an overall low boost, mid scoop and high frequency sparkle.

 

While the contour mode isn’t as clinical as a flat response, it can serve its own purpose when chasing a more rounded tone for onstage monitoring, such as when powering an AxeFx or Kemper (or Helix, or Mooer, or…) system. The contour responds like an amplifier speaker cabinet, in that it’s slightly scooped and gives the amplifier ‘womp’ that we’ve grown so accustomed to. The speaker is powerful and aggressive, even without the Contour EQ engaged, but is not harsh or fatiguing on your ears – and the contour EQ simply pushes this further. The TS312 is designed for angled use as a stage monitor, but is also pole mountable as well as being stable in an upright position. The powerful and customisable sound has uses that extend beyond live use, such as re-amping room sounds, tweaking room mics for drums (i.e. live playback of drums while you’re recording), monitoring isolated amplifiers in the studio, or playback in reverb chambers and rooms.

 

The Alto TS312 is a phenomenal example of a monitoring or playback solution in studios or live sound. Products like this continue to raise the bar for a musician’s performance and monitoring experience, and you should expect nothing less from Alto. The TS312 is a powerful tool that can serve the purpose that most loudspeakers also serve, but with its own style and ingenuity. Multiple inputs, an output and a Contour EQ switch that transform the two-way, 2000 watt speaker into a less clinical monitor and more powerful amplifier for whatever you need it for. The TS312 is a speaker that is ready to do its job, and that job is whatever you need it to do.

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