Canadian Musician November / December 2019 | Page 23

ROAD
TEST
Proel Session4 Compact Portable
Array System
By Jay Thompson
I
recently had a chance to try out the
Session4 from Proel, a compact portable
array PA system in an active 2.1 con-
figuration with twin top speakers and a
single subwoofer. The system is relatively
compact when it’s stowed for travel and
when set-up with the included pole mount,
making for a versatile solution across many
different live sound applications, from solo or
small ensemble performances to mobile DJs
to music and speech playback in corporate or
other rental situations.
Of course, the Session4 lives in a relatively
crowded field of compact and portable “all-in-
one” PA solutions from various manufacturers,
all of which differ slightly in terms of size and
weight, onboard effects and DSP, connectivity
options, and of course, sonic performance.
I’ve used a few of these in the past for both
live music and playback and was interested to
see how the Session4 stacked up.
Out of the Box
The Session4 features two top speakers with
four individual 2.75-in. drivers each in a verti-
cal array configuration, arranged to offer even
and consistent vertical coverage. The sub
features a pair of 6.5-in. woofers in a band-
pass configuration, with all of the cabinets
having notably robust plywood construction.
I also think the components look very sleek
compared to other portable PA offerings,
and having worked with a few corporate AV
providers and rental companies, think that
makes this system an attractive option in that
world – meetings, schools, weddings, etc.
The sub has cavities to hold the two tops
in their respective padded bags along with
the speaker pole and included four-wire
Speakon cable for one-package portability.
That said, the Session4 weighs in at about 55
lbs., putting it at the heavier end of the “all-in-
one” PA offerings.
In use, the two tops can either be stacked
one on top of the other with the included
pole mount for a mono, eight-driver array, or
one can be placed on a second speaker stand
for a simple but effective 2.1 set-up. (You
can also use two separate speaker stands
for the tops for more flexibility with the sub
W W W. C A N A D I A N M U S I C I A N . CO M
placement.) There’s also the “Double” mode, in
which two Session4 systems in the mono ar-
ray configuration can work in tandem, which
could appeal to users needing to cover more
space with more output.
An onboard three-channel, 1,200-W Class
D amplifier drives the system, controlled via
Proel’s Core LT DSP. Processing options in-
clude a dynamic EQ with four presets for basic
music playback, live music, DJing, and speech.
The interface is comprised of an LCD display
with a single rotary knob to navigate menus.
This handles the DSP settings, two selectable
mic/line inputs, system configuration (mono,
stereo, double), and Bluetooth.
In Use
As I expected, it was very easy to physically
set up the unit in both mono and stereo con-
figurations with an extra speaker stand (not
included). Most of the weight is in the sub, of
course, so setting up the polemount and two
tops was no trouble.
From there, I found the control interface
for the mixer and DSP fairly easy to navigate
after going through everything and getting
a handle on it. I’m personally split on the
rotary encoder. While everything was easy to
find and configure on the front end, it’s not
as conducive to on-the-fly adjustments as
having dedicated controls for the different
parameters as with some of the other systems
I’ve put to work. Having said that, I can also
appreciate that, once you’ve got everything
dialed-in, this is more “tamper-proof,” which
I’ve learned from experience is something to
keep in mind for rental applications.
Sonically, I’m a big fan of this system. The
highs were clear and smooth and mids quite
pleasing, but in particular, the sub output was
the true highlight – impactful and dynamic
without muddying up the sound. The cover-
age was nice and wide relative to both the
mono and 2.1 configurations, with good
consistency across the listening field.
Going through the four presets – Music, Live,
DJ, and Speech – I found each to work well and
be relatively pleasing for its intended use.
I invited a friend over with her acoustic
guitar and a simple looper for a live per-
formance trial and she was as impressed
with the sound as I was. We had more than
enough volume and the mix carried well from
lower to higher levels.
Conclusion
Ultimately, I enjoyed my experience with the
Session4 despite being new to Proel gear and
would say it’s as good if not better-sounding
than other systems in its class that I’ve used in
the past. As far as functionality and onboard
features, your choice will depend on your
particular needs, but I’d definitely recommend
giving the Proel system a close look. As far as
I’m concerned, it strikes a very attractive com-
bination of sonic performance, portability,
and, considering it’s priced at under $1,500
CAD, overall value.
Jay Thompson is a studio and live sound
engineer from Southwestern Ontario.
CANADIAN MUSICIAN
23