I have used Mackie's for donkey's years, but some friends have the new QSC's... absolutely no comparison. The horn on the QSC's is clear, doesn't sound 'plastic-y', and goes a LOT louder before nasty overtones kick in.

The Mackie SRM450 was a good product for its time, but it always struck me that most of the good points were about construction and features. Not the 'sound'. Compared to upper tier JBL's, it never sounded that good, and compared to the QSC's, same deal.

Perhaps these new Mackie DLM's can bring Mackie back to the forefront? The coaxial design is novel, keeping the size down. Power is exaggerated, as most companies do nowadays. 2000W really means about 1000W RMS, maybe lower before THD% sets in too much. You need a boatload of ClassD power to be the equivalent of a Class A or B amp! But they are heat efficient, which is what you need if you are going to stick them in a speaker!

No-one round my area has one of these DLM systems yet, but several friends and clubs have gone with the QSC's. All sound great for having done so.