17 Jul Fender Passport Event S2 PA: A Review
by Marisa Torrieri Bloom
I never owned a PA before the summer of 2020, but when live music moved indefinitely outdoors, my world shifted. My band’s rehearsal space shuttered and suddenly the only way to get a gig was to bring your own sound equipment everywhere — to porchfests to beaches to backyard BBQs.
Having not ever operated a mixing board, I turned to my cousin Monty Powell, the Nashville producer and songwriter of Troubadour 77 fame. Hands down, the Fender Passport Event PAs are the best portable ones on the market, he said.
love my Fender Mustang amp, with its variety of preset effects and 50+ watts of glorious, powerful noise, so I was easily sold. I ordered this baby on Sweetwater. Three years later, it’s still one of the best, and most-used sound equipment purchases I’ve ever made.
What I Loved the Most
The Fender Passport Event packs in a wealth of features at a pretty unbeatable price (about $800), including two big combo amplifiers (with a huge range of tones); Four microphone inputs; and Bluetooth connectivity (so you can play music, like a backing track). My band uses all four microphone channels, so this is great.
The biggest selling point, however, is that it’s compact and easy to use. I’m not a sound engineer by any stretch, so if something isn’t easy to figure out, I’ll never use it. But the Fender Passport Event PA can be toted around town, dismantled, and set up in about 15 minutes.
What I Liked Less
I’m 5’2 and have birdlike, waif arms, in spite of constant working out. This thing is HEAVY. While I can carry it short distances (like 50 meters or less) and hoist it into my car, it’s not easy by any stretch. I need to wear sturdy shoes and use both arms to lift it. I can’t just hold it with one hand and then hold my 50-watt amp with my other arm.
Would I Recommend?
8,000% I would recommend this PA. I’m sure the Bose S1 Pro Multi-Position PA is pretty freaking comparable, but I cannot imagine swapping my Fender Passport for anything.
Marisa Torrieri Bloom is the editor and founder of Rockmommy.
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