Bose L1

Just saw a lounge band in Vegas using one last night ~ bass player was plugged into it. Those things have a real bite to them ~ the keyboard and vocals was a little harsh and the bass was a little lost. I bagillion factors could account for this, but I've heard these things before & they always sound about the same to me. For upright i'm not sure, but as an electric bass amp ~ IMHO no way.

 

Sorry I've got to strongly disagree. I would have initally had the same view. I have the L2 & understand it very well. As you say multiple factors can cause it to sound harsh. If using the Tone Match Module which is optional; You've got to take advantage of the onboard compression. It is amazing. For Electric Bass, two bins are better than one. The position of the L2 system is everything - download the manual. It can also be used with an unpowered desk. If using this method, I find it's best via a preamp. Suck it & See.

 

I use one for about 75% of my gigs. I experimented with using a bass cab to get some more punch out of it, but the included bass modules work best with it. For any rock gig, I use 2 bass mods into a Carvin powered 18" sub (I carry my vocals, bass, and kick drum through mine).

Some of the presets sound good with the tonematch, but I can get a more traditional (bass tone I am used too) using a Zoom B2 into the system.

There are many scientific properties discussed as to how the system works, but at the end of the day, to me it sounds similar to a system that is "out of phase" on the high end. The music envelopes you but you can't pinpoint it.

For background music gigs it is the best; for stuff where you want a bit of attitude, not so much. It does allow clarity at speaking volumes which helps to keep gigs though.

 

The Bose L1, eh? I've used one once with a band and it didn't go well. The sound was only OK, and I used 4 of those bass bins and a tower and I had no balls to my tone.

 

One of the band leaders I work with has a significant L1 investment. IMO, it's great for vox, horns, and even guitar - the tone match is quite impressive. Both keyboardists that work in the same environment and I are quite a bit less impressed for our respective instruments. On occasion we'll run the bass (DI out of my Epifani 502) for a bit of FoH reinforcement. It certainly gets the job done, but I'm not knocked out by the tone.

In general, I've been much more impressed with this system than I ever expected. When the environment allows for optimum positioning, it does a great job of pushing out sound, while simultaneously eliminating the need for monitors. Setup and teardown is an absolute breeze compared to a more traditional rig, and there's no doubting that it just looks cool.

FWIW, here's a closeup from a gig last year:


I believe on that gig we had four towers and 10 subs. Plenty of oomph for a large band (six horns, four vox, full rhythm) and a pretty big ballroom. No bass reinforcement, though, and for that matter only kick & snare from the rhythm section side.

 

+1

Not to mention the price...which seems to be a common issue with Bose products. Of all the other products by them that I see at Best Buy (where i work) and other stores like Guitar Center, it all feels like something that would be worthwhile if it was about 25% cheaper. I'd rather put it towards a tube head and go off my stage volume (which would probably be louder) than use the Bose stuff which just looks pretentious IMHO

 

As a bassist who makes a living from PA work, and sound engineering, i must add to the conversation....

"No highs, no lows. Must be Bose"

 

See, I thought the same. If it says BOSE, I'm just not interested. But even being a cynical rat bastage, I can't deny that this rig - when used well - sounds pretty darn good. All things being equal, I'd certainly never choose it. But, when it allows the band leader to control everything to his satisfaction, it puts more money in the pockets of the musicians, since there's no need for a more traditional rig and someone to run it. From that perspective, I'm more than happy to be the bass player on such gigs.

 

Well I can't say too much, but I happen to know of a cab that's coming out in a couple months that will do what the Bose system does, but it will have balls, and it won't cost $12,000 to outfit a band in cabs.

 

....Do tell, Jimmy. Or give me a search keyword

 

Audio Kinesis. That's all I can tell you right now. But I've seen the cab and how it works, and my opinion is it does everything the Bose system does but doesn't sound harsh or wimpy. If you are in the market for a small PA that does what the Bose does, unless you need one right now, I'd hold off, or I'd buy something cheap as a placeholder because I honestly think it's going to sweep the small PA market.

I beta tested a cab for Duke, so you can take it as you will, but I have no other connection with him or Audio Kinesis. I know it sounds like hype unless you've seen it, but I think his cabs are going to be the future of the small/medium PA market. I've got a order for two when he's ready to market.

 

I only expect the best from him!

 

I have played out of a Bose stick + subs many times and bass inevitably sounds like crap, the worse the lower you go. No definition, farty lows, etc. We have like 5 bose subs too. Anything below a Low E farts like crazy.

A normal PA will be half as much and twice as loud and low.

 

I'm not going to say that the Bose is the best thing ever, but if it is farting out on you it sounds like operator error. It did take me a while to get my tone worked out with the system, so using it once or twice would be very tough to give it a fair shake.

I have had the system for almost 2 years now and your mics will feedback long before it farts out. For a gig where the bar wants people to enjoy music but be able to order drinks without yelling in the bartender's ear, it works out well. Anything more and it just isn't the right application (mainly due to mic feedback at loud volumes).

 

I guess if I spent a truck load of money on a system that I really had to work to get sounding right quietly I might defend the Bose system as well? Wait......now I am confused???
Must just be me

 

It might be that the system needs a 75-80hz high pass or something, but based on looking at the bose subs I would estimate they fart out around anything under 80hz

Definitely crap. I'd say that the towers are adequate for vocals but I'd say getting your own sub woofer amp and subs would be a far better way to go.

 

Our band occasionally uses the Bose L1 as a monitoring system, and to provide some output from the stage. I have never been that impressed with it, but I guess in the right application it might be okay such as a smaller acoustic setting.

Maybe once you stack a bunch of subs and towers you will get a big sound, but by that time you could have purchased a pretty nice setup for what the Bose system costs. We only use it because one of our guitarists brothers has it lying around.

 

You need so many subs it's ridiculous. It takes 5 bose subs and two towers to do the work my LDS 15/6 can do.

 

Yeah, I purchased only 2 subs (orig had just one and never used it), used a bass cab for almost a year.

I found that with the sub and an external powered sub, it was the best low end without being boomy.

A boatload of money? Yes. Overpriced. Yes. But the band has had enough gigs to pay for it and then some.

It is nice to hear your mix on stage, but really it is just stage volume that according to the technology, carries a bit better so the people out in the audience basically hear what you hear.

Would I buy it again if the band didn't all go for it? Probably not since I don't feel that the "value" is there.

I will say that 9 out 10 conventional PA's that I hear sound much worse. Mostly though once again it is due to operator error...as in asking too much of the system...or emphasizing too much eq.

So, if the situation warrants it (moderate volume gigs), then they do work well.

One more thing...it is like just plugging direct into a PA (full range), so without the tuning for bass, yeah it is going to sound weak. A modeler or small amp is the key here.