Karaoke Forums

Well today it happened..... I am too old to continue hauling around my conventional PA! I just purchased 2 Bose L1 compacts for 1200 dollars. I do not yet have the Tone Match and will see how I do without it. I have a big show coming up on Oct. 2 and I am really excited about trying it out. The room is extremely wide (150 feet plus) but not very deep (50 feet). I feel that 2 compacts (1 firing slightly left, and 1 firing slightly right) would be better for a room of this shape. The bass output is not quite what I want but for most of the music it is quite adequate.

A lot of my decision came about suddenly because several old sports injuries rearing their heads simultaneously. First back surgery(laminectomy) Feb 18 2015, second back surgery (spinal fusion) June 9 2015, rt. hip replacement Sept 9, 2015, and a future lt. hip surgery Oct 7, 2015.

Throughout all this I have only done a couple of shows and I had someone set everything up for me. I have had so much outpouring of support that it has been overwhelming to me. My local karaoke community has been beyond wonderful.

I have been working with the compacts at home for a couple of days now and I will have to say that they are pretty impressive for just 6 little speakers in each column. The mic EQ'ing is quite a lot different than with my Mackie 450's but very doable. The music is extremely clear and I actually find myself muddying it up a bit. I am trying to use my Sony wireless system and it has a "cable tone" which simulates long cable runs and does a great job of knocking down some of the "brightness" of the overall mix.

I will keep everyone up to speed in the next couple of weeks.

Congrats and welcome to the club! I can see where the compacts would be light on the low end. You could always add a sub if you really needed it.

great deal on those.remember, the dispersion is 180 degrees so you don't really need to "aim" them at all.
gonna be great for your back. one of the hardest things with the Bose, do not use it like a regular PA setup. flatline your EQ completely and do small tweaks. what was done with the Mackies will make the Bose sound horrible.

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Paradigm Karaoke, The New Standard.......Shift Happens

Funny that you say that. I hooked them up to my rig and left my Yamaha mixer the same and the sound was unbelievably bright. Not a bad thing but the audience's ears would definitely been very tired at the end of the night. It is a whole different animal for sure.

I use Breakaway to normalize the sound and I have never used the "Bass Shape" feature. I tried turning the bass shape up to around +40 and the bass became much cleaner sounding... I was impressed!

I was suggesting a very small turn (aim) maybe 5-10 degrees. I will run them about 18 to 20 feet apart in mono. So far they are great and at the price I purchased them for, I can easily resell them for the same money and get the L1 Model 2 if needed, but I think this will fit my needs better.

Based on the room size of a large dinning room directly right (100 people) and a slightly smaller dinning room directly left (75 people), and dance floor directly in front (no seating at all), will I be able to fill the space with sound with 2 compacts? The dancers will not be blocking the sound to the dinners.

IMO you and your crowd should not have any problems... I set up a similar scenario in a club that size (probably a little larger) with one (1) compact, and never received complaints, and I did have a L1 Classic that I could have daisy chained for more Bass response (2 B1's), but my FOH soundchecks were satisfactory to me and the crowd... so I left the larger system in the van, and went with one Bose Compact... DJ's and Techno Bands were amazed that I didn't (Haven't used my 15" Pioneer Cabs in a long time ) use my BIG (Heavy) speakers for that size Club, and still was producing clean sound to every corner, and the Vocals were not being over powered... You will miss a little thump... But that turns out in my favor for Karaoke... Straight DJ's may require a B2 for added thump... Your Mileage May Vary

Last night my (2) Bose compacts shined brightly. The sound was evenly distributed and clear even in the furthest corners. I had some EQ issues that I had to address but the location of my rig allowed me to hear exactly what every one else was hearing, so I was able to perfectly dial it in. I'm sold on Bose

Glad to hear! Thanks for the report.

The Sony wireless worked flawlessly. No pops clicks or drop outs. I laid cabling out just in case of a problem (it greatly calmed my nerves). I never thought for a second about plugging them in. The sound was perfect and the "cable tone" was very useful in taming the Bose "brightness" especially since I was using a Mackie 450 for a floor monitor. Turning down of the mids made the Mackies sound muted on the vocals.

thats great! so much easie4r on your reamining old hip huh?
it's funny you mentioned brightness, i thought that was one of the things Bose was missing according the this forum...no highs no lows must be bose

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Paradigm Karaoke, The New Standard.......Shift Happens

When you consider the size, I find the highs and lows to be quite impressive..... again keep in mind I am talking about a Bose L1 Compact. For their size they way over perform any 31 pound speaker system I have ever heard, and their coverage is much greater.

Sounds like your Compacts have put on a little weight , according to Bose they only weigh 29.2 pounds. You better get those compacts out and exercise them some more!
mrmarog I would urge you to now borrow or rent a T1 and play around with it. I am sure after playing with it for a while and learning what it is capable of you will own one too.

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I do plan on giving them a work out just as soon my bones will allow I actually have quite a bit of experience with the ToneMatch and it is an amazing unit. The compacts aren't designed to use the T1 so they need an additional power supply and 1/4" outputs

True, you would need the power supply for the T1 but the T1 has the 1/4 outputs.

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

By the way congratulations on your move to Bose.
Your reasoning (their light weight without compromising sound quality), I believe, was the same as mine.
For those that spout off about Bose being so expensive I just want to tell them that:
"Hey, I'm in a place in my life where I can afford Bose equipment...and my body can no longer handle the bulk and weight of a traditional PA system"

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I had so many people tell me that the sound was absolutely perfect. The number one comment was that they could hear the music and singer quite clearly, and yet carry on a conversation without screaming at each other.

I was able to purchase (2) Bose L1 Compacts, used, for $1200 from Craigslist. The guy that sold them to me even brought them to my door and set them up because I had just had my right hip replaced 4 days earlier. As it turned out I knew his father (who passed away last year) and these speakers were his father's. It's a small world.

Craigslist had (2) other compacts for sale for $1000, but they did not have the speaker extensions and the speakers would have to be placed on a shelf to be used.

Yes yes yes, this is the "magic" of Bose

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I have always prided myself with great sound and well thought out speaker placement. It was very easy to achieve that last Friday night with the Bose compacts. The one thing the compacts have over the full size L1's is that the speakers are only on the top 15" (or so), so that some one sitting close to the column has the sound going over their head instead of directly at their entire body.

I did find that in order to achieve the really great singer's experience I needed to add a floor monitor. I used a Mackie 450 but I am going to use a Mackie 350 next time. The compacts set up behind and off to the side of the singer did not provide me with the experience I desire. Now if I can place a tower in front/side and pointing at me, then that might work, and that is another reason I wanted (2) towers instead of (1) full sized L1.

My next gig will be Nov 20 at the same place as last Friday and I will have everything tweaked to a fare the well by then. I want to thank everyone that has encouraged and added to my success and longevity.

I have a L1M1, T1, B2, 2-B1s, A1(amp) and a Compact.
I use the Compact (without extensions), on a shallow angled platform as the singers monitor. I just can't find the adequate words to describe it...as a singer you are the music.

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I run a Bose L1 M2, with sub, T1, and breakaway. It was one of the best investments I have ever made, and all my other gear is now stuck in storage. I have even used it with my band, and when just playing DJ at weddings and parties. The setup has paid for itself, and even after a year an a half, it is still rocking the house. I know for a really large venue, I would need to pull my other gear out, but I haven't booked anything the Bose couldn't handle in years. Good investment, highly recommended.

Tj