Build or Buy Bose L1 tower arrays

[dnathan]

I'm building ZZ Top mic stands for a tribute band. They are heat shields that ZZ Top fills with lights with mics at the top.

I want to fill mine with speakers to save stage space.

A Bose L1 array would be perfect, but it's too tall. I'm torn between building 2 towers and using them with a Bose subwoofer but am intimidated by the technical part and haven't found fool-proof plans.

Option B is to buy, but the only thing I found is this: http://innovoxaudio.com/files/8913/5187 ... _Sheet.pdf
It's cheap enough that I could add Mackies or something to, but I don't know how to read the specs.

Should I build or buy?

[miked]

So...you want to have mic "stands" that are also speakers? You do realize that's about the worst way to project sound to an audience, right? It sort of reminds me of old style podiums that had a forward-facing speaker and an amp/mic built in. The idea is fine for a tiny room where all you need is to amplify the speakers' voice, but not so good for putting music through.

[dnathan]

It's shorter than the ideal, but with weddings especially, space is tight. The sub(s) could also go under the drum riser.

The thing is, I have a condition to where loud noise is physically painful, so I have to build a quiet stage or not do it at all. Thoughts?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

It's shorter than the ideal, but with weddings especially, space is tight. The sub(s) could also go under the drum riser. The thing is, I have a condition to where loud noise is physically painful, so I have to build a quiet stage or not do it at all. Thoughts?

Your condition doesn't matter to the audience. Do it right, wear ear plugs to protect yourself.

[dnathan]

I usually wear ear plugs and headphones. I would just wear earplugs for this. I'm looking for the quietest stage possible. It's sounding like the next best thing would be to stick an L1 in front of us and some Mackies at the back edges of the stage pointed to our left and right. The appeal of the Bose is that one tower wouldn't put up as much of a 'wall' as, say, Mackies. Thoughts?

[byacey]

At the risk of sounding imperious, why would you want to use anything Bose? They are the biggest smoke and mirrors pro- audio -wannabe that there is.

[DJPhatman]

dnathan, whatever your condition may be, get an audiologist-approved in-ear system. For what you would spend on a commercial system, you would be better served. Build yourself a pair of SLA Pro and a pair of T39 slims. If the rest of the band doesn't go in-ear, build Wedgehorn6s for them, and ask them to go e-drum and DI/modelers. Even the audience will appreciate the reduced stage wash.

[dnathan]

> At the risk of sounding imperious, why would you want to use anything Bose? They are the biggest smoke and mirrors pro- audio -wannabe that there is.

Because I haven't found an alternative yet, and am educating myself. I personally like their sound for acoustic instruments, but a rockin' eq is a whole lot different. I'm sold on the tower array part.

>Build yourself a pair of SLA Pro and a pair of T39 slims.

Right on. What would you recommend for fence-post tops and suitable subs? All I've found is this array: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R32RkxnI7oY

[DJPhatman]

SLA Pro and T39 subs. Properly deployed they will take Bose L1 lunch money, bitch-slap it and send it crying home to mommy. I don't particularly dislike Bose products, but their ludicrous retail price-fixing pisses me off.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that you can build 2 SLA Pros and 2 Lab12 loaded T39s for about half the price of one Bose L1 system.

[dnathan]

Can the T39s be laid on their side in front?

From the SLA page it looks like I could get the speakers for $.49 ea. The speakers I was looking at were $20! What do I need to look for in terms of specs? I found a pair of Pragmatic line array speakers (PHA-5125) for $220.

Power Handling: 10 - 288 watts
Frequency Response: 120Hz - 20kHz
Impedance: 4-ohm
Sensitivity: 96dB @ 1W/1M
Dimensions (HxWxD): 42” x 2” x 2”
Weight: 6 lbs.
Finish: Black anodized aluminum
Grille: perforated aluminum

They're thin, which I like, and I could put my time into the T39s. Thoughts?

[byacey]

The sensitivity looks mediocre-standard for most direct radiator boxes. Other than that, the rest of the specs are pretty vague.

[Chris_Allen]

There are two versions of the SLA, normal and Pro.

The pro uses 4x Eminence Alpha 6 drivers in each cab.

[LelandCrooks]

The .49 speakers were for the home version. It's a closeout that's long gone, but you can sometimes find comparable closeouts. Inadequate for PA use. As mentioned though, the pro version uses Alpha 6a's, a really fine and by pro standards very inexpensive driver.

You could lay the Sla's on their sides, but comb filtering would result. They comb when vertical, but you don't hear it because it's in the vertical plane. L1's would be the same on their sides.