In the smaller, more intimate settings ... like house parties, cocktail receptions, where you would only be making about as much sound as an acoustic piano ... you don't need lots of bass. You're not doing a dance thing, and you're providing background music for listening and to promote, and enhance conversation. (adding elegance to the affair) In this scenario - the music is just icing ... "musical wallpaper" to add beauty and energy. Years ago, when a piano was the go-to choice for these parties ... the instrument often faced the wall, so the player didn't even make eye contact with the audience. It was strictly a voice "in the room" and not a show.

With today's arrangers ... the sound that comes from the internal system is very often full range ... at a certain volume. All you need to do to fill a little more area is push a bit more air into the room. The midrange is where the vocals and melodies usually lie, so that little Mackie should do great. If Donny gets a second unit, and starts pumping even more sound out .... I fear that he'll miss the full range of sound and actually take a step backwards. If space and volume are the priority ... I sometimes just add a bass amp for fullness. Since I use the Bose compact for my main work ... the smallest situations are still in it's repertoire by simply not extending the poles. Sometimes, I even take the top speaker OUT of the enclosure ... just to add a touch of bass. The KB speakers handle the rest. If the room needs more ... I just put the poles in and add the top speaker - back in business at full strength. Remember, the most important element of the ensemble (my voice) is still facing the crowd and projecting at a pretty strong volume on it's own.

I've been on virtually every size stage I can imagine, from the Academy of Music to Veterans Stadium and everything in between. I've learned to recognize when the "performance" is priority and when the "performer" is. HUGE difference, and for the latter .... sometimes, teeny, tiny coverage is all you need. Some of my favorite memories are parties in someone's house or office that would have been compromised greatly by setting up a large speaker on a pole. The visual is important too. Some party planners are so fussy that they drape my speakers, make me face them to the rear, or even cover over logos and names that are printed on things. It's a competitive world, and unless it's YOUR party - we can't always decide what's best for the room. We are still in the service industry, and our job is to provide WHAT'S NEEDED. For some situations ... what's needed is just a tiny bit more to fill up the dead spaces.