From my testing with the G70, personally, I hear no difference between using the mono out on the G70, and summing to mono externally. IMO, there's no need for additional gear (a mixer or Y-cord) when faced with a mono input.

And, to be honest, I am STILL waiting for anyone to show this on Yamaha's in any empirical sense. You have to be VERY careful that summing doesn't alter the volume, or tone differences WILL be heard... even though they aren't really there. The ear is VERY sensitive to changes in volume, but tends to percieve them as changes in EQ...

I have to admit, I'm also not a fan of big 'smile' EQ's. Studios spend a fortune mixing and mastering on speakers that are as flat as is humanly possible. Then we go any f*ck it up with a big smile, and then wonder why the vocals get lost, or the sound is brittle, or the bass is spongy... Me, I'd START with everything flat, and only adjust if you HAVE to. Bose's are pretty 'smiley' already, IMO...

What a difference a day makes, 24 little hours... Today's experience with the Compact was a 180* compared to yesterday. What was different? A lot!

First I spent some time with the unit this morning and played my SMFs, styles and sounds thru it over and over. I played with the G70 EQ and decided that the Standard and Flat settings are best. But the biggest change from yesterday were the volume controls. Yesterday the g70 was up all the way while the Compact volume was at 10 o'clock. Today I set the G70 at 11 or 12 o'clock as needed and set and forgot the Compact at 12 straight up. What a difference that made all by itself. The sounds were clear and vocals came thru without a hitch. It didn't hurt that today I had a larger room and I placed the PAS further away from me - I'm convinced I was too close yesterday to really appreciate the sound. I also feel that the lower volume of the Compact did no justice to the keyboard dynamics.

An observation - the lower volumes are very smooth, say up to about 10 o'clock and the higher volumes, above one o'clock really kick. If you can use the amp at 1 or 2 with your equipment I think you'll get optimum sound.

And an aside to Bill Corfield - yeah, Bill today's sound test went much better and I was more impressed with the kick. I think you could make the Compact sing, if that's what you choose to do.

One more job on Monday, this one is probably outside, so I'd like to hear how that works out. I did my fine tuning out on the patio this morning and the neighbor came over and said DON'T STOP when I quit. He said the sound was amazing and was surprised it came from only the Compact.

Day 2 Compact score B+. Today it sounded better than my CM-30's and almost as good as my Mackie setup.

...and to reply to Diki's comment - I used both the single cable and later a double cable and found no audible difference for me. I'll probably start using the single cable and start clearing some of hte stuff I carried around for the CM-30's. May bag will be a little lighter now.

Lastly, a big thanks to Gary for all your great suggestions. It's those simple things that make the difference.

[This message has been edited by cassp (edited 08-22-2009).]

Glad I could be of assistance.

Your audiences are gonna' love ya!

Cheers,

Gary

I'd still keep that second cable with you, cassp... You never know when one will go bad on you.

I agree--you gotta' carry spares, especially cables.

Good Luck,

Gary

I always carry spares of everything electrical(except that damn G70). I've been there and tried to solder a connection in the dark with a match too. I've got extra cables, but now the double one can be the spare - it's really two spares, right?

I did an outdoor gig yesterday with the Bose compact. I must say, I was hesitant to use it in the street. I set the volume as per Gary’s suggestion and the EQ flat as per Diki. I tweaked everything just a tad and I was surprised as to the response, especially the projection which pretty much exceeded my expectations. Folks a block away heard and responded to the music. I only used the midi accordion, Midjay Plus with vocals. I originally purchased the compact to use only for small venues, but now I think I can expand and use it for some bigger settings, even some outdoor gigs. The other thing – it was hot yesterday. I’m sure I lost a couple of pounds perspiring, but not due to carrying and setting up equipment.
Ciao,
Jerry

Jerry,

Until my recent health problem I considered keeping my standard L1 system. However, since then I decided to sell it and purchase a second L1 compact, primarily for a backup system. And, if the need ever arises, I'll have a pair for playing park concerts that have audiences of 800 to 1,000 in attendance. I have only performed a half-dozen jobs of that size during the past decade, but they were lots of fun, particularly when the young people began dancing with the older crowd. The compact L1 continually amazes me.

Cheers,

Gary

Gary,
You really got me thinking ... Last weekend I had one of those nightmare gigs with the L1, B1. I was told that the gig was to be in the "Grand Ballroom", so I only carried the big Bose system. As it turned out, the ballroom wasn't so "Grand" and only seated about 150. The acoustics were such that I could not reduce the volume enough - complaints all night. When I lowered the volume, the sound quality was correspondingly bad (kinda reminded me of the Bose 802's, they were great if you pushed them, but not so good at low volumes). I didn't get the usual '...sounded great ...' and it has bothered me all week. That's why I was so interested in hearing how the compact performed in larger venues. I do several outdoor Italian festivals a year and the L1 with the B1 works great for those venues. But, if as you say, 2 compacts could be chained, ... hmmm ...
Ciao,
Jerry

Jerry-

I use the L1 for all size rooms I play at for everything from smallish nursing homes to grand ballrooms like I just did this past Saturday evening. I've never had any trouble finding a happy volume for everyone.

Tell us more about the room you were, ok?

One challenge for me is when they force me to cramp into a space, and I don't have enough room behind the L1 for it to breath, the bass response on many of the Yammy styles in my T2 becomes huge. Usually I can set the sub in such a way that it works out fine though...

Cheers-

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Bill in Dayton