serranoayala wrote:cphollis wrote:Same as above, but with some additional suggestions?
For acoustic piano and small combos in a quieter setting (e.g. not a full electric band) you may prefer a column-style pole array with a small sub at the bottom. Mine is a Bose L1 Model 1S, but there are several good ones on the market. The sound fills a small venue quite nicely, with lots of detail but it won't get very loud. Mono is fine, if you use the Nord mono function. If there is natural reverb in the venue (e.g. a microbrewery or similar), it'll be a very pleasing effect.
If you're playing out with louder drums, electric guitars, etc. the advice about the QSC K8s and a small sub is what I'd recommend as well.
This is very insightful, thanks! I have a few more questions
- Would you say the new Bose L1 Pro 8 is good enough too?
- Do you use 1 or 2 of them?
- If you're using just 1, do you connect L & R to the Bose??
- Do you always use the Mono setting when using 1 speaker?
- if you had to pick between 2 of the Bose S1 Pro + or 1 L1 Pro 8, what would be more adequate?
The Pro 8 is aimed at singers playing a guitar in a restaurant or similar. They sound GREAT for a small unit, but there's no real mixer, it's not powerful, etc. I would consider the Bose L1 Pro 8 the entry point into the series, replacing the old Compact which was awful. I have not tried acoustic pianos through that specific unit, but they should sound great. It's better to have too much PA than not enough, so buy a bit more than you think you need.
Depending on venue size you might want to look at larger units with similar designs from EV, RCF and Turbosound. You're never going to be able to do anything larger than a small restaurant or patio with the Pro 8.
One unit is fine for acoustic acts. If you're playing on stage with, say, a choir or unamplified instruments, the "piano" sounds quite natural coming from a single source. Again, you're doing quieter stuff and not an electric band. The line driver array on top gives you a very wide dispersion angle, filling the room with a lovely, crisp sound.
I would find the S1 Pro completely inadequate for my purposes, more of a boombox for busking.
I use the Nord's mono setting to get a single channel. I play with two vocalists and a guitarist. Think seriously about a small mixer with FX (or use your laptop) for things like EQ, compression, reverb, delay as it will add a lot to a vocal performance (those FX are native to your Nord).
Many of the Nord's piano sounds are quite acceptable in mono. You can also grab only the R stereo channel (the treble one) and use that if you're going for a brighter sound, or the L channel if you prefer more bass. The idea with many of the piano samples is it weights left to right as you go up the keyboard.
Don't expect to get very loud or be able to project out to a larger audience though. With a big single-column unit, your max is about 50-100 people or so. Two units can handle twice that.
Disregard all of this for larger venues, playing with loud drums and guitars, etc.
I think I have gear issues ....
