adouglas
Well-known member
Thanks. Don't want to hijack your thread but these things have intrigued me. They are expensive (especially over here) but I don't have a PA and the idea of rolling backline and PA into one system is quite appealing and may make some sort of economic sense if I cross my eyes and brainwash myself hard enough. Does each player need a system of their own or do you just add bits to get the output you want in total?
Hmmm. Markbass. Bose. Markbass. PA. Bose. Bongo. Bose. Trip to Coachella....
Actually it makes more economic sense than you might think. You're replacing your backline, plus your PA, plus your monitors, plus all of the associated gear (racks, cables, stands, etc. etc.). Add it all up and compare apples to apples, and you might find it's more affordable than you think.
If you go with the ideal setup (which is indeed one system per performer) you have your own personal "monitor mix"...so you have to compare what you're replacing with gear that can give you the same thing: A system capable of giving you an individual monitor mix, and one that sounds as good on stage as it does out in the audience.
In the real world, few bands actually do use one system per performer. I do because we're only a trio...if we had five people, we'd definitely be sharing simply for economic reasons.
Also, I always recommend to my customers to use the gear where it will do the most good first: Vocals, then guitars, then keyboards, then bass. So if you don't sing, I really don't think it's cost-effective. You're not actually using the PA except for FOH in that situation. You'll get more bang for your buck out of a MarkBass.
The sweet spot for most bands (4-5 people) is two systems. I just outfitted a five-piece band with two systems. Keyboard, drums, bass, guitar, percussionist, and all of them sing. They elected to dump their backline amps. They're stretching the design intent, but they sounded really good at the gig I help them with. And all their equipment fit in the back of one vehicle. They are *very* happy.
And the heaviest piece weighs 35 lbs (or about 25 lbs for the new Model II). Next time you're hauling your 500-watt Ashdown with its 4x10 up some stairs, think about that.
It's not for everyone, that's for sure. But for me, it was absolutely the right answer. After last night's gig, my guitarist and I were talking about it, and we concluded that had we not gone with it, we might have given up gigging years ago simply because of the hassle and poor sound. Either that, or we would have spent even more money chasing good sound.
Not sure what the free trial deal is over there, but look into it. Here they give you 45 days free trial, and it was that experience that convinced me. Zero cost, zero risk.
If you want to continue this discussion, please PM me. I'd rather not talk too much about non-"approved" gear here. MarkBass is OK because of EBMM's involvement with getting them over here. But talking too much about Bose is going over the line.
Moderators, if this post is too much, feel free to blow it away.
