Advice from Gigging musicians Bose vs JBL

[JerryM]

Looking at ordering a portable PA in the next couple of weeks and looking for input from any gigging musicians who may own one of the two I am down to. Looking at the Eon 1 Pro, and the Bose L1 pro, looked at a bunch of you tube reviews and it's hard to get a real feel online for these.
The Bose seems to sound more out front with good mids and a ton of volume but a bit lacking in the bass. The Eon seems to kick the bass great but hard to tell how the vocals will measure up.
Like the mixer on the Eon don't want to need to purchase a extra sound mixer as on the Bose. Hard decision since both are priced pretty close.
Any real world experience out there with either of these??? Would appreciate any and all input.
Will be using it with guitar acoustic bass and two mics, SM57's and one instrument mic a Audixi5. Fairly large room. Thanks in advance.

[Captain Jim]

Hi Jerry,

I am not aware of a Bose L1 Pro. There are several models of the L1, with the L1C (Compact) being in a similar price range as the EON 1. The new Bose S1 Pro has been getting a lot of discussion here recently, but it is definitely smaller than either of those two.

I have been using Bose equipment for the last 8 years, so you can see where my opinion would be. It would be best for you to audition them side-by-side to get a feel for which would best serve your needs.

With what you are looking to run through it, I would be inclined to say you will need a mixer and for a large room might want to be looking at the L1 Model 2 or 1S (both will be more expensive than than the EON 1 or the L1C). I have done groups up to 150 with the L1C, but that would put it at the far end of its capability; the L1 Model 2 can handle a larger room and groups up to 300 or so.

[necrome]

From AGFers that previously ordered the Eon One Pro, it supposedly has a lot of issues - from whining sounds to running extremely hot. I don't personally have any experience with the unit but I trust the forum users here and don't think it's a reliable buy from those reports.

There is no Bose L1 Pro product (only L1II or L1C), so if you're referring to the Bose S1 Pro, it has been getting rave reviews from a lot of people posting lately. There are many videos on YouTube on how the unit sounds and performs, and people seem to be very happy with it. That being said, I found the sound to be lacking in every clip I've come across on it, and don't think the price is justified.

It seems like you are looking for a battery powered solution? I highly recommend the Laney AH4x4 as a full-time busker with 18650 batteries, it's lightweight and sounds great (especially for its price). There are a few older threads with demo videos and clips on it and I personally own a unit. I'm even thinking of getting another to pair them up so I get more volume outdoors.

[DavidE]

I have the original JBL Eon One and a Bose L1M2. No contest. The Bose kicks the JBL’s ***. I’m in a duo and the line ins on the JBL suck so I have to use an outboard mixer to plug in 2 mics and one guitar. I’m trying to use the JBL for smaller gigs, but I’m usually pushing the limits of the JBL which sucks too.

[martingitdave]

If you have guitar, bass and mics, neither of those are going to work. You need a minimum of a 10” woofer for the bass. Look at the HK Nano 608i. It’s the same price as the JBL, but a better system with a full featured digital mixer. I purchased one last year and I’m glad I did. Nothing else to buy. I owned the JBL Eon One which was fine but had mixer gain issues. DavidE (above) and I spent a lot of time online trying to figure that out. I own the Bose S1 Pro. It is a toy in comparison. If you want to stick with Bose you’ll need the Bose L1 M2 with a B2 bass bin. That’s about $3000.

[JerryM]

Thanks. everyone decided on the Bose twin setup 2 L1 units and Bose mixer so should do the trick. Got a screaming deal on the setup under 2k shipped