Bose S1 Pro "EAR FATIGUE"

[JPH]

Anyone else experiencing ear fatigue with the S1 pro?

I have tried putting it on the floor and on a stand. I set it up 6ft or so behind me and to the side, just as I always have with the Fishman SA330x and EV30M.

For some reason, the S1 exhausts my ears. Half way into the gigs and afterwards for a while, my ears are tired, and almost feel the way they do when I've had the type of head cold/sinus infection that makes things sound like they're in a chamber inside my ears. Just overall discomfort.

I have gigged this S1 extensively. When I gig the Fishman or EV30M, there is none of the ear fatigue.

Curious to know if anyone else has noticed or experienced this.

Thank you.

[varmonter]

Yes I just think it's the general overall tone of bose.. My band has the compact and the l1.
When driven its harsh.. not sure you can eq it out.. they all seem to be mid range driven.
And the result is ear fatigue.
I'm not a fan..can you tell..

[Peter Z]

I don’t call it ‘fatigue’, because I hear that from the time I turn the S1 Pro on. The S1 has a tiny woofer and the bass is shifted to the lower midrange, some kind of fake bass that makes the tiny speaker sound big. You can mostly dial it out, but then you have to add a sub, otherwise the S1 sounds thin.

We can’t have all - the size, the weight and the sound at the same time. Maybe in future with a completely new speaker technology.

I never could get a realistic acoustic guitar sound out of my S1 Pros (this is much easier with higher pitched instruments like a mandolin), so I changed my approach and tried to create a nice and ‘easy to listen’ sound instead of a natural sound.
At the end my acoustic sounds powerful and mid-rangy, a bit like a hollowbody guitar, but I like it. That includes a little EQ, compression, a short dark single delay and a little reverb for picking and the same without delay for strumming.

[jjbigfly]

Hmmm… never noticed this. I think I understand the concept, just never noticed it in my case and I have used Bose systems a good deal (have two S-1s and the L-16). Audiences usually comment on the clarity at nice levels. With either system.
I will say that I have no issues with the Bose sounds, but then it could be that I am used to the sound.

[rokdog49]

I’ve never experienced this.
I do find the guitar “tone match” setting to be “brash” and I don’t use it.
I set mine on “off” and EQ it with the treble and bass controls.

[Methos1979]

Originally Posted by rokdog49

I’ve never experienced this.
I do find the guitar “tone match” setting to be “brash” and I don’t use it.
I set mine on “off” and EQ it with the treble and bass controls.

Same here with respect to the Tone Match - never liked the 'guitar' setting. When using the EAE StompMix X6 mixer I have it off. If going direct into the S1 both the mic and guitar prefer the 'Mic' setting. As for 'fatigue', that's one of those subjective terms. As someone that suffers from hearing loss and chronic and very loud, dissonant tinnitus and hyperacusis, any and all electronic (digitally produced/enhanced) music fatigues my ears, especially anything with headphones or earbuds.

For amplifiers I think a lot has to do with where you can position. When we were using the Bose S1 Pro for gigs the primary favorite position for best sound for audience AND us was directly behind and between us so when we needed to play loud that was fatiguing. Setting off to the side or down low sounded bad to us as you lose so much of the highs very quickly leaving only tubby bass. Off to the side and back a bit was better but it was a fine line in fidelity loss and ear fatigue as the position and volumes changed.

We have had much better luck since going with the EV30M I think due to the wider tonal palette and the need for less volume to gain the amount of overall performance volume/coverage needed for the audience. Placed off to the side and back a bit you still get a decent amount of tonal palette for the performer without the ear fatigue. So I would agree with above thoughts from Peter Z about it being a size thing when it comes to the Bose S1 Pro. They are a wonder but there are limitations and tradeoffs.

[Peter Z]

Originally Posted by Methos1979

. They are a wonder but there are limitations and tradeoffs.

That sums it up perfectly. I should have added, I like the S1 Pros and have four of them meanwhile.
The Tonmatch EQ is quite extrem, so you need a guitar/pickup that fits to those deep cuts perfectly. Instead of the Tonematch switch I’d prefer a switch for the positioning-EQ (a 4-position tone shape switch). That would really make it more flexible.

[soma5]

This discussion is very interesting because I've been thinking of getting one for the battery option. I currently use an AER Compact 60 and have for fifteen years. I like it very much and find that it gives a very pleasing and surprisingly spacious amplified tone. A friend has one of the Bose S1 Pro amps, and at low volume and short duration in his house, it seems to be quite nice. Maybe I should ask to try it out at volume and maybe even use it on a gig.

[jricc]

Originally Posted by rokdog49

I’ve never experienced this.
I do find the guitar “tone match” setting to be “brash” and I don’t use it.
I set mine on “off” and EQ it with the treble and bass controls.

Yes to all of this.

[Peter Z]

Originally Posted by soma5

This discussion is very interesting because I've been thinking of getting one for the battery option. I currently use an AER Compact 60 and have for fifteen years. I like it very much and find that it gives a very pleasing and surprisingly spacious amplified tone. A friend has one of the Bose S1 Pro amps, and at low volume and short duration in his house, it seems to be quite nice. Maybe I should ask to try it out at volume and maybe even use it on a gig.

Yes please ask him, do it if possible and let us know your impression. The 8” speaker of the AER might have a little advantage on the low end, but the ‘double cone’ technology is about 100 years old (grand-grand daddy’s tube radio). It doesn’t look like a coax speaker with two coils. It might be nice for a guitar if you don’t want a clear high end but for everything else I’m pretty sure the S1 Pro will sound better, at least from 180 Hz upwards. And it will spread the sound a little better.
I’m very interested in what you think after hearing both.

[JPH]

Originally Posted by soma5

This discussion is very interesting because I've been thinking of getting one for the battery option. I currently use an AER Compact 60 and have for fifteen years. I like it very much and find that it gives a very pleasing and surprisingly spacious amplified tone. A friend has one of the Bose S1 Pro amps, and at low volume and short duration in his house, it seems to be quite nice. Maybe I should ask to try it out at volume and maybe even use it on a gig.

Yes, I think it's a good idea to gig with one before taking the plunge.

Personally, I'm leaning towards selling mine. Just not a fan of the sound. Love the portability, battery option, and bluetooth, but for me, when it comes to solo gigs, nothing beats the sound of the SA330x or a good old QSC k.2 with mixer.

I like the EV30M very much also.

[JPH]

Thank you everyone for the input. Really appreciate it. I've decided to take the S1 out of my rig rotation most likely.

I might keep it for use on occasional gigs where electricity is an issue. But most likely, I'm going to sell it.

[JPH]

Originally Posted by varmonter

Yes I just think it's the general overall tone of bose.. My band has the compact and the l1.
When driven its harsh.. not sure you can eq it out.. they all seem to be mid range driven.
And the result is ear fatigue.
I'm not a fan..can you tell..

I agree. It has it's shining attributes, but overall, I view it as a sound solution for very select gigs.

After extensive gigging with it, I have decided that I too, am not a fan.

[jpino]

Originally Posted by JPH

Yes, I think it's a good idea to gig with one before taking the plunge.

Personally, I'm leaning towards selling mine. Just not a fan of the sound. Love the portability, battery option, and bluetooth, but for me, when it comes to solo gigs, nothing beats the sound of the SA330x or a good old QSC k.2 with mixer.

I like the EV30M very much also.

I had the SA330x. Honestly I struggled to get a good fill of even my medium sized living room. It has now been replaced by a single Turbosound iP300 on a stand. Same weight, much more SPL, 120 degree (sounds like more) dispersion, and better tone hi-fi like a studio reference monitor. Highly recommend if you don’t need a sub (more then enough bass for my instrument) and can’t drop $1200.

[rokdog49]

As I previously stated, the Bose S1 is a very good unit for certain types of venues and audience numbers. When you couple that with the battery and the lightweight, it really works better than just about anything out there.
Nothing is a “be all, end all” solution. There are always compromises.