When the original L1 Model 1’s first came out, there was a great deal of discussion on the Bose forum regarding having sufficient bass output even though you could use 2 woofers with the Model 1. Subsequently, Bose produced a device called a Packlite so that you could use 4 woofers with a single L1 Model 1. As I’ve said previously, I have 2 woofers on a single L1 and can get the stage to vibrate so I can only imagine what it’s like have 4 woofers! So based on the earliest posts on the original systems, I am a little surprised that Bose didn’t have a way to hook up another bass unit to the Compact. But as Mac said earlier, it was for cost considerations.

From what I can gather, the L1 Compact is designed for rooms with 100 people or less. The Model 1 and Model 2 versions are for rooms up to 500 people.

For musicians that play larger venues, most of them will plug directly into their Bose systems and use it as their stage monitors because of the excellent clarity of sound and feed the house systems from the line outs of the Bose. This is how Steve Miller and Todd Rungren use their systems. I saw the Flatlanders about a month ago at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago and they used 3 Model 1’s (I do not remember their woofer setup) and fed the house system.

I do realize the cost of the Model 1 or 2 is prohibitive in many cases. But if I was a regular gigging musician who had to set up 2 PA speakers, a board, cables running every where…I would get tired of that quickly…as a matter of fact, I do have a little side business where I record school concerts and I AM sick and tired of hauling my 16 track recorder, 100’s of feet of cable, setting up anywhere from 4 to 16 microphones and then tearing it all down after the concert and hauling it out…so I can empathize with gigging musicians totally. Being 52 yo, the ease of load in, setup, tear down, and load out would be a significant factor in my sound system choice…and in the case of the Model 1 and 2, the sound is excellent in my experience (I can’t speak of the Compact though).

Bob, if it’s financially feasible for you, I think you would be very pleased with the advantages of the Bose system (sound and setup/tear down). There is the 45 day return policy (no questions asked) from Bose. Their customer service is excellent, similar to the over-the-top excellent CS from PGMusic.

BTW, I’m on vacation so that’s why I haven’t chimed in earlier. I am only looking at the forum every few days

Tom