Guys I m a little worried as a marriage celebrant whether the S1 Pro will be loud enough for outdoor weddings of around 100 people and also can I use the audio imput to run a wireless sennheiser mic and can another wireless mic be put through the microphone imput. All comments appreciated thanks
Hi Garry we’ve used our S1 outdoors for farmers market gigs on a speaker pole for around 60 people just fine.
However, one aspect that I will caution you about is overall distance you might have between the unit and the audience. If people are in reasonably close proximity to the S1 you should be fine. But if they stretch back more than say 60 feet or so, I’ve found the S1 doesn’t project as far as say an L1 M2 and you may find the sound will drop off significantly. Not a negative about the S1, it just wasn’t built for far flung projection. In our case, that was not a big issue. If people wanted to hear us, they just moved up closer.
We’ve used a wireless mic through the 2 XLR combo inputs assuming they do not require phantom power. Actually, we now use the Xvive U3 wireless mic system that converts any XLR based dynamic mic to wireless operation. It has a 100 foot, line of sight range and we experience no drop-outs, latency or mic tonal degradation. It is battery powered with a life of about 5-6 hours. It really has worked out well as we now can be wired or wireless with the same set of Shure 58 and 58 Beta mics. Since our mics are cardioid or hyper-cardioid, we haven’t experienced any major mic feedback issues either.
I’m not familiar with the other wireless mic you mention going into the audio input so can’t comment too deeply on that. I assume you are referring to the channel with Bluetooth or the mini jack? My main concern with that input is you won’t have as much EQ control over that channel as you would with the others. That could get you in trouble with feedback or a murky sound.
Hi Garry
I run a small DJ, Sound, and lighting company. I use two S1 Pros for most all of the wedding ceremonies I cover. Just covered a 150-180 person outdoor ceremony using two S1 pro speakers on battery.
No problem at all, In fact the officient asked me to turn down at sound check, he was on a lapel mic.
One thing to keep in mind is that during a wedding ceremony there is an almost zero background noise threshold to overcome.
I do run a separate mixer to control wireless mics and music playback at my booth location.
Best of luck with your event
Hi Garry,
Welcome to the Bose Portable PA Community and thank you for your question.
Bose conservatively suggests:
- S1 Pro for audiences up to 50
- L1 Compact for audiences up to 100
- L1 Model 1S for audiences up to 300
- L1 Model II for audiences up to 500
More information about Bose Portable PA solutions
You can expect different results depending on the size and shape of the audience area, whether it's indoors or outdoors, the level of background noise, what the audience is doing (listening attentively or not), the program material (spoken word, live music, prerecorded music) and many other factors. That's why the numbers above are conservative guidelines, but subject to the conditions in your situation.
Garry posted:Guys I m a little worried as a marriage celebrant whether the S1 Pro will be loud enough for outdoor weddings of around 100 people
At a minimum, I would consider an L1 Compact, or possibly two S1 Pro systems if the seating is wider than long. If the seating is longer than wide the L1 Compact would be a better choice than two S1 Pro systems.
and also can I use the audio imput to run a wireless sennheiser mic and can another wireless mic be put through the microphone imput. All comments appreciated thanks
The S1 Pro can handle two microphones (any combination of wired or wireless).
Does that help?
ST
1 I also have found the S1 Pro to work great for wedding ceremony PA/music. So far great results with crowds up to 200 with a pair of these great little speakers!
I think one S1 Pro will be fine. People tend to be quiet during a ceremony. It's not like a musical performance where people tend to talk during the music.
Thank you everyone I really appreciate your suggestions. Am in Australia, and here the S1Pro is $1000 each so two is really out of the question. Any other thoughts regarding a similar system
Hello Jefry146,
The S1 Pro has internal limiters for the speaker array and the woofer to keep from damaging them. However, running the signal level in the red continuously indicates clipping, i.e., distortion caused by overdriving the input stage of the channel. While the preamps are well-built, sound quality certainly suffers if running constantly in the red.
You should turn up the volume until you see steady green on the LED, and occasional flashes of red are OK. If you are constant red, turn down the volume. If you turn it all the way down and still get red, then your source (guitar preamp, music player, etc.) is too loud.
See this link for information about proper gain staging for the S1 Pro. See this link for information on the S1 Pro internal limiting.
Does that help?
Thanks for your response.
Quick question: What if the LED is solid red and the music still sounds great? I just want to make sure I don’t damage my S1 PRO.
Does it cause any damage to the speaker over the time?
Hi Jefry,
If the LED is solid red, this means the audio signal going to the system is too loud and is distorting. If audio is distorted, you will likely be losing the clarity and 'punch' (transients) of the original signal and also hearing added audio artifacts like crackling and clipping. These artifacts are often undesirable.
For best practice, set your input level so that the indicator is showing green, then adjust the channel volume level appropriately.
Hope this helps!
Hello again Jefry,
The effects of clipping over the long haul are not so much with the speakers themselves, but with the system electronics. The main potential damage can occur because of overheating as it tries to output power in excess of its power rating -- and many can attest that heat is one of the main causes of failure in electronic equipment.
There's a decent article on clipping and its effects on Wikipedia at this link.
Does that help?