Subwoofer for S1 Pro

[Archtop_Eddy]

Oldghm posted:

While I was gone you guys have touched on why we don't have every gadget we want.

There has to be a demand in the market place that goes beyond a few special needs musicians.

O..

While I see your point and you may be right in general, I think in this case the market demand may go beyond the needs of just a few musicians.

Bose has tapped into a great market of solo buskers, giggers, etc., with the battery powered S1 Pro. I suspect they have sold many hundreds if not thousands of these units.  A lot of folks I know (including me...) have more than just one!

The draw about the S1 Pro is it sounds great, is easy to set up, it's lightweight, and can be battery powered.  That is a killer combination!  Especially, the battery powered part for outdoor buskers and giggers. Yes, not everyone will get full use of the battery, but many people enjoy having that option for when they want to use it, and for outdoor buskers/giggers, it's a game changer.

I suspect battery power is such an important part of the S1 Pro's charm, it's the reason Bose started offering the S1 Pro with the battery installed.  They want customers to think of this systems as a "go-anywhere" mobile system. They knew their superior sound and battery capability was what set the S1 Pro apart from the other small acoustic amps on the market.

For these reasons -- thousands sold, the great "Bose Sound", light weight, robust battery life, and mobility -- I think a matching subwoofer (or improved battery-powered A1 packlite) would be a solid addition to the S1 Pro and L1 Compact lineup.

As further example, Fishman is now marketing their upgraded "tower" system with a subwoofer, and many of the other companies with their "tower" PAs are also offering subwoofers with their smaller units.

We all know that these are direct copies of Bose's line array systems (particularly the Compact), but none of them are battery powered.

Seems to me, a battery-powered, lightweight, great sounding Bose subwoofer is the next logical step!

[Archtop_Eddy]

Oldghm posted:

The only reason I would like to have a sub for the S1 is so I could use my Travelog. I would still need the third channel. 

O..

Hi O.  For what it's worth, the setup I note above with the Behringer actually leaves an open subwoofer channel so you could insert a foot-stomp pedal like the Travelog into the second subwoofer channel.  However, you wouldn't have much EQ control on the stomp pedal...

[Oldghm]

Starvin posted:

Oldghm posted:

If the crossover was available separately or in a B1 / A1 / crossover package, at a reasonable price, it might be a good seller.

O.. 

What if Bose made a new A1 packlite that was battery powered, 250 watts,  had cross over built in for the S1 and Compact but retained its normal base line out input for L1s. You could use B2, B1 ect.

Is that what you are referring to O?

edit: added the highlighted part

Actually, I was thinking existing components with the addition of a crossover sold at a reduced price as a "package".

O..

[Oldghm]

I wrote the following last night but decided not to post it up as it is slightly off topic. The idea of how many units a company must sell has entered the conversation so I'll print this. I don't know what kind of numbers Bose has in mind, but they are a world wide company and I expect it is very, very high.

About twenty or so years ago I was shown an old Yamaha guitar with a pickup in that I had never seen before. It was heavy, made of various tubing, wire, metal plates, and had multiple adjustments, but it sounded better than anything I had heard at that time. There was no name on it and though it seemed well built I could not determine if it was factory made or a one off hand built unit.

I talked to the folks at LR Baggs and described best I could the device, and from my description they believed it was acting as a microphone. The mass of the device was physically attached and wired to the end pin jack and was not in physical contact with a metal plate attached to the bridge plate. They surmised the vibrating top made the metal plate act as a diaphragm moving within a magnetic field / coil on the end of the tubing. 

The discussion covered a lot of ideas. The one that stuck in my mind all these years later was that they told me when they (LR Baggs) went to market with a pickup they fully expected to sell multiple hundreds of thousands of units. ............  Obviously not all ideas get to market.

O..

[ST - Pro]

Hi, Archtop Eddy,

Archtop Eddy posted:

Chet posted:

Starvin: I agree.  .

Now if we could only get Bose to read this thread and agree too!

From Bose:

We're listening.

Please understand, we cannot comment on products that may be in development. But we're always working on something.

Cheers,

ST

[Archtop_Eddy]

Thanks ST.  While we don't expect a commitment from Bose, it's good to know they're listening!

P.S. to O:  I connected my Shadow Stompin' Bass foot pad to the extra channel on the subwoofer and it worked like a charm...

[CityFolk]

@ST we all understand. I was a product manager in a large IT firm for many years so I’m well aware of the issues Bose faces. It’s a delicate balance among market demand, product features, engineering requirements, support, documentation, and of course cost/profit margin.

From a product management perspective, one thing I always valued was constructive customer feedback/suggestions. That helped drive a lot of features in our software. I think Bose does this pretty well, but the mantra should be always listen to your customers. You might not do everything customers would like, but always be listening. 

[jdbassentertain]

The... "I need more bass thing" has been plaguing the portable Bose PA family from the start. It seems to be a constant theme here. Bose has answered the call many times in the past. I think Bose tries very hard not to shoot them selves in the foot... since they already have larger systems for sale that offer more output, I think they would rather sell one those then have consumers buy a smaller system and then scale them up to provide larger output levels. 

[Oldghm]

Archtop Eddy posted:

Thanks ST.  While we don't expect a commitment from Bose, it's good to know they're listening!

P.S. to O:  I connected my Shadow Stompin' Bass foot pad to the extra channel on the subwoofer and it worked like a charm...

The requirements for me to choose the S1 and a sub over the Model II would require at least these features:

The S1 would have to have at least one more channel. Bass line out. Still usable as a standalone. The Sub would be a cross between the B1 and the Model II power stand. It would need to safely support the S1 on a pole. The Model II style legs might be an option, but vibration could make that unacceptable.

As I start adding features that would make me want to purchase a S1 compatible sub, I realize I am talking about a new and improved, more powerful, deeper bass, Compact.

I don't think there is a design, or I can't imagine one,  that would match a sub to the S1 that would work better than an improved Compact.

So, could they design and build a battery powered improved Compact with three or four channels?

One thing I have learned since I started using the Bose line arrays is you can turn down the Model II to suit most any space. The smaller systems don't work so well in the other direction.

O..

[Archtop_Eddy]

For me, it's not a question about how the S1 Pro compares to the Compact or the Model II.  It's the fact that the S1 Pro is...

Battery-powered.

For some people this may not be important -- for me it's what the S1 is about:  Light-weight, good sounding, battery-powered.

It's as Bose themselves acknowledge in their very image at the top of this forum. A picture of a guy busking outdoors with the words, "Ready to Perform. Anywhere. Anytime."

Staying with this purpose and theme is why I'd like to see a compatible light-weight, good sounding, battery-powered subwoofer to complete the whole S1 sound.