Scott,

You asked if anyone had done a comparison of the Bose L1's to the Electrovoice SXA 360's. While I have never used the Bose L1's and only tested them in a Guitar Center showroom, I do use the EV's in my current sound system. In my opinion the SXA 360's will give you a better quality sound as well as a lot more power. I noticed that Bose does not give out the SPL(sound pressure level) rating of the L1's so I called the number in the manual to get this info, not that it is the only factor but it is certainly one that helps give us insight into how different brand speakers compare. The technician I spoke with said, "We don't give out the SPL rating of our systems since we feel that those types of numbers can be misleading". I found this answer to be interesting since all other speaker manufacturer specifications that I am aware of have always included this information.

If you are doing smaller indoor venues then the Bose will probably do the trick. Note that Bose still has a pro division which makes the larger more poweful systems including the "old stand by" 802's which they have designed for larger venues.

You asked for the weight of the Bose L1's. Here is what is listed in the manual:
PS1 power stand - 35 lb.
Lower L1 - 16 lb.
Upper L1 - 14.5 lb.
R1 remote - 0.6 lb.
B1 bass module - 28 lb.
Thats about 93 lbs total for the single L1 system.

I know that you have the SXA 100's but the 360's are completely different animals. They have a different high frequency driver(DH2T Compression Driver) that puts out a lot more power than the one in the 100's. I own both and the 360's have a much better sound. The engineer at EV described them as being more "vocal forward" and said that this driver was similar to the one used in the Plasma P1( http://www.electrovoice.com/products/30.html ) except it uses a 2" voice coil instead of the 3" that is in the plasma. The 100's have a 1" voice coil.

As a side note: the EV slip covers fit the 360's better than the 100's as the 360's are flat across the entire back side without the annoying fins that protrude from the 100's.

Esh, I like the JBL's also. Before I bought the EV's I had the older (non G2)powered Eons, three 15's and two 10's. They had a very good sound. Oh and btw I too remember those "tiny Dawn speaker systems" that you mentioned. I tested one about 20 yrs ago and the whole band had a good laugh afterwards. LOL

Scott, the important thing is to find is to find what works for you and makes you happy!

If we all had the same opinion it would get pretty boring around here.

Richard

[This message has been edited by richard_shiflet (edited 08-02-2006).]