RonMarton

I'm always "on vacation", Tino ! :D (Australia is like that. Really.) What you will also have noticed, however, is the way many other folks have chimed in with a multitude of superb responses to those forums for which I'm in the privileged position of being able to offer contributions. (I have been watching...) :ph34r: I guess the four main things on my mind in that situation would be Trip hazards from cabling, Avoiding "drainage" into our equipment, Rigging for an easier de-rig (and quicker arrival at the beer afterwards) ...and... Aiming our "thump" to the audience, but (if possible) AWAY from areas that do not want and/or need it. With those four factors in mind, (and given that we have two L3s enclosures) I may very well opt to configure our pair of subs as a single "side by side" array in order to both reduce cabling distances and to shape their radiation as a more vertically orientated "slot" that has one of its "sides" firing up to a (demonstrably non-reflective) sky, with the other "loading" onto the "acoustic plane" that is the ground on which they (and our audience) are standing. (That gentle "drainage" curve you mention should have very little bearing on our sound, because such sonic effects as it may impart will largely be "aimed" skywards, as you will have already guessed.) Given that our brains make the mid-tops seemingly almost the exclusive "sources" of sound in terms of actual perception, all of the above may easily result in our side by side subwoofer array "landing" away from the FOH speakers, under any available lamp-post, tree or awning that allows for easy "flying" of cabling while offering a suitable "aiming point" for the more vertical "slot " that is its (relatively narrow) dispersion pattern. That sort of ground-loading side by side array will also project less "far" than a vertical "stack", whereby we can use it to grant our "mosh pit" or "dance-prone" area a very satisfying level of clean "thump", while still allowing that type of "passing trade" crowd to arrange itself intuitively, according to the amount of participation that each member actually wants.

You're always welcome, folks... For more details of sub placement techniques, scroll down to the "Sound reinforcement" section of this Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subwoofer

It's actually a fact that PLACEMENT is a highly effective tool for harnessing the nearest "acoustic boundary" and/or "corner" (as a "no extra charge" addition to any speaker system that effectively gets more "leverage" onto the air from a given set of speaker cones) rather than simply being some form of "mystical magic" that may or may not be noticeable. A single L3s "laid flat" alters things in two ways: Bringing both of its cones equally closer to a floor boundary, therefore (naturally) further away from the ceiling and The consequent side by side arrangement of its two drivers decreases that system's horizontal dispersion, while simultaneously increasing vertical dispersion, whereas the upright "stacking"of drivers on top of each other does the opposite, "narrowing" the system's vertical dispersion while increasing its horizontal. For a given acoustic space, or notional "box", then, placement alone can completely alter how the bass is perceived, whereby some "rooms" will become almost irredeemably "boomy" and/or "boxy" and/or "whoomp feedback" prone with (say) a pair of incorrectly placed subs working against each other to also create "nulls" and "nodes" where hardly any bass is actually audible, ...as distinct from having the same notional pair intelligently located, or even "stacked" so as to radiate uniformly coherent bass from a single point that's directing the waveforms away from as many boundaries as possible. Perhaps the best demonstration of this effect can be heard where no boundaries exist to either help or hinder, in which case audiences can be comprehensively amazed at the distances over which coherent, full range audio can be "thrown" from what appears to merely be a single pair of StageSource L3 mid/tops in their normal FOH positions on either side. That sort of "magic" is readily achievable at outdoor festivals and the like by pair of L3s subs actually doing most of the "heavy lifting" from their "invisible" position, ...laid sideways, but "stacked" on top of each other, dead centre and fully under our high stage's leading edge, from where they can not only derive maximum "leverage and loading" from the ground on which they're standing, but also achieve the maximum and most evenly dispersed (staggering) "thump" as a result of radiating from that single point. Dead easy via Line 6 Link.

...and I had to obtain a "Special Clearance" certificate from the RCMP as part of the gruelling acceptance procedure for access to this forum.

...And the answer, Larry, is... (Drum roll, please.) YES ! (Boom-tish !) I think you should get an L3s. Definitely. Certainly. Unequivocally. Without a trace of doubt... ...er, ...um, ...ah, ...provided that the all-important funds are available. While (IMHO) Mackie's 1801 certainly was (and remains) an excellent value-for-money item, ...I feel that in comparison to a StageSource L3s it could very well be described as having a relationship equivalent to the notional one that a stick of chewing gum might bear to a perfectly cooked steak. :lol: In other words, I feel I can pretty much guarantee that the differences in clarity, "reach" and effortless power gained from the addition of just one correctly-placed and Line 6 Linked L3s will prove to be an absolute joy... ...and isn't "joy" what it's all supposed to be about ?

Good luck ! ...And don't let them try to charge you any extra on the basis that "in tempo" rattling is a special feature that was added, just for drummers...

This is a "kinda weird" long shot, but I have had the odd loose screw "buzz" on the external facilities and/or "handle" panels of speakers from other manufacturers, ...so a quick all around check with screwdrivers and/or allen keys wouldn't do any harm.