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Electro-Voice EVERSE 8 / EV8 -.Sax Traks Mackie & EXM

26K views 124 replies 13 participants last post by  Tonehole  
#1 · (Edited)
I am in need of upgrading my Sax-tracks system and am contemplating buying the Everse 8.
I can sell my current system for a profit and buy one of these speakers.

Its advantages are it is battery-powered, Bluetooth, very light and compact, and pushes out some serious volume. One would be enough for my cocktail, winery and Corp solo gigs and If it works well I would buy a 2nd one so I could set up for smaller weddings and private DJ sax dance events on my own.

Does anyone have experience with these speakers?
 
#2 ·
That looks intriguing. Interested to hear from anyone using this unit too. I’m using Mackie stuff - Freeplay Live for very small events - battery powered and only about 10 lbs.

SRM Flex (not battery powered) for larger venues. Both good for the job.

I used to have a hookup at Mackie but she quit when they were bought out by PE. :(
 
#5 · (Edited)
This is a fairly detailed review, the reviewer says she does not think the Mackie Thump is in the same league just on spec's and quality alone and she unloaded her JBL. As she states Bluetooth is Bluetooth.

Very cool speaker. In comments section she states ... "paring this with the Yorkville EXM-Mobile-Sub Ultra-Compact Battery-Powered Portable Subwoofer would be super dope."

This would exceed my needs and will pack super small and lite in my vehicle the price is not a factor. I have to pack and wheel my gear a few blocks often from parking spots downtown to venues so the smaller the better.

 
#6 ·
The Bluetooth on Everse 8 is only for for controlling the speaker with the app and/or playing background tracks through it (not mic'ing sax).

Everse 8 is the best battery powered speaker available concidering sound quality, loudness, light weight 17 lbs., and input/mixing/eq options.

HOWEVER, I have bought and returned three of these due to multiple software issues.
Yes, there is a firmware update that fixed some issues---- but created a new issue.

The reason I returned my third unit was it would not "remember" gain setting above 10 on the Mic input channels. You NEED a higher gain, and you can set it way higher---but it will be reset to zero when you turn the speaker off, then on again. The speaker is SUPPOSED TO save ALL settings. It seems that Mic Input gain is pretty basic. EV tech support acknowledged that this is a bug. And no new udate on the horizon according to EV tech support back in March.
 
#12 ·
The Bluetooth on Everse 8 is only for for controlling the speaker with the app and/or playing background tracks through it (not mic'ing sax).

Everse 8 is the best battery powered speaker available concidering sound quality, loudness, light weight 17 lbs., and input/mixing/eq options.

HOWEVER, I have bought and returned three of these due to multiple software issues.
Yes, there is a firmware update that fixed some issues---- but created a new issue.

The reason I returned my third unit was it would not "remember" gain setting above 10 on the Mic input channels. You NEED a higher gain, and you can set it way higher---but it will be reset to zero when you turn the speaker off, then on again. The speaker is SUPPOSED TO save ALL settings. It seems that Mic Input gain is pretty basic. EV tech support acknowledged that this is a bug. And no new udate on the horizon according to EV tech support back in March.
dtedsax how have you found the volume on the unit and run time on the battery?
 
#8 ·
It looks pretty good, but is kinda pricey at $750. The frequency response shows a sizeable dip at 1200 Hz, about -7 dB, which could be from port cancellation, and there is a smaller dip near the 2.5 kHz crossover frequency, but at least there are no real peaks and the response is pretty smooth otherwise. So it won't sound harsh like so many PA speakers. Also, don't believe the 400 W amplifier power quoted. If you take the battery capacity of 86.4 Watt-hours, and divide that by the rated run-time "at full output" of 6+ hours, that yields 14.4 Watts. The 12 hour run-time means it is running at less than 7.2 Watts average, and this all assumes 100% amplifier efficiency. So the amp might only be 50 to 100 Watts RMS continuous. I would only count on it being loud enough for moderate volume applications, small room or busking type of thing. It would be nice if you could also plug it in and get more power.
 
#10 · (Edited)
You know and understand the numbers adjustotone, as for price it is going for $800.00CDN = $595.00USD and I am able to get it lower than that.
They were demonstrating it at the CosmoFest yesterday and it was plenty loud in person.

Hopefully Dtedsax can report on how it fills a real world venue and battery run time.

I am enamoured by it's size, weight and build quality.

I am currently using the Yorkville EXM400 Compact Scalable PA Sytem
 
#14 ·
I've been a big fan of the Bose S1 Pro for a few years now (I own 2 of them and use 1 or both of them a few times a week), but I have to admit... it looks like the EV takes the S1 Pro's features to the next level... Bigger woofer, phantom power, more onboard effects, outgoing 5v/12v power, etc.

That said, you have to decide for yourself whether those extra bells/whistles are worth the extra $. For me, a bigger woofer is unnecessary, because for my solo sax/vocal gigs (usually background/cocktail/dinner music), I don't need a low end that'll blow the doors off the place. Just 1 or 2 S1 units is plenty for 90% of the gigs I do, and if I do need more low end for a particular gig, I'll use my L1 Pro 8. I've played 100-person dinner/dance hall gigs with just 2 S1 Pros, and it's plenty. And... FWIW... I also play bass guitar in a bluegrass jam now and then, and, although I have a Fender Rumble Studio 40 bass amp, I take an S1 Pro to the jams because it's so lightweight and battery-powered -- and it's plenty for the bass in that environment.

As for the EV's phantom power... that's nice, but my wireless sax mic and wireless voice mic don't require phantom power. And my S1 Pro's simple reverb is plenty for what I do (I'm not into a lot of FX). The EV's outgoing 5v/12v charging ports are nice, but I doubt I'd ever use them. I charge my iPad (for tracks) before each gig (and carry a backup iPad, just in case), and my wireless mics' receivers are battery-powered, so no need for a 12v power supply.

As you can see, upgrading my Bose S1 setup to the EV to gain all those extra features would just be an added expenditure that wouldn't pay any dividends for me. But YMMV.

Without doing a side-by-side comparison, I can't comment on how the EV compares to the Bose for sound quality, so I'll defer to swperry1's findings above -- but I get a lot of compliments on my S1 Pro's sound. And I love the specially-designed Bose backpack for the S1. Plenty of room for gadgets/misc stuff, and I can carry it over my shoulders and haul everything to/from my car in one trip for most gigs.
 
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#17 · (Edited)
Here's some more math on the EV:

change in dB = 10*log(factor increase in power)
factor increase in power = 10^(change in dB/10)

So an increase from 95 dB to 121 dB = +26 dB, requires a factor of 398 increase in power.

Suppose we start at 95 dB with the claim that it runs 12 hours at that level. The battery can supply 84 Watt-hours of energy. Let's assume the thing can indeed deliver 400 W for a (very) short period.

At 101 dB, we will need 4x the power, so the run time will be about 3 hours (12 / 4)

At 104 dB, it will be 1.5 hours.

At 113 dB, it will be 11 minutes.

At 119 dB, it will be 3 minutes.

At 121 dB, it will be 1.8 minutes.

I'm ignoring the power it takes to run the preamp and mixer and just using the following equation for an estimate based on 12 hours at 95 dB:

run_time_minutes = (12 hours * 60 minutes/hour)/10^((dB-95)/10)

So it seems like the practical limit would be around 104 dB at 1 m away, pink noise, for any reasonable length of time.

Your Yorkville doesn't have this limitation and should be able to sustain higher output indefinitely, making it "louder" on a routine basis.
 
#19 ·
There are quite a few reviews on YouTube comparing the Everse 8 to the Bose S1 (and a few other battery-powered PAs), where you can listen to the differences in sound (best if listened with headphones). No question the Everse 8 is more powerful than the Bose, but in my opinion, it's more of an "in your face" sound, whereas the Bose offers a cleaner and more natural/balanced sound. I think the Bose is more suitable for solo and acoustic gigs, but if I were a DJ or in a party band, I'd probably prefer the Everse 8. Of course, sound preferences are highly personal and there's no one-size-fits-all answer for everyone. The JBL EON One Mk 2 also gets high marks for power, sound and features (10" woofer, 5-channel mixer, no tripod needed, etc) and it would cost you less than 2 of the others. Just tossing it out there.
 
#20 ·
I would say it all depends on how important battery power is. If I were doing it, I would avoid relying on a small built-in battery like the 84 Watt-hour one in the EV speakers and use a 500 Watt-hour external camping battery pack like this, powering the EXM400: Amazon Jackery camping power pack
Then you only need to carry the battery when you need battery power, and you will have maybe 5x the run time of the EV at the same volume. This solution would work for any portable speaker.

The power supplies in these speakers are of the switching type (except for possibly the satellite supply for the Class A/B 75 W amp), so they are efficient and you won't lose much power in the conversion.
 
#21 ·
I would say it all depends on how important battery power is. If I were doing it, I would avoid relying on a small built-in battery like the 84 Watt-hour one in the EV speakers and use a 500 Watt-hour external camping battery pack like this, powering the EXM400: Amazon Jackery camping power pack
Then you only need to carry the battery when you need battery power, and you will have maybe 5x the run time of the EV at the same volume. This solution would work for any portable speaker.

The power supplies in these speakers are of the switching type (except for possibly the satellite supply for the Class A/B 75 W amp), so they are efficient and you won't lose much power in the conversion.
FWIW, the Bose S1's battery is rated at 11 hours operating time and the Everse 8 at 12 hours. In the 3 years I've been using a couple of S1 units, I consistently get two or three 3-4 hr gigs out of an S1, with battery life to spare. No degradation so far. Of course, I'm not cranking it up to full volume (usually about half volume for most gigs), but that's my experience.

I can't speak for others, but for me, the internal rechargeable battery is extremely important and it has been a game-changer over the past few years of gigs. No need to worry about whether there'll be electrical power where they want me to set up -- or if there's power, how close I'll be to an outlet (or what obstacles I have to navigate in order to access it with an extension cord) -- and no need to carry a portable power supply. I can set up anywhere, with no cords.
 
#23 ·
This is a valuable learning experience for me and I will have to take a dive into researching more as I have never needed to know this info in the past I just showed up and there is a sound guy.

I am a novice at this but is an increase of 6 Db the equivalent of adding another speaker?

Not doubting your math.
I am searching to find a EV8 user who can verify the run time at full volume, someone must have used this speaker at 113 Db for 13 minutes and drained the battery the digital display shows Db level but I can find no reports / complaints on it. This may be why the battery can be swapped out so easily.

All the comparison reviews I have watched / listened to the EV seems louder when set at the same Db and this is commented on by the posters. Could this be due to the spread, in a comparison between the EV and the S1 Pro it sounds noticeably louder. The S1 has a 120 spread and the EV 100.

I will be keeping my EM400 and will investigate more on these powered speakers, after a bit of data diving the S1 Pro may be the better option for my outdoor / patio playing needs and level of electronics expertise, it is more old school and plug and play. I was considering a back up battery pack but I would not be playing at those Db levels outside. I was hoping to be able to swap out the EM400 with the EV for stage shows but seems one speaker won't do it all. I guess the adage holds true go big or go home.
 
#24 ·
Good observation about the spread -- yes, more directivity will produce a longer throw in theory -- the energy is spread out over less area.

Yes, right now what I see are a lot of EV and vendor videos with no real performance data. All sales. They seem to be sponsoring "independent" "DJ" reviewers. We have one independent measurement that shows the EV does not meet it claimed max. SPL, which is no surprise to me. I saw one video that had an obviously fake sound test!

Does it have its uses? Yes, low volume ones.
 
#30 ·
At what volume -- that is the question. I gave it credit for lasting 12 hours at 95 dB, which is the basis for the other estimates. It's always possible I made a mistake somewhere, but there are some universal truths it is up against, such as +3 dB requires twice the power, making the battery last half as long.
 
#26 ·
This has been a useful thread for information. Hard to imagine a battery operated PA being able to deliver serious power for long periods of time.

For seriously loud I have a qsc k8. That needs to be plugged in but it is LOUD! :D

I wonder how long a 70,200mah power bank would keep a battery / plug in PA going? I can’t find power consumption specs on the Mackie site.
 
#27 ·
Hard to imagine a battery operated PA being able to deliver serious power for long periods of time.
I guess that depends on how you define “serious” and “long.” For me — and a lot of others — these battery-powered PA units deliver. I do over 100 solo gigs a year — mostly restaurants, assisted living communities, and corporate/private parties — ranging from a dozen to 100 ppl, and a single Bose S1 (operating at 50% volume with sax/voice mics and an iPad plugged in) still gives me the advertised 11 hours of playing time on a single battery charge. Most of my gigs require only a single S1, although I sometimes use a second one for added “fill."

Remember, these battery-powered PA units are not being targeted toward 5-piece rock bands that need to raise the roof all night. Rather, they’re mainly for solo/duo acts playing small/medium-sized venues where a clean, pure sound is desired, and volume typically has to be kept to what I call a “conversational” level. In 3 years of using the S1 Pro, I’ve never had a venue operator say “Is that all the volume you can give me?” But there have been a couple who’ve asked me to tone it down because it was too loud. I sometimes forget how well the S1’s dispersion helps create a fairly even sound throughout the room, and I don’t need to crank it up to reach the folks at the far end of the venue.

I used to own a couple of Behringer 1000-watt 15-inch powered speakers. 35 lbs each. Needed 2 men and a boy to lift them up onto the gas-piston-powered speaker stands. Volume? Sure. Off the charts. Sold those speakers after 3 gigs and a near-hernia. I’m 63 and play gigs to enjoy myself, not to break my back. Bought a couple of Bose S1 Pros. Half the size of the Behringers, less than half the weight, easier to load/haul, quicker to set up, tons more fun. And plenty of power for what I do.

I also have a Bose L1 Pro 8 (much more power and low end — 13” woofer) — but I’ve used it only twice this year (out of 60+ gigs so far) — and only when I needed to fill 3 rooms with sound. For those situations, I use the L1 Pro 8 as my main unit, and I connect (wirelessly) a couple of S1 Pros in the separate dining areas. Prop ‘em up on a table in a corner and away we go.

The battery-powered units being sold today have a mission, and they tend to perform their mission well.

It’s all a matter of what you need for the types of gigs you play.
 
#32 ·
This sounds like it might be a car or boat battery and then it would be 12 Volts. So then the battery provides 70.2 Ah * 12 V = 864 Wh.
Then at 110 dB, the draw might be 32 W/0.9 = 36 W. Then run time at 110 dB would be approx.

hours = 864 Wh / 36 W = 24 h

…this seems overly optimistic. We probably need better data than fake peak power and volume numbers.
 
#33 · (Edited)
lol.. that made my head hurt. :)

I don’t trust the Mackie power output at all - they claim 1300 peak watts whatever that is. It can get some volume going but the peak spl isn’t that amazing. 121 or 118.

For some reason I do trust the QSC numbers - that thing puts out some serious volume. I think I read something about their amps being a new class of very high efficiency tech.

The power bank is my camping SHTF box until I get a proper generator.



Marketing verbiage:

  • Powerful Pure Sine Wave AC Outlets: Two 110V AC outlets deliver stable and mighty 250W when using one only, and a total 300W when using both, perfect for your small appliances on your camping or road trips
  • Backup Generator for CPAP and Power Outages: Colossal battery capacity, 252. 7Wh/70200mAh, packed in a small size is a ready for hours of use when power outage or supporting your CPAP
  • Mighty 60W PD Input & Output: Meets the power supply needs for all your PD devices, from smartphones to laptops, at top speed - revive your MacBook Pro in only 3 hours
 
#37 ·
Thanks for posting this video, but it has to be the silliest and least useful gear review I've ever seen on YouTube. I'll save everyone some time and summarize here:

The guy spends 10 minutes describing the differences between the original Bose S1 Pro and the newly-released Bose S1 Pro Plus, which has a few new features. He keeps the second unit a cover the whole time, to build suspense I suppose... And then in the final seconds of the video he unveils the covered unit to reveal the Everse 8 -- which he recommends over the Bose. He offers no description of the Everse 8's features and gives no explanation as to why the Everse 8 is his choice.

Sure, there are valid reasons to choose the Everse over the Bose, depending on one's needs/preferences, but tech reviews are supposed to give insight into those reasons, to assist potential buyers. This guy's video gets high marks for shock value, low marks for usefulness.
 
#40 ·
These 2 additional videos of his that you posted are much more helpful. At a minimum, he should’ve linked to one or both of them at the end of his Bose S1 Pro vs S1 Pro+ comparison, to point the viewer to his reasons for preferring the EV.

As he states at the 23:40 mark of his Sound Test “Part 1” video... for him, it’s all about volume — which is why he likes the EV over the Bose in his “Part 2” video. And as I stated earlier, if I were a DJ, I'd probably prefer the EV. But there are some ergonomic differences between the two as well, which he acknowledges in his Part 2 video. And my ears also detected a clear difference in sound quality.

However, sound quality is highly subjective, and as he admits at the 15:30 mark of his Part 2 video, it’s a matter of personal preference.

Thanks for posting these videos. Good luck in your journey to find the right one for your needs.
 
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#41 ·
Here is the review and comments of a Sound engineer who bought the EV8.

Submitted November 23, 2022 by a customer from aol.com
"Amazing little speaker that rivals the Bose S1 Pro"
Overall: 5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
I did a comparison between the similar Bose S1 Pro and this EV EVERSE, seemingly EV's answer to the Bose in the mini battery powered bluetooth PA speaker market and I must say I was blown away by the sheer amount of power this little puppy has, as well as all the additional features not found on the S1 Pro! In comparison to the Bose, the EVERSE not only has way more headroom, but also has an 7 band EQ on top of bass, mid, & treble controls for each channel (including bluetooth) as well as far the master channel. Out of the box, the Bose definitely sounded more hi fi with a much fuller low end than the EV, however, after a few days of really dialing in the EV, I was able to get it to not only come close to the sound of the Bose, but even surpass it in terms of overall fidelity. While the Bose definitely has some other pluses over the EV, such as automatically detecting the speaker orientation including if it's mounted on a pole or not (this must be manually adjusted on the EV), the amount of adjustability and customization the EV offers is nothing short of astounding for a speaker of this size and weight. Highly recommended!
Sound

Sounds like a micro version of it's bigger brothers, but with the adjustability of it's higher end siblings.
Features

Hands down the 7 band EQ for me!
Ease of Use

For me it was not plug and play in terms of sounding it's best out of the box. While it didn't sound bad at all with it's default settings, it took a copious amount of EQ carving to really bring it to life.
Musical Background:
Keyboardist, live sound & mixing engineer
Musical Style:
jazz funk
 
#42 · (Edited)
Picked up EV8 today I was on a waitlist it was $900.00CDN = $680.00USD with 13%tax all in.
Played a 20-minute wedding this morning and am doing a 3-5 pm wine bar gig with the EV so will see how well it works.

I can carry all my gear from the car with no need for a dolly I can carry my horn and gear in my backpack case and just carry the speaker and still have a free hand.

I picked up this speaker stand super light and packs very small, works well with the EV8, pricey but slick.
Using this for my Ipad stand it is super slick as well.

Sold my EXM 400 for a small profit and picked up a used EXM excursion sub for $ 500.00 USD.
Bought this speaker pole the smallest and lightest I could find.

Will be using the complete kit tomorrow for a small Jewish wedding, have a Dance band gig tonight so a busy weekend.
 
#43 ·
I just ordered two rain covers from Thorman to protect the finish on the two Everse 8 speakers I now have. Don't want them getting beat up in the back of my vehicle. This is the best price I could find.

 
#44 · (Edited)
I want to add few words to this wonderful informational thread, because I am under an exciting feeling with EVERSE 8 that I finished to explore from bottom to top using it's QuickSmart app and on board screen display.
A week ago I had a gig on a wide open area with no electricity point... for this ocasion I urgently purchased instantly available Bose S1.
It worked... but I felt a discomfort with the volume power (sure it would be perfect in the hall for 100 people) ... I did a deep dive into Everse... All reviews pointed to it as the best.
Bose is replaced by EV.
Now I feel that it is for my needs... Powerful PA is always there, but I guess I will rarely need it now.

As mentioned here and multiple reviews it is a step up Bose compared...
30 Dynacord effects. I found that at least 10 of them are top level for my use.
Bose has one, that was good enough in the studio and very basic and not enough with the knob on max in open air.
Great app, excludes need of mixer and is so useful - totally wireless solution.
And actually 4 channels. On Bose and as I understand all the others channel 3/4 is stereo and can be used only for Bluetooth signal or line in.

On this one I can use bluetooth streaming and wired stereo signal simultaneously. Plus 3/4 has EQ... Bose - just volume on 3/4
With 4 channels I am covered.
CH1 - Sax mike (NUX)
CH2 - EWI (or dynamic mike)
CH3/4 - inline 3,5mm for playback
CH3/4 - bluetooth streaming (if need little DJing or another sax set of music)

And of course no problem with QuickSmart app by Bluetooth (mixer instantly available :) ).

One note: bluetooth streaming and QuickSmart didnot work well on older tablets (lover Android versions).
I simply bought 8,7 inch Samsung tablet on special :) with Android 13. Work like a charm...

Image
 
#46 · (Edited)
Sadly the Everse 8 system does not allow for this which I consider a serious design flaw.
My workaround is I used my e-608 Sennhieser hard wired and my Lekato MW-1 5.8GHZ trans/receiver to broadcast to the 2nd speaker.
This works well.

The Lekato has worked flawlessly for me. My buddy bought a Xvive -UC3 and has been having problems on the dance floor with it dropping. He is trying to get the dealer to take it back and he will buy a Lekato which is not powered but is way cheaper and an e -608.

I bought a 2nd Lekato for $89.00 so I am all wireless once again .... LEKATO MW-1 5.8G Wireless Dynamic Microphone System Plug-on XLR (Add t


No regrets yet.