Considering picking up 8 of these for monitor/small mains duty. Any user opinions? Is there a clearly better choice in the $700 range?
I had six of their predecessors (the E358, IIRC) used for FOH Tops and stage monitors with an old band of mine. They were great for small/moderate venues, and did well on vocals/monitor duty. Don't expect crazy volume or much bass, after all it's only a twelve and a 1" exit horn. We fed them with 300 to 400 watts passive, usually with the Yorkie processor (which I think only did some minor EQing).
I'm not sure how much the componentry has changed on the new ones, but the changes I can see are for the better: dual-duty cabinet shape, rotatable horn and flypoints. I don't see what other product would perform the same at this price point - maybe the Peavey EU112 (
http://peavey.com/products/index.cfm/item/680/116923/EU%26trade%3B%26nbsp%3B112), I've no experience with that unit, though.