Bose 901 Series V Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ก.ค. 2020
- Nearly everyone has heard of the Bose 901 speakers. For better or worse. I thought it was time we demystify them, look under the hood and understand what is going on. So, here's my objective measurements and my subjective take on the much hated and loved Bose 901 Series V speaker. While I wouldn't consider this an accurate speaker, I do think it's a unique speaker that is "fun" in its own way.
Here's a link to my written review:
www.erinsaudiocorner.com/loud...
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- Erin - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
Full written review can be found here:
www.erinsaudiocorner.com/loudspeakers/bose_901_series_v/
I bought these 901's in the Army while in Germany second hand in 1985 for $600. 00. I month's pay back in the day. I had a pair of 901's before any components. They won many speaker wars in the barracks. They were the ultimate party speakers in my college years. I still got them, and they still jam after all these years.
Me too brother. My ultimate party speaker and people are fascinated by them and the wholeness of their sound.
The 901's debuted in 1968 and were discontinued in 2016, had they just lasted 2 more years Bose could have released the 50th anniversary editions. I think outside of Klipsch, they had the longest run of any American made speaker system
Pretty great run for "terrible" speakers. Enough people must have liked them. I never got to hear them.
@@midcenturymodern9330 I think the 901's were also the most polarizing speakers of all time-people tended to love or hate them
@@midcenturymodern9330 Terrible for you Great for others...........
@@Arch007 Not hearing terrible speakers is terrible for me?
@@carewser People who hate them probably never lived with them.
They sound amazing when driven and set up properly. You don’t make a junk speaker for almost 50 years. People wise up quickly. Vocals sound amazing. They are far less fatiguing than many high end audiophile speakers where the treble peaks take your head off. The biggest problem with the 901 is placement. They need open space, so forget about furniture p,ace best to them.
well said. I just got my first pair, first time every hearing them after 35 years curiosity. first few minutes I was confused. over the past couple days, realized I was enjoying them and the main reason is, I almost do not recognize the sound coming from the speaker itself and the highs can be crisp but never annoyingly grating like so many "clinical' speakers. I have heard many types and quality of speakers and currently have Magnepan MG-II, Infinity Priumus 360 and 150 and prior Infinity Kappas. If you look up the Stereophile reviews of the Infinity Priumus 360 and 150 speakers you (anybody) will see that they borth were extremely highly regarded for having teh lowest distortion of any speaker they've ever measured, extremely natural midrange and comparing equivalently to most speakers in the $6,000 to $10,000 range. I have owned by far mostly Infinity speakers because I liked how they sounded, period. The reviews of the Infinity Priumus 360 and 150 did reinforce my intent to purchase them.
I have Rotel RB-1080, Sony ES, digital ADCOM GFA-555 H/K A402 A-Class, Single Ended Triode and Panasonic SA-HE200 amplifiers, all fed from SACD or other high quality files.
Point of all that is, I do have pretty good equipment and media and know good speaker sound and live music. After playing with location a bit and getting adjusted to the weirness of the 901's, I love them and will keep them probably forever, with my other 7 pairs of speakers, all set up all around the house.
The reason, you nailed it. they are not annoyingly fatiguingly harsh and grating. they are relaxing and enjoyable. I wasn't sure why I gravitated from weirded out by them to longing to listen longer and longer to them (only had them 5 days or so0 it's that for all their shortcoming or oddities. they are "chill" and just plain enjoyable. hifi, audiophile or not., i do enjoy them and they don'g aggrivate me. i like that.
Oh, I forgot until I walked past them, I also have Tekton Lore speakers, now primarily driven by the SET Tube amp.
You should keep dumping on the Bose 901s. Pretty soon the price will go up and all of us who believed in them for all these years won't be able to get our hands on them for a reasonable price.
I agree with your comment. I have the 901's series 6,2011 model. My speakers are powered by a qsc rmx 2450,a Numark m6,Nad cd player and teac a2340r reel to reel. My point is,you need to have good equipment to accommodate the 901's.
Had a pair of the 901 IV back in the 80s. Hung'em from the ceiling and blasted the heck out of them. Absolute party speaker.
Had a pair also,special edition (teak) I bought while in the military in Germany.
You said it!!!! THEY ARE PARTY SPEAKERS!!!! Blast that music! Have to have realistic expectations. These are for fun and not critical listening. Gotta put some decent power to ‘em for them to sparkle. Have a pair of Series IV with a NAD 2600 Power Envelope with 150w RMS feeding them. 400w+ peak transients. Equalizer was repaired and upgraded. Wish I had another set to hang from the ceiling too. Watch the air make them swing
I have the 901’s series IV that I bought new in the 80’s. I love them! I had them refurbished by Bose in Framingham, MA for $150.00 and I’ve cranked them everyday since. I guess people either love them or hate them but I’ve never been disappointed. Any neighbors I’ve had did NOT like them-hahaha! Wonder why-lol;) I used to have that Dire Straights CD-I’m going to find it and pay attention to the track you mentioned “Money for Nothing “. Thanks for ur review👍💛
I saw and heard these speakers for the first time at a friend's apartment in NYC in the late 70s. I remember he had them hanging from the ceiling and right away I liked how they looked and sounded. I was particularly impressed with the really wide sound stage. In the late 80s I started buying Bose and went from the 601s (series I, II and III) to the 901s and their various series. I still own 901 and they are my go-to speakers when I want to have fun: Pink Floyd's The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon, Prince, Soda Stereo, The Alan Parsons Project, etc. etc. I lost contact with my Puerto Rican friend whom I worked with over 40 years ago at the Armenian Cathedral in NYC. Thank you for introducing me to Bose speakers, wherever you may be.
That's a cool story. Always neat to hear how others got in to audio. Thanks for sharing!
Definitely a cool story. Thanks for sharing
Wow thank you so much for this review! I’m a Bose fan and I own a couple of different Bose models in my speaker collection.
I have never listened to 901s, just drooled at first sight as a teenager leafing through stereo magazines and continued dreaming about them in my twenties!
That iconic look on the tulip stands !
I have to admit that since your reviews are so accurate and well informed and with your “knack” for honesty you were going to cream them, honestly I almost made popcorn for this one...LOL !
But I should have known better, you stuck with the facts and gave us a fair review !
I will find a decent pair one of these days .... just for that imaging you described and that iconic look , the same reason I hunted and bought a pair of JBL Aquarius lV S109.. not the best speaker JBL made but a mid century looking cabinet that I could have sworn Frank Lloyd Wright designed! Just like the 901s they can be fun if placed correctly! So on the hunt for 901s now!!!
Thanks again!
These paired excellently with a high end Sony STR-GX 909ES receiver. It also has the patching for the Bose EQ.
i bought 901s in 1990 from the shop that did my car audio work. the sales pitch was fairly simple. they had an extension cord with one end bare wires, and they had them hooked up to the speaker terminals. the other end had a two pronged plug. the salesman plugged the speaker into the wall and played the 60 hertz 120 volt current. he said they were basically indestructable. i was drooling at the thought of hooking up 2 x 500 watt amps to them and seriously rocking the party, which i did :) these speakers got better the louder you played them and that was their strong point. they were absolute beasts at high watts
Thank you for your knowledge, thoroughness and objectivity! I am not a sound professional or even an audiophile. I'm just a guy who loves music. I really appreciate you pointing out both the pros and the cons! I have a pair of Series IV 901's and I run them paired with a pair of JBL 4311 Control Monitors thru a Luxman R-1120 and a BSR EQ-3000 Graphic Equaliezr with a pink noise generator. I use the eqalizers's pink noise generator to tune the sound to the room. Absoulutely love it! I find the JBL's have better lows and highs and an overall more balanced sound, but they also have a "flatter" less interesting more one dimensional almost "hollow" sound and the vocals are lacking in "feeling (?)". When I add the 901's the vocals literally come to life and the whole soundscape takes on depth and presence. Your analysis has technically explained to me what is actually going on in my ears perception.Over the years a number of people have somtimes vehemently told me to throw the 901's in the trash, but I've stubbornly held onto them because I know what I heard and what it felt like to experience. Now I know why. Thank you! I subscribed and look forward to learning more about sound reproduction.
At the risk of getting verbally abused by other audio folks, I do wish Bose continued to make speakers like this and just spent the time, money for R&D to further develop and improve on this extremely unique approach to loudspeaker design. I think there would be a market for speakers like this that do things no other speakers can do, if they can manage to improve accuracy, reduce distortion and increase headroom. All they care about now is soundbars and bluetooth speakers.
Agreed that reflection concept was very different idea on sound ,also the look and designs was interesting .
@@soundscapefusions3101 I bet you wouldn't have to look too long or hard for any number of speakers which direct their drivers outward to more or less the same degree that the Bose 901s did toward the wall. Something else to laugh about.
like open baffle speakers and acoustic mass speaker systems. I believe Bose was interested in "using the room" as part of the speaker...@@soundscapefusions3101
I have been using 901's over the past 30 years and needed to have a full transducer change during this after the cones decomposed. I do not know why some people dislike these speakers, they sound phenomenal, the bass is really nice, sound awesome. I use them through a Marantz theatre amp as a pre and Marantz power amp to drive them. What people don't get is that the collective surface area of the 9 transducers in each cabinet is the equivalent of having one 13.5 inch speaker per cabinet and that's a lot of displacement. I however need an additional EQ to tune them to sound even better on the kind of music I listen to. They rock !!!
Thanks Erin, you are providing a great service with the work you do. The numbers don't lie and it is very useful to know an old set of 901s can't be counted on to provide top notch sound. Although I can't prove it with numbers since I can't go back in time and test a brand new set of 901s, it is my opinion that the 901s you tested are showing signs of aging. I was an engineer at Bose and personally knew all the engineers there and it is very unlikely that group of people with their brainpower, fanatical (over)work ethic, theoretical knowledge, and expertise in the lab doing tests & measurements and getting their hands dirty on the factory floor would have put out a poorly performing speaker as the flagship top-of-the-line product it was. Some possible effects of aging that may account for at least some of your measurements of poor performance may be: air seals between drivers and cabinet cracked with age creating air leaks, the cabinet including the plastic inner cabinet cracked, foreign matter built up on the voice coil, spider and surrounds got stiff/nonlinear, cones lost stiffness, strength of driver magnets weakened over time, internal wiring connections corroded(I know from personal experience with original [so-called series 1] 901s this happens and makes the speakers sound like they should be thrown out at the dump but after cleaning contacts that are inside the cabinets with sandpaper, problem completely gone). Since it is known that series V (and from what I know and/or have read also some series 3, and 4 and maybe later units of series 2 and/or early units of series VI) foam would often rot, it is quite possible that the surrounds lost linearity with age even if the surrounds may have looked ok visually. I also know from personal experience that the plastic frames of the drivers would crack starting where one or more of the mounting screws were, but I no longer remember if this problem continued into the series V that you tested(if I remember right, at some point Bose did away with the mounting screws and the drivers were twist-locked into place, probably to avoid the cracking problem). Series 2-6 used plastic driver frames and some of them may have been used in later production units of the series 2(not sure). It would be very interesting to see a 901 measured that was restored including the use of new drivers with parameters as close as could be gotten to the parameters of the original drivers and then tweak the equalizer maybe a bit to match or use Dirac. Testing speakers before restoration and again after restoration would be very useful for the 901s and all other old speakers. Since that would cost considerable money & time, maybe you could do this for just a limited number of speakers (and for just a single speaker out of a stereo pair) just to see the before and after restoration differences, assuming there are any(again, I have assumed there will be significant differences, but I do not claim to know for certain there will be).
The biggest problems in my opinion with the 901 design are: cabinet is small so lots of power needed to output bass & therefore distortion quickly becomes a problem. Drivers are small and xmax(how much the driver cone can travel away from its center rest position before voice coil moves outside the main magnetic field & thus huge distortion) tends to scale with size of driver so xmax of drivers is much smaller than that of, say a typical 15" or 18" woofer, and therefore speaker not capable of moving enough air without objectionable distortion to put out what I consider high enough spl (in my listening experience, this only shows up in the bass region. In mids & highs(per Bose, highs need only go up to somewhere between 12KHz and 14KHz), 901s play extremely loud).
i always felt that a better design would have a tweeter on the front panel and a L-pad to control rear output.
I’ve been using my pioneer sx1250 to push my 901s. Recently retired the sx1250 and replace it with a emotiva pre amp and amp setup with 300 watts per channel. The 901s sound great. Placement is important. I play all kinds of music so I enjoy them.
The 901's are definitely something... very cool in their own right, though quite a bit colored in the response.
This is what I can say about the BOSE 901s speakers: This is my first loudspeakers I purchased in the 80s and I' still using it here in my home theater room as my main front speaker. This speakers are meant to be loud and need lots of power. But I do not listen to loud music anymore unless I am watching movies. They are pretty good on classical music and for my rock and soul and jazz oldies too. I really enjoyed this speakers until now. You just need to install this the right way. I hang mine from my ceiling and follow the measurement instructions. I powered this speaker to my Carver Power Amp 200 watts per channel 400 watts total. Not listening loud and the sound is so amazing to my ears. Maybe not for some people but to my listening ears, I am very happy until now. I recone all the drivers to a shop here in my area and now it looks brand new again. You will need a descent power amplifier with lots of wattage to run this speakers or else you will never enjoy the sound coming out from the drivers. I lower the volume of my preamp and still sound great to my ears. Different people have different hearing of sound on their ears. I loved my BOSE 901s and I will keep this as long as I'm still alive. Thank you for reading my comments on BOSE 901s
I love my series 4 901's!
I believe they were banned in some small American town at one stage.
A store owner played them and it attracted so many people (the sound) that other store owners claimed he/she had ''unfair advantage''!
Bose 901's rock!
They're definitely a cool speaker in their own right. Not what I would call accurate but a very different speaker that has its own appeal, for sure.
Have a pair of Series IV too. Inherited from my grandfather. They’re not going anywhere 😆 👊
@@lowstryder1022 Good man 👊👊👊
Long time owner of Series VI 901s. Running on an HK 3490 120 w/c . No, they’re not as good as my Maggie’s or old Klipsch, they’re my go to speaker for parties and pure loudness. Couple them up with a sub and you’ve got a great set-up. Plus, they look really good on the Tulip Stands. People are intrigued by them. I get more questions from non-aficionados than any other speaker I have.
This is very cool to see thanks for making this channel and posting this! I believe the Series I and II are sealed enclosures and the later models are ported. The drivers also changed between the series with the originals using a CTS driver and then later units using a Bose branded driver that were matched. I believe the series I and II have rubber surrounds and starting with the series III they switched to a foam surround driver and many of the speakers had rot issues with age. I have a set of the series II and am curious what difference a sealed enclosure would make if anything.
I was hoping this was true when I was recently given a pair of Series II's, but the surrounds were foam and all rotted. They are from 1977. That's a lot of refoaming!
Have a set and love them. Need at least 200 watts per channel. Pair them up with an Adcom 555II but you must have square walls for them to work.
I still have my 901s series I. When I was using them in the 70s, I powered them with a phase linear 700 amp. They used every bit of that 350 rms per channel. They sounded the best when driven hard. They weren't t reproductively accurate but a blast to listen to.
SO TRUE!!!! loved them as well
I have the Bose 901 Series vi speakers from the late 90s. I bought them then new. Even today they look new! I'm so fortunate to have so many other speakers too: Klipsch, Quad, Wharfedale, Buchardt & many more.. Every speaker has its strength & unique sound signature. Audio is a fun hobby. I listen to different speakers for different moods. I love my 901s too, but they require careful placement. They are unique and spellbinding! The best way to measure any speaker is through your heart and ears! Try to buy at least two different sets as no one set of speakers would ever satisfy you all the time. Anyways have great fun and enjoy this hobby guys!
Excellent review! Thanks
Whew great breakdown explains a lot of what I like about reflected sound ,as you say you can feel these speakers there is life out there.
Excellent review. I've got two pair of 901's Series V and I've found that when you drive them with a separate amp it really helps push out the sound. (I discovered you need a separate amp to use the equalizer) I've got a Carver AV505 connected to with a Pioneer SC 82 7.1 in a large room and the point made about the position and size of the room makes all the difference as well. Also the Genre also makes a big difference. The point someone made about if it sounds good then that's all that counts is a good one too. In another house I have a set up of Klipsch driven by similar equipment so I do have a comparison.
You can’t run the EQ in a tape loop in/out like other EQ’s?
Hey there! Awesome video, very helpful. I am acquiring some bose 901's series V in a trade of some polk audio tower speakers. However, they dont come with the eq, and im not too interested in dropping 200 bucks on one either. What would you recommend as an acceptable substitute? Do you think I could get away with using the tone controls on my receiver + the ones built into spotify to tweak the sound, or should I really consider the Bose EQ for adjustments?
I’d get the Bose EQ. Or, as an alternative, this:
deercreekaudio.com/products/eq901b-ii-replacement-upgrade-for-bose-901-ii-equalizers
I had a pair of 901 Series 3 back in the late 70s. At the time the wide sound stage won me over, but that got a bit tiring after awhile when it was combined with music not recorded with that in mind. I suspect the issues you had with equalizing them beyond what the Bose eq box does is due to the fact that you are applying the same eq curve to both the rear directed sound that arrives a little later, and has some of its treble absorbed by the room, and the direct sound coming from the forward facing driver, which should less room attenuation of the treble. Perhaps setting the eq for just the direct sound would help? I suspect that may be what the Bose eq is doing at the center settings.
This is an excellent technical analysis, thank you
I Stumbled across a pair of these in an awesome deal a about 10 years ago. They had hardly been played. I also discovered that Bose had a repair facility that so you could send them in for a low price and they would go completely through them and bring them up to their original standards. I sent mine in so they were like new when they came back. I love the speakers for my party room. They still sound great today. Unfortunately I don’t believe they offer that service any more.
Nice and very impressive your review especially the graphic... Bud for me when i listening those speaker make me happy the sound is like no other and I think this is the point for someone who doesn't have the expertise of engineering of sound just have the have the ability to listen music or good music with good track on dts or sacd that enough
Glad you like them!
Doing amazing work Erin!
Thank you, Andy. :)
Were the old Mission 751's any good? My friends Dad had a pair (never hooked up) and I wanted them bad.
What I am wondering is if you inspected the drivers behind the grills, these are old, and the start of the series 5 had the foam surrounds that deteriorate. This is what i recently learned.With that said, if you measured / listened to a set that had time to have degrading surrounds I'd say i would expect them to perform to a lesser degree. They swapped to different surrounds later in the series and all of series 6 had no degrading issues at least yet. Been looking into these as a relative has a set and they have evolved over the years.
Other speakers from the 80’s that had an interesting reflected sound take were Ohm Walsh and DCM Time Window. It’s been forever since I’ve heard either one. I wonder how they would measure.
If you are going to demo or review these in any sort of stick-build home with drywall walls, forget about it.
The Bose 901 is a highly reactive speaker - majority of the sound they radiate is bounced of walls, which means: your walls effectively become transducers. While the 901 will never be the worlds most accurate speaker, 90% of the "tonal disaster" most people experience w/ 901's boils down to the fact that THIS IS COLORATION THAT HAPPENS BY YOUR WALLS.
This was (IMO) one of the greatest weaknesses of these speakers.
Want to hear an entirely different speaker from a tonal perspective? TURN THE SPEAKER AROUND and face the 8 "rear" drivers FORWARD. Your welcome.
Of coarse, you then loose the magic that they are known for.
I live south of the border (Mexico) where virtually ALL homes are 100% solid concrete inside and out. You would be surprised the difference (especially in tonal reproduction) that placing these speakers against a concrete wall makes.
I own TWO pairs of em (series IV and VI). I also own Martin Logan, Vandersteen, Advent, Boston Acoustics, Energy, Infinity, Dahlquist, Focal, and many others. No, these are not for critical listening in any setting. But they are FUN and nowhere near as bad when they are NOT in a wooden cracker jack matchbox (also known as a "home" in the US).
They are particularly fun to listen to live stuff (MTV unplugged is my favorite stuff on these).
-Dean
Just now seeing your review 3 years later Erin! I pretty much agree with your general take on these speakers. While I'm someone who generally longs for the most accurate reproduction of a recording, I do still enjoy some speakers for simply being enjoyable to listen to even if it's not accurate. I've been blown away by some amazing stuff over the years in various hifi shops and still I can enjoy my old Cambridge Audio FPS2000 speakers made for PC gaming surround. They're not accurate or flat and probably suffer from plenty of distortion but they have this killer mid-bass that some music just sounds perfect with. Not accurate, but they are really fun in a small room. Meanwhile I have a decent set of 23 year old "audio enthusiast" grade Infinitys with a similarly matched 23 yo Denon amp that aren't amazing but sound good enough for me and my budget.
I can't stand folks who insist the 901's or pretty much any Bose loudspeaker are accurate though. I wish folks could just admit they are what they are and not be ashamed to enjoy them despite their flaws. If you love your 901's, I love them with you. Just don't try to convince me it's some masterpiece of faithful audio reproduction cuz we all know it ain't! When an old friend of mine bought a pair of 501's just to analyze them, the consensus between us, besides being horribly inaccurate, was that they and all the models we auditioned after simply sounded "pleasant". Bose speakers are just pleasant to listen to. Not disagreeable in any way, not really fatiguing, just.... pleasant. And for that reason I totally understand why so many people like them.
At 20:30 it’s interesting your findings at 83 dB max. I remember the sales brochure for these said they had unlimited amplifier power handling which I thought was weird. I’m wondering if there’s some limiting circuit in there to prevent too much distortion or even damage to the paper 4.5” drivers.
To be clear, the 83dB @ 1m is based on a certain distortion/compression threshold. It's not that these speakers can't play louder than this, it is just that the distortion threshold I used (used by the IEC) found that 83dB was the max output before compression and/or distortion exceeded the limits defined by the standard.
I use this test so that all my reviews are based on the same methods and comparisons can be made evenly across various subjects.
Each of the 9 drivers can handle 50 watts rms, so in total each 901 speaker can easily handle 450 watts rms.
The 901s can get extremely loud with less than half that amount. Consumer Guide way back in 1979 measured a pair of 901 Series IV from a distance of 8 feet back producing a spl of 110 db with a 250 watt rms per channel amp.
I bought the original version in 1970. This variant used 9 4" CTS 30 watt acoustic suspension drivers per channel for a rated capacity of 270 watts per channel. These are probably better drivers than Bose manufactured himself starting with series three. I enjoyed them very much for a few years boxed them up and then took them out probably around 1990. Then I didn't like them anymore. I'm also an engineer so when things like that happen I want to know why. I liked them once, why don't I like them now? So the first thing was to determine that they worked properly. Unlike the putty that seals the speaker frames to the enclosure in AR2ax where it turned to glue in this one the putty hardened and cracked. I called Bose (remember this is decades later) and they said they were unrepairable but offered me a 50% discount on a trade in for their newest speakers. I decline. I do not like or buy ported or other types of speakers, only acoustic suspension. Since you are an engineer I suggest you use Newton's second law of motion applied to forced oscillation and the ideal gas laws to understand the mechanical behavior off all woofer/enclosure behavior. The AS easily wins when properly executed.
My first half hearted attempt to improve them failed. I admit it was not a serious attempt. The second try took 4 years from 2004 to 2008. That got remarkable results. The frequency response has three major faults. You can see them in the version V you tested but the FR of the original is not a choppy. The bass resonant frequency was deliberately pushed up above 180 hz because as Bose claimed above that frequency the phase shift at resonance becomes inaudible (in his white paper.) I don't know if it is true or not but the system is underdamped with about a broad 7 to 8 db peak at around 250 hz. Below that frequency response falls off at a predicted 12 db per octave crossing the 1 khz output at around 95 hz and continues falling at 12 db per octave. But the equalizer only provides a 6 db per octave boost. This is why to hear deep bass from that speaker it has to be played at ear shattering level. So equalization fixed the bass eliminating the rise and filling in for the lost bass resulting in a nominal 30 db boost at 30 hz. The system can actually produce down to 26 hz with 10% THD. By comparison early AR 12" woofer were 5% at 30 hz and later variants were only 1% at 30 hz. All of them are acceptable. So to get the same output at 30 hz as you'd get from 1 watt at 1 khz you'd need 1000 watts (eq varies with each recording.) So you'd need 4 pairs wired in parallel with a Crown Drive Core 2505 to equal the performance of my Teledyne Acoustic Research AR9s.
That was the easy part. The hard part was the treble. The inertial mass of the drivers is so great that it really can't reproduce the top octave to octave and a half of audible sound. The solution was a carefully designed of directed array 3/8" poly tweeters one forward just above the 4" driver, 3 on the back and 2 upfiring. This took 4 years. The systems I create incorporate the room as an essential part of the system and is indispensable. I've learned how to engineer reflections rather skillfully. Finally each recording has its own spectral balance based on many factors in the recording and mastering methodology. Each one has to be equalized individually so that FR is flat from the original microphones to the sound field that reaches your ears. Bose 901 wasn't the first system I re-engineered so this was not my first attempt at this kind of effort. As a result Bose 901 became a two way bi amplified tonally accurate system (there are 4 equalization circuits per channel) that is extremely enjoyable without sacrificing any of the desirable attributes of the original concept.
Been waiting for someone to run detailed measurements on these things, always been curious if these are worth picking up to mess with if you're an audiophile. Seems they are sort of interesting even if they aren't accurate at all. How did the low end seem to you? Bose seems to have a good sense of how to boost around 55hz to make their stuff sound deep even when it's not.
Nice review. I own 3 pairs. At "normal" listening levels, it is not a good speaker; at higher pressure (jpower) listening levels, it is one of the better sounding speakers.
Yes! Gotta crank them a bit and have enough solid power to back it up
Great review. It also raises an interesting question: If home audio is not about having "fun", then what is it about? If it is just about finding accuracy, then measurements alone can pretty nearly tell you what to buy. But most audiophiles don't believe that. Again, great job, thanks.
Thanks. There are plenty of speakers that provide high accuracy and are still fun. These speakers are... different. Some people buy for taste, some people buy for what they believe is accurate and some people buy for what is generally considered to truly be accurate. There's a lot of room in this hobby for everyone. These speakers found their niche and still have a loyal fanbase today. :)
@@ErinsAudioCorner plenty of speakers that provide high accuracy and are still fun ~ that's the typical audiophile nazi script right there. I've heard and read that line more than a hundred times from different venues but ask them what speakers that provide high accuracy and are still fun and they'll ask you back about your budget. haha if you don't have speakers + amp setup over 100k, you have no right to have fun.
@@automachinehead you’re reaching. I’ve reviewed plenty of speakers that are enjoyable and accurate. That’s the goal of a reference system.
@@ErinsAudioCorner well I was just paraphrasing every "audiophile" I've encountered in my 46 years on earth. but basing on the hifi online community there are to goals: 1. listen to music that only the himalayan monks enjoy, 2. listen to normal music made for regular human beings.
however, goal number one is what low iq audiophiles are aiming at and that requires a reference system and this system's fiscal demands are way beyond what the mixing personnel used as gears for their post processing. In massive contrast to goal number two which only requires your sanity and your built-in auditory facility.
I've just buy the speakers without the EQ or amplifier, whats the best and recomended way of making them work? I would like to have a bluetooth way of sendind music to them! Thank you!
Please try a review on the BOSE 601 series 2. Thanks for your reply .
Your comments about them not being accurate but being fun reminds me of my Carver Sonic Holography unit which sound amazing .....on SOME recordings :) I checked out your other videos and your have a lot of great content! Lik'd and Sub'd.
I just snagged some Series VI version 2 built-in 2015 looking at the date stamped on one of the drivers (a year before BOSE ceased production) in Ash Black. They are MINT, what many would call a "Barn Find". They are like NEW. I owned 901s going back to 1980 when I was stationed in Italy. I sold them when we downsized and tried living with a high-end soundbar and sub-woofer from Sonos and missed the 901s. So the soundbar was sold and I am loving the 901s again.
Thank you. My buddy gave me his years ago. He lost the EQ, been listening to them without it. Any thoughts on where to get one? Thank you
This is the only thing I know of these days. They took a $99 DSP and configured it for the Bose 901.
deercreekaudio.com/products/eq901b-ii-replacement-upgrade-for-bose-901-ii-equalizers
You should play the Boston song “The Journey”. The Air moving through those rear ports gets some phenomenal velocity. A good party trick these speakers have.
Having never heard any of the speakers that you test and review, I didn't really have a baseline for just what your measurements might mean to the ears. But since you've reviewed these and I know what they sound like, you've confirmed my general opinion; which is that I believe your reviews are straight, fair and accurate. Now I can look at your other reviews with fresh ears, so to speak.
I have a pair of the 901 Series II with the equalizer recapped with higher quality and of course much newer components and they sound great to me.
You hear a lot of talk nowadays about DSP and what that does is basically what Amar Bose did with his active equalizer except it's (A)nalog (S)ound (P)rocessing. Same principle, but the technology is ancient compared to what's available now.
And I have to laugh whenever I see these huge line arrays of little tiny speakers with sophisticated sound processing to get the things to cover the full dynamic range of real music, and newer speakers with dipole segments so that some of the music is being reflected to the wall, thereby providing a more immersive, airy experience that sell for thousands of dollars.
The Bose 901s were decades ahead of their time. Pick up a pair before they begin to cost more than a decent pair of new Wharfedales or some other quality floorstanders.
And all you haters; just keep hating.
I like your review on the 901. What's your review on the 601 series 2
I don’t have any experience with that speaker. 😕
I wonder if these 901’s would be a good fit with a home entertainment stereo system for movie watching
Very helpful. Thanks
Hi from Denmark and thanks for a fantastic and non-biased (finally) video on the 901's.
I'm in the market to buy a pair of 901's (series V or VI) but I've learned that they need a really powerful amplifier... do you have any suggestions on that front?
Also taking into consideration that I need an amplifier where I can in-line the Equalizer?
I went through Bose sales training back in the early 90's. As a demonstration, the Bose rep took an extension cord, cut it in half and bared the wires, plugged them into the back of the speaker, and then plugged it into the wall socket. You could visually see the cycles of the AC power on the cones.
He then up plugged the cord and reattached the speaker wires from the receiver. It played music like no other.....
haha
How would they sound if you spun them around? Front to back, back to front?
I have series vi using the pre out from an Outlaw RR2150 receiver through the line out connections in an SVS subwoofer (crossover 80hz) then through the Bose equalizer. The original equalizer was replaced with the mini dsp from Deercreek Audio (highly recommended). The speakers sound much more detailed and clear with a more extended high end. I love them with this set up. I also have some Polk LSIM 703’s and a Yamaha Aventage AV receiver. The Polks are amazing with movies and better than the 901’s with modern pop but surprisingly sound awful with some of the classic 70’s rock. The 901’s are better at live and orchestral music and sound good with any music. I think about trading them in for something new every now and then but am afraid I’d just end up buying them back. I love the big, rich soundstage. I prefer to be my own sound engineer and build and adjust my systems so that they are pleasing to me.
Interesting speaker design 🕩🔉 🎶👍
I haven’t read all the comments yet, so I’m not sure if this has been mentioned already. IMHO, if you’re listening to these setup in a normal room, they should be raised up higher than the “tulip stands” that they come with. Side note: I love that I have the chromed ones but, who wants reflected sound at their stomach/crotch when you’re seated? Or standing for that matter. Raise them up about 6-9” or so and see if it’s not a little better. Seems to fill the room better too given the reflections combined with furniture and such
I didn't have the stands so I used some heavy duty speaker stands which placed the full-range driver on the front at ear level.
@@ErinsAudioCorner Very nice! I’m glad you did that. I truly think these have to be raised up several inches. I figured you might have but I wanted to post it in case others want to try the same
The key to the 901's is separate amp with good clean power, I run close to 175w ea. Also, what helps is additional SW and proper matching with x-over frequencies, between speakers (901's) and SW and that's it.
Cheers for the reply!
the key to them is adding a pair of JBL L100's.
Agree about the possibility of a SW! Haven’t done it yet but, my preamp has the capability to add a sub or two. Would LOVE to see what that would sound like tbh
I had them about 12 years ago. I used a 2 channel amp and 2 channel preamp.. I used a 7 channel eq and a 12 inch powered sub..Never had anything but compliments and enjoyment from freinds, but the neighbors complained. One said I knocked a picture off the wall two condos down Lol...
Because they are really mid-range drivers, they by fefault tend to be bright ( my opinion.) I didn't have Bose eq..I had a 12 inch powered sub and a equalizer..I thought they dial in good..
My oersibak exoeruebce regarding the Bose 901 was in 1973 as a 13-yr. old budding audio kid at Lawrence Hi-Fi in Birmingham Alabama. The cool long-haired floor person took me into their main sound room and played Vas Dis by Wishbone Ash. Being a young impressionable kid I was blown away. They were a McIntosh dealer and had a big Mac power amp driving them. FFW to 1977 I was ready to spend accumulated savings and buy a pair. I called Lawrence to get the latest price and availability and was told they no longer sold the Bose speakers. In the interim they had fell out of favor no doubt to the shortcomings you address so well here. They said the other brands they were carrying far exceeded the quality and the Bose had proven far too idiosyncratic to achieve the overall fidelity of more conventional designs. I was stunned being told to come in and they could demonstrate how for less money I could achieve superior audio listening quality. I ended up buying another speaker that had captured my interest which was the ESS AMT 1B, and at a completely different dealer (Sound Distributors for locals who recall that small chain). I'm glad I did. I still have the ESS speakers only replacing the woofers and passive radiators with parts from the later-day ESS Company. They still sound pretty great even if they too were sometimes maligned for their blending a very large woofer to the Heil Air Motion Transducer. The Bose were exactly what you called them, a fun speaker that had many unique shortcomings not the least of which was the room placement thing.
Nice review, thanks. "Gimmicky" is an apt description. Not to deride gimmicky. I find much of the DSP stuff to be gimmicky as well, and I enjoy using it at times. The difference is that DSP can be gimmicky, and it can also be "corrective". The 901's dispersion isn't in any way corrective. And the main problem is it locks in the sound reflections of the room they are placed in. Again, unlike DSP where you can add the spatial sounds of a variety of environments. And what happens when you do not want all that reflection? Can the new version of the speaker turn it off? And if so, then you are simply left with the very mediocre front speakers? DSP can give you much of the same effect, with far more control. And you will still get to choose whatever (and higher quality) speaker you want to go with it.
Can I hook it up to a modern receiver, talkn bout the amp
Do folks like these better than the popular Cerwin Vega D3's?
I believe they alternate updates between manufacturing / component updates then updating the looks / specs. I agree about the soundstage, for anyone who wants a focused soundstage, these aren’t the speakers. I don’t know whether they still make the 501s and 701s but they were great as a party speaker, not so much with the 901.
Good to know. Everything I had found online said they just made cosmetic changes between pairs of series (i.e., 3 vs 4, 5 vs 6).
@@ErinsAudioCorner somethings just twigged, I went into a dealer not to far away (central south coast, UK) and I remember thinking that Bose had a certain arrogance as the dealer was told as they got it right in the first place with the design and technical spec they never felt the need to go back subsequently and correct their technical concepts. Hence why they only changed the cosmetics and manufacturing processes as new processes allowed.
They had a good idea, but maybe they should have made the front full of drivers and the rear with one driver... Did you try placing them the other way?
I didn't. I had someone else ask me that but since they were designed to have the 8 rear drivers firing against the wall, I didn't try to flip them around.
It was great that you measured the sensitivity (low 80s), I couldn't find it published anywhere. I have just acquired a set of 901 series V and have been working with Room EQ Wizard to try and drive them without the Bose Active EQ. I was shocked by how much power it takes to make them loud when compared to my Klipsch KLF-20s - and now I know why.
No problem. Glad it helped you.
Have you seen the company selling the miniDSP with the Bose EQ pre-loaded? I have no affiliation with them and I can’t comment on how good the product is. But I find it interesting. Here’s a link.
deercreekaudio.com/products/eq901b-ii-replacement-upgrade-for-bose-901-ii-equalizers
@@ErinsAudioCorner Actually, I did come across that DSP in my searching. I'm using a raspberry pi loaded with Shairpoint-Sync - this emulates an Apple Airplay receiver endpoint so you can stream wirelessly to it. The cool thing is that Shairpoint-Sync also has a DSP/convolution filter library included and you can load in impulse response filter files produced by Room EQ Wizard.
I was curious how accurate it was compared to the original EQ. In my side by side testing, I honestly like the sound of the REW filter better. I just noticed that it was overall just far less loud than my KLFs. I thought maybe it was because of the amount of filtering being applied, but I now think it's mostly because of the sensitivity.
@@ErinsAudioCorner Incidentally - have you ever played with DML panel speakers? That's originally what got me going down this rabbit hole of using REW to generate filters...
@@fahrvergnuugen I haven’t. Haven’t even heard of those to be honest.
@@ErinsAudioCorner th-cam.com/video/CKIye4RZ-5k/w-d-xo.html
What is left out of that video is that you really really need heavy filtering to get a DML panel to sound good. But once you do, they are really interesting and unique.
The sound comes from a really large surface, so its a different experience from a traditional speaker.
Nice review
Thanks!
fun is a great description.
I've set up a bunch of 901 systems, a couple we set up facing backwards and got a more predictable sound system. lol
No matter what you do to frequencies or eq , those speakers are going to sound different when played in different rooms with different acoustical signatures.
I heard the Bose 901s around 1970 and at the same shop I listened to the JBL Paragon system. After hearing the Paragon I totally forgot about the 901s. I can't over emphasize how impressive the Paragon was. It was way out of my price range but I knew I had to check out some other JBL speakers that I might be able to afford some day. I settled on the L100s and in 1974 I purchased them. By that time they had been upgraded and were now called the L100As. I still use them today and they sound better to me. They could be a little bright in the higher frequencies but my hearing is now limited to 8khz so that's not a problem anymore. Sound quality is more important to me but the JBLs can produce a large sound stage with the right material. I feel that I am missing nothing.
I would really like to test the L100's some day. Both the old and the new revision.
@@ErinsAudioCorner The L100s will play much lower than the Stereo Review article, of many years ago, stated. They basically said that the lower limit was in the 50hz range. I've observed below 30, of course that's after many years of use. I was surprised that there is a very real drop off (hole) in the 90-110hz range that I measured. I would have never known it was there If I hadn't tested it.
@@johnmclaughlin4496 Once again you are claiming speakers which professionals have tested can play much lower than their respective specs. You must have superior ears and testing equipment than anyone else in the industry including the ones who designed the speakers in the first place.
I’ve had 901s since 1970s and they still sound great. Had to replace one set due to dry rot
A friend of mine at work sold me these and some smaller Bose speakers for $100. He was buying something newer. Best deal ever!!
Haha. Man, that’s awesome. They’re an odd speaker but they can be fun. Enjoy them. 👍
Thanks for the excellent and fair review of this controversial speaker, Erin. Back in 1976, a friend had a pair of the 901's, and I had a pair of 16 cu.ft. custom bass reflex speakers with the JBL S8 3-way drivers. I much preferred my JBL's - and believe me, they were not limited to 82dB of loudness with clean sound!
LOL. I bet... a 16 cuft enclosure implies you had a LOT of cone area... I bet that was crazy loud. :D
Are you able to replace the Bose EQ with a standard EQ?
The closest I know of would be to use this company's miniDSP with preloaded 901 curves.
deercreekaudio.com/t/eq901-equalizer
Got a 40 year old version of these and they sound amazing But you have to have the perfect room
wide and carpet on floor rite positioning from walls and a powerfull amp 100 to 200 wats per channel
Very nice report I did have a pair of 901 V..now have Carver Silver edt..on sound stage Carver at rating A for Bose C+ I don't recall you saying about Bose EQ..it is active EQ..I still like 901 great for apt..or great sound without being serious
.on Frez. Reps..at 80db pink noises flat setting at 1kz 102db Eq at 96db 5kz 88db Eq 93db 100hz 95db Eq 90db 50hz 84db
50hz 84db Eq 90db 24hz 63db Eq 73db Carver Silver at 86db my email is richdarr1974@gmail.com this test made 2007 ..be happy to talk you..
I don't remember if I mentioned the EQ or not other than mentioning where I think the most neutral setting is. I did measure the actual outputs of the EQ, though, and published the data of the various effects on my site.
Ok BOSE is for the consumer who isn’t technical and gets into measurements but want good sound. Not for the audiophile who is into all the details. Both consumers are fine. It’s all a matter of preference. Apples and oranges as far as audiophiles are concerned.
I wouldn't compartmentalize "sounds good" vs "measures good" as you have. Every pair of speakers I have measured that measure well also sound good. The opposite is not true, however.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I have a question
Hey Erin, interesting although the positioning did not appear optimum. Have the series VI and the staging is certainly the appeal. The better the quality the crisper they tend to sound. Thanks for sharing you your thoughts. What recording engineers intend to represent is certainly not a perfect science compared to a live performance. Cheers!
Thanks for the reply.
I listened in various positions. Here’s my bit about this in my written review, linked in the description:
“Also, it is important for me to make clear I listened to these in various configurations (toed in, toed out, against the walls, away from the walls, etc). I also listened to them in my downstairs living room so I could position them close to the front wall (which is about 20 feet wide), per the manual I showed above, to see how much effect the near-wall placement mattered. While it did change the effect of the soundstage, for the most part, it was the same result - tonally - I had in my main listening room upstairs. I always try to listen to speakers in different settings to see if one is more suited for a particular speaker and in this case the difference was more minimal than I expected. Obviously your mileage may vary depending on your specific setup.”
Also...
“I listened to these various ways: with the speakers near the side wall, with the speakers 3 feet from the sidewalls. With and without Dirac Live. I will make notes where applicable to define the specific listening conditions.”
Thank you for your added comments and there are potentially many contributing factors. I have had these speakers 30 years and keep learning new things with time. The variance in sound quality with or without the EQ is an important one that without more tinkering may or may not reveal its secrets . Cheers!
I again saw this video after a year and was wondering if there is a great DIY of Bose 901 that one can make
Hi, have you tried to position the speakers with their 8 drivers facing the front wall and placed near the corners? I did with a set of VI, based on an article I read where Paul Klipsch suggested this was the best place to minimise distortion, they actually image well and tonality is really good I thought. Cheers
turned around, facing the corner? Or facing out in to the listening space, just in a corner? Some people call the front wall the rear wall... just want to make sure I understand your question. If the first one, then no, I didn't try that.
@@ErinsAudioCorner sorry, I meant, 8 drivers facing the listener, it does loose some of the "magic" but gains in sharper central image with a wide soundstage. I wish I still have mind, I just do not miss fiddling with the equalizer which you need tape monitor for. Thank you
Bose better that issue with newer tower speakers they made over the years that actually sounded better and didn't need an eq. They had built in sub and tweeters facing foward and rear. They sounded much true to the intended recording. You should review those🤗
I like the 601's sound better than any in the line.
Redesigning the 901s using BMR drivers would be quiet interesting.
I had a Pair. Enjoyed. Now JBL Sound Bar & ++ hooked up with my Smart TV
Enjoying.
Do you have a list of receivers that work with these speaks with eq
I do not.
I run mine on a 2012 model Harmonic Kardon 3490 and they do very well on it. You need either a pre-amp out or Tape monitor to run them on the equalizer. Onkyo and Denon older models work too. Chances are you’ll need a decade or older more receiver or amp.
Yes it is fun speakers to have
Bose should just license their EQ Tech. I have a soundbar and that thing really doesn't sound good without the EQ but with automatic EQ it actually sounds really good with a wide soundstage albeit for a simple living room solution.
Hello anyone can tell me; Did Bose sell a Bose amp for the speakers??? and what was it called.
they did; its called the 551 Receiver. I think it only works with the series 3 and 4. (I think that's right.)
He also sold the model 1801 power amp which was intended for use with the 901s. It put out 250wpc RMS, which was almost unheard of for a consumer amplifier at the time. Oh yeah, it also weighed 82 pounds.
Maybe you do not Monitor this channel but I'll ask anyway. A local electronics Repair shop called me as I had asked them a while back if they had any 901's for sale. They called me today and said a customer wants to sell his 901's with the EQ and the Tulip stands for 600$. The Shop said they will test and make sure they are in good shape. Is 600$ today a good price? Thank You
That's a reasonable price. Not a steal. But not highway robbery, either.
@@ErinsAudioCorner Thank you. I appreciate that. I'm gonna go next weekend to check them out.
what would be interesting is putting better driver units in there to improve the sound quality and reduce the distortion. At-least then they would be even more fun to listen too.
People always need something to hate on to make them feel better about their own possessions. For cars, everyone's favourite to hate is Ford. For hockey teams, it's the Montreal Canadiens. For audio, it's Bose. That's really all it boils down to.
Bose 901 speakers are pretty good overall and you could do a lot worse. For example, I once made one of the worst impulse buys ever and bought a pair of "Grafdale" speakers at a flea market without listening to them first. They were in great shape cosmetically and looked impressive enough with its large woofers. I got them home and hooked them up with my trusty Carver M1.0t. I was surprised, and not in a good way. The Grafdales sounded like a sleeping bag was draped over each speaker. There was no mid range to speak of, the highs were shrill, and the bass was flabby and almost non-existent. I did some research on them and found out they were one of those "white van" speakers. I promptly returned them the next day and got my $300 back.
Needless to say, the Bose 901 sounds 100 times better than a speaker like this. I'm assuming half the people that claim the 901 is garbage didn't hear them used with their supplied equalizer. It really is a night and day difference.
Bose speakers division of audiophiles is simply between those that love LISTENING to music, and those that let the specs and mesurements tell them what they should and should not like. Engineering wise, Bose has been way ahead of the curve since forever.
Even today its impressive how they sound. Obsolete to discuss about acurateness. They are fun to listen and give you a feeling of live music.
I had V's for 20 yrs and then got a 2nd pair vi's, which definitely sound different, much more bass and low end
Back in the day I went and listened to the 901's. And Bose would actually sell anyone them without the EQ. Really odd. Listing to them the biggest drawback by far was the muddy bass - like near zero dampening factor. I decided to keep my ESS AMT 1 B Studio Monitor Towers. Zero regrets
never listened to the 901s but I have the 501s and they sound good...low end suck though
Curves and computer measurements dont mean crap. When BOSE design those speakers they were using phychoacoustics its how the human brain perceives sound waves. This are not regular direct speakers you can measure. Bose uses direct and reflected waves that uses the rooms acoustics to enhance the sound so it can be perceive as a concert hall or live enviroment so if you place this speakers in front of a concrete wall you going to get a nasty reflection. You need to know how to set up and use this speaker they are not for the average joe. BOSE knew this its why they dont reveal the specification of any of their speakers. Cause its not about specs. Its about what sounds good to one person or another and how they perceive sound. but what can i say, I got to tell it how it is, i own my own business and i have been installing Home Theater and car audio for 35 years and counting im 50 years old and belive me when i tell you all those measurements your coming up with will change completely everytime you place a speaker in a different acoustic enviroment. Erin its easy, All you need to do is learn ACOUSTICS 101.
For sure Bose know what it's doing. Selling you 18 crap speakers in a shitty box........
Why don't people pair these things with a set of typical speakers and a subwoofer on separate power amps?
I would consider these as doing the job of augmenting 'surround', although Bose is notorious for charging too much for everything they build.
There is something wrong with the Bose 901 units you’ve tested. I’ve got a Bose 901 VI and the DB I get is distortion free up to 105. They play very loud.
Also, worth mentioning that Stereo Review and Tone Publications - both respected “audiophile magazines” - have said the 901s are tonally close to the Maggies. And so to call them “inaccurate” is a bit of a stretch.
The data shows the inaccuracies which backs up what I heard. I don’t know a single other person who has referred to these as “accurate”. I’d question anyone who does. Also, Bose was/is very well known for their litigious nature. Suing anyone who didn’t give their products good feedback. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bose_Corp._v._Consumers_Union_of_United_States,_Inc.
Erin's Audio Corner
I’m just gonna leave this here
www.tonepublications.com/review/we-review-the-bose-901/
Plus there have been plenty of positive reviews for the 901s. Even the stereo review that was critical of the 901s claimed that it produced perhaps the most realistic sound.
So go ahead I guess.....question away :)
It as something to do with @ 1 meter vs listening position in real listening room. Large panel speakers and Bose 901 have less decrease in SPL at listening position compared to 1 meter distance.
The following are direct quotes taken from 1979 Consumer Guide to Stereo Speakers and Headphones:
"For a 1 watt input we measured an integrated sound output (from the stereo pair at about 8 feet back from their center line) of 86 dB/SPL. For a 2.5 watts input we measured 90 dB/SPL. The twice-as-loud level, with this as a reference, was confirmed at 100 dB/SPL for 25 watts input. Another doubling of apparent volume brought the sound level up to 110 dB with the amplifier showing about 250 watts per channel into the system. At this abnormally loud level we gave up trying to "outrun" the speakers, since it was obvious that we would run out of amplifier power before the speakers reached their maximum power-handling limit."
"Response across the audio range was exemplary, with a smooth span that was wider in range than encountered in most speaker systems."
"The low frequency response remained remarkably smooth and level to below 40 Hz, picked up a little doubling at 35 Hz, and then rolled off to about -4 dB at 26 Hz. At 23 Hz it was down about 5.5 dB but still evident and containing a good deal of fundamental bass signal. Midbass was very smooth and well defined, with no booming but with ample power. Middles and highs extended to beyond audibility, with a rolloff starting at about 16 kHz, but with energy still evident in the 20 kHz region in a very wide angle about the system."
"The performance of the system is characterized by fullness of tone, balanced musicality, excellent transients, and very clear definition combined with the ability to convey the effect of massed instrumental power when applicable. Stereo imaging was superior, both laterally and in terms of front-to-rear depth. The stereo effect hardly diminished when one listened well "off axis" of either the left or right channel speaker; it remained full and convincing from a surprising number of listening positions. The 901 Series IV did not favor one kind of music over another; it sounded equally realistic on small ensembles and on the largest orchestral and choral works. In our opinion, it will please classical musical lovers, rock fans, and people with any type of listening preferences in between."
"THE MOST CURRENT Bose 901 once again proves to be a highly preferred speaker system. Its performance is unsurpassed----perhaps unequaled----by any other system tested."
I have a pair of 901's.Blended them on a sony 5.1 surround,added a pair of Fisher 15's st-830's and a pair of bookshelf polk duel drivers.also have an 8in Sony sub.All in all,they sound phenomenal with pink Floyd,ZEPPLIN and of course Dire Straights.Been told their at best when in a larger room.Best advice with these,blend them with other's, but have enough power to properly push them.
Buy two additional 901 , with good power (200 watt/sinus /channel) the best you ever heard!
I had a neighbor who worked for an electronics store NJ, we lived in Staten Island, forget which store. This was in the 90s he had a system with 2 pair of 901s driven by Carver 4000 preamp and a M1.5t power amplifier ( 350watts/channel 600 peak. It was impressive the amount of sound. I had a Carver AVR100 receiver driving a 3D Acoustics 3 piece speaker system. 2 satellites and a passive 10" sub, 3D610B. While his system played louder, mine was very detailed with great imaging. I heard details and vocall clarity that his couldn't match. That was my BOSE experience.
Many many recordings are not mixed and mastered all that well. We think all engineers are sound geniuses and they mixed a record to sound a certain way and that's they way its supposed to be... Its just not true. There are so many factors that happen while recording and mixing a record and many times its just pure luck that some sound great while others sound awful. Music for the most part is a mass produced product that is shit out as fast as possible. This I think is why we get the LP vs CD argument. I have doubles of LPs and CDs and in a lot of cases the LP sounds better than the CD. But if I change the EQ a little then the CDs sound just as good, what I find is my record player actually boosts the high-end a little due to my stylist I am using compared to a CD that is just an exact copy of the master take that was send from the studio. POINT IS, the master tape isn't always "the best sound" we like to think it is. There are so many factors that come into play, speakers, EQ, room and so on. Then there is what you want from music. I like a bright sound where you can hear all the background reverb and cymbals ringing out clearly. Some people like a direct sound stage and some people like music to fill the room. I have never heard these speakers and what I would worry is how would they reproduce cymbals in music but I think they would give you a room filling experience much like live music. I must try a set some day.
Nailed it!
Thanks!
You would have enjoyed Dr. Bose's courses. He really new a lot about the subjects you are touching on.
I prefer my Thiel SCS when I can stay at a sweet-spot. I prefer my 901 when I'm doing something with music though.