2. speakers
  3. 1017107530

Am I the only one who thinks B&W is mid-fi?

I know that title sounds pretencious. By all means, everyones taste is different and I can grasp that. However, I find B&W loudspeakers to sound extremely Mid-fi ish, designed with sort of a boom and sizzle quality making it not much better than retail quality brands. At price point there is always something better than it, something musical, where the goals of preserving the naturalness and tonal balance of sound is understood. I am getting tired of people buying for the name, not the sound. I find it is letting the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. In these times of dying 2 channel, and the ability to buy a complete stereo/home theater at your local blockbuster, all of the brands that should make it don't. Most Hi-fi starts with a retail system and with that type of over-processed, boom and sizzle sound (Boom meaning a spike at 80Hz and sizzle meaning a spike at 10,000Hz). That gives these rising enthuists a false impression of what hi-fi is about. Thus, the people who cater to that falseified sound, those who design audio, forgetting the passion involved with listening, putting aside all love for music just to put a nickle in the pig...Well are doing a good job. Honestly, it is just wrong. Thanks for the read...I feel better. Prehaps I just needed to vent, but I doubt it. Music is a passion of mine, and I don't want to have to battle in 20 yrs to get equipment that sounds like music. Any comments?
mikez
spluta
58 posts
 
Cdc..

I definetly was not impressed with Mc and 801 sound.
My expectations were very high for 801 and i was really
dissapointed. I looked for pwr conditioner.. They did have one hooked up. So i couldent blame that. If i get the chance
i will listen closely to B&W's with some different amps.

I also had a much different take on the F30's and M20's. With different amps. The F30's were paired with Proceed amp and pre. The M20's were paired with Rotel gear (yeah i know).

I was really impressed with both especially bass and midrange on F30's. But the M20's really stood out as much better than I expected. Especially with the gear that was running them. Overall i would rate them both very high on my list. Im very confident my amplification could really get them where i want to go.

I do understand the effect's different gear can have on
any good speakers. I always try to take that into consideration.

I will check out Paradigm's also...

Thanks,

Steve
krell1's avatar
krell1
250 posts
 
I first heard the N802 when they came out at my dealer with McIntosh and I didn't like them. I finally took the plunge and sold my Matrix 801 III w/North Creek crossovers for the N802's. They are very realistic sounding like nothing I ever thought I would hear like them. With my Krell there is so much information musically revealed that I have never looked back or moved to sell anytime soon. I have owned Kef, ML, Magnepan, Pro Ac and have heard Wilson's and more. I hated to see my tweaked 801's go but these are definately worth it :-)
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
B&W's success lies in their aggressive marketing tactics...a large number of studios use their monitors...but then again...Mcdonald's is the worlds largest restaurant chain...too many equate "bigger with better"...the majority of their sales is based on name recognition...and I would have to agree with some of the above posts...at their prospective price points...and without much effort...one can always find a speaker that outperforms the equivalent B&W (often for much less)...they are for many....a "safe" choice...like Mcdonalds...for better or worse...you know what you are getting...my gripe is less about their sound...more about their inflated price...to catergorize them as "mid fi" is a bit harsh...
poloman's avatar
poloman
96 posts
 
Upgraded My Polk Monitor 10B speakers to the B&W Matrix 802 series3. Using B&K ex442 and ARC LS-7 No fancy wires or tweaks. Let me tell the sound is fantastic you guys have jaded ears. Yeah there might be better out there, but you have to spend mega bucks to get better sound. Yeah maybe I could upgrade the amp or cables, but you have to know when to leave well enough alone. You wouldnt upgrade your wife for a better model, would you? (although youd like to ). I had the Polks 10 years. Probably Have the B&W's another ten. Used, they're the best Value around, Period!
joeb
121 posts
 
To Spluta,
first of all, no wonder you didn't like the N801's, driven with a measly 200W! The 801 requires at least 300 and even more before they begin to open up. That particular model could really benefit from bi-amping. This thread just amazes me how ridicoulously biased it is toward a fantastic speaker iine. Any of the Nautilus line from the 804 on up is very revealing, "junk in = junk out" The electronics matched have a lot to do with the end result. I recently heard a set of 802's powered with a Krell, it was muddy. the same set powered with a Threshold was majical. I have a set of N804's powered with a Classe 300 amp, Classe pre and CDP and the synergy is great. I will agree that the BW line tends to be overpriced, but the Nautilus line of speakers are definetly not the kind of junk some of you want to portray it as.
More to discover