B&W Nautilus 803 & 804 Vs The World

I have decided against a turntable, as I have very little vinyl, and with the no. 39, I believe, at least to my ears, the "digital problem" has been largely solved. For the first time, when I first heard the No. 39/No. 334/N804 together, I did not hear "digital" on my cd's. I completely agree with reviewers who say they hear all their old cd's in a new way. I hear the same things on my favorites especially. For now, the decision is between a pre-amp or upgrading speakers to 802. As far a budget goes, I blew that away when I heard Levinson/B&W combination for the first time! The sound was that good (to my ears).

I would also like to add that when I first auditioned Nautilus speakers, I could not detect the difference between the 803 and 804.

tburk, i don't understand your need for a pre-amp. i wish i knew more about the #39 before i purchased my gear. because of some events in my life at the time my only choice was to go with changing my amp. i had the 804's with a c-j intergrated and the sound was lacking. i found a dealer that sells both c-j and levinson. i received a fair trade in for my c-j and i bought the levinson on the advice of my dealer. as i stated, i like to keep things simple. i do not wish to pay for more than i need. so the #39 is more than i need. i don't have much use for added gear such as dac's, etc. the added cable's make for areas of sound loss even with the best of them. so my advice to you is to enjoy the music. you have some of the best sound money can buy. me, i have a good cd player with a great amp and great speakers, silver interconnects and silver and copper speaker wire. i wish levinson made just a cd player. no built in pre-amp, no volume control, and no external dac. so my search for a great one box cd player goes on. not sure about sacd. peace and good listening.

I've owned the N802s for about a year now; driven by B&K 250wpc monoblocks (about $1,500 per). They sound Great! The B&Ks have high peak current to handle the Home Theater demands of strong bass peak requirements. In either normal or somewhat over-the-top listening 250wpc, bi-wired, is all that is necessary to deliver clear, authoritative music. At some point, I'll go for more wattage (probably a Bryston 4B-ST, with each channel bi-amping the N802s), but I don't need it in my current listening environs.

I do recommend getting a sub for HT (I have the B&W ASW4000, and it will chill you).

For those trying to assess N802s vs. N803s vs. N804s, it is a matter of bank account: you get progressively more than what you pay. When I go full 7.1, the 7 will be N802s: simply, a magnificent speaker.

MJCD