B&W 'New' 800 Series

I love the new looks - the gray mid, the smaller head, the woofers stand off.
Way more appealing than past gen.

Hi Bo1972,

Yes, your description of the sound matched my thoughts largely and this presentation indeed was not the best promotion for B&W.

Factors involved as room influence, setup, breakin, elctronics used and others could not be ignored however, and apparently (some of) these factors had a negative impact on the sound.

So new chances next week when I am going to listen to 803D3 in a totally other setup and place...

Did not found them that ugly though.

I compared the 802D2 vs 803D3 head to head on full mcintosh system. Neither had the upper hand in terms of physical positioning in the room.

I thought the new D3 series was better overall, possibly 25% better per my Dad who was in the room with me and is not an audiophile.

1. Denser vocals, denser and more palpable images.
2. Disappears readily... it was really spooky how the speaker does not seem to speak for itself.
3. Less hash and less grain. I own the 802D2 and I am very familiar with the sound... the new 803D3 sounds less colored and more natural.
4. There is less etch to the sound.... more round and more natural IMO.

WIhtout a doubt, the D3 is better.

I think enough to justify the change in price and I am sure to buy one shortly.