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Bose 901's with "highend ancillaries"??

I STILL see Bose 901's are available here and maybe new after umpteen years in existence and yet I have still never hear a pair (unless you count the occasional high school concert which used the professional version).

Has anyone ever used these with "highend" gear, and if so what was the result??

Just curious if there is actually something good about the speaker other than the marketing the Bose Corporation has done over the years as they have never been inexpensive and even now hold their value pretty well.

And while I ma sure one can do better for the $$$ etc etc I am only looking for comments on how they actually SOUND - strengths and weaknesses
jrinkerptdnet
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,180 posts
 
Probable why pro installs from ceilings with a LOT of open space behind can sound pretty good if done well to take venue acoustics into account.

Its hard to have that much space behind speakers in most homes and still get the overall acoustics right.

Pointing the front o the wall might be a better option. Dunno. Never heard a home Bose audition good enough to get my interest. In general, I find Bose stuff cheaply made and overpriced, a cash cow for Bose. 901s not so bad in teh right situation maybe. You never know what will work best in each unqiue case/installation. Money spent alone won't do it.
omsed
145 posts
 
Most audiophiles will dismiss these as garbage, along with all horn speakers and other brands / technologies not blessed by the gurus of mainstream high end.

In fact, I have heard speakers at far higher price ranges do more damage to the music, and sound far more offensive to me. The 901s can be fun to listen to, and I'd rather listen to them than many "approved" speakers. I find the colorations and distortions of an award winning single driver speaker at many tens of thousands of dollars much more offensive than 901's, as one of the many examples I could bring up.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,180 posts
 
I saw a pair of tiny Totem Arros going for over $2K at a local dealer yesterday.

Yowsa! weren't these almost half that price not so long ago?

Granted they are good sounding speakers for their diminutive size but they are TINY!!!!

I like the sound of the Arros but the price for that tiny package no matter how good really struck me.

I'll stick to buying used online whenever I can I suppose.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,180 posts
 
I also saw a sizeable rack of new issue old title records there mostly in the $30-$40 range and higher, and a lot of new entry level turntables at various more reasonable price points I thought. I guess if you buy the expensive records you get to buy a turntable for a fairly reasonable cost. Kinda like buying a cheap cellphone and the expensive services that go with it. The whole thing kinda made me sick that this is what B&M "high end" audio has come to.
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
I was never that impressed with 901s...like some have mentioned...bloated bass and virtually no treble extension...some prefer this type of "dark" sound...personally I wouldn't bother with them on the used market...much better products to be had...the EQ design another major flaw
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