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B&W 800 MATRIX

Has anyone had experience with the B&W 800 MATRIX Speakers and what is your opinion on them . I will be buying a very nice used pair and mostly listen to classic rock. With that being said i will be in the market for a new or used solid state amp and pre amp. Possibly Krell KSA 250. Any thoughts would be welcome . 
tattooedtrackman
ct0517's avatar
ct0517
2,041 posts
 
Hi cymbop - are you still babysitting those 800m's ?  :^)
68pete
1,026 posts
 
Hello I also have the B@W Matrix 800 speakers. I drive them with a Mark Levinson 335 amp and use Transparent cables for the feed into them. Use the original jumpers with the exception of the mid to the tweeter i use a Transparent jumper. They sound great feel the room with great sound.
Enjoy Pete  

cymbop
315 posts
 
Yeah, Ct!  Still enjoying them on a nightly basis, and feeling thankful every time!

french_fries
817 posts
 
I had B&W Matrix 801s3 speakers and the older Pass Aleph amplifiers (SE Class-A) really made them sound particularly incredible- any hashiness from the tweeters disappeared.  If you can afford any of the newer Pass XA amps i would think they would sound somewhat similar.  I did get to hear the Matrix-800's and i was VERY impressed by them, although they should optimally be quad-wired- woofer-mids-tweeter-woofer.
    Not to get off the subject but WHY does B&W not want to update this design using more modern drivers and materials beats me, as so many manufacturers today are offering top models with a similar configuration (Wilson, Evolution Acoustics, Kharma, Rockport, etc,).  
Plus a good modular design is easier for the lower back to set up- Just build it up like a series of "Lego" blocks...
ct0517's avatar
ct0517
2,041 posts
 
Been liaising with Mike (OP) in possibly acquiring the 800 matrix..

A question for owners. This specific pair have a serial number range in the 500’s and have something I have not seen before. The Midrange and Tweeter crossovers are joined; there is only one speaker connection for both the midrange and tweeter drivers on the back.

Do any other 800 matrix owners have this kind of connection ?

Did they come from B&W like this in later runs ?


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French Fries
Not to get off the subject but WHY does B&W not want to update this design using more modern drivers and materials beats me, as so many manufacturers today are offering top models with a similar configuration (Wilson, Evolution Acoustics, Kharma, Rockport, etc,).


FF - I do have an opinion on this - will post later.
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