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
The original premise of this discussion was that the instigator (that sounds harsh doesn't it !) proposed that s/he thinks B&W is mid-fi. Through violent agreement I think we can summize that some of their products may be mid-fi while others certainly are not. The fact that you may be able to get better price/sound-quality from competing manufacturers and that BMW was founded before B&W are irrelevant to the original discussion point. That being said isn't the internet and (some) discussion boards entertaining ?
Lots of responses to the B&W question. I own the 803s and have not compared them to that many other speakers. They do require specific equipment to make them sound magical and I do not mean big $$$. First a good high current amp is necessary, second, silver interconnects and cables open them up quite a bit. All of the other speakers everyone mentioned are also great but it all comes down to personal preference, etc. My 2 cents worth.
I have B&W 802 Matrix III's and they don't have "boom & sizzle" at all. The bass is very tight and defined, and the high end is not bright at all; that is, with high quality recordings. You do hear all the flaws with lesser recordings, and they aren't pretty. But I found that to be the case even with Vandersteens I owned before.

Garbage in ---- Garbage out. You must be sure your whole SYSTEM is good. Speakers are like chameleons - they change their sound drastically with different equipment.
[its all good ] NOT A BIG FAN BUT THEY MAKE OK SPEAKERS FOR THE CASH I HAVE OWNED A FEW PAIRS BUT WILL PROBLY NEVER BUY ANOTHER PAIR YOU CAN GET BETTER SOUND ELSE WHERE
I'm with John, My B&W 602's have boomy bass , muddy mids, and absolutly no sparkle to the treble. Seas woofers and ribbons in kits easily blow away any B&W's and most commercials. Audio Aero is superior digital, Jadis is superior tube. Electrocompaniet is superior solid state...same in drivers you've got superior and the so-so. Just opinion nothing more.