Bose 901 series VI & Yamaha A-S2000

sebrof and loomis, too funny guys! and i agree. whenever an initial thread has me looking for more information, i first look for a reply by Al. his answers are most certainly all i need to know. incredible time saver as well.

cheers to Al.

For $3500 for amp & speakers there are so many great ways to split up the pie. For example, if you like "stereo everywhere" in a more realistic soundfield, you could get a pair of Mirage OMD-15s from vanns.com for $1K (closeout down from $2500) plus a Rogue Cronus Magnum tube integrated amp ($2195). Or a pair of GoldenEar Triton 2's plus any decent integrated amp at $1K or less and you'd have a true full-range system. Or Magnepan 1.7s plus an Anthem 225 or the $1500 integrated amp of your choice.

You could also get a pair of Ohm Micro Tall speakers and an Anthem or Rogue Cronus Magnum integrated amp.

Now with all of the brick and mortar stores mostly gone, it makes it hard for someone buying anymore.

The Creek is a good amp, but I don't know if it will have enough power for them.

Those Bose 901 speakers really does a design flaw. Any of them from the original, to present, will not sound transparent and clean. This is a problem trying to get bass and treble from a ~4 inch speaker. Everyone since the begin had a problem trying to do so. A 4 inch is good for midrange, not bass down into the thirty Hz region, and treble up to the twenty HZ region.

If you were used to good transparent speakers (I grew up with good audio gear), and system before auditioning the Bose 901 (all series), their flaws are very obvious. Still, a lot of people do enjoy them.

There is a lot of distortion, and congestion in their sound. Forcing them to do the highs and lows (with their equalizer), also destroys their their midrange. I've heard the factory reps put on their show/demo (at dealers) using two pairs, and large amps, but always the same result. It's hard for me to recommend speakers in that range.

I would try to find a dealer, even if you need to stay out of town over a weekend (or two) to audition some audio gear. The Bose 301 series from about 15 years ago fared a lot better for making music, but where small, and couldn't play as loud. I would take some of your music with you, and see what is out there. Paradigm (any price), Klipsch, and speakers with metal tweeters should probably not be considered either. The high dollar ones are better at using metal tweeters.

Big box stores don't seem to have anything good for music anymore. One exception might be Vienna Acoustics. I've always walked past them. So I can't comment on them fairly. Most big box store speakers are geared more for home theater. If the sales people use terms like crisp highs, they probably have no experience. Also, the big box stores almost always have the bass and treble turned up in the displays. Tell them to go in the menu, and set them (bass and treble) flat. I called the headquarters of three chains complaining about this years ago. One actually listened (I believe), and that worked for only a short time.

Loomis, Sebrof, Lev, thanks very much for the nice words. Cheers back atcha!

Best regards,
-- Al

Russ69, You have extensive experience with a 45 year old speaker? Bose 901 is on series 6 now while your experience is with series 1. The original Vandersteen model 2 used a passive radiator and many people hated it because the bass was ill defined and boomy. So should we hate all Vandersteen speakers based on the experience of the owners of original Vandersteens. Once again I see another Bose basher with no real experience with Bose products.
Every system provides a different presentation. Some have better imaging and others provide a wider soundstage. Some have a deep sound stage and others do not. Please tell me which one is not an artificial concoction because I want my system to be exactly like the original event.