Old school shootout: Snell A/III vs. Original B&W 801
I miss Snell so much, especially the A/III. Amazing imaging on and off axis and bass that made you think they could pop your room apart like a balloon.
Along this time the original B&W 801s also were making the rounds, and ... I'd still take Snell every time.
One of the weird combos that was popular was Audio Research + B&W and man, I hated that combination. It was so gutless and lean.
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this is a great thread…. @crustycoot that must have been the coolest radio show… ! |
As a very young audiophile, these speakers did bring out problems I'd be challenged with for the rest of my life, which is having the money, space and amplifiers to do them justice. These were big speakers, and the bass was truly amplifier sensitive. Affording the speakers, amp and living room at the same time would take me a very long time. Something to be said for affordable, small footprint speakers which are amp friendly. |
Space was never a problem for me with the Snells, as they went against the back wall ( think Roy Allison ). Unfortunately, they lacked dynamics, with every amplifier I tried them with. I was / am a dynamics freak, and also owned a pair of Lascalas at the time ( used with a pair of Janis W3s ). Pick your poison / trade offs. The 801 III were, imo, a better suited speaker for me, and loved them with Levinson amplification. However, the As were wonderful just the same. If I recall, my Leak 2075s were superior to both, again, to my ears ( after some modifications ). Enjoy, and my best ! MrD. |
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