B&W 802D1 - How can I tame the brightness?


I have the original B&W 802 D1 speakers and for the love of god, I cannot get the upper midrange / tweeter under control. 

What can be done to tone them down some?

 

onehorsepony

You haven't mentioned any room treatments. For sure I would treat the first and secondary reflection points.  I've used GIK art panels and further added Owens-Corning insulation to this with excellent results.  My hearing is sensitive to high frequencies anyhow and this made a big difference for me.  This will improve the sonics in just about any room and no matter if you change speakers, it will improve your sound.  Also agree with the others regarding toeing the speakers straight out and not in.  

You might look at using Marantz gear with the B&W. Marantz lean toward the warm side and can help tame those speakers 

Op Audioquest waters interconnect are on the thin side, try Columbia Audioquest or maybe Cardas. Cerious graphene cables might work.you can audition them too.

DSP ? or send one to Danny @ GR research he can fix them  see if he allready has a fix for that speaker? i just watched 2 YT vids about him fixing a pair of $27.5 K Wilson watt puppies! wow $27 K and they are real POS needing a LOT of re-work to be optimized!  weird! 2 part YT video! 
https://youtu.be/Tma9jFZ3-3k?si=GcgkV3o2Ep5KvSaA
https://youtu.be/pIt2pcQvf6M?si=V-nu0XtiWsQXfQlx
his kit for B& W is   
https://youtu.be/wmmw8QlThPk?si=Svwa4ln20v7rZkVn
only 54 parts! needed a lot of fixing ! LOL 

B&W 802 S2 Upgrade Kit (Pair)

$525.00$692.00

The price is per pair.

This upgrade kit fixes a number of issues and greatly improves the quality of the crossover over the stock network.

The kit includes all of the necessary crossover parts, along with wire, solder, heat shrink and a set of tube connectors.
A new crossover/mounting board is not included.

Bass-Alignment Filter: B&W’s “bass-alignment filter” is compatible with our upgrade, as it only addresses frequencies below 100Hz. however we do not recommend it as it is more of a “band-aid” than an actual fix for poor room acoustics, while also robbing clarity from the midrange and treble.

Tweeter capacitors