Summary: I purchased a pair of P5's in black ash. I know, the cherry finish is gorgeous, but I couldn't pass this pair up for the price. I have been listening to them for well over a year now and I can honestly say, they are the best speakers I have ever had in my system. The midrange is silky smooth with extended, but never harsh highs. The bass is deep and tight without being boomy. I am driving these with a Jolida 202a integrated tube amplifier. It puts out 40 wpc and it makes the P5's sing!.
One thing I did discover while tinkering is that the soundstage and midrange open way up when they are biwired. It made a huge difference in both width and depth.
If you can biwire, do it. You will be amazed. I listen to mostly jazz, vocals, and easy rock and they all sound as they should, clean, clear and fluid. Fortunately, I haven't had the same problems with the tweeters as other owners, but I was told by B&W tech support that they are available through them.
I couldn't be happier with these and I think You would need to spend much more to get a speaker this good in todays market. If you find a used pair, don't hesitate
BUY THEM!
System:
Jolida 202a amplifier
CAL CL-15 CD player
Project 2xpression turntable Grado gold cartridge
Synergistic alpha x2 speaker and interconnects
Strengths: Midrange liquidity
Deep, tight bass
Smooth and airy highs
Cabinet construction is second to none
Biwireable, which IMO makes a HUGE difference
Support from B&W even for as long as they have been discontinued
Weaknesses: Tweeters????
Terminals are not staggered which makes connection via spades a bit cumbersome. SO What go with bananas
Similar Products Used: Paradigm studio 60's
Audio Physic Sparks
B&W nautilus 804
Boston VR3's
JM labs chorus 716
Triangle antal
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Summary: Purchased these about 12 years ago. Have been using them as fronts in a home theater for the last 2 years. After reading another review on this site I took a closer listen to them in a stereo configuration and realized the tweeters weren't doing much. I ordered a replacement set from B&W for about $130 (2 x dome + driver) and it's like night and day... hard to believe I hadn't noticed how bad they'd gotten, but I guess the other (much newer) speakers in the system were picking up the slack. In any case, the upgrade was simple (the tweeters can be gently pried out from the front). As an experiment, while doing the replacement I listened to one speaker with and without its old tweeter - there was some difference, but not that much. Now they sound great and I want to start listening to music again.
Strengths: Good balance for both home theater and music. Adequate but not excessive or boomy bass. Clean, attractive appearance. Good build quality (these have moved with me about 7 times in the past 12 years, and I lost the boxes years ago). Backed by a company that stocks spare parts for 12-year old products and has tech support people you can reach over the phone (at least here in the US).
Weaknesses: Finite lifespan of tweeter... tech support guy said the cooling fluid tends to dry/leak out. I imagine this problem isn't be unique to B&W.
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Summary: I Bought those on eBay without ever hearing those speakers, based soly on their appearence and the company's reputation at making some of the best speakers in the world. The first time I listened to them I noticed a total lack of high frequencies. After close examination I found that both tweeters were playing at about 10% capacity. Since they are ferofluid metal domes, I suspect that with age, something went wrong around the voice coil. Until I can find new factory replacement tweeters, I substittuted a pair of Technics tweeters and I must say that they now sound extremely good. The bass is abundant yet very tight, not boomy or muddy at all. The mids could not possibly be sweeter and the newly found highs make them sound like they should. Wheter or not new factory tweeters would improve their sound, I don't know. But I would like to keep them original so if anybody know where I can find B&W P5 replacement tweeters, I would welcome their suggestion.
Correction to my P5 evaluation. The Technics tweeters have been substituted with NHT tweeters , the only very good tweeters I could fit in the existing hole without modification. Very happy with the sound now. Toscane
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Summary: I'm no audiophile, but I've been enjoying hi-fi for over 25 years. I'm known for constantly upgrading hi-fi components, always in search of that elusive hi-fi heaven.
For the last 10 years though NOTHING I've heard has made me want to change my gorgeous P5's!!! I bought them a decade ago, when 900 was one helluva lot of money to me and my family. Having said that, the fact that I've been so happy with them has probably saved me a great deal of money over the years.
Back in 1995 I auditioned quite a few floor-standers of the day and NONE came close to the P5. As much as I'd previously enjoyed Castle speakers previously, the B&W's trashed any model I listened to. And it wasn't a case of "straining" to tell the difference, the mighty P5's demolished the competition with complete authority. The only thing I heard which beat the P5 was the P6 (which I just couldn't afford). I recall enjoying the Mission 753 too, but it didn't have the same slam and presence as the P5.
Reading through the other reviews, I cannot for the life of me understand the "Cindy" 3-star rating and the talk of little or no bass (there's something wrong with your system)!!
The P5 absolutely EXCELS in the BASS department. It can plumb the depths of 28Hz which really does question the value of subwoofers even in an AV setup. The mid and low bass of the P5 is exceptional!!! I've never heard another speaker in this price bracket (and above) come close. And how Cindy can say these babies aren't suited to Jazz I do not know....jazz sounds soooo cool thru P5s.
A WORD OF WARNING though....
My speakers are 10 years old. 10 years of regular use at strong volume levels. If you buy a used pair of P5's off Ebay or anywhere else, please bear in mind that all speaker cones are MECHANICAL DEVICES which are subject to wear and tear just like anything else. In ANY SPEAKER, the drive units will become "tired" over a period of a decade and will not be as responsive as they were when in their youth. Its a fact! I recently changed the drive units on mine (genuine B&W parts) and WOW, what a difference!!!
You don't notice the deterioration over the years, just as you don't notice your own kids growing :-)
Don't believe it?? Try replacing just ONE tweeter in a pair of 10 year old speakers and see what happens.
Anyway, back to the amazing P5's. If you see these for sale, don't hesitate even for a moment - go buy them. They are first class speakers which are difficult to equal with todays offerings unless you pay an awful lot of money. P5's are TRUE CLASSICS!!
5 of 5
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