donbagley

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
4.00 of 5, 4.00 votes

Price Paid:  $250.00 from Magnolia Hi-Fi

Summary:
The Cr95 is a real enigma. Boston sound made in Malaysia? It boggles the mind. But the sound of these little towers won me over and I shelled out two and half Franklins from my hobby stash money (which I had sworn would never be blown on Far-Eastern speakers). Lots of bass with these and pleasant mids, too. I like acoustic music a lot and the CR95s love horns and strings, though they can rock when you need it. For 550.00 duckies these are really great. Get 'em on closeout. I like the beech ones though mine are black, and the towers are finished all around with veneer. Good looking! Oh yeah, they're easy to drive at 8 ohms. My somewhat wimpy Sony receiver can drive them hard--loud as I want, and then some.

Strengths:
Good wide-band sound with bass that really blooms. Attractive three-foot towers.

Weaknesses:
Made where? Oh no, say it aint so!

Similar Products Used:
Bose, Epicure, JBL

missionub6ib9

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
4.75 of 5, 4.00 votes

Price Paid:  $999.00 from southport hifi......

Summary:
this review is for the cr 97, its the updated model of the cr 95... i was very impressed with the cr 95,it has a very extended bass, and sounds ever so clean,but while i was there the cr97 was there sounding just as good and looking prety sharp with the new red cherry look and a new steel mesh cover instead of black cloth ,any way to me the bass is tighter an more controld ,the image is still pin piont like the 95 ,and has that same clean sound.this is a great speaker for small to mid sized rooms ,very good for acoustic stuff and is best for r and b .rap. dance ,its a speaker with slam and in ya face, clean as sound.

Strengths:
very clean sound, imaging that other expencive speakers cant even achieve. very detailed . great for ht, great value.

Weaknesses:
takes a long time to run in ,

Similar Products Used:
mission 74,bw 602 s3,subsonic pm1

Siper2

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Price Paid:  $275.00 from Tweeter, Etc. (Penns

Summary:
I purchased a pair of CR95s from Tweeter in the summer of last year (2004), for what was supposedly 50% off. However while it seems that many people got a similar or lesser price, still these are a great buy at $500 or under. Or perhaps even over $500! I play my CR95s off of a Denon AVR-685s 6.1 receiver, but have no surround. Stereo sound for me, for the time being. Thus far I have been extremely impressed with the '95s, their representation of music, and flawless performance thus far. As an owner of many other Boston products (Digital MediaTheatre 4.1 PC system for my '98 Gateway; RC61 front component car speakers; Competitor 1000 car 10" subwoofer), adding these to my collection was a joy. And I can happily report that they're the new mainstay of my listening. At this time I'm considering searching for a new DVD/CD player unit, as some sound playback has been muddled and weak... Considering the specific sounds, I attribute this to the player, not the speakers. Mine is an inexpensive Sanyo DVD player from Wal-Mart--no miracles expected. Even though they're discontinued, I would gladly recommend these entry-to-intermediate level tower drivers to anyone. As a footnote, I use 12-gauge cable from Home Depot, in six-foot strands per tower, connected via bare wire at each end.

Strengths:
Attractive veneer, great build quality, excellent sound for the price, or just in general.

Weaknesses:
Hard to say without an audiophile's ear. Nation of origin is a disappointment--Boston once produced all their merchandise at their Peabody, MA headquarters. Now all but their highest-end products are made in Malaysia or elsewhere, including the CR95s. Acceptable for a mass-market company, but not for BA in my opinion.

tomh

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $275.00 from Tweeter

Summary:
I purchased these speakers to use in a bedroom system connected to a Sonic Frontier tube preamp and power amp. My primary system uses Martin Logan Electrostatic speakers. I was very surprised by the smooth transparent highs, wide and deep sound stage and accurate imaging. These speakers had a very neutral presentation with minimal cabinet resonance. Excellent with all music tried. Jazz and classical were well voiced and transparent. Rock was dynamic and non fatiguing. These are not high end speakers but do blow away many much more expense speakers I've had that were made say 5 to 10 years ago. Highly recommended for a moderately priced primary system or a high quality tube system placed in a second listening area.

Strengths:
-Smooth, extended highs -Transparent large sound stage -Solid midrange with excellent balance

Weaknesses:
-Bass is delivered via ported loading and is not as tight as a closed cabinet acoustic suspension driver. -Cabinet veneer is not wood but looks reasonably good

Similar Products Used:
-Polk -Older ADS

tcontas

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $250.00 from Tweeter

Summary:
I've been VERY pleasantly surprised by these. They are outstanding, esp. for the price (closeout sale). These got an extremely positive review in Sound and Vision mag. a year or 2 ago. For speakers that have a 1" tweeter and just one 7" woofer, they put out some serious full-range sound. The review said they play down to 30 hz, and I can testify to that. The tweeters are nicely detailed but not at all overly analytical or bright (a real pet peeve of mine - so many newer speakers are marketed as "detailed" or "revealing" or "airy" when in fact they are harsh and fatiguing). They have the sound of a fine silk dome. Mids are very clear, vocals completely uncolored, just forward enough in the mix. Bass goes very low and stays extremely clean and tight; not boomy. To sum up, they have a sound that is very accurate and balanced, not overly bright or etched like so many speakers that have "tizzy" metal tweeters. I've owned a lot of speakers over the years, some that cost a lot more than these and had more "prestigious" names, and these just seem more real and natural sounding. Great job Boston!

Strengths:
Silky highs. Super clear mids. Very low, controlled bass. Full range sound. Not at all fatiguing. Pretty efficient and easy load for receiver.

Weaknesses:
They don't have spikes or rubber feet to decouple them from the floor.

Similar Products Used:
B&W, Paradigm, Klipsch, Pinnacle, ADS, KEF, Advent