It is truely a shame that someone has gotten unbelieveably rich by perpetuating a lie of the magnitude reflected in the gross sales of Bose speakers. Those who sing the praises of Bose 901s have been denied the experience of hearing truely well reproduced music. Slick advertising has them convinced that what these speakers are putting out, in any way, resembles the performance stored on the recording. Deep down, people buy the axiom "you get what you pay for", so If I paid 1500 bucks for these things, they must be putting out good sound. Price SHOULD reflect quality; it is a shame that snake oil salesmen like Bose have made it impossible to use the addage as a measuring stick eventhough it is usually valid.
No one with any knowledge of sound reproduction will argue that Bose speakers are any good; there is just no way to defend it. But people who have bought them and live with them every day are convince that what they are hearing is good sound, and therefore the "different" sound being put out by other speakers must be "bad sound" because it differs from what they have convinced themselves is "good". That is a shame, and amounts to nothing less than mass fraud.
In the final analysis, I don't suppose it makes any difference, if they are happy with their purchase, that's what counts. But, I repeat, its a shame that Bose got rich by fooling such a large number of people out of such a huge amount of money and at the same time denying those people the pleasure of hearing truely accurately reproduced music in their homes.
I'm sure he grieves about it all the way to the banks.

power sound lifelike awesome well wourth it

none

i have used the 901 for my surrond system by hooking the eq to the main pre outs and use a set of 1200.00 energy vcss dipole,pipoles surounds with a mirage psb 150i piano finised sub,and bose vcs center and have very good sound. here are a few reviews daniel kumin of digital audio & compact disc review,it "delivers a unique value for money-both in terms guanity and guality,the bose 901,fortified against the rigors of the digital age,still makes the listening room seem to expand."hans fantel,the new yourk times,"i must say that i have never heard a speaker system in my own home which could surpass, or even equal,the bose 901 for overall realism of sound." julian hirsch,stereo review.I have had the 901 since 87 and love them i use a pioneer vsx 9300 pioneer 10 band eq sony mini disc and pioneer 100 disc changer

Similar Products Used:

201, 301, have set of 501 and vcs center

Open, spacious, full range sound. Expansive soundstage and natural reproduction.

Not compatible with other speakers.

I don't claim to be an audiophile or an expert. I am just someone who has listened to music (not a musician) since I was 14 (now 43) and have enjoyed the continued advancements midline (reasonably priced) audio has provided to the casual listener at over the years. I listen to a moderately extensive (1000 CD) classical music collection. I go to live concerts and I will sit in my home and seriously listen to an entire symphony from beginning to end and then change conductors to compare interpretations of the same piece.

I have been watching this site and it's various Bose threads for a while. I would assume that the basic benefit and purpose of this site is to provide accurate information to those who seek it. I am dismayed by the disservice to this goal some participants of this site provide.

I find laughable comments such as "sounds like garbage, junk, hated every minute of listening to them", etc. Didn't they audition them? How does a person make the statement "similar products used 301,501,601,701", and expect to be taken seriously. The contradiction in similar is apparent. It's a shame that these ill-informed types cause this product to fall into the "Hall of Shame category". There is nothing shameful about properly powered and set-up 901's.

Firstly, any audio system is only as good as it's weakest link. That weak link will exist in your home system just as it will in the Audio Shop's setup. Secondly, sound perception is subjective since our ears can not be calibrated alike. And thirdly, Bose 901's need correct setup and placement (like any speaker). I would suspect some of those who find error in the 901's sound reproduction don't have a clue as to what they were doing.

Case in point. After hearing my setup, two of my friends gleefully bought 901's. Each called me to tell me they sounded like garbage. When I visited each I found the following. The first setup did not have the EQ engaged. It was looped improperly since my friend's pre-amp (Adcom GFP 750) is the same as mine and does not have a true tape loop. The tape outputs disengage when tape is selected as a source. Solution put the EQ in the output line. Sound degradation? None that we could perceive when compared to the CD player being the direct source into the EQ and the EQ output into the pre-amp CD input. If CD is your only source, connecting the CD output into the EQ then the EQ output into the pre-amp CD input works also.

My second friend had both is 901's backed up into heavy floor to ceiling draperies and he was using a 100 watt Onkyo receiver for classical music reproduction. I don't need to say more.

As far as natural sound and testing the capability of the speaker, if you find a shop that has a good set up you of course need to bring your own music. If you want to test dynamic range, tonal quality and everything else, I would suggest the following (not for any particular historic value, not all inclusive, not for anything else except this is what I've used for stressing and maximizing the sound reproduction in a store).

1. Camille Saint-Saens Symphony No. 3 "Organ". (the music from Babe the pig movie) Telarc is a good recording. This music contains a full-enhanced orchestra, piano four hands, triangle, cymbals, bass drum and organ. Listen to the organ's low pedals (it's not a boom as many expect bass to be), then go listen to a real organ's low pedals. Now go and listen to a live performance of that symphony. Guess what. The 901's reproduce it the best (you do need huge amounts of power to reproduce the dynamic range of this piece). You can A/B that piece all day long and if you compare it to live, the 901's are the closest (caveat, I'm taking about 901's as compared to others in the same price range, and supplied proper power and set up optimally)

Also Mahler 1 or 8, Berlioz Requiem, Bruckner 4 or 8 give you dynamic range.

2. Beethoven's Wellington's Victory. Again Telarc for the recordings sonic qualities. It contains digitally recorded Cannons and Muskets as the backdrop against an orchestra.

3. Listen to some Verve reissues of Ella Fitzgerald such as her jam sessions with Count Basie, Duke, Nelson, Oscar. Listen to the tonal qualities in her voice against the musicians. Most of these takes were live, or one/two take jam sessions. Some of them you feel you are in the studio or club and she is right in front of you with the boys behind. Listen to the percussionist's brushes and stick hitting the metal and skin. These are not audiophile CD recordings but rather budget CD reissues of 1960's master tapes. Again in A/B only the 901's gave me that you are there feeling and IMHO the most natural sounding voice and instrumentals.

4. A recording of Puccini's Turandot will give you the mix of chorus vocals against full orchestra or just about any good opera recording that you are familiar with.

5. Listen to Jackie Dupre (or any favorite Cellist) playing Elgar's Cello Concerto and then listen to a real cello. Again guess who produces the best resonance?

6. Gets some Haydn, Handel or Mozart. Treat yourself to a concert first then listen to the speakers.

Are these the best speakers in their price range? No, yes, maybe. It's all subjective to the listener, but please don't tell people they are garbage unless you have properly set them up and you know the music media that you are listening to as compared to live listening, whether it be classical, jazz or rock.

Equipment:

Pre-amp - Adcom GFP
Amp - Adcom 5802
DVD- Denon DVD-5000
Tuner - Onkyo Integra T-9090 II
Power Conditioner - Monster Power 3500
Interlinks - Kimber Heros

Similar Products Used:

(not used but rather A/B) Paradigm, KEF, B&W, ADS, JBL, KLIPSH

sounds very clear at all frequencies, the direct/reflecting works fine, all that even without the equalizer

a little lack of low frequencies (but very little)

I read some of the reviews, and I don't understand why many people say there are bad.

I use them with an old Schneider Amplifier and more olds HH Power Amplifiers (I use the Schneider to equalize the sound)
As CD-reader I use a stupid computer CD-Rom drive. It's a very common material, but it gives incredible sound with the 901's, even without the equalizer. I admity I've never listen to any other VERY GOOD speakers (I'm only 16), but I've listened to some average good speakers, and the 901 are far away from all them. The Live-like system is not at all a stupid advertising thing, it really works.

To those who say that you have to place it on a particular place in a particular room, I say that I've placed them on the first free place on my room and I've got that damn good sound. My room itself is quite special, and it maybe gives me that astonishing sound : in fact it is a big bedroom in the attic with stairs going to it in the middle with a door at the level of the lower floor (yes, very strange). One big wall is made of bricks and the others are made a little of brick but mainly of the roof, and there's a separation made with wood ( about 10'' between the wood and the roof ). I use the 901's to listen almost only to blues and also some rock (Jeff Healey, Led Zeppelin,The Scorpions,...)
and I've never heard my cd's like that, i've discovered new sounds I've never heard. I don't know if the equalizer is very useful. It only seems to give a clearer sound, but I've got to turn the bass up and it gives the almost the same sound as before.

I bought them from someone else so it didn't cost me a lot but I won't never pay the full price for them. I think there are more expensive here than in the USA, but the price I give is a conversion, so it may change every day.
The price in belgium is rated in belgian francs and a dollar is now at about 45 francs. The normal price is 110.000 francs and I bought them for 35.000 francs. At full price they are very expensive ( people earn normally between 40.000 and 50.000 francs per month ) so I give them a 2.5/5 rating, but for the overall rating I give them 6/5,
I think there are the best you can buy for home.

( Sorry for my bad English, I did what I could ;)

Similar Products Used:

none

Listenability, looks (real wood), durability

Require alot of power, placement critical

Lets face it, Bose 901's are like Harley Davidsons--its a love-hate relationship. Not too many folks in between. I have to say that I did not like earlier models (series V and older) because of their "nasal" sound. The series VI struck me with a totally different (up-front) sound. I've had these speakers since 1987, and although I did sell them just recently--I throughly enjoyed them over the last 13 yrs. Keep in mind I have a 600 watt amplifier, and a good listening room for THESE speakers. When in this environment--they are unbelievably "real." To this day, I've never heard such low, distortion free bass extension in any speaker--at any price. Mids and highs can be quite satisfying if setup is done correctly--leave the Bose Eq "flat" and use your bass and treble controls on your preamp. This will result in less noise and still give the speakers the Freq curve needed to make them sound right. Keep in mind that the external Eq is also playing the role of "cross-over" in respect to sound shaping. Like I said at the beginning--its a love-hate thing, let your ears be your guide.

High quality sound, revolutionary design

Not available in the color yellow

I had an interesting experience with this BOSE system that I'd like to share with fellow audio enthusiasts. It all started on April 21st when I first heard a BOSE stereo at my friend Herbert M. Cheese's house. To say I was blown away is a true understatement. I consider it right up there with discovering the fact that you can warm up bagels by placing them on top of your computer monitor. This was a system that made everything else sound like your answering machine. And the features: wow. You could actually turn up the volume just by using the remote control. A significant breakthrough! Also, it had an on/off switch that was comfortable: don't you hate it when you get blisters from turning your receiver on and off? Not with BOSE, no sir! Given the greatness that I witnessed, I went on a mission. The first was to figure out how BOSE speakers were made. The second was to buy my very own BOSE system.

So I went down to the local consumer electronics uber-store to find out some information. The friendly salesman named Tut was there to serve my needs. I just had to know how BOSE came up with this revolutionary design. Tut was not about to let me in on this secret, mind you, but I found that if you give Tut a $20 bill, he's very accomadating. He took me off the side and let me in on the secrets. Tut began his monologue by going over the history of the Egyptian pyramids, and since I'm Egyptian this was of great interest to me. Apparently there is this theory that aliens from outer space came down to Earth in 5,000 B.C. and, seeing that the Egyptians were having difficulty building their pyramids, offered a helping hand in return for a hot lunch and use of the bathroom. The aliens lent their enormous technological knowledge to the Egyptians in architechtural design. But there is also something else the aliens did, namely, they created BOSE speakers, and for a very good reason: they were insane. (That's the only reason I can come up with.) Now BOSE denies this, but how else can you explain such awesome revolutionary speakers like the ones BOSE has? Clearly, mankind is not smart enough to invent such a product. This explains why BOSE won't release the specifications for their speakers: the aliens never bothered to write them down. And no one is smart enough to comprehend such incredible speakers, so even if the specs were released, man would not just look them and be utterly confused.

Now, after a few more $20 bills, Tut was gracious enough to allow me to make a purchase. Tut recommended the 901 series VI, and I was not one to disagree with an audio mastermind such as himself. He gave me a great bargain, and after coming back from a talk with the store manager, gave the speakers to me for the amazingly low price of $3,000. It was such a great deal I gave Tut another $20 tip for being such a kind man. I was on my way to listening heaven.

I went home and ripped open the boxes; I couldn't wait to try these things out. After the easy-to-connect speakers were ready to go (and it only took me 12 hours, which is pretty fast considering how advanced these speakers are and how I'm a non-alien and all), I got out my reference DVD, which is Mel Brooks' Silent Movie (1976). For some reason it didn't sound very good. The dialogue was much clearer on my 1955 television set. But then I realized my mistake: I had the speakers in the wrong places. So what I did was put the rear speakers in the front and the front speakers in my attic. I actually get much better sound this way. It also helps to aim your subwoofer diagonally toward your nearest tree outside for a big improvement. For the center channel, I find it works better when you put a slice of swissed cheese on top of it to absorb any excessive vibrations. I popped Silent Movie back on and was nearly blown out of the room. Therefore I installed a waist strap on my chair to prevent that from happening in the future.

I love this system and recommend it wholeheartedly.

Moral of the story: BOSE BLOWS THOSE other SCHMOES with a HOSE.

None whatsoever

Every possible weakness a pair of speakers can have

Never owned a pair of these, listened to them once though and they absolutely suck. How does Bose expect 9 4.5 paper cone drivers to produce high frequencies or deep low bass? Check out a good pair of Paradigm Reference Studio 60s, or Monitor 5i's for about them same cost. You will find that they will blow the bose away.

Similar Products Used:

Aiwa Boombox

The reviews I've read thus far have left a bad taste in my mouth. For you so-called "Purists" who feel that a speaker must a) produce sound accurately, and b) mix your vodka/rocks when the music's over, well, I beg to differ.
Let's face facts: The 901's aren't for everyone. If you prefer a "cartoon" image of how live (recorded) music should sound, please keep shopping. If, however, you enjoy the experience of a live concert (but don't feel like shelling out $26 to hear it) and want to bring that excitement home, give the 901's a fair trial. I've enjoyed the 901's for years now, and will continue to for many years to come. Let me restate: the 901's aren't for everyone. But if a truly life-like, spacious sound is what you appreciate, then give them a try.

Let me say up front that I do not hate Bose as a brand. Also I have done a number of reviews of products and am a SysOp on 2 audio sites so I try to keep a open mind when it comes to subjects like Bose speakers.

IMHO Bose could build a outstanding speaker if they wanted to. They have the
facilities and the knowledge to do so. They did a excellent job with the Wave Radio and fogetting the price for a moment, the Acoustic Wave is quite a portable system. The key to the first and second sentence of this paragraph is that while Bose can build a good spaeker *but* they choose not to. Instead they have chosen to build speakers that are "colored" - then they have pushed their name very hard to the general buying public a being very good. The result - Joe Six-Pack thinks that Bose is the best speaker on the market and will not buy anything else. Year after year this has gone on and on - so why should Bose make a change and build a truly accurate loudspeaker system when they are reeling in the dough from unknowledgeable buyers???

As for Bose speakers in todays market, they are clearly old-day technology when cone tweeters ruled the market. For that reason they are simply overpriced for their product at every point. If the 901 was sld for much less, they would be a novelty item. If the 201 and 301 (IMHO the only current Bose speakers that are competitive in the marketplace) were prices lower they would not be a bad speaker in a entry level system with poor electronics that need all the distoriton masking they can get.

As for ranking, I will be nice and give them 1 point simply for the fact that they have good resale value. Bose can do better - shame on them.

I'm not gonna attack people who listen to Bose speakers, but I will give my evaluation. First, stop attacking people who listen to Bose. Whether
or not these people like the choice they made is irrealavent, they are
gonna defend their chioce even if it was a choice that was bad. You
won't convice someone by attacking them.
Bose 901's are over-priced and I was very disappointed in them. Only one
pair of Bose speakers are listenable. The 301's. Every other one of them
are poorly designed and you can hear it. At least other speaker makers who
cut corners are nice enough to give you some kind of quality. Bose gives virtually no quality in sound or construction and tries to tell you that it
is a well thought out design and a quality product. When in fact it is not.
You guys should attack the Bose company, not the people who buy from them.
The verdict is 1 star, which is more than Bose deserves, and I hope the
outcry of disappointment will embarass this speaker company and change
thier ways. Give the buyer his money's worth!

Timothy