size, length of wire supplied, ease of hookup, and yes sound

These are *not* towers/loudspeakers-- nor do they pretend to be

Where to start? I've read some of these reviews and can't believe the breadth of what's here. It sounds mainly like you have only people who hate Bose and people who love Bose posting. Prior to purchasing the AM15s, I'd say that I was a very strict 2-channel, looking for the best reproduction of sound type of listener. As a matter of fact, last year, I would have told you that owning a true home theater system was of little interest to me.

Things change.

Nearly two years ago, I bought a DVD player and hooked it up to my 27" television and my audio system (Snell Type IIIB loudspeakers and ADCOM hardware). It was a very simple system, yet appropriate for what I felt I needed at the time. Listening to Jazz and Classical was my past-time (some occasional R&R), and playing DVDs through this setup was only a way (as I then thought) to hear amplified sound to accompany the picture on my 27"er. Nevertheless, as my addiction to DVDs grew, so did my desire to have more. A year ago, I bought a Toshiba 50" projection television. Now my music sounds great, my DVDs look great and theater sound is adequate. I saw no need for a surround sound system.

Things change.

About four months ago, a friend put together a surround sound system in concert with the use of a projection television and I fell in love. I had all the right ideas (including a collection of nearly 150 DVDs), but I wasn't getting the fullest (for my liking) from my system. I needed surround.

As you can tell from my original audio setup, I don't take these decisions lightly. This is where the review of my Bose AM15s really begins. I needed to decide a couple of things: namely, was my system going to have to serve all sorts of masters (pure 2-channel audio reproduction AND home theater) or could I swing keeping and managing two systems. I opted to manage two systems-- not to mention for gadget nuts like us, all that stereo equipment looks great! I listened to all sorts of speakers for nearly a month. When it came down to it, I knew that I needed something that sounded great and blended in with my current setup. I purchased the Denon AVR-2800 receiver (another great win in my honest opinion) and the AM15s.

I don't care who you are or what your liking is, the Bose for the price, sound and look/fit are perfect for home theater. Sure, you can get more out of other speakers and you can also pay more-- a hell of a lot more to do so. For theater, they serve a specific purpose and do a fine job at it.

If I want to listen to the nuance of Mingus humming and working his full-size base, I play it through my ADCOM/Snell setup. If I want to be enveloped in the 5.1 sound of one of my films, I turn on the Bose system powered by my Denon. It seems to me that I have found a very happy (generously above) medium to having the best of both worlds. And don't fool yourselves, just because I went with an $1100 (Bose cost) home theater speaker solution, it isn't the same as plugging in a set of crappy low-end tom, dick and harry speakers you can pick up at any electronics super-store for $500. Bose makes a quality, efficient, great sounding speaker to suit ones specific needs if they aren't that overly demanding. Of course, many may have more demanding needs-- I (for now, at least) do not.

Moreover, I have yet to demo my surround sound system for anyone (knowledgable or not) who has been overly critical of what they were hearing. Most are totally impressed.

So am I.

Similar Products Used:

snell, paradigm, jbl

Size and how it fits into decor

Sound-

OK I am not a Bose hater- But I think a little sanity must be brought to this discussion. BOSE markets well. Bose presents speaker packages-which are easy to grasp for consumers(no mixing and matching). The problem is that the BOSE system does not reproduce the whole spectrum of sound being played THere is a hole(no sound output) between the sub output and the satelites of about 70 HZ that can't be ignored. There is also no output above about 13kHZ. You pay for CDs and movies with sound from 20HZ to 20kHZ, but if your speakers are incapable of playing this range, you are being ripped off!

My impressions of the sound of this system were very good at first with movies on my father's setup. Then I noticed several things: INtensity of explosions wasnt there, as well as some voices. For example, when the male gorilla roared in Tarzan, it sounded like his voice dropped out of the foreground and slipped into the background. It was like the volume was turned down.
Highs were very clear, but seemed to die when tinkling sounds(like breaking glass) were present. After about 2 hours the highs were grating on my ears.

PLease do yourself a favor and listen to other packages such as Energy and Polk. If you are interested in getting the best bang for your buck, seek out a paradigm or PSB dealer and put together a system. Tell dealers what you want to spend and let them design a package for you. Contrary to the opinion of some BOSE lovers on this board, a better sounding system can be had for the same price or less. Just because a BOSE rep says that their speakers are a value doesnt make it so. Bring your own music and or movies to test. Don't let anyone pull a fast one on you.


mhucasey

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood, nOhr

Clarity, Construction, Reflecting Design, Separate Amp in bass module, Speaker Setup

Woofers In Bass Module are very small and dont have the
low-end power that conventional subwoofers have.(5.5 inches simly does not produce ground shaking bass)

Im probably one of the few people here that actually has this system set up in my house. You cant comment on this system or any other system if you only listen to it in a store and wright a review about it. I had been looking for this system for about a year and then I finally bought it on sale at Circuit City for $1199. When I opened the box, there was a letter from Bose thanking me for purchasing their product. In the letter it said that "We strive to avoid flashy sounds such as exaggerated bass and treble because these sounds only attract the novice". I dont think that is necessarily true. When I watch a movie, I expect that when an explosion goes off, my walls should shake. I dont think that is the case with this system. The Bass Module is NOT a subwoofer. I've listen to many subwoofers in my day and since Bose does not give out the frequency response, my guess is that this bass module does not get below 50hz. This might not interest you but when it comes time to listen to rap, rock, dance, and movies with powerful special effects, you will notice this change. Bose says that their Bass Module eliminates distorion, but when you turn your volume up to try to squeeze some worth-while bass out of that module, those tiny woofers start distorting. As much as I have ridiculed the bass module, I will say that if bass is not enough, you can always buy a separate subwoofer. When it comes to clarity, you either have it or you dont. Bose has sharp, precise, and stunning clarity. This is where this system stands by itself. Polk, Infinity, Klipsch and the others cant produce this type of clarity in this price range. Also the reflecting design increase your sound field. When you sit anywhere in the room, sound seems to come from everywhere. Before buying this system I was going to buy the Polk RM6600 because of it's abiliy to play digital movies and it's powerful bass. When it comes time to listen to music, the polk lacked the clarity. It took me just 30 seconds to swith back to Bose. Dont be fooled by Polk's "Dynamic Balance", I didnt notice anything.
My final verdict on this speaker system is that it is exceptional when you know what type of music you are buying it for. Jazz, Classical, Pop, and various other types sound good but Rap, Dance, and Rock sound a bit dissapointing. Bose is for professional listeners who appreciate precise imaginging and "clean bass". This system is not for everybody only those who appreciate "Real Music" (eg. Jazz)(Rap is just a bunch of electronically controlled stuff, if you like this, then go buy Cerwin Vega.) My rating is 4 stars even though the Powered Bass Module does not sound very attractive. Be sure to do your research befor buying this system. Always remember this, you can always buy more bass, but you cant by more clarity.

Similar Products Used:

Polk RM6600

size

everything else

Look I may have been rude in the previous post but come on Bose speakers are junk and you all know it.As far as value goes Bose is out of their mind charging what they do.Some people dont live in real big cities and cant get access to a real A/V store to test any good speakers out.They get stuck with department store junk and what stands out at a store like that BOSE gets pushed in your face.A post like mine is a slap in the face and wake someone up and out of the bose hype.Why do you think bose doent reveal their freg. responce.They dont want you to know the truth.I'll give bose one thing if you live in a box they are fine for tight rooms.The truth is out there!

Similar Products Used:

nothing

Small easy to hide speakers

Overpriced

I bought these speakers with a Sony Str-Da555ES receiver for less than the price of the Sony. A friend was having a baby and needed the money so I got them cheap.
I installed them on the walls in my bedroom. They acually sound pretty good in my bedroom. The bass module needs to be tried in mutliple places to get the best, and most seemless sound. I Built my own TV stand (it needed to be high, as my bed is tall) and built the sub into the cabinet near the floor. Excellent, strong, and seamless bass in that position.
I think some people are confusing the AM-15 with the unpowered sub AM-10. The Am-15 sounds much better. Also the Am-15 sub goes down to 40Hz not 65Hz like has been said in other reviews. This may be different in other rooms, but 40Hz is what I measured in mine. As the sub is a band pass the response drops quite fast after 40hz.
Now this system is not near the quality of my faimly room system, but it doesn't sound that bad. I also do not listen to music on the Bose, so I can not comment. Many people will glady take the slightly inferior sound for small size and good looks in your room. If you want really great sound and do not mind the loss of space, buy tower speakers. To get something in between try high quality bookshelf speakers, with a nice powered sub.
Go listen to a set, than compare. Even better, buy a couple different brands of speakers to audition in your own room.

Similar Products Used:

Polk, Mirage, Boston Acoustic

Size, style. They just disappear in the room

bass and midrange response

When I was first setting up my HT system I bought these thinking these were the best you could buy. They're not. I always thought they sounded great when I put a DVD in but the first time I put a CD in and listened in stereo I thought I had a setting wrong on my amp. I could never get the sound out of them that I thought I should be getting. I have now replaced these with the JBL Studio Series (S-38 fronts, S-36 rears, and S-Center) and a Cerwin Vega LW-12 sub. What a difference!

I now have strong, crisp midrange and I'm hearing and really feeling the bass.

I'm not down on Bose like some of these reviewers. I still think these are okay speakers but not at the $975 I paid for them. I'm just glad I didn't pay the $1300 retail that some did. You can get a LOT more for the money.

Similar Products Used:

JBL Studio Series, Bose AM-5's

Size, style. They just disappear in the room

bass and midrange response

When I was first setting up my HT system I bought these thinking these were the best you could buy. They're not. I always thought they sounded great when I put a DVD in but the first time I put a CD in and listened in stereo I thought I had a setting wrong on my amp. I could never get the sound out of them that I thought I should be getting. I have now replaced these with the JBL Studio Series (S-38 fronts, S-36 rears, and S-Center) and a Cerwin Vega LW-12 sub. What a difference!

I now have strong, crisp midrange and I'm hearing and really feeling the bass.

I'm not down on Bose like some of these reviewers. I still think these are okay speakers but not at the $975 I paid for them. I'm just glad I didn't pay the $1300 retail that some did. You can get a LOT more for the money.

Similar Products Used:

JBL Studio Series, Bose AM-5's

I was thinking about purchasing a set of the Bose Acoustimass am-15's, but read several of the reviews here. I threw out the ones that hated Bose and did not make a good case and likewise threw out the ones on the other side of the fence. I did myself a HUGE favor and followed the advice of some of the more rational people on this board and went to a higher end stereo store and looked at some other options the Paradigm's I listened too blew away the Bose in all respects and for about $300 dollars cheaper. All I can say is thanks to the more rational people here.

Sleek design, compact, wonderful sound

Bass isn't very dominant

I was astounded when I came to Audioreview.com to find Bose to have such a hated name- I love sound and sound systems and I usually find Bose to produce some of the better quality components on the market. This series is no different. Not only do you get tiny speakers, but they each produce excellent sound from ANY source- and as I've read through in these 101 reviews, it seems the majority of the people scoring this system low "only listened to it at the store" or "know Bose sucks" or "are experts and know their stuff". I will admit I'm no god at this, but I know good sound when I hear it- and this is it. The speakers produce clear, vibrant sound and the reciever is sleek, small, and simple. The only drawback is that while the bass produced is nice, it's not nearly deep enough or loud enough- but still, for the system, it's decent- and esp. for the price- you're getting a good sub INCLUDED in the 1000 dollar package here. Pick this up if you love Bose or have a smaller area to cover...they're good, what we've come to expect from Bose.

Similar Products Used:

Other Acoustimass series

Size

Size, yes it is the size that makes this so calles speakers suffer.

I just got intrigued to buy the Bose for home theater & save some space. What a mistake!! I guess those who are really happy with this things are simply amazed by the fact that they hear big sound coming from small boxes, not because of sheer quality os sound. But you never know!!! For me, 10 minutes was enough to know they will be returned.
Sound quality (or quantity, I rather should say) is bloated, lacks deep base and lack midrange presence. I just felt I was listening to lots of upper bass and mid highs. It is absolutely a crime to call these home theater speakers (forget about listening to music with this junks.)
You are better off to get NHT Super zero's, ADS or Polk. I know they are hard to find, but you will be rewarded with a sound quality which is not BOSE LIKE. That is a good thing.

Similar Products Used:

NHT supre zero, super one, ADS