everything you can expect from a higth quality speakers and subwoofer

very good sound

clarity,crystal and loud sound

nice design,and small size

the subwoofer is really good and have a lot of power

nothing

very good stereo speakers,if you want good speakers bose is the best choice for you.dont matter about the stupids bose bashers.

these speakers are very good at all types of music,and these speakers can make you feel in a concert hall.

Accurate and balanced sound reproduction.Rotating cubes look cool.The module when placed right produces heart throbbing bass.User guide usefull for quick setup and module placemant.Good value for money and worth the purchase.Can play very loud despite their nimble size.

Once again be carefull while placing the module and play around a few times till you find an appropriate location.Automatic protection circuit is quite useless as the speakers can still get damaged.The net placed in the module vibrates and this becomes audible at high volumes ruining the non localizable effect of the accoustimass technology.

The bose am 5 series 3 are exceptional speakers considering their size and value.They are quite different from conventional sub/sat combinations.The sound reproduction of the cubes is accurate and the module (as bose calls it )produces low frequiencies flawlessly.But the module is placement sensitive and so you have to be very carefull while placing it as the overall sound depends largely on the module placement.Another problem is that the low frequency drops at about 40 hz and it could have easily been at 30hz.The highs are well balanced and you never feel that irritation while playing it at high volumes.Midrange sound is quite stong but still falls short at times.
I think that the module is placement sensitive because it lanches the sound on a vibrating air coloumn.If placed rightly then it can put many so called subwoofers to bed.

Customer Service

GOOD.

Similar Products Used:

B&W sub/sat systems,polk audio,jbl,infinity,jamo and paradigm.

Bass down to about 35 hz

Satalites could be improved. Placement is critical! Wish they made a bigger version of this with larger woofers so it could go lower.

I have reviewed these speakers before, but I seems that AR has some Major probs with getting the reviews into the new format (which I will like a LOT better once they get all the reviews back in order.)

This is for the series II sub only. As I said in my earlier review, the sats are great looking, but not that great sounding. They do have the flexability to go wide or narrow and they aren't that bad. I bought the sub only and paired it up with some 101's I already had. Major improvement! The 4 1/2" drivers in the 101's made the system shine. I recently upgraded to the following config:

Klipsch SB-3 8" bookshelf fronts (which used to be the rears) run by a Sony STR-DE945 110wpc. I don't care what you say, clean as hell.

The Bose sub run off of a Sony STR-D2020 135wpc, and eq +12 bass from the LFE outs on the 945. I was actually surprised at how little bass signal there was coming out of the LFE (the 2020 has a 20 band spectrum analizer. I have to crank it almost all the way for the Bose to shine. But it does! It obviously won't go as low as a 10 or 12", but the dual-chamber tuning is done so well that the sub WAY outshines the klipsch with their 8" woofers in the same location. It coughs a little when aproaching about 35hz, but I expect that. A great test disc for bass is the Matrix Reloaded soundtrack #3 - Reload by Rob Zombie There is a bass run down about 40 seconds in that goes clear down to 20hz. If it's going to, this will strain your sub, and you can tell exactly where it's geting down to.

Anyway with this setup I am getting the best sound yet out of my system. The Klipsch compliment the Bose sub perfectly.

I have seen Bose bashers say crap like "they are made of particle board, not MDF. " That is complete BS I can rap on the side of this thing and is is just as solid as any MDF speaker out there. There is no vibration in the cabinet at all even at full volume.

At $800, these were expensive, not worth it in my opinion, so that's why I got my sub for $400. $500? Now you could get $500 speakers that are as good as the AM-5, but I doubt if they would be that much better, especially if you traded up the sats just a bit. (the sats sell for a lot on Ebay)

As for any Lifestyle system, that is a joke at the price. $1500 and up would get you a hell of a nice system, a lot better than Bose ever could. But it is a pretty nifty package. At $2800 or so for the top one forget it! For the extra money it simply adds the capabilities of an Ipod and "upgrades" the cubes.

The average person would be certainly satisfied with the sound coming out of these and an audiophile never will. But the average person doesn't spend $5000-$50,000 on his sytem either.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Klipsch SB-3, Bose 4.2, bose 2.2, bose 101, Wharfedale.

none

Overprices overrated cheap drivers

Bose tells their dealers not to set these systems up to do a A/B compare. I have a broad knowlege of spwakers and I can say Bose speakers are junk. The drivers are cheap. There are mant systems out that put these to shame.

Similar Products Used:

Many

Small elegant design, Acoustimass(Å) Technology, and best of all, the Direct/Reflecting technology which fills the room with sounds!

NO weaknesses

Best stereo speaker system out there in the market, nothing beats Bose's speakers!

Similar Products Used:

Insignia 2 channel reciever with Philips SD-360 bookshelf speakers

Small, fit almost anywhere

"Tinny" sound. Adequate for highs/treble. Sub is definitely underpowered, crossover is not adjustable. Not expandable. Requires Bose brackets for mounting, no keyhole slot. No specs from Bose to compare with.

These are a terrible speaker for the price. Bose does a good job advertising but they DO NOT publish their product specs. There are definitely better sounding speakers out there for the price of these

Similar Products Used:

Polk PSW 10

small form factor (WAF)!

Bose

I currently use these as rears for a Dolby Pro-Logic (not Digital or 5.1) set up. For many years they have treated me well and held their own in the system. I would not recommend them as mains for many reasons (I will not bash Bose). They are great speakers due to their size or WAF (wife approval factor). For rear speakers they are great due to the fact you can mount them unobtrusively. They can be adjusted (rotated) to give a wide or narrow field. This can “correct” for not being able to mount them in the perfect place. Just don’t expect bright treble or gut wrenching bass out of them.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity Kappa 7.1 mkII Infinity Kappa Center HK AVR 25mkII Receiver HK FL 8450 DC Carver 5.1 Sub

Every, size, SOUND, and quality. Great highs, great lows, it must be Bose

NONE

i think that the Bose AM5 speaker system is truly remarkable. This system sounds really incredible. This system is great for anyone that wants a great stereo sound system. Instead of a receiver, a CD player and a pair of tower speakers(which takes up way to much room) reaplace the towers with these and you won't even see them, and it will probably sound better.

Similar Products Used:

POLK,AR, KLIPSCH

Size, aesthetics, sound

If not set up correctly they will sound awful!

What a great set of speakers. NB: they need to be set up correctly!

Similar Products Used:

KEF reference 104ab