B&W nautilus 800

[furrycute]

Anyone heard of this model? There is no B&W dealer near where I live so I can't audition them. From what I've read online, people either like them or hate them. Seems like there are a lot of controversies surrounding the kevlar woofers B&W is using.

Is the 800 worth its asking price?

 

[Vancouver]

My opinion.

I have heard a lot of speakers and these are the best I have ever heard.

These are the speakers that Lucas Arts uses in their recording studio as well as Abby Road Recording.

I am going to be bold and say that you could put them against any speaker in the world priced the same or even much more and they would come out on top.

My Opinion...you can't beet them and it is the only thing I can think of that I would never feel I have to upgrade.

 

[zumbo]

The best I have ever heard! MB Quart comes close to the 804's & 805's for a fraction of the cost. But, close is not good enough if you have the funds for the best!

 

[flyv65]

A wonderful speaker, very warm and full. If you like that sound and you've got the cash to drop on them you won't regret it. I can't compare them to the MBQuarts but I like them better than the Vandersteens and Paradigms I've heard, and some of the JMLabs. They aren't as transparent as Spendors but they've got more extension down low (I'm thinking of the large, 3 driver+tweeter B&W 800 series). Avalons are better, but even more expensive.

Bryan...I haven't heard anyone complain about the kevlar, before...

 

[sCiEnT]

Heard them when I went to the dealer to buy the Paradigm Studio 100's. The nautlius are superb! If I had the cash I would buy them. You cant go wrong with those, they are going to be my next set of speakers (in about 25 years )

 

[furrycute]

Looks like the nautilus 800 is what I will be saving up for. Might as well go for the best (in about 15 years).

But I have read many comments that B&W's implementation of the kevlar woofers have many problems. Is that true?

 

[sjdgpt]

Looks like the nautilus 800 is what I will be saving up for. Might as well go for the best (in about 15 years).

But I have read many comments that B&W's implementation of the kevlar woofers have many problems. Is that true?

Who knows for sure?

But a company the size of B&W (and the financial resources of B&W) can quickly make anything right. Remember the 800's are their flagship speakers. I doubt you will find many mistakes in the design of those speakers, and if one did occur, it will be fixed.

By the way, great speakers.

 

[Vancouver]

OK.

First of all you can not for any reason put down using cevlar. The B&W Nautilus 800 series is the ferrari Enzo or Prosche Carrera GT of speakers...no question. You CAN NOT say you can find speakers that sound better...maybe the same, or equally good but different, but not better. The only Speakers I have heard that MAY be better or compare would be Sumiko. ( http://sumikoaudio.net ) but they are 40k/pair.

Pointless debate....if you are going to buy a pair I bow down to you and you can rest assured no one you know will have better speakers, BUT you can't stop there. We then need to talk Amps etc...

 

[furrycute]

What kind of amps can power the 800? Krell monoblocks?

 

[WmAx]

B&W speakers typically have very linear response, thus are very accurate. However, they typically have a dip in frequency response in the midrange band as you move off axis -- they have not such great power/polar response in this regard. So, in order to ensure accuracy you should diffuse or absorb the first reflection points to minimize contribution of this off axis non-linearity into the room. Additionally, it would be useful to add a high quality low-noise equalizer such as a Behringer DEQ2496 to the chain in order to correct bass problems in the room and to make fine tonal adjustments. It might be worth considering the Nautilus 802, very much the same speaker technologies but at a much improved price.

-Chris

Anyone heard of this model? There is no B&W dealer near where I live so I can't audition them. From what I've read online, people either like them or hate them. Seems like there are a lot of controversies surrounding the kevlar woofers B&W is using.

Is the 800 worth its asking price?

 

[flyv65]

The B&W Nautilus 800 series is the ferrari Enzo or Prosche Carrera GT of speakers...no question. You CAN NOT say you can find speakers that sound better...maybe the same, or equally good but different, but not better. The only Speakers I have heard that MAY be better or compare would be Sumiko. ( http://sumikoaudio.net ) but they are 40k/pair.

I like B&W speakers alot, but I wouldn't say they are the best speakers out there, or even tied for first. Helluva good speaker? You bet. Would I buy a pair? If I had the cash, sure. But I'd think real hard about finding another 2 grand and buying some Avalon Opus speakers (ceramic, if I could get a deal on them). The Avalons would beat up the B&Ws on the playground and take their lunch money. The JMLabs Electra 946 are right in this ballpark, and AE makes some jammin' top end speakers, too.

Bryan...then again, this is all about personal preference, right?...

 

[zumbo]

My comments are for every model of the 800 series. I have not heard the subs.

 

[sjdgpt]

What kind of amps can power the 800? Krell monoblocks?

Krell.... Hmmmmmmmm Good.

No, Krell is not needed, could be a bit of overkill, but what the heck if you got the bucks, go for it. Seriously, I would use a very clean, amply powered receiver, such as the flagship models from Denon or Yamaha, or better yet, high quality separates (Threshold, PS Audio, Amber (my fav), Parasound etc). The advantage to better separates is greater noise isolation, especially from tuner circuits built into the receivers, and the capacity to upgrade as desired/needed without replacing every component.

 

[WmAx]

Krell.... Hmmmmmmmm Good.

No, Krell is not needed, could be a bit of overkill, but what the heck if you got the bucks, go for it. Seriously, I would use a very clean, amply powered receiver, such as the flagship models from Denon or Yamaha, or better yet, high quality separates (Threshold, PS Audio, Amber (my fav), Parasound etc). The advantage to better separates is greater noise isolation, especially from tuner circuits built into the receivers, and the capacity to upgrade as desired/needed without replacing every component.

I used to use expensive seperates --- that is the past. They are sold, gone, liquidated! For my current preamp(and for 4 of the 6 channels to my fully active 3 way speakers) I use a Harmon Kardon AVR55 reciever of which I found at the local Goodwill for $25USD. Noise? No problem. In order to 'hear' noise you have to turn the gain up to the maximum and put your ear directly to the tweeter(about 1-2"). Otherwise NO noise is audible from the reciever's amplifier-preamplifier circuitry. Of what benefit is 'greater' noise isolation?

-Chris