Bose Speaker Measurements & Frequency Response Graphs

[CraigV]

B.O.S.E.

Better Off w/Something Else

Maybe they should call them the “Bose Acousti-mass-market” speakers

 

[camaraderie]

The review of the AM15 was great and confirms everything I've thought about that whole series since its' inception.
I will take exception to some of the comments on the 901's as I think they were pretty decent speakers for the money in their day and by Series IV had evolved pretty nicely to eliminate some of the deficiencies of the earlier models. YES...you did need the right setup in the room to get good performance and YES they were different in concept but at least they weren't a rip off and the concept made good sense in its' day. They were the only speaker Bose ever made that I could understand people buying. Could you get better sound for the $$...sure, in lots of places...but at least that was a pretty subjective choice with the 901's rather than a slam dunk.
As an aside...some may remember the point1 series that Bose made for mass merchants in the 90's. I once happened to see a bill of materials for the drivers and crossover network for the "top of the line" $800 speaker in that range which were imported from Japan. Total was less than $30. Outrageous markup to pay for that marketing.
BTW...they are not immune to the recession. Layoffs are happening on the Mountain.

 

[Hipnotic4]

..yea this is nothing new, but either way..charts and numbers is not the way to buy speakers..ears ears ears..its all that matters..and no lol never had and never will buy BizOez

 

[ChristopherN]

..yea this is nothing new, but either way..charts and numbers is not the way to buy speakers..ears ears ears..its all that matters..and no lol never had and never will buy BizOez

True, but before I check speakers, I always make sure they can do the 20-20 spectrum, or 40-20.

anything that doesn't meet that, I don't even bother to look at. Of course thats mid high speakers + sub, or a full range cab if I'm lucky.

 

[E-Lab]

If someone loves the Bose sound, that's fine, but it certainly isn't faithful in its audio reproduction.

Faithful audio reproduction is what I seek. I use specifications as a guide and my ears as the final judge when I make a purchase. A piano should sound like a piano. If the piano was recorded in a specific venue, it should sound that way in the reproduction.

How many top recording studios use Bose speakers? How many high quality recordings were mastered using Bose speakers? I wonder how many audio engineers worth their salt would even consider a Bose product if Bose claims performance specifications do not hold any merit.

If performance specifications are meaningless, what metric does the Bose quality control department use as a standard?

 

[jonnythan]

But, if we are talking about all of the speakers moving the same amount, then nine 4" speakers will move the same air as one 12" speaker (again, with the assumptions mentioned above).

Assuming, of course, that the 4" speakers have the same excursion as the 12" speaker.

And I can guarantee you that the 4" speakers in an Acoustimass module do not have 15+mm of excursion like a decent 12" sub.

It would take a lot more than nine 4" speakers to move the same volume of air as a decent 12" sub.

 

[krabapple]

Before pointing and laughing at Bose buyers, y'all might consider the frequency with which much higher priced loudspeakers with terrible measured performance, get positive reviews from 'audiophile' ears:

example Zen Druid 2, $4000/pr

reviews:

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue11/zudruid.htm
http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/zucable_druid.htm

measurements :

http://www.soundstagemagazine.com/measurem.../zucable_druid/

When I posted a link to these on Hydrogenaudio, Sean Olive said they were some of the worst measured performance curves he's seen for a loudspeaker in quite awhile.. HE's also got an interesting story to tell about an electrostatic loudspeaker rated 'Speaker of the Year' by one of the audiophile mags....and what happened when its reviewers were asked to rate the same loudspeaker under blind conditions:


"The best example is a high-end $11k electrostatic speaker that was awarded "Speaker of the Year" in a well-known audio magazine, and yet it measured horribly. When I invited 6 professional audio reviewers (including some from the same magazine) to evaluate it under controlled, double-blind conditions they rated it dead last -- just like the other 300 listeners (see speaker M here ). The other speaker P that they rated in first place, was also deemed "speaker of the year" in the same magazine the following year. How can reviewers be so grossly inconsistent from year to year? It's because they don't do comprehensive measurements like SoundStage or now Consumer Report, but instead rely on poorly controlled, sighted, biased, casual listening."

 

[AVIA-Designs]

901's a bit dated . . .

This probably qualifys as "not really worth mentioning" but the dates just jumped out at me. The 901 was the second design of Dr. Amar Bose and the 901 actually hit the scene in 1968, near the time Dr. Bose released his paper to the AES (Audio Engineering Society) entitled: "On the Design, Measurement and Evaluation of Loudspeakers"

I am not strictly a BOSE fan, just want to get the facts right.

THX, Doc

He sure sounds like someone with an axe to grind but I will have to admit that he speaks the truth. The Bose 901 were a sensation when they hit the scene back in the 1950's. I give them credit for successfully carrying that initial success for all these years with nothing but marketing. Hard to argue with success.

 

[romantic]

i totally i agree

i wish i had done my research instead of trusting my friend

 

[keyz]

Hi,
Well the sound system in Samsung mobile phone is very good and speaker which is in Samsung mobile is very best any time we can change the frequency and can set any good place.

 

[ozmedia]

..yea this is nothing new, but either way..charts and numbers is not the way to buy speakers..ears ears ears..its all that matters..and no lol never had and never will buy BizOez

Than again, if your ears can't determine that they are being robbed of half the frequency range, you're better off spending $150 at Future Shop, and all the power to you if that's all it takes to please your ears.

 

[Robof83]

Before pointing and laughing at Bose buyers, y'all might consider the frequency with which much higher priced loudspeakers with terrible measured performance, get positive reviews from 'audiophile' ears:

example Zen Druid 2, $4000/pr

reviews:

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue11/zudruid.htm
http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/zucable_druid.htm

measurements :

http://www.soundstagemagazine.com/measurem.../zucable_druid/

When I posted a link to these on Hydrogenaudio, Sean Olive said they were some of the worst measured performance curves he's seen for a loudspeaker in quite awhile.. HE's also got an interesting story to tell about an electrostatic loudspeaker rated 'Speaker of the Year' by one of the audiophile mags....and what happened when its reviewers were asked to rate the same loudspeaker under blind conditions:


"The best example is a high-end $11k electrostatic speaker that was awarded "Speaker of the Year" in a well-known audio magazine, and yet it measured horribly. When I invited 6 professional audio reviewers (including some from the same magazine) to evaluate it under controlled, double-blind conditions they rated it dead last -- just like the other 300 listeners (see speaker M here ). The other speaker P that they rated in first place, was also deemed "speaker of the year" in the same magazine the following year. How can reviewers be so grossly inconsistent from year to year? It's because they don't do comprehensive measurements like SoundStage or now Consumer Report, but instead rely on poorly controlled, sighted, biased, casual listening."

That is the placebo effect at work

 

[shivang222]

wow this saved me a lot of money

 

[myriad1973]

My (Sony) speakers and sub sound better than Bose. I would never buy Bose.... ever.

 

[cwall99]

I don't know, and in my opinion it's a shame they don't, because I suspect they have all the ability to.

They do have a line of professional PA gear. I don't know anything about it, but I have seen it in some pro gear catalogs.

 

[cwall99]

A blog article at the link below written by someone who paraphrased (as best he could) some remarks made recently by 'the man' to a group of journalists.
For what it's worth. I'm sure the Bose bashers won't be swayed a bit by this.

http://www.crunchgear.com/2007/09/19/dr-bose-tells-all-company-sercrets-why-they-dont-publish-specs-and-more/

If you read the article, the only other brand of products mentioned by Dr. Bose are Radio Shack (Realistic). So he bought a system from Radio Shack without listening to it, brought it home, and was disappointed by its performance.

Ummmm.... does that really come as a surprise to anyone here?

Then, the article makes it sound as if the good Dr. Bose set out to design a system that could outperform a Radio Shack / Realistic system.

Gee, nothing like setting the bar high!!!!

 

[Below10hz]

Interesting while I'm reading the review of the performance of the Bose speakers, I'm looking at an ad to my right for the very same product????

 

[cwall99]

Interesting while I'm reading the review of the performance of the Bose speakers, I'm looking at an ad to my right for the very same product????

Well, I hope that shows a degree of editorial independence.

 

[eddy123]

never understood Bose buyers

I never understood the popularity of Bose speakers. They must have a marvelous marketing tool and invest a lot in advertising. They some how manage to get the attention of the average listener who just wants a reasonable sound but doesn't know what to buy. Just buy the brand you know and you are OK.

Ed

 

[Boerd]

No highs, no lows JUST BOSE.

There is an old saying:
No highs, no lows - it's a BOSE.

For the money of a BOSE system I own a active system with digital crossover from NHT - NHT XD 2.2 - the frequency response is flat and it has 1600 W of amplification