B&W's - merely good, or Great! for HT?

[Jmac]

Greetings All

I hope I'm not 'double posting' here, as I'm a newbie and don't want to break the rules before even starting :E

I have posted in the general HT forum re what is better for HT; sub/sats, or floorstanders, as I am relatively new to HT and am not sure which route offers the 'best' sound quality re movies. In particular, as I am seeking a set of speakers for predominately HT/movie use, and am considering an M&K sub/sat system, OR an B&W set of matching 700 series speakers, I thought I would ask what some of the B&W fans here think of their speakers for HT use.

I have in the past owned B&W speakers for 2 channel usuage, and thought then, and now, very highly of B&W, but have had no real experience of them in the HT role.

I'm pretty new at the HT 'thing' as well, having had many years of 2 channel/music experience, and currently own a very satisfying and high quality 2 channel setup to which I have recently 'added on' AV/HT capablity.

However it strikes me that the music and HT roles as far as speakers are concerned are somewhat different. Certainly my 2 channel speakers, whilst having great detail, and a very dynamic & musically involving sound, are somewhat weak in the soundstaging and imaging department, which leads me to thoughts of separating out the AV/HT electronics from the 2 channel system, and optimising the two systems/genres by purchasing a set of suitable matching speakers for the AV gear.

Certainly I feel that air & space, soundstaging and imaging etc are an fundamental presentational aspect of convincing and involving HT sound - one of the strengths of B&W designs IMHO - as well as the detail and dynamics that my existing 2 channel speakers already offer. I don't feel that B&W's are quite as dynamic as my Naims, but then I'm looking for an overall balance of sound qualities/presentation to suit movie usuage with some music, and not the other way around.

So, to maybe help me out a bit, could folks please comment as to what they feel the strengths, and maybe weaknesses are of B&W speakers (particularly 700, or 800 series) as to what they bring to the party of HT/movie reproduction in particular with music as a secondary consideration.

All comments appreciated.

Many thanks

Best Regards

John... :T

[sugarmedia]

I recently auditioned both the 700 & 800 series with Rotel separate amps and cd. The 700 was extremely bright and fatigue me after an hour long audition. The 800's while far better, softer and overall more balanced, did notl give me the feeling that the speakers dissolved into the room. They push and drive music at you in a very powerful way. If you like the Rock Concert experience this is the way to go.

I then tested out the Martin logan Aeoni and The SCRIPT which was used in the back for HT. Wow... Transparent, very pure midrange with sparkling highs without any grain. A warm and full bass with lots of control. The sound is not particularly 'fast' or analytical, rather fluid.

http://www.martinlogan.com/script_i_speaker.html

[sikoniko]

dude.. this is a B&W forum.. quit telling people to move away from b&w's...

The thing is, it is all subjective, as sugarmedia again states...

When it comes to b&w, you either love them, or hate them and that is largely because of the way they do mids. I LOVE the way b&w presents the midrange. no other speaker I have EVER heard delivers mids like B&W and this goes all the way up to a legacy system that costs way too much money and are huge. There is just something in that fullness that does it FOR ME.

I heard an M&K system at epcot that was put together by CEDIA and I felt that it sounded kind of nasally or tinny compared to b&w.

sugarmedia enjoys ML's. To me they sound just ok when compared to b&w. I can not speak for anothers experience, but my b&w's disappear into the walls.

[RobP]

Sikoniko, I agree with you , my B&W's also disappear and have great imaging and soundstage qualitys. For my taste I have not found a better speaker. I use mine for both home theatre and two channel and could not be happier.

Jmac, if you are having problems with the width of your soundstage you may be having issues with sidewall reflections, acoustical treatments are probably one of the best "tweaks" that can make or break any system. Try playing around with some type of wall treatments on the sides of your main speakers, move them around a bit and listen. you wont be disappointed.

[js24]

"80 % of classical recordings are monitored by B&W speakers "

This alone gave me the reason to pick B&W speakers over the others..
I've been listening to classical music for entire my life and I've been to ~100 concerts... and heard many of the world's most renowned performers
-yoyo ma, Isaac stern, Itzhak perman, Berlin phil., Chicago symph. you name it
I grew up in a family where the parents were the regular subscriber of the local classical events. So I can HUMBLY claim that I have a pair of "classical ears."

I've chosen the 703s over the ML Ascents for a better musical presentation to my ears (and yes it was harsh for first 2 weeks, the speakers need 300hrs for the burn-in)

There is no doubt that the MLs are great speakers; B&Ws are NOT any worse, if not better. Again, it comes down to a personal taste anyway :W