803D Question

[tah]

New guy here, long time B&W believer, so hello to everyone....

Just picked up a new rig and am a combination of confused and disappointed.

Got the Mcintosh MC 402 with the C46 Preamp. Hooked up the 803D's on the 8 ohm taps, bi-wired with high quality Monster Cable.

Removed from the room a pair of Wharfedale PI-40 floor standers that had been powered by (at various times) a Marantz 2385, 200 WPC Mac and a 270 WPC Mac.

Wharfedale quotes 89 do sensitivity and Bowers quotes 90 db. So, neglible difference there.

Here's the problem... The Wharfedales played MUCH louder than the 803's are doing right now. Even when being fed by the Marantz 2285 (rated 85 WPC, reality probably 120) I couldn't turn the knob past 50%.

With the MC 402 (rated 400 WPC, reality probably 500) I can take the volume to 85% and it's not as loud as the old rig at less than 50%.

I'm really disappointed as I expected this rig to drive me out of the room at 50%.

Any input / thoughts / suggestions appreciated.

[mglimabr]

803D1 or D2? The B&W D1 its very hard to play and requires a lots of power. Once when was choosing my new Macintosh power for my 805D i compared MC452 (ss 400 watts x2) x MC275 (Tube 75 watts x2) and the sound was better and i pickup MC275 but the MC452 didn't sound 4x more sound like i expected (on the same volume on pre-amp). Sometimes louder can't be more quality.

[tah]

803D2's

I agree with what you're saying, but an 89 db sensitivity vs a 90 bd sensitivity should be pretty close.

I really thought these would be insanely loud at 50% volume.

[bigburner]

I have a pair of 803Ds driven by an Emotiva 300 watt x 2 SS amp. Most CDs and DVDs are comfortably loud with the volume knob at 9 o'clock. It would be uncomfortably loud at 12 o'clock. At 85% (3 o'clock?) something would break.

Nigel.

[TomScrut]

Sounds odd. When I heard 803s they could certainly go loud!

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[r100gs]

Maybe try the 4 ohm taps?

[Alaric]

I can't speak to your situation directly , but many years ago I noticed that distortion is often mistaken for volume. I would find myself quite surprised at how far down the street my stereo could be heard when I felt it was barely in the "We be jammin' " mode. Clean sound can get very loud without seeming loud at all. An amp that's clipping can sound like a concert , but barely can be heard on the front porch. I started listening to loud rock as a kid and early on learned to think clipping/distortion=loud. Also , are the B & Ws fused ? Lastly , have you tried different speaker cable ? Or installing the bridges on the binding posts and trying them without the bi-wiring ?

[TomScrut]

Maybe try the 4 ohm taps?

I just thought of this too, even though they are claimed to be 8 ohms the impedance on the 803 drops to about 3 ohms IIRC. The lowest impedance of the 800 series (just) and probably any speaker B&W make.

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[TomScrut]

I can't speak to your situation directly , but many years ago I noticed that distortion is often mistaken for volume. I would find myself quite surprised at how far down the street my stereo could be heard when I felt it was barely in the "We be jammin' " mode. Clean sound can get very loud without seeming loud at all. An amp that's clipping can sound like a concert , but barely can be heard on the front porch. I started listening to loud rock as a kid and early on learned to think clipping/distortion=loud. Also , are the B & Ws fused ? Lastly , have you tried different speaker cable ? Or installing the bridges on the binding posts and trying them without the bi-wiring ?

I agree here too, since getting my 802 Diamonds (going from 803Ss) it's amazing how loud you can end up listening to music and not realizing how loud it is until you try communicating with the person sat next to you!

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[ShadowZA]

I can't speak to your situation directly , but many years ago I noticed that distortion is often mistaken for volume. I would find myself quite surprised at how far down the street my stereo could be heard when I felt it was barely in the "We be jammin' " mode. Clean sound can get very loud without seeming loud at all. An amp that's clipping can sound like a concert , but barely can be heard on the front porch. I started listening to loud rock as a kid and early on learned to think clipping/distortion=loud. Also , are the B & Ws fused ? Lastly , have you tried different speaker cable ? Or installing the bridges on the binding posts and trying them without the bi-wiring ?

Based on my personal experience, I concur.

[dan87951]

Maybe try the 4 ohm taps?

+1 Most B&W need the 4ohm taps. I bet that rig sounds sweet though! Wish I could demo that setup, jealous!