Club B&W Speakers

[Lex]

Ok, B&W is in, let's see what it will do.

Lex

[RedStep]

Let's discuss the new 700 series...
Looks like the CDM NT's with nicer cabinetry. Makes me wonder why they felt it nessasary to produce another mid-line speaker.
Mabe that's where the market is??? If you don't come out with something new from time to time people look elsewhere.
I'm curious if this line is a significant upgrade from the CDM NT series???




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[SomaJoe]

I'm guessing that it will eventually replace the CDM line; I haven't seen any pricing information though. I'm going to London next week, so maybe I'll see if I can find any over there. My local dealer doesn't have any yet.
-j




Joe's HT

[RedStep]

Kewl Joe...I make a stop to see if the have any herea in Dallas




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[luszer]

I was looking a B&W website and noticed the 700 series. I don't have or know alot about them either. I have not had a chance to check with my hifi shop. Curious about price?
I own a set of bookshelves in the 600 series, 601 S3s.
I am trying to decide on either the 604, CDM 1NT, or the CDM 7NT.
Any advice is always appreciated

[RedStep]

Welcome Iuszer...
If you have the $$$ then definitly jump up to the CDM NT line. Whether or not you decide to go with bookshelf or the larger floorstander the jump up will be a big difference. I have heard the CDM 7 NT's AWESOME




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[RedStep]

:amen:
I couldn't resist




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[Joseki]

It is time to move to 7.1! My current setup is the CDM-7SE mains, CNTSE center, and DM601 rears. The plan is to move the 601's to 'rear surround' duty. So what to do to replace the R+L surrounds?

Option 1: Buy new mains (9NT). This should give some improvement in stereo music. But I would worry about inconsistency across the front soundstage when the center channel is involved.

Option 2: Find some 7NT's or 7SE's and use them as the R+L surrounds. I cannot see any disadvantage to this except that it can be difficult to find these speakers.

Option 3: Buy some 1NT's and press them into service as R+L surrounds. The advantage is that they are easy to find but a bit pricey. But how do you think they will integrate with the existing speakers for multichannel audio? Do they have the same general sound characteristics or am I going to notice when one of the 1NT's receives a signal panned from one of the fronts?

Your help is appreciated!

David

[Blindamood]

Well, if you're considering the purchase of CDMs of any sort, you may have to hurry, or purchase them used. B&W is discontinuing the line due to the new 700 series.

However, I've got CDM 9NT mains, CDM CNT center, and DM 602s (Series 2) as my surrounds, which work quite well. I've thought of moving my 601s back to the theater room as back channels, but don't really have room for them. Wish I did, as my receiver does 7.1...

[Blindamood]

I just posted some pics of my system -- with closeups of B&Ws -- if you're interested!

[luszer]

I just auditioned the 1NT's today, very impressive. The clarity and imaging is pretty remarkable. I currently have 601s3 and have been loving them over the last few months, but the jump to the 1nt is pretty large. The dealer had an all Rotel set up, which closely replicates mine so I hoping for the same results if I can pull the trigger. Actually I was also pretty impressed with the RC1070.
Any feedback on what to expect from the 1NT? Also, how is the matching CDM CNT? I wish I could move on 4 1NT's and also the CNT.

[Blindamood]

Hey Luszer, I recently updated my rear speakers to CDM 1NTs (from 602 S2s) and love them. They are a perfect match for the CDM CNT, as they are basically built from the same components. I picked up the 1NTs from Audiogon, since they are no longer available from the factory.

[luszer]

Blindamood

I actually picked up a pair of 1NTs 2 weeks ago, I have about 40-50 hours burn in thus far. My local dealer still had a pair of black ashe in stock, I got 25% off, I thought I might have done better but I was pretty happy.
The performance of these beauties is unbelievable, open, airy and very fast. The first few hours produced mixed results, kind of echoey and somewhat unbalanced highs and lows. Very metallic sounding, however so far this week the sound is more realistic. I can hear the performer take a breathe of air before the next verse on some tracks.
My room size is a little on the small size and kind of "live", but I don't think I'm doing that much of disservice for the speakers. I think I'll stick with the copper based interconnects to keep things tamed.

Did you take the plunge and purchase the matching stands, quite expensive. Any suggestions for alternative stands?

[Blindamood]

Luszer,

I did not go with the B&W stands, partly because of height. Since I'm using the 1NTs as surrounds, I wanted 28" stands to get them a bit higher. I ended up getting the Target HR Series, which you can check out at the Audio Advisor web site:

http://www.audioadvisor.com/store/productdetail.asp?Variant=1&AttribNum=1&pf_id=5725&sku=TARGETHR60&selAttribute_1=28+in

These stands look extremely nice with these speakers, and are quite heavy and stable. (BTW, Audio Advisor delivered excellent service, and got the stands to me in 2 days.)

[luszer]

blindamood

thanks for the link, i am familiar with AA, I purchased MIT T3 speaker cable from them. I was actually checking out the Nexus stands on their site made by Atacama.
That must be some system with the CDM NT line all the way around. I am hoping that if I wait a little longer maybe I can grab an unbelievable deal on the 7nt or the 9s, i.e. demo model at my dealer.

Good listening!
Ron

Ron

[Dan Schulze]

Hi All,

It's gonna be a B&W Christmas for me. I will be ordering my B&W's within a couple of weeks.

I have decided on the 802's, HTM1, and the 805's for surrounds. I will be driving them with an Anthem AVM 20/Anthem MCA 50. Eventually I will probably get an additional amp just for the 802's. I hear they like power!

I will post more once I get them - can't wait.

Anyway, I will check back in periodically to keep up with the B&W skinny!

Dan






I want to be SHAKEN not stirred!!
My Home Theater

[Lex]

sounds like fun times ahead Dan. Enjoy when they get here!

Lex

[sikoniko]

hello out there!

That AA link was great! I have been needing to buy new speaker cables. I currently have 6 ft MIT T2's and they are too short. I love the quality so I was real hesitant on going to another product. That site had 15ft for a great price, so my problem is solved and i am happy.

Now, on to B&W love.. we really need to kick this up a notch. I think we deserve our own forum like Club Rotel.

I currently have N805's as my fronts and I have been debating on moving up to 804's. My fiance doesnt care for the 805's because:

1. The microphone on top
2. the stands
3. too contemporary

Well, I can meet her point about the stands, so I went and listened to some 804's and boy do they sound amazing! Hopefully I can talk to my dealer on monday and get me some ordered. He was busy yesterday or I would have done it then.


I currently have the Matrix HTM center (from 87). I demo'd the htm2, to match my 805's, but I had to return it friday. He ordered me an htm2, but now I have to wait for it to come in.

The difference is night and day! I don't even want to watch a movie until it comes in. It just sounds sub par now.

I know when I upgrade to the 804's, the center wont match perfectly, but I will try to upgrade that within the next six months. Spending way too much money on home theater. I am prolly going to buy an amp before I get the htm1 also, so I don't underpower my new 804s too much.

dan

[sikoniko]

is there anybody out there?

[Blindamood]

I'm still out here! (Though not quite as often, as I've 'completed' my HT for the time being...). My most recent addition is a new Adcom 7700 5-channel amp, which provides a bit better power for my B&W CDMs all around.

Anyway, I've posted my latest pics here (including one with the Target stands for the 1NT surrounds):

http://gallery.avsforum.com/showgallery.php?stype=2&si=blindamood

[sikoniko]

looks great! I havent done anything about the 804's yet. The htm2 I ordered will be in on friday hopefully.

Im kind of debating just getting some 805's for the rear or a pair of scm1's so I dont break the bank as bad as I am. I figure, from what everyone is telling me, that Im not realizing the most out of my 805's because Im not giving them enough power as it is. So, with that, I ask myself, why upgrade if I am not even using these to their full. Just because I think a floor standing speaker looks better isnt enough to warrant it at this time. maybe after I get the amp, if I still feel the need i will.

that way my speakers match all the way around.

[Skip]

Hello all. Just signed up for this forum and noticed this thread. I recently joined the ranks of B&W owners when I traded up my Def Techs with the hopes of enjoying a more refined and musical speaker. The new system is centered around a set of CDM9NTs as mains. So far I have been pretty happy, though the road has been a bit bumpy. This leads to a number of questions. I apologize in advance for the long post and the rambling.

Here's some quick background. About three weeks ago I took advantage of a one year speaker upgrade policy at my local dealer to trade in some BP2004TLs. This was triggered by a great offer on a set of demo CDM9NTs. The upgrade on the mains cost me all of three hundred dollars, which seemed like very little to spend for a lot more speaker. Here's where the story gets bumpy. When I got home, I noticed that the tweeter on the left speaker wasn't making any sound. Very frustrating. I called my dealer, who came out to my house and looked at the speaker. He ended up replaced the tweeter module and all appears to be ok.

Here are some lingeing questions:

1) How do I make sure that the speakers are in good working order. My dealer, who is generally reliable and honest, seems to think they are working fine. For the most part, they sound fine too. However, every now and then I get paranoid that one speaker sounds different from the other. I'm pretty sure it's in my imagination, but is there any objective way to make sure that everything is still in spec?

2) Do tweeter modules have to break in? Could this account for some variance in sound?

3) I have noticed some extremely slight distortion or sibilance or something like that at the very high end. Things can sound a little abrasive at the high end. It is certainly evident more on certain recordings. Has anyone had this problem? I am wondering whether this is due to my totally inadequate receiver (Yamaha Rx-V620)? I assume this is the case, but could that be right?

4) Natually, I need to change the receiver and am looking at something in the 900-1300 range. So far, tops on the list are a NAD T763 or Rotel 1055? Any suggestions as to which would be a better fit for the B&Ws?

Thanks for the help and sorry for the long post.

Regards,
Skip

[luszer]

Skip
Congrats on your upgrade and welcome. Great to see the B&W forum building momentum. The CDM 1, 7 and 9NT are all great speakers. I recently came across a pretty good deal on the 1NTs and I love them. As for what your experiencing if the speakers were demos then they should be broken in already, and to really enjoy these speakers please allow for 150-200 hours burn in. However, if the tweeter was replaced, then the new one certainly will need to burn in and catch up performance wise to the other one.
Also, pure clean power and lots of it is definitely a requirement for this famliy of speaker. With a quality matching amp, pre/pro and good cables the results will be liquidy and smooth and very fast. Also ensure that your source compenent matches accordingly with the rest of you gear
Hope this helps, good listening!!!

Ron

[sikoniko]

I have the rotel 1055 w/ a pair of 805's for my fronts, an htm2 on order and 603's as rears.

I think the 1055 is an excellent match for you. I noticed a night and day differece in quality when I upgraded to the 1055 from my old yamaha 992 and when I did that, I had 604's as my front speakers.

The great thing about the 1055 is that it is expandable. I am looking into an earthquake amp. I have the bug really bad right now.

You should be able to get 10% off of retail immediately, and you may be able to talk down a little more than that.

dan

[Skip]

Thanks for the responses. I will definitely check out the 1055. I'm really looking forward to hearing what the B&Ws can do. They seem so underutilized right now with the Yamaha.

Has anyone tried NAD, Marantz, or Integra with B&W?

Regards,
Skip

[luszer]

For my 1nt's I had originally used a NAD C370, integrated amp. Things were pretty remarkable, then I pulled out my Rotel RB991 from my HT gear and now use that to power them and the C370 is pulling pre amp duties.
Now things are really starting to open up further, far much less strain on the whole sound overall. You know when you say "It just sound better in every way", well that's pretty much what I'm experiencing.
I am waiting for Santa to deliver a Rotel RC1070 pre

Good listening, Ron

[Skip]

Hi. Can anyone out there recommend a good online resource to learn a little bit about proper speaker placement? My room is a bit tricky and I want to make sure that I am getting the most out of my B&Ws. Thanks!

[Blindamood]

Hi Skip,

The following link to the Dolby web site provides some pretty good tips:

http://www.dolby.com/ht/Guide.HomeTheater.0110.html#chapter3

Brad

[sikoniko]

ok, i did it. I ordered my pair of 804's to upgrade my 805's. They should be here late this week, early next week. I also have a cinenova grande 5 that should be coming in the same time frame.

my next purchase may be an svs 25-31pc-plus, but that will be probably six months down the road. it will take me that long to get caught up from this purchase. I am done now though until I get my house. Hopefully I didnt push that too far back upgrading. heh.

I figure when I get the house I'll get a pair of scm1's for the left and right surround to mount on the wall, and depends on the room how I try to implement 7.1.

Im nervous about the 804's though. It is my understanding that there is a 100 hour burn in... sheesh.

[Dan Schulze]

Hi All,

It's been a few weeks since I have been here, but I am now an official member of the B&W owner’s ranks. Last post I was still in the dream stage, but I got my Christmas present (to myself) early. I picked up my pair of 802's, my HTM1, and my 805's!! They are still breaking in, but I am totally blown away by the sound. The clarity of voices is absolutely astonishing!! They are so crystal clear on music, I love it. I am still playing with different sub settings, trying to get the most balanced sound from my system, and I think I am almost there. I have the Velodyne HGSII-18. I just have to run some frequency sweeps to confirm my tweaking efforts.

I am using an Anthem AVM20 and the Anthem MCA50 to drive these babies. Next is a cable upgrade then down the road I am thinking of bi-amping. Does it ever end?

Anyway, I will be updating my photos soon.

Also good to see the pace picking up a bit - keep the posts coming!!

Dan






I want to be SHAKEN not stirred!!
My Home Theater

[sikoniko]

congrats dan! sounds like an awesome system. My center is the htm2, have you demo'd them side by side that you could compare 1 to the other. Im out of cash, so I couldnt do it, but my dealer will let me upgrade down the road.

The breakin period is what makes me nervous for my 804's.. wish there was a quicker way. With my speaker cable, the instructions to break them in is to play the radio continuously for 2 weeks for full breakin at inaudable levels, do you think that applies to speaker break in as well or would it only break in at louder levels?

[RedStep]

Siko...There is some question concerning speaker break-in at inaudable levels, my guess would be mabe the crossover slight burn-in. But, speaker break-in is made by movement of the materials: foam, paper kevelar etc... (and our ears getting used to the sound) Now there is no such thing as cable break-in...Yes, the dielectric does form to the electrical charge but then returns to original state when there is no charge.
Skip...I wouldn't worry, if you can hear all the componants. If your speakers were a demo, they should be broke-in, and that new tweet mod will take some time allthough you will never hear your speakers sing with that Yamie receiver. NAD is good, but you'll be hard pressed to beat Rotel for the money. And don't forget B&K only the best receiver made 8)
Dan...I am JEALOUS
Of course this all only opinion




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[sikoniko]

there may be no such thing, but i have MIT bi-wires and I guarrantee there is a HUGE difference from when you first get them, and when you play the music at inaudible levels for a few days and then listen again.

[RedStep]

I don't necessarily dissagree with you. ( I know Lex doesn't want us to get into this here and now :W ) A cable's performance takes time to optimize because of the way a dielectric behaves (the way the insulating material absorbs and releases energy), changes in the presence of a charge. Cables will continue to improve in sound or picture quality over a period of several weeks. This is the same reason amplifiers, preamplifiers and CD players also require an adjustment period. But this is the basis for companies to charge thousands for cable that sounds better because we think it does.
Again, this is of course only opinion and not to be taken seriously :thanku:




RedStep
We are truly a product of the decisions we make

[sikoniko]

got my 804's today.. let the breakin begin.. and the 805's had really just opened up.. heh.. wish i didnt have to take them back and could just put 'em in the back.. oh well..

no offense takin. everyone has to figure out what is right for them. i believe in my MIT's, doesnt mean you have to.

now.. still waitin to hear from people who compared the htm2 to the htm1...

[sikoniko]

Ive had my 804's for a couple days and they sound sweet! One thing i have lost though is the transparency across the front that I had w/ the 805's. Reason is because the htm2 doesnt match well w/ the 804's. I asked my dealer to get me an htm1. Spent a lot more money than I wanted to for now, but at least I can say I'm done for now. Only thing left would be a sub and TV until I get a house. The sub can wait until I get the house so I don't annoy the neighbors too much and tv's will be dropping in price significantly over the next two years anyways.

I have also noticed how bright the 804's sounded. They are good speakers, but I can definately say that there is too much highs for me compared to the 804's. I do think the 805's would make fine speakers for the rears or surrounds. Thats kind of what I plan to do, either that or the SCM1's, but Im in no hurry. My 603's are working great for now.

Next week my cinenova grande 5 will be in and my 804's will be powered like they should be.

[Scarp]

now.. still waitin to hear from people who compared the htm2 to the htm1...

With 804's you should go for the HTM1 if you got the money and amp for it. The HTM1 features the same woofers as the 804's, which makes it essentially a 804 tilled over (well, sure, its a closed speaker so it is somewhat different).
Integration together with the 804's is near perfect (provided you use the same amplification and cables). The HTM1 is a big step up from the HTM2.

My perfect system would be four 804's, HTM1 and two ASW800's

[sikoniko]

Im going to have to wait until tax refund time to get the htm1. I can't wait. I know that my theater will be at a good place when that happens. I think the next big improvement would be a bigger room. heh.

Im truely amazed how well my 603's are blending in and working as rears in my system. When I get my house, im going to go w/ scm1's I believe for surrounds, and I'm undecided as to what I want for rears. It just depends on the layout of the room mostly.

I put in my star wars a new hope sound track cd and wow!

these 804's were made for it!


just thought of something. My 804's are a week old now and they sound incredible. I've read a hundred posts that says these speakers have a long break-in period.. if they arent boke in yet, how will I know when these finally do open up? I can't think of one bad thing to say about them.

[Mark_C.]

Love the 804s. I've had a pair in my two-channel system for three years now, and they never let me down. I also have the 805s and HTM2 front end in my HT, with 601s for the rears. Love B&W!

[Dan Schulze]

Sikoniko,

My center is the htm2, have you demo'd them side by side that you could compare 1 to the other. Im out of cash, so I couldnt do it, but my dealer will let me upgrade down the road.

Sorry to take so long to get back to your question - I've spent most of free time tweaking my system and enjoying my new 802's.

I did not actually compare them side by side. I did a demo of the HTM2 with the 804's and that center sounded awesome!!! I went with the HTM1, since in my own mind I did not want to wonder "What if I had purchased the other speaker?" The same reason applied to my 802's. I was also looking for a speaker system that I would be satisfied with for many, many years (It didn't hurt that Mr. Lucas, Alan Parson's, Abbey Road Studios use these. :LOL: )

Hope this helps.

By the way, congrats on your 804's and your future HTM1!!

Dan






I want to be SHAKEN not stirred!!
My Home Theater

[sikoniko]

I went ahead and ordered the htm1. Should be here next week sometime...

I eventually want to move into 802's. My dealer is going to let me upgrade annually for the difference in retail value. with that, its gonna take 2 years since i just got the 804's.

i pretty much am done at this point though. if i don't stop, i'll never have a house, but hey, i'll have a cool home theater in my little apartment...

im anxious to hear Dan, what did you enjoy from the 802's that the 804's didnt provide. my 804s sound amazing.. I went away for the holidays and all i could think about was when i got home! its hard to believe it gets better. of course my room size is rather small

[Dan Schulze]

sikoniko

I'll bet you are looking forawrd to your HTM1. I know I was counting down the days once I ordered mine.

im anxious to hear Dan, what did you enjoy from the 802's that the 804's didnt provide.

You know, that is a fairly hard question for me to answer. When I was auditioning different speakers, no matter which one I listened to, I was always thinking how it compared to the 802's. As I mentioned in my previous post, I did audition the 804's with an HTM2 and I was blown away by the sound. I then auditioned, just for kicks, the Nautilus 800's at that same shop. Man, was that an glorious treat for the ears, but there was no way I could even think about those - just too rich for my wallet!! The sales guy told me that the 802's would give me about 90-95% of the 800's, but take that for what it's worth.

Back to your original question, I know I would have been very pleased with the 804's and HTM2, but had I gone that route, I would be thinking in the back of my mind - what if I had got the 802's? I didn't what to second guess my decision, so I decided to go for it.

The very first time I heard the 802's, I wasn't actually auditioning main speakers, I was looking for a sub. The store had the 802's set up with the HTM1 and a couple of 805's. I was auditioning the Velodyne HGS series at that time, and the scene that I couldn't believe was the speeder chase in Star Wars AOTC. When Obi-Wan and Anakin charged into Padmé's room with lightsabers a-swinging, I realized at that point I was missing a whole bunch of sound with my system at that time. The impressive sound continued as Anakin jumped into the speeder and took off. Since that audition I have been trying to duplicate that sound in my home.

I don't know if that helps understand my logic, or reason's for the 802's over the 804's, but it got to the point that I just HAD to have those speakers!! (Besides, I think they look cool!)

Dan






I want to be SHAKEN not stirred!!
My Home Theater

[sikoniko]

Dan,

your home theater is very impressive! I can't wait until mine gets there.. it will though.

Question for you. My amp is an earthquake cinenova grande. I don't necessarily expect you to recognize it, but it is 5 dedicated 300w monoblocks built into one chassis. It is the 2:1 ratio I read that the 802's like. Do you think this would power the 802's adequately? Or would I need to hang it up until I could get another amp down the road since the speakers are rated at 500w?

[Dan Schulze]

sikoniko

I have heard that the 802's love power. The amp(s) you have should do the job nicely. I am using an Anthem amp (MCA-50, rated 180W into 8 ohms, all 5 channels driven and according to my calculations a 1.47:1 ratio). As you can see it is not a 'super powerful' amp, but it sounds great. I think I can get more out my speakers with more power. My plan down the road is to bi-amp my system, future amp to be determined. I also need to upgrade my cables.

I wouldn't wait to get another amp, as the one you have I would expect to perform masterfully, and when you decide to upgrade/add an amp, your 802's (when you get them) will sound even better!

I don't know if I can afford to upgrade my amp this year - my display (read TV) is in dire need of the upgrade. No HDTV yet, but I would like one very much. I chose to do the speakers first, since for me I am more particular about my sound than my video - for now anyway!

Good Luck - enjoy the anticipation!!

Dan






I want to be SHAKEN not stirred!!
My Home Theater

[sikoniko]

I can relate about upgrading sound first. My tv is a 30 inch. It is a wide screen hd set though. I got it for 500$ last july. i thought it was a great price (scratch & dent + bartering).. little did I know it would set off a chain of events to upgrade my system.

its going to be a couple years before i go 802. wonder if b&w will have replaced the nautilus line by then... im going to spend this year digging myself out and preparing to buy a house. this time next year i will upgrade to 803's and the following year will be the 802's providing things dont change.