BOSE Acoustimass/Lifestyle systems - why you should steer clear!!

[ChadFL]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

An interesting review of the new Bose Wave II system from a poster at Steve Hoffman forums:

http://stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=236306



Haha, I had to reply:

I was hoping it was some sick joke when I heard BOSE was getting into HDTV market. Awesome... now they can mislead consumers into buying terrible TV's in addition to speakers.

[MrFattBill]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

An interesting review of the new Bose Wave II system from a poster at Steve Hoffman forums:

http://stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=236306



Haha, I had to reply:

Your response was fantastic

Bill

[poogie]

Originally Posted by ChadFL

I was hoping it was some sick joke when I heard BOSE was getting into HDTV market. Awesome... now they can mislead consumers into buying terrible TV's in addition to speakers.

Remember "LED TV"? I was just wondering how the so called expert will be able to determine terrible TV to a good quality TV . Hmmmm, oh well. It will be a marketing BS again from Bose.

[mangosta]

What about the bose 201, 301 .... 901 speakers. Are those as bad as the little cubes?

[ChadFL]

Originally Posted by mangosta

What about the bose 201, 301 .... 901 speakers. Are those as bad as the little cubes?

I've heard the 901 don't suck nearly as bad as the other BOSE lines of "speakers." That being said they probably still aren't worth the money.

[dobyblue]

Originally Posted by mangosta

What about the bose 201, 301 .... 901 speakers. Are those as bad as the little cubes?

No they are not, but I just steer clear of Bose now on principle, just like Monster Cables.

[mangosta]

Bose has come everywhere with its propaganda machine, even here in Ecuador are authorized retailers of their products, and many people think that these cubes are awesome and worth the money, which in the case of my country, with amount of taxes levied by the government, its price doubles! can you believe it? and still buy them! (I'm sorry for the political tone)

[ChadFL]

Originally Posted by mangosta

Bose has come everywhere with its propaganda machine, even here in Ecuador are authorized retailers of their products, and many people think that these cubes are awesome and worth the money, which in the case of my country, with amount of taxes levied by the government, its price doubles! can you believe it? and still buy them! (I'm sorry for the political tone)

Isn't Ecuador one of those countries with a small wealthy elite with most of the rest being extremely poor? Let me know if I'm wrong here, there could be a growing middle class for all I know. It would seem that BOSE would be there mainly to cater the the upper-class who think they make quality speakers.

[mangosta]

Originally Posted by ChadFL

Isn't Ecuador one of those countries with a small wealthy elite with most of the rest being extremely poor? Let me know if I'm wrong here, there could be a growing middle class for all I know. It would seem that BOSE would be there mainly to cater the the upper-class who think they make quality speakers.

You are right.

[nycmat]

wish i would have found out all this information before i bought them.

[mangosta]

Originally Posted by nycmat

wish i would have found out all this information before i bought them.

If you were happy before finding this forum, sure you can be happy now, do not worry about anything, just relax and enjoy as before.

[spiritfox]

Originally Posted by mangosta

What about the bose 201, 301 .... 901 speakers. Are those as bad as the little cubes?

I have a set of Bose 901s in my living room and the sound is good--I bought them in the early 90s when I was stationed in Germany. There were--and certainly are today--much better choices but those were the ones I decided to buy. I'd never buy them again but they are fine where the are doing stereo duty. I also had an unpowered Acoustimass system until I decided to get serious about my audio video.

Oh--I can say now my Ultra goes below 46 and my Aperions go below 280.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by spiritfox

I have a set of Bose 901s in my living room and the sound is good--I bought them in the early 90s when I was stationed in Germany. There were--and certainly are today--much better choices but those were the ones I decided to buy. I'd never buy them again but they are fine where the are doing stereo duty. I also had an unpowered Acoustimass system until I decided to get serious about my audio video.

Oh--I can say now my Ultra goes below 46 and my Aperions go below 280.

I have a pair of Bose 901 speakers. They require a relatively large room. If you set them on their dedicated stands, a few feet away from the front wall, and use their dedicated equalizer, they can sound like a big concert hall and totally fill the room with sound. They are also capable of taking a lot of power. Each speaker has nine full-range drivers and most of the drivers output sound from the back of the speaker toward the front wall. That is why they need to be installed properly.

Unfortunately, most people do not have a very large room to spare and do not know how to install the speakers and use the equalizer. As a result, they never fully realize the potential of these speakers.

Many years ago, I was in a very large restaurant/club in Birmingham, England around 4 o'clock in the afternoon to have lunch with a few friends. The restaurant had 18 Bose 901s attached to the ceiling with special brackets. The volume of the music was low around 4 o'clock. As the sun was going down and it was becoming darker, the volume gradually increased. By 7-8 o'clock, dancing got started and the music became loud. I was in heaven. It was one of the best musical experiences that I ever had. I stayed in that club until late just to listen to the music. Of course, the girls weren't too bad either.

[spiritfox]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

I have a pair of Bose 901 speakers. They require a relatively large room. If you set them on their dedicated stands, a few feet away from the front wall, and use their dedicated equalizer, they can sound like a big concert hall and totally fill the room with sound. They are also capable of taking a lot of power. Each speaker has nine full-range drivers and most of the drivers output sound from the back of the speaker toward the front wall. That is why they need to be installed properly.

Unfortunately, most people do not have a very large room to spare and do not know how to install the speakers and use the equalizer. As a result, they never fully realize the potential of these speakers.

Many years ago, I was in a very large restaurant/club in Birmingham, England around 4 o'clock in the afternoon to have lunch with a few friends. The restaurant had 18 Bose 901s attached to the ceiling with special brackets. The volume of the music was low around 4 o'clock. As the sun was going down and it was becoming darker, the vlume was gradually increasing. By 7-8 o'clock, dancing got started and the music became loud. I was in heaven. It was one of the best musical experiences that I ever had. I stayed in that club until late just to listen to the music. Of course, the girls weren't too bad either.

You're right about the equalizer--they sound like crap without that on. I have them setup up the recommended way. Maybe could be a bit father away from the rear wall but it is a pretty big living room and they do sound good. I have Yamaha separate amp/preamp powering them. I have seen them used in the ceiling too--maybe it was in Europe--can't remember. But I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who thinks they do sound good.

[beefytwinkie]

Hey, everyone! I wrote a letter to Bose after doing some reading. I thought you guys might find this interesting.

Originally Posted by beefytwinkie

To whom it may concern:

I am currently looking to purchase some bookshelf speakers and am doing some comparisons between brands.

I was wondering if you can tell me the frequency response of the cube speakers used in the Acoustimass 10 speaker system.

I really like the size of them and I think they would be a perfect fit for the system I am looking to put together but I cannot make a decision until I see the specs. I looked on the Bose website but the only information provided about the speakers is the size and weight of each speaker. The manual makes no mention of the frequency response of the cubes either.

Thank you for your time. It is appreciated!

Originally Posted by Bose Reply

Thank you for your inquiry.

Bose (R) Corporation does not publish frequency responses, simply because they are not accurate and usually will mislead the customer.

Frequency responses are usually measured with testing equipment set up in an anechoic chamber. An anechoic chamber is an isolated room designed so that sound will not reflect off any surfaces. Giving out such frequency response results is terrific- for those people who live in anechoic chambers! Most of us listen to our systems in rooms with very reflective surfaces, such as plaster, brick, glass, and dry wall, so the frequency response that a manufacturer may supply is no longer accurate. Just as no two rooms have the same dimensions, nor are they decorated exactly the same or have the same construction, no two rooms will sound the same when using the exact same speakers and amplifier.

For example, if you were to place any speaker in a room with no carpeting and wooden furniture, you would hear something completely different than if they were placed in a room with shag carpeting and plush furniture. Perhaps this can be equated by imagining a single lighted candle placed in a room with completely black floors, walls and ceiling. Obviously, the same candle when placed in a room with white surroundings will appear to be emitting much more light than when placed in the first room with black surroundings, as the light will reflect a great deal more off the white surfaces. Sound reflects off surfaces, much like light does. The surroundings make the speakers sound different in the same manner, because they actually are able to reproduce different frequencies via sound reflection and speaker placement.

We hope you do not take the fact that we do not publish speaker frequency responses personally. We do not publish our speakers specifications to anybody, whether it be before or after they have purchased a speaker system of ours. We simply invite our customers to listen to our speakers using the most accurate testing equipment possible- their ears.

[ChadFL]

Originally Posted by beefytwinkie

Hey, everyone! I wrote a letter to Bose after doing some reading. I thought you guys might find this interesting.

BOSE never ceases to amaze me with their idiocy. I especially love this quote.

We hope you do not take the fact that we do not publish speaker frequency responses personally. We do not publish our speakers specifications to anybody, whether it be before or after they have purchased a speaker system of ours. We simply invite our customers to listen to our speakers using the most accurate testing equipment possible- their ears.

This is complete and utter bullshit. They don't publish specs because BOSE speakers suck. Snake oil... pure snake oil. Amazingly enough they convince large numbers of people to believe their speakers are high-end.

[beefytwinkie]

I almost want to blame myself for their crappy reply. Maybe I should have elaborated as to why the frequency response of the speakers are important for my decision or something.

Heh heh maybe someone else can give it a go (just for fun!) and see if they get the same reply.

I know, I know, you guys are probably thinking "Damn, this guy has way too much time on his hands." I will reply to that by saying yes, I certainly do have too much time on my hands. Summer has been good to me so far!

[Azyiu]

This is some fun read, great stuff and nice work, beefytwinkie!

[Bigpoppa993]

Guys what do you reccommend instead of the bose CineMate® GS Series II digital home theater speaker system? Im trying to upgrade from my tv speakers, and i dont really want a home theather system just a upgrade.

[djkest]

Originally Posted by Bigpoppa993

Guys what do you reccommend instead of the bose CineMate® GS Series II digital home theater speaker system? Im trying to upgrade from my tv speakers, and i dont really want a home theather system just a upgrade.

Are you saying you don't want rear speakers? Or what?

I recently had a chance to listen to a system from HSU research. It was 2 of their satellite speakers on stands, and their VTF-1 subwoofer. The retail price for this system is $750. It will blow away a lot of other speaker systems for the money. The only downside is you would also need a receiver. But, this would open up so many opporitunities for you as well.


Here's the problem with the BOSE so you understand why it's not a good choice:
1) No true tweeter- no high frequency response.
2) Poor drivers- they are cheap an inefficient. They are also arranged horizontally which is kind of a no-no anyway.
3) "Bass Module" is a joke: the crossover is set too high so that directional sounds are played through in, and sound muddy. It also doesn't have very good low frequency extension. Bose uses a lot of nonsense terms and lingo, but in the end there is nothing revolutionary or interesting about their designs. (hopefully you checked the link). This system is Basically a Bose 3-2-1 system that they developed 10 YEARS ago and have only made minor changes to.

Orb Audio Classic 1, Classic 2 systems:
http://www.orbaudio.com/classictwost...kersystem.aspx
Orb Audio $999 complete home theater:
http://www.orbaudio.com/999completehometheater.aspx

HSU Research:
HB-1 Bookshelf speaker:
http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/hb-1.html
HSU Research VTF-1 Subwoofer:
http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-1.html

Axiom Audio:
M2 v3 speakers
http://axiomaudio.com/m2.html
EP125 Subwoofer
http://axiomaudio.com/ep125.html#

Emotiva:
Ultra-12 Subwoofer
http://emotiva.com/ultra_sub12.shtm

If it were my money, I would go with the HSU bookshelf speakers and the Emotiva Ulta-12 subwoofer (although the HSU sub is also a very viable choice as well).