Why the negatives on Bose speakers? - Blu-ray Forum

kurt vidal · 03-30-2007, 01:19 AM

Is there something intrisic to the design of bose speakers that some of you folks are recommending to stay away from them for home theatre use? I guess I'm not up on design characteristics of "studio" vs "home theatre" speakers. Can anyone give me a short summary?
I just picked up a Denon AVR-987 reciever and am using a JVC front speaker, 2-bose bookshelfs for front surround & 2-small bose wall mounts for rear surrounds. They sound pretty damn good to me when dumping PCM lossless out of my PS3 vs my running optical digital audio out of my old Pioneer elite VSX-24THX reciever.
thx,
kurt

Chris Gerhard · 03-30-2007, 01:41 AM

I have owned Bose speakers, the old 901 Series III and later on, the acoustimass speakers, which still work fine and were purchased about 15 years ago. My complaint would be the speakers are not a very good value and similarly priced speakers from other companies are always better or similar quality can always be found for less from other speaker manufacturers. There are no exceptions to those rules in my opinion and the Bose marketing hype is total nonsense. Are the speakers as bad as some say, not in my opinion, just never competitive in any price range and therefore never worthy of consideration.

Chris

ps3andlovinit · 03-30-2007, 01:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kurt vidal

Is there something intrisic to the design of bose speakers that some of you folks are recommending to stay away from them for home theatre use? I guess I'm not up on design characteristics of "studio" vs "home theatre" speakers. Can anyone give me a short summary?
I just picked up a Denon AVR-987 reciever and am using a JVC front speaker, 2-bose bookshelfs for front surround & 2-small bose wall mounts for rear surrounds. They sound pretty damn good to me when dumping PCM lossless out of my PS3 vs my running optical digital audio out of my old Pioneer elite VSX-24THX reciever.
thx,
kurt

A few years ago at the local audio/video store I listened to the top of the line Bose system in a special room built by Bose themselves. They ran thru sampler and the home theater stuff was pretty good..then they played concert video and music thru it..that was a mistake for me..it was very very flat sounding..

..but years are decades in this business so it probably doesn't mean a lot in the end

The Don · 03-30-2007, 01:58 AM

in my room I have a Bose wave radio hooked up to my 32" sony flat panel LCD....the sound from the TV provides the crisp sound via HDMI and the Bose provides the base and theater type sound when combined with the television...

I've found decent value with the wave radio's for systems in decent sized rooms..

Blackraven · 03-30-2007, 02:36 AM

Bose is still very good.

I can say that they make speakers as good as those of JBL, Mark Levinson, Harman-Kardon and even Rockford-Fosgate.

Pretty good sound company I must say.

MatrixS2000 · 03-30-2007, 02:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kurt vidal

Is there something intrisic to the design of bose speakers that some of you folks are recommending to stay away from them for home theatre use? I guess I'm not up on design characteristics of "studio" vs "home theatre" speakers. Can anyone give me a short summary?
I just picked up a Denon AVR-987 reciever and am using a JVC front speaker, 2-bose bookshelfs for front surround & 2-small bose wall mounts for rear surrounds. They sound pretty damn good to me when dumping PCM lossless out of my PS3 vs my running optical digital audio out of my old Pioneer elite VSX-24THX reciever.
thx,
kurt

What I don't like about Bose, is that in order to really fill a room with sound (like a theater) you need cone area - their small speakers just don't cut it.

Suggest you go to a speaker shop and listen to a set of Paradigm Studio 100 as your front surround, Studio 20 as your centre, a pair of ADP470 as your side and another set of ADP470s as your rear speakers - you will notice a difference!

coolmilo · 03-30-2007, 03:39 AM

There is not wrong with Bose. Their products fit into the low to mid range of speakers with respect to quality of sound. Bose sells a lot of products because of the name and not necessarily because of the performance of the speaker.

If you are not hung up on name, go to your local hifi shop and take a look at what you can purchase for the budget of a Bose speaker system.

For example, you could purchase the 300 series of the B&W speaker line for close to what you would pay for a Bose system. And if you did a side by side comparison you would be very surprised by the sound quality improvement on the B&W speakers.

Remember that was just an example. There are hundreds of lesser known speakers the offer a much better value than Bose. But like I said there is nothing wrong with Bose.

frankc4s · 03-30-2007, 08:23 AM

I have a Bose sound system installed in my Porsche 911, the sound is fantastic.

I recently bought the Bose in ear headphones for my Ipod...utter crap.

Josh · 03-30-2007, 11:57 AM

Bose makes good stuff, there is no doubt about that. The problem is they charge about twice what similar performing stuff costs. So its not that the stuff is bad, its just way too expensive for what you get.

Another problem (for some) is that Bose doesn't put any ratings on their speakers. With my Boston Acoustics, I can tell exactly what the decibel range is because they, like most speaker companies, rate their speakers. Bose seems incapable of telling their loyal fan base what they are actually buying. The answer is, they aren't performing as well as the competition, so they aren't going to come out and tell that to your face.

There is older, but still valid write-up here:

http://www.intellexual.net/bose.html

If you don't have time to read the whole thing, just skip down to the conclusion and you'll see why so many people are negative about Bose.

HDJK · 03-30-2007, 12:06 PM

That's an interesting article. It reminds me of Bang&Olufsen. They really look good but when you take the price and the performance it just doesn't match.

Filterlab · 03-30-2007, 12:17 PM

It's not that Bose are bad persay, it's just that other manufacturers do it better for the same price.

Certain Bose products are outstanding in their field, for example the Wave radio thing (a CD/Radio/Speakers built in one unit) which had gained worldwide recognition and accolade from consumers and critics alike.

However, you'd be hard pressed to find Bose speakers at the top of any consumer hi-fi magazine speaker test result. Why? Who knows, it's maybe just not their forte area, whereas in-car and studio applications are.

Take Harman-Kardon for example, they are very high in their game (in-car, sub/sat systems) but it's been a long time since their hi-fi components have been highly rated - aside that is from their receivers which almost always rank high in their price brackets.

pbnbcr · 03-30-2007, 01:54 PM

I got a Bose 321 system for free and it sounds pretty good. However, everyone's right when they say you can get better quality for the same price. It's all about the name. I had a customer come up to me one day and say, "No highs, no lows, must be Bose" and that seems true sometimes...

JTK · 03-30-2007, 02:09 PM

You can put Bose in any search engine and be overwhelmed within seconds.

The long/short of it is: Yes, you can buy Bose products and some or even a good number of those products can sound good.

The problem is: Bose easily overcharges by leagues for that sound quality vs. all kinds of other options out there.

In general, Bose is one of the worst, rip off rackets there is out there.

DavePS3 · 03-30-2007, 03:34 PM

Bose is psychological... you hear all this sound coming from tiny speakers and think that's pretty cool but like the saying goes, "No highs, no lows - must be Bose". It's mainly mid-range but it's a lifestyle product and wife-friendly. If you took the same amount of money and spent it on a normal system, you'd have a much fuller sound but... much bigger speakers usually. Bose is very propietary... 4 ohm speakers on dedicated connectors mean you can't use any other speakers that Bose. I find it pain in the ass.

JTK · 03-30-2007, 03:51 PM

Gotta give credit where it's due: Bose's marketing is second to none. It amazes me constantly how many suckers they rake in and how many people you can run into randomly on the streets who truly believe Bose is "the best."

If I ever start my own world dictatorship, I'm getting their head marketing guys on my propoganda team stat!

Quote:

Ijustboughtcrapitis-The disease that makes a person delude themself into believing the crap they just bought is the best because they spent too much on it. ...

^^ This phrase must have originated in a Bose topic of some kind a while back. Certainly you'd be hard pressed to find a better application for the phrase.

The Don · 03-30-2007, 04:07 PM

I wouldn't say Bose is the best by any means...

but their systems deliver quality sound for people who don't have the room.....I have it in my room on my entertainment center and it more than does the job..

jorg · 03-30-2007, 07:32 PM

i do not like bose at all but some speekers are realy asome at high pitch stuff but teriable at low for example i have a pair of martin logans due to the technolagy it use it is asome at high pitched stuff and they are bad at low pitched and base stuff (i got other stuff for taht)

Ascended_Saiyan · 04-01-2007, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTK

Gotta give credit where it's due: Bose's marketing is second to none. It amazes me constantly how many suckers they rake in and how many people you can run into randomly on the streets who truly believe Bose is "the best."

If I ever start my own world dictatorship, I'm getting their head marketing guys on my propoganda team stat!

^^ This phrase must have originated in a Bose topic of some kind a while back. Certainly you'd be hard pressed to find a better application for the phrase.

That is the truth! I think MS picked up more than a few of these people.

PeterTHX · 04-01-2007, 10:26 AM

The problem is Bose "colors" the sound.

It makes everything so warm and wonderful but it does not reflect the original soundtrack. The same way artificially boosting the color or brightness affects the appeal of certain TV screens in showrooms. It's not a true representation of the original material.

Solar Driftwood · 04-01-2007, 10:51 AM

I have to admit, despite my poo-pooing of Bose systems for years, a friend of mine recently bought one and asked me to set it up for him. Once set up properly, it gave a very good sound indeed for a small room. Not what I'd go for myself, but much better than I expected.

03-30-2007, 01:19 AM	#1
kurt vidal Member Member since:Dec 2006 Location:South Lyon, MI	Why the negatives on Bose speakers? Is there something intrisic to the design of bose speakers that some of you folks are recommending to stay away from them for home theatre use? I guess I'm not up on design characteristics of "studio" vs "home theatre" speakers. Can anyone give me a short summary? I just picked up a Denon AVR-987 reciever and am using a JVC front speaker, 2-bose bookshelfs for front surround & 2-small bose wall mounts for rear surrounds. They sound pretty damn good to me when dumping PCM lossless out of my PS3 vs my running optical digital audio out of my old Pioneer elite VSX-24THX reciever. thx, kurt

03-30-2007, 04:07 PM	#16
The Don Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Apr 2006 Blu-ray reviews:12 Trading Score:2	I wouldn't say Bose is the best by any means... but their systems deliver quality sound for people who don't have the room.....I have it in my room on my entertainment center and it more than does the job.. Last edited by The Don; 03-30-2007 at 04:09 PM.

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03-30-2007, 01:41 AM	#2
Chris Gerhard Banned Member since:Feb 2007	I have owned Bose speakers, the old 901 Series III and later on, the acoustimass speakers, which still work fine and were purchased about 15 years ago. My complaint would be the speakers are not a very good value and similarly priced speakers from other companies are always better or similar quality can always be found for less from other speaker manufacturers. There are no exceptions to those rules in my opinion and the Bose marketing hype is total nonsense. Are the speakers as bad as some say, not in my opinion, just never competitive in any price range and therefore never worthy of consideration. Chris

03-30-2007, 01:58 AM	#4
The Don Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Apr 2006 Blu-ray reviews:12 Trading Score:2	in my room I have a Bose wave radio hooked up to my 32" sony flat panel LCD....the sound from the TV provides the crisp sound via HDMI and the Bose provides the base and theater type sound when combined with the television... I've found decent value with the wave radio's for systems in decent sized rooms..

03-30-2007, 02:36 AM	#5
Blackraven Expert Member Member since:Jan 2005 Location:Makati, Philippines	Bose is still very good. I can say that they make speakers as good as those of JBL, Mark Levinson, Harman-Kardon and even Rockford-Fosgate. Pretty good sound company I must say.

03-30-2007, 03:39 AM	#7
coolmilo Blu-ray Guru Member since:Jan 2007 Location:Silicon Valley Home Theater Gallery:16 Blu-ray reviews:2 Trading Score:2	There is not wrong with Bose. Their products fit into the low to mid range of speakers with respect to quality of sound. Bose sells a lot of products because of the name and not necessarily because of the performance of the speaker. If you are not hung up on name, go to your local hifi shop and take a look at what you can purchase for the budget of a Bose speaker system. For example, you could purchase the 300 series of the B&W speaker line for close to what you would pay for a Bose system. And if you did a side by side comparison you would be very surprised by the sound quality improvement on the B&W speakers. Remember that was just an example. There are hundreds of lesser known speakers the offer a much better value than Bose. But like I said there is nothing wrong with Bose.

03-30-2007, 08:23 AM	#8
frankc4s Active Member Member since:Nov 2006 Location:uk	I have a Bose sound system installed in my Porsche 911, the sound is fantastic. I recently bought the Bose in ear headphones for my Ipod...utter crap.

03-30-2007, 11:57 AM	#9
Josh Super Moderator Top contributor Member since:Sep 2006 Home Theater Gallery:50 4K collection:37 Blu-ray collection:407 Digital collection:1 Blu-ray reviews: 15 Trading Score:34	Bose makes good stuff, there is no doubt about that. The problem is they charge about twice what similar performing stuff costs. So its not that the stuff is bad, its just way too expensive for what you get. Another problem (for some) is that Bose doesn't put any ratings on their speakers. With my Boston Acoustics, I can tell exactly what the decibel range is because they, like most speaker companies, rate their speakers. Bose seems incapable of telling their loyal fan base what they are actually buying. The answer is, they aren't performing as well as the competition, so they aren't going to come out and tell that to your face. There is older, but still valid write-up here: http://www.intellexual.net/bose.html If you don't have time to read the whole thing, just skip down to the conclusion and you'll see why so many people are negative about Bose.

03-30-2007, 12:06 PM	#10
HDJK Blu-ray Guru Member since:Oct 2006 Location:Switzerland Trading Score:2	That's an interesting article. It reminds me of Bang&Olufsen. They really look good but when you take the price and the performance it just doesn't match.

03-30-2007, 12:17 PM	#11
Filterlab Senior Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:East Molesey, Surrey, UK	It's not that Bose are bad persay, it's just that other manufacturers do it better for the same price. Certain Bose products are outstanding in their field, for example the Wave radio thing (a CD/Radio/Speakers built in one unit) which had gained worldwide recognition and accolade from consumers and critics alike. However, you'd be hard pressed to find Bose speakers at the top of any consumer hi-fi magazine speaker test result. Why? Who knows, it's maybe just not their forte area, whereas in-car and studio applications are. Take Harman-Kardon for example, they are very high in their game (in-car, sub/sat systems) but it's been a long time since their hi-fi components have been highly rated - aside that is from their receivers which almost always rank high in their price brackets.

03-30-2007, 01:54 PM	#12
pbnbcr Active Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:INDIANA	I got a Bose 321 system for free and it sounds pretty good. However, everyone's right when they say you can get better quality for the same price. It's all about the name. I had a customer come up to me one day and say, "No highs, no lows, must be Bose" and that seems true sometimes...

03-30-2007, 02:09 PM	#13
JTK Blu-ray Knight Member since:Jan 2006 Location:www.blurayoasis.com	You can put Bose in any search engine and be overwhelmed within seconds. The long/short of it is: Yes, you can buy Bose products and some or even a good number of those products can sound good. The problem is: Bose easily overcharges by leagues for that sound quality vs. all kinds of other options out there. In general, Bose is one of the worst, rip off rackets there is out there.

03-30-2007, 03:34 PM	#14
DavePS3 Blu-ray Guru Member since:Jan 2007 Location:Toronto Home Theater Gallery:56 Blu-ray reviews:1 Trading Score:1	Bose is psychological... you hear all this sound coming from tiny speakers and think that's pretty cool but like the saying goes, "No highs, no lows - must be Bose". It's mainly mid-range but it's a lifestyle product and wife-friendly. If you took the same amount of money and spent it on a normal system, you'd have a much fuller sound but... much bigger speakers usually. Bose is very propietary... 4 ohm speakers on dedicated connectors mean you can't use any other speakers that Bose. I find it pain in the ass.

03-30-2007, 07:32 PM	#17
jorg Power Member Member since:Dec 2006 Location:Ontario, Canada Home Theater Gallery:2	i do not like bose at all but some speekers are realy asome at high pitch stuff but teriable at low for example i have a pair of martin logans due to the technolagy it use it is asome at high pitched stuff and they are bad at low pitched and base stuff (i got other stuff for taht)

04-01-2007, 10:26 AM	#19
PeterTHX Banned Top contributor Member since:Sep 2006 Blu-ray collection:563 Trading Score:14	The problem is Bose "colors" the sound. It makes everything so warm and wonderful but it does not reflect the original soundtrack. The same way artificially boosting the color or brightness affects the appeal of certain TV screens in showrooms. It's not a true representation of the original material.

04-01-2007, 10:51 AM	#20
Solar Driftwood Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:Middlesex	I have to admit, despite my poo-pooing of Bose systems for years, a friend of mine recently bought one and asked me to set it up for him. Once set up properly, it gave a very good sound indeed for a small room. Not what I'd go for myself, but much better than I expected.

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