Are you a BOSE hater/basher? why?

[mandeep]

This is the exact question i asked myself today 29-04-16, 5:00PM , after settting up my BOSE AM6 series iii sytem with Yamaha RX-V663 receiver.
This combination sounds too good.

(I also have Boston soundware XS 5.1, JBL SCS 200.5 5.1 system and use these with the same receiver from time to time, as i am a collector of small speaker systems when offered or available at a great discount. In another room, i also have a denon x2200W and Yamaha / wharfedale, floorstanding speaker, Bipole-surround speakers setup )

The BOSE system was somewhat a blind buy yesterday for Rs 38,000/- (MRP: 48000/-) as i got a good discount on them at Jumbo electronics store.

In Bose showrooms, i have noticed that their HT setups are not proper with regards to speaker placement, especially the rear speakers, i request all prospective buyers of these type of systems, to please try these at a friends place or any convenient place, with proper speaker placement and proper receiver settings as given in their manual .

I am not trying to say that these are the best speakers out there, but certainly according to me , these should be rated among the best, I truly feel all that BOSE bashing, hating is not JUSTIFIED, otherwise i wouldn't have even started this thread. So please don't deprive yourself from purchasing a good system like this, who know's after setting them properly and hearing them, you may enjoy them more then the others in comparison. :yahoo:

Any-ways happy speaker hunting to prospective HTIB speaker buyer's out there:clapping::beer:

 

[Audiodoc]

The problem with bose is three fold. One that they don't publish specs two their sound signature is rarely neutral and three they are not value for money. BTW they make some good noise cancellation headphones.

I have a yamaha 675 and qacoustics home theatre setup which cost me around a lac the bose htib will never match the dynamics of this system even if they are costlier. Basically they are trying to beat basics physics of great sound from small enclosures by using DSP. The sound may be pleasing but is not what audiophiles love.

Some of the larger speakers sound nice but you get better speakers for that price from bowers and wilkins ELAC qacoustics wharfedale KEF klipsch and focal etc.

Here is a review by steve
Bose Acoustimass 6 Series III (black) review - CNET

 

[mandeep]

The problem with bose is three fold. One that they don't publish specs two their sound signature is rarely neutral and three they are not value for money. BTW they make some good noise cancellation headphones.
I have a yamaha 675 and qacoustics home theatre setup which cost me around a lac the bose htib will never match the dynamics of this system even if they are costlier. Basically they are trying to beat basics physics of great sound from small enclosures by using DSP. The sound may be pleasing but is not what audiophiles love.

Some of the larger speakers sound nice but you get better speakers for that price from bowers and wilkins ELAC qacoustics wharfedale KEF klipsch and focal etc.

For Rs 38000/- the Bose AM6 system seemed Value for money to me. Yes generally, BOSE systems are overpriced, but if one can get a good discount, then i think they can make sense for a buyer. Heard/read a lot good about Qacoustics systems, you do have a nice speaker+receiver combo.

Here is a review by steve
Bose Acoustimass 6 Series III (black) review - CNET

Another good site with a nice comparison of speaker systems The Best Home Theater Speakers of 2016

But here is Bose Acoustimass 6 Series V not series iii , quite similar though.

 

[efernand1]

Hi

I owned Bose for almost 6 years....their models upto Series III is good...after series IV and beyond its all cheap stuff used and they don't sound like before....

After a good 5 years of use...due to our great weather conditions in the country...the cabinet of these speakers come apart....my neighbor has AM5 which was purchased in 1991 and time and again I used adhesive to seal the sub......cones are almost ready to tear but work fine till date....He also has 301s and 201s all connected to Yamaha AX890

The question is then why spend so much when you can get other speakers for lesser which will do the job...also resale value needs to be considered if you get bitten by the upgrade bug from time to time

 

[mandeep]

Hello Audiodoc

Just noticed you are also from the Tri-city. wonderful:yahoo:
PM me your contact details. Let's have a little intro chat bro'

Hi

I owned Bose for almost 6 years....their models upto Series III is good...after series IV and beyond its all cheap stuff used and they don't sound like before....

The question is then why spend so much when you can get other speakers for lesser which will do the job...also resale value needs to be considered if you get bitten by the upgrade bug from time to time

Then i think i got lucky to have purchased a series iii then.

yes the points you have mentioned are quite solid. But one should not sell, just set them up in another room if possible, and listen to them from time to time.

 

[linuxguru]

The problem with bose is three fold. One that they don't publish specs two their sound signature is rarely neutral and three they are not value for money.

You nailed it - there are a large number of alternatives available at much lower prices that sound better. Bose's main claim to fame is that they were early to the game in 2.1 and 5.1 HT systems, which allow inexpensive satellites made with throwaway drivers to be paired with a subs and some minimal DSP or bass boost, giving some audible impact to the TV/movie watching crowd. They're rarely neutral or accurate enough for 2-channel audio.

BTW they make some good noise cancellation headphones.

That's the only piece of Bose equipment that I ever owned, a QuietComfort 1.5 noise-cancelling headphone, and it does work pretty well. Over the years, the earcup pads wore out, but I was able to get brand-new replacements on EBay for not much money.

 

[krishnamurthy]

They are a pure marketing machine, just like the familiar cellphone firm. People assume they are very good but not that good anyway, plus way
over-priced.
I would not buy Bose any given day in 5.1 mode as i have auditioned them before and they are just not good enough for music/movies and not VFM anyway.
Overseas, they introduced 3 years back, a TV with all speakers inside and one subwoofer outside and cost was $5,000 USD. When the salesman was asked what if the TV goes kaput, he could not reply further.

 

[Flash]

Well truth be told .. Not many have owned the Bose AM 5 or 10 . At most they have auditioned it at a Bose Store and I fall in the same camp .

The other issue is that most have not done a A/B versus a similar priced 5.1

Most Bose Bashing comes from what we read on the internet. However we need to factor in that the AM5 / AM10 are lifestyle products designed for people who wants their speaker to not stick out like a sore thumb in their living rooms. They want big sound in a small package and I guess Bose does exactly that

Can you buy something better than Bose at the price point . I guess you could .. Does it sound better than a Bose 5.1..... Now thats subjective .

 

[linuxguru]

The other issue is that most have not done a A/B versus a similar priced 5.1
...
Can you buy something better than Bose at the price point . I guess you could .. Does it sound better than a Bose 5.1..... Now thats subjective .

Bose stores are specifically designed to make it impossible to perform a comparative A/B evaluation. The stand-alone company stores only display Bose equipment for evaluation. The booth-within-a-store outlets (common in audio/electronics stores in the US) have only Bose equipment and are meant to isolate consumers from the other equipment in the store, thus making comparison-shopping difficult to impossible. After listening to the Bose equipment playing a particular DVD, you will have to go somewhere else to listen to the competing equipment with a different piece of media, with different store acoustics. Most shoppers in middle-America malls don't have the time or patience to do all this, so they go with what fits with the decor. For most women, that's Bose, even if it costs 3-4x what the competition costs for a similar-performing HTiB.

Purchase decisions are always subjective, but the Bose marketing machine goes out of its way to ensure that objective criteria are not available to the prospective buyer. There are no published specs of Bose equipment, and comparison shopping is difficult or impossible.

 

[Robert Bose]

I have Bose 901 Series IV and 301 series III

I have auditioned almost all the models in the Bose store

using music I listen to,( took my Cds with me }

I would say two points are in their favor

one is very good wife acceptance factor

second is their music is tailored to those who listen to pop

with beat based music, which is anyway artificial highly Eqd stuff

no one knows how it is supposed to sound, so the speaker

characteristics are not important.

Third is their marketing and advertisement budget is really good

they can afford it because their profit margin must be in the 70% region

I too love to listen to pop type music on 901, and orchestral pop on 301

for serious well recorded music ( this is the most important point )

JBL Ti series, sounds better and mid to higher end Focal sounds even better

once you take out the drivers from 301, 901,501 etc you will understand

where the marketing budget comes from, however with 320 KBPS

beat based music with vocals, they fill a required niche

Problem is you need an expensive amp to drive 901

there is their 901 based 802 I think, which requires matching

passive woofer, again with expensive amplification ( 400 W RMS )

and with rhythm based pop, at high SPL levels, with a few beers

it sounds impressive, the dynamic range is equally good at all

frequencies, but dont ask for refined sound tonality etc, it is

PA oriented party machine unlike the home stuff

I think they succeeded well in the 5.1 7.1 type very compact

good wife acceptance factor, special effects sound system for movies,

for music these systems are hopeless and the old 301 series 11 and 111

which you get used for 15K appx are a good bet

Robert Bose

 

[mandeep]

Well truth be told .. auditioned it at a Bose Store and I fall in the same camp .

The other issue is that most have not done a A/B versus a similar priced 5.1

Most Bose Bashing comes from what we read on the internet.

Can you buy something better than Bose at the price point . I guess you could .. Does it sound better than a Bose 5.1..... Now thats subjective .

You said it right, exactly.

Thats what i truly feel about their HTIB systems such as AM6, 5.1 or AM10, 5.1.

I was maybe somewhat a BOSE hater/basher myself up until yesterday. BOSE speakers are expensive or say overpriced, but the sound quality i got with the Acoustimass 6 series iii sytem (a.k.a AM6 5.1) hooked to yamaha 663 reciever , has left me speechless. As i own two more such systems Boston xs 5.1 and JBL SCS 200.5 5.1 system i could easily compare these systems with the AM6.

My Verdict: The Bose Acoustimass 6 is the clear deserving winner here in my opinion between these three systems. :beer: (keeping aside the price factor and verdict totally based on sound quality). With the whole Hating/Bashing on-line, some do develop a general belief that Bose speakers are total crap, but that is not the case.

But the real point of this thread is that ''Sales people and reviewers can not tell you what will sound good to you, only you can determine that'' And you will be able to determine that only when you take a proper DEMO of the system in question.

 

[sam9s]

There was this one thread about, what's there to hate about bose.where our forum member @Square_wave aptly describes what bose is. I don't remember the thread but I saved the reply, coz it exactly matches how I would have described bose sound .... sharing the same with you all ..

When it comes to high performance of audio gear usually there is one thing which is deemed very important.

Ability to accurately reproduce music as it is heard in life in a concert or recital hall or ability to recreate what is there on the master tape.

Where you looking for this aspect when you listened to bose ?

Bose is a complete product when it comes to impressing people by producing a very smooth and synthetic sound which is far away from the real thing! But the truth is that it impresses most people who are not looking for the real thing ! It is custom tailored to do that. They impart this smooth flavor to almost anything you play on it. This works for them. It is a huge chunk of the market.

There are many folks who actually prefer a bose system to a perfectly setup hifidelity sound system. There is nothing wrong in it. You may actually fall into this camp. If so, you are lucky ! You actually save a lot of money

It is futile trying to validate your findings on an audiophile forum because most folks here would have done this many moons back and moved on. It is like taking a photograph on an iPhone and actually liking it better than what you got when you casually clicked with a top of the line SLR. To understand what the SLR is capable of, you may need to spend quality time with it. You will be amazed what it can do if you figure out what it can do !

 

[Hari Iyer]

Imo bose spkrs have poor phase coherence and phase error margin is huge. In the Sewvil type spkrs there is a complete cancellation of critical midrange. Also midbass is very poor in the 100hz to 300hz region. I has a boom bass at the lows and extended brightness over 8khz which the mass market who are not exposed to true high end sound and audio anyway who are their target customers.

 

[mandeep]

There was this one thread about, what's there to hate about bose.where our forum member @Square_wave aptly describes what bose is. I don't remember the thread but I saved the reply, coz it exactly matches how I would have described bose sound .... sharing the same with you all ..

Bose is a complete product when it comes to impressing people by producing a very smooth and synthetic sound which is far away from the real thing!

It is futile trying to validate your findings on an audiophile forum because most folks here would have done this many moons back and moved on

Good Findings

Just a few thought's to share and need help with the understanding of AUDIOPHILE

From Wikipedia :An audiophile is a person enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction.A key goal of audiophiles is to capture the experience of a live musical performance in a room with good acoustics, and reproduce it at home. It is widely agreed that this is very difficult and that even the best-regarded recording and playback systems rarely, if ever, achieve it

Audiophile forum: Very Confusing, As far as i can understand we all here are trying to be an audiophile and nobody can validate his findings until and unless he has the technical equipment/Lab euipment to measure/prove his findings, other then one's ears, which every individual has.

OR it's a Forum where most of the members are audiophiles i.e members have the expertise or have some sort of certificate (and has technical equipment/Lab equipment to measure/prove his findings) as a proof of being an audiophile and they no longer need experience or findings of others?

We only believe we are audiophiles, based on our self belief and ears:lol: and rely on the findings and testing done by some technical people on various websites and believe their provided data and unknowingly believe such people are better then Dr. Bose or Andrew jones for example.


Some brilliant Findings online

What i understand is No one system is best for everyone each person's hearing is different.

''Gods!!! Sound is subjective!!!! Its a matter of taste, some people like boomy-uncontrolled bass. Some people like harsh mid ranges, hell some people like it when the speaker is driven to the point of distortion! Get off what sounds better and what doesn't! Its a matter of taste''

Installation and setup of an audio system is 90% of the sound anyway. Speaker placement can make or break any system regardless of the components used. I've heard great sounding Bose systems. Taste is subjective so what sounds good to one person may not sound good to another.

 

[zimbly]

Well I ended up getting a Bose AM 6 series 3 by mistake... Why by mistake? Well I work on a ship and my designation is such that i have an adequate budget to get a decent entertainment system with the Bill being footed by the company. So after a bit of deliberation I ordered the Yamaha RX479 with the Tannoy Mercury speakers(5.1 config). When the system was delivered on board i was rather amused to see that instead of the Tannoys, the supplier had conveniently sent me the Bose AM6. Damn!!!! Anyways the option of waiting for a full month before getting a replacement was not one I was willing to entertain. Accepted the supplied order as is.
Set up the system and its been a month and a half now that i have been living with it.
My take on them. Well they are strictly decent for movies, but need improvement on the overall imaging of sound, base at the lower end sounds muddy(I have physically turned it down, but that leaves me wanting more base). With 5.1 they still have some body to the sound but when i use it for 2ch Stereo.... it sounds like a small Bluetooth Speaker that is trying very hard to cope with my demands. So much so that i have been listening to audio in Stereo surround(Ahem... the sacrifices I need to make). As long as one is buying these speakers for pleasing HQ and is interested in using it for movies primarily, it can still be considered if you get an absolute bargain and a compromise here and there, but there are better speakers there for the money.
A bit off topic, I have lived with the following systems in the last year and a half for three months at a stretch each. 1. Jamo S 626 HCS paired with Sony STR 850DN amp. 2. Wharfedale Diamond 220/ 230 (5.1) with Yamaha RX-v373. Along with which I had my personal Devialet Phantoms for 2ch Stereo. 3. Present set up as described above.
The best of the lot in order of preference was 2>1>>3. The rooms were identical on all 3 occasions, so the rooms can effectively be taken out of the comparison. It came down to the equipment solely. I reiterate, for the money, there are better speaker systems out there than the AM6

 

[mandeep]

Well I ended up getting a Bose AM 6 series 3 by mistake... Why by mistake? Well I work on a ship and my designation is such that i have an adequate budget to get a decent entertainment system with the Bill being footed by the company. So after a bit of deliberation I ordered the Yamaha RX479 with the Tannoy Mercury speakers(5.1 config). When the system was delivered on board i was rather amused to see that instead of the Tannoys, the supplier had conveniently sent me the Bose AM6. Damn!!!! Anyways the option of waiting for a full month before getting a replacement was not one I was willing to entertain. Accepted the supplied order as is.
Set up the system and its been a month and a half now that i have been living with it.
My take on them. Well they are strictly decent for movies, but need improvement on the overall imaging of sound, base at the lower end sounds muddy(I have physically turned it down, but that leaves me wanting more base). With 5.1 they still have some body to the sound but when i use it for 2ch Stereo.... it sounds like a small Bluetooth Speaker that is trying very hard to cope with my demands. So much so that i have been listening to audio in Stereo surround(Ahem... the sacrifices I need to make). As long as one is buying these speakers for pleasing HQ and is interested in using it for movies primarily, it can still be considered if you get an absolute bargain and a compromise here and there, but there are better speakers there for the money.
A bit off topic, I have lived with the following systems in the last year and a half for three months at a stretch each. 1. Jamo S 626 HCS paired with Sony STR 850DN amp. 2. Wharfedale Diamond 220/ 230 (5.1) with Yamaha RX-v373. Along with which I had my personal Devialet Phantoms for 2ch Stereo. 3. Present set up as described above.
The best of the lot in order of preference was 2>1>>3. The rooms were identical on all 3 occasions, so the rooms can effectively be taken out of the comparison. It came down to the equipment solely. I reiterate, for the money, there are better speaker systems out there than the AM6

Most, may be all , Compact HTIB systems are not at all good for music. That have been said and reported repeatedly. It's the surround sound in movies performance that really matters and that's what they are designed for. It's also unfair to compare them with big non-compact systems.

 

[zimbly]

Most, may be all , Compact HTIB systems are not at all good for music. That have been said and reported repeatedly. It's the surround sound in movies performance that really matters and that's what they are designed for. It's also unfair to compare them with big non-compact systems.

You are correct there Mandeep. Taking the 2Ch stereo out of the equation, I still believe I have addressed the AM6 in 5.1 config with equal parity in my post above. Was merely painting the whole picture.
And like you have said, the sound signature is a personal choice... not something cast in stone. Happy listening.

 

[Flash]

I guess I will go ahead and buy the Bose AM 10 just for kicks and compare it with my other speakers/ systems

After a week or two if it really sucks will put it up on Olx/Quickr or here . I will end up loosing some dough ... However it would at least put an end to the debacle..... hopefully !!

 

[mandeep]

I guess I will go ahead and buy the Bose AM 10 just for kicks and compare it with my other speakers/ systems

After a week or two if it really sucks will put it up on Olx/Quickr or here . I will end up loosing some dough ... However it would at least put an end to the debacle..... hopefully !!

''Free will'': allows a man to do anything willingly or by choice. That's why we are blessed with free will. We have the freedom to choose and do whatever that seems right for us.

If that suits you then go ahead.

I will suggest ask them if they can provide a HOME DEMO first, as returns and restocking concept is not here in india. I have done that quite a bit.

 

[regeHA]

@mandeep - You are right. There is some bias against Bose, but not all of it is wrong or even misplaced.

Personally I can live with and use Bose, upto a price point. I've used Wave and CD players in the past, likewise computer/desktop speakers too. They are pretty good, even good bang for the buck considering the alternative studio monitors cost even more, and consume premium desk space. For what they cost, how they sound, and how less space they consume... they are unbeatable in small speakers. My parents got me a Bose Wave system when I was a kid and even to this day I have fond memories, it was unbeatable for what it did and its size... imagine CD, radio, and even an alarm clock, all in one single unit.

However, home theater and specifically Lifestyle series (especially) are overpriced, I'd never spend on them unless I was getting them at US prices and without paying any tax/import duty. Even then probably not. In this segment even I'd be "biased" against Bose for those prices.

Would I buy Bose today? Probably not. Anything like JBL LSR305 or Swans M200 MKIII with Chromecast Audio and a decent budget DAC would outperform them and also cost less.

Would I buy Bose for my parents? I did get them a Acoustic Wave. Any of the SoundTouch or Wave systems would make perfect sense for them.