SRS Line vs. B&W Speakers

PolkMaster1

Someone at work mentioned stopped by my desk and commented that Polk Audio Speakers are not really that great - that I should try a B&W speaker. This was after they saw I had the forum webpage opened. Needless to say I mentioned that Polk manufacturers great speakers and they would kick **** of 90% of the speakers out there (of course we all here know that). He was insistent that Polk is of low quality vs. the B&Ws. I fired back saying that he never heard a Polk speaker. He mentions he has heard a PA Speaker, but no way is he believable in this area. He has a Deffinitive Technology Speaker - 2000 series, weighing ~80 lbs. (He did not know exactly what vintage speaker model he has, and it is not available on their website to view.) Needless to say, one of my speakers outweighs both of his speakers.

The person assumed that I was in the market for a speaker by having the webpage open.

Has anyone ever compared an SRS speaker (any model, TL or non-TL) to a B&W speaker? Modded SRS speaker vs. the B&W Speaker?

Are the B&Ws worth the price they ask for? Seems to be overpriced to me.

F1nut

Why don't you invite him over for a listen and also ask him what B&W speakers he has heard.

That said, there are many folks that like the B&W sound and then there's folks like me that wouldn't piss on them if they were on fire.

AsSiMiLaTeD

I rarely give any credibility to any audio advice or information given by someone who can't remember which model speakers he has.

leroyjr1

I for one like both companys and think it's hard to compare both company's. IMO the mid-upper models are far superior to Polk current offerings. I just redid my HT room and I visited almost every hifi shop in Wisconsin and the Chicago area. The mid-upper B&W's sounded outstanding for HT. Some say they're bright but with the right electronics they sound great.

bigaltx24

B&W makes a good speaker, I just feel they are overpriced. I've listened to a couple different pair of their older Matrix line, I was way underwhelmed. I've also heard a pair of 804s, I liked them better, but would never trade them for my SDAs. I've got a pair of DM602s in the closet, nice bookshelf speakers, might find a use for them someday.

PolkMaster1

F1nut wrote: »

Why don't you invite him over for a listen and also ask him what B&W speakers he has heard.

That said, there are many folks that like the B&W sound and then there's folks like me that wouldn't piss on them if they were on fire.

He has the invite on many occasions, but his ego is stopping him. He is "afraid" he will not be impressed. My response to him was that there was no question IF he will be impressed, but by how much.

He had no comment to that.

analog97

The B&W Matrix 801's are a wonderful speaker. They were also about 10K several years ago. Their sound is vastly different from my 1.2 TL's and I much prefer the bigger, wall-wall, front-to-back SDA approach. That said, the old 801's are the only B&W speakers I've heard that can approach any serious competition with my current speakers. I have about 2K in my speakers. Jeepers. Talk about VALUE!!! :eek:

xsmi

I had the pleasure of listening to B&W 802 Diamonds powered by McIntosh Electronics: MC402/C1000 (Amp/Pre) and MVP881 Universal player, all told c.$70K-MSRP. It was one of the most life-like sessions I have ever been in. In the same room were a pair of Klipsch Palladium 39-F's powered by big mac monos. Although the Palladiums were FANTASTIC, I had to give the edge to the B&W's. They just seemed more balanced to me and the sound stage seemed more palpable. To be fair to the Klipsch, I was not bale to measure and match the levels and I don't know if the mac/Klipsch was as good a match as the mac/B&W were. having said that, IF you can get your ears on either of these speakers set up properly you MUST audition these things! (Even if you THINK you don't like horns.)

audio_alan

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I rarely give any credibility to any audio advice or information given by someone who can't remember which model speakers he has.

+1 ^^^ Agreed. At the very least it shows his lack of research in what he owns, let alone the rest of the product offerings on the market.

I think you (Polkmaster1) hit the nail on the head about him being "afraid", but not about being impressed. He's afraid that your speakers will shatter his perception of what he owns...

erniejade

SRS and B&W speakers are 10000% different from each other. Totally different sounding.

It will come down to personal preference on it.

vc69

erniejade wrote: »

SRS and B&W speakers are 10000% different from each other. Totally different sounding.

It will come down to personal preference on it.

No doubt about that.

I recently auditioned the 802d and 804d speakers in Baton Rouge, La. Powered with Classe' and a McIntosh tube pre (2300 I think). Both pair of speakers sounded very nice, excellent really. The 802d's were outstanding but at 15k a pair, way out of reach.

Bobsama

xsmi wrote: »

I had the pleasure of listening to B&W 802 Diamonds powered by McIntosh Electronics: MC402/C1000 (Amp/Pre) and MVP881 Universal player, all told c.$70K-MSRP. It was one of the most life-like sessions I have ever been in. In the same room were a pair of Klipsch Palladium 39-F's powered by big mac monos. Although the Palladiums were FANTASTIC, I had to give the edge to the B&W's. They just seemed more balanced to me and the sound stage seemed more palpable. To be fair to the Klipsch, I was not bale to measure and match the levels and I don't know if the mac/Klipsch was as good a match as the mac/B&W were. having said that, IF you can get your ears on either of these speakers set up properly you MUST audition these things! (Even if you THINK you don't like horns.)

I was over at Audio Classics a couple weeks ago and had a listen to B&W 802 Diamonds as well. Powered by a McIntosh MC602 and C2200 (iirc) tube pre. The source was an MS750.

We took a listen to a few pieces and "5:15 A.M." (Mark Knopfler) especially sounded excellent. Very smooth and not boomy. The soundstage was narrower than 1.2TL's. Excellent bass response. I liked the speakers but I'm not in the market for such expensive hardware. That said, if I had that type of money to drop on a system, I'd be spending a few days auditioning.

Coleman

I own both B&W and Polk. When I bought my 604i's way back, they were absolutely the best sounding speaker that my retailer had up to price range (and this was a dedicated audio store). I couldn't be happier with them. They sounded better than the Polk Monitors that he had on hand. Of course, I also own a pair of vintage 5JR+s. I was given a pair of B&W 201i's that I compared head-to-head with the 5JR+s and this was, I think, a fairly apples to apples comparison. The two speakers sounded very different. The B&W had a much better midrange and better bass (although a little boomy as it was ported) and was more lifelike for vocals, but it rolled too much off the top end and you lost a bit of the sense of presence. The 5JR+s where a little thin in the midrange. When playing both pairs together, the combination sounded phenomenal, each making up for other's shortcomings. After adding up the pros and cons of each, I ended up selling the B&Ws and kept the Polks. I recently purchased a used pair of RTi38s and those lost to the 5JR+s, too, but I think the B&Ws would have won in that comparison.

I guess you really can't generalize that one brand is better than another. Listen to each and let your ears decide.

zingo

B&W 8xx series is excellent, and the only B&W speakers I would buy (for 2 channel) as I feel that is where their sound signature really stand apart from other brands. They are a little over prices, but a solid product and great SQ.

Face

I've heard the 8xx series twice and hated them both times.

DON73

I have the 801 Matrix and the 803 Matrix. I bought both used.....less than half price. The B&W 803s and the ADS L 710s are the only audio components that astonished me with their clarity. There's absolutely nothing to hate about either of these B&W speakers but if I could only keep one pair it would probably be the 803 Matrix. I feel it has a slightly better upper midrange than the 801s but that's just me. I have several pair of Polks and ADS and they're all very good speakers. The new line of B&Ws is completely off my radar because of the cost..........but I have never seen a B&W matrix speaker in the shop for repair except in the case of an accident and I've heard them pushed to the limit with 600 watts......much less chance of damage with 600 watts than with 100 watts of Sony AVR power.

xsmi

Bobsama wrote: »

I was over at Audio Classics a couple weeks ago and had a listen to B&W 802 Diamonds as well. Powered by a McIntosh MC602 and C2200 (iirc) tube pre. The source was an MS750.

We took a listen to a few pieces and "5:15 A.M." (Mark Knopfler) especially sounded excellent. Very smooth and not boomy. The soundstage was narrower than 1.2TL's. Excellent bass response. I liked the speakers but I'm not in the market for such expensive hardware. That said, if I had that type of money to drop on a system, I'd be spending a few days auditioning.

Hard to find a soundstage as wide as 1.2TL's, however, what I was hearing rivaled, no, surpassed my SRS 2's which I have to upgrade(want to get better electronics first).

But what really did it for me was, there was no vail over the music. What you heard was the recording. Did I have the epiphany moment I had when I first heard the 1.2TL's or the Wilson Audio Maxx's? No. But they were damn close!

JPSmario

I have B&W 602S2's in my bedroom system now, replaced by the SDA2A's in the main room. The 602's imaging is razor sharp, but I prefer the wide stage, detail, and thunderous bottom of the SDA's.

I have not heard SRS's yet, but I have heard B&W 802D's in a system priced in the low-to-mid Porsche neighborhood ($60K). That system sounded so stunning that I wondered for a moment "who needs live performance?" I heard details like chairs moving and people licking their lips!

I also liked the B&W 703's driven with Rotel gear. there me be a pair of these in my future, you never know.

Bottom line: IMO I like both, perhaps for somewhat different reasons. Of course, if I ever have $60k available, I'll use it for a Porsche:biggrin:

Bobsama

xsmi wrote: »

Hard to find a soundstage as wide as 1.2TL's, however, what I was hearing rivaled, no, surpassed my SRS 2's which I have to upgrade(want to get better electronics first).

But what really did it for me was, there was no vail over the music. What you heard was the recording. Did I have the epiphany moment I had when I first heard the 1.2TL's or the Wilson Audio Maxx's? No. But they were damn close!

Quite true. SDA's have exaggerated even soundstages but I like that. Anyways--I thought there was the lightest of veils over the music. If I had to come up with an analogy of B&W 802D's, it would be like a lady doctor; cold yet personal. Intense yet attractive. And far out of my league. I need to put on 40 pounds and bank at least $40k/year.

dcoil

Bobsama wrote: »

Quite true. SDA's have exaggerated even soundstages but I like that. Anyways--I thought there was the lightest of veils over the music. If I had to come up with an analogy of B&W 802D's, it would be like a lady doctor; cold yet personal. Intense yet attractive. And far out of my league. I need to put on 40 pounds and bank at least $40k/year.

Hey, at least your going in the easy direction. If I needed to put on 40 pounds I could just double-up on my nightly wine and chocolate ration.:biggrin: Now the $40k/year would be a bit more difficult.:rolleyes:

VR3

*Jumps in the room*

I must be one of the few forum members that was initially impressed with SDA's - and once the soundstage thing was old -- the lack of detail, texture and overall clarity took its place.

But I have never heard a fully modded pair of SDA's...

Speaker technology on the other hand has come a long long way since SDA speakers. Most forum members agree with what I am saying but also agree that what I am looking for and what they are looking for is completely different.

On the other end of the spectrum B&W speakers bore me to tear. They are such boring loudspeakers.

kchilaka

I currently have a pair of stock Polk SDA2s and B&W CDM 1Se (MSRP $1200 back in 2000) monitors in my posession. I also used to have a pair of B& W DM1600. While I do like the SDA2s (especially the musical bass), I really prefer the tonal balance of the B&W dm1600 and the CDM 1se. The tweeters are very delicate and airy and the midrange is beautiful. They are not bright at all. If anything they are warm. However, because of their size, the low-end needs a sub but if I had the B&W CDM 7SE (floorstanders) I do believe I would pick them over the SDA2s. The SDA2s sound stage is probably more vast than the b&W but for some reason I do like listening to the CDM 1se. I am selling them and saving up for a b&w floorstander someday. BTW the lower end b&ws such as the 3 series and 6 series are not that great. I heard a pair of 603s and they are a bit more forward than the CDM series. If you want to hear the true b&W sound, listen to the CDM, HPM , CM or 8 series. Used older B&ws are a really good value.

tonyb

My opinion on the two, Polk speakers are very forgiving, B&W speakers, the upper end are not. Same can be said for alot of upper end speakers, they will showcase all the flaws in your electronics if not up to snuff. I have heard b&w speakers sound great, and the same speaker sound terrible on another setup. Your front end becomes more and more important the higher you move up the chain. You don't see too many people running 802d's with an emotiva amp and a 500 buck avr, right. They would reveil the crap out of those electronics. Even if you can afford the higher end electronics,then you have the synergy thing to worry about. All in all, my impressions of B&W is that they are overpriced for what you get, but then,thats no news to anyone here.

PolkMaster1

audio_alan wrote: »

+1 ^^^ Agreed. At the very least it shows his lack of research in what he owns, let alone the rest of the product offerings on the market.

I think you (Polkmaster1) hit the nail on the head about him being "afraid", but not about being impressed. He's afraid that your speakers will shatter his perception of what he owns...

The strange thing is that the guy is telling me to purchase a B&W Speaker, yet he only has a Deffinitive Technology speaker running on mid-fi (AVR) equipment. Those of us in the forum have either the Porshe, or for those DIY Modders, the Aston Martins (without the pricetag) of audio equipment.

The guy can deffinetly get better equipment - he makes the money to afford it - but chooses not to. He is not a modder of equipment, so if he were to upgrade his equipment, should he choose to do so, would mobe up to Porshe equipment. Maybe.

I wonder what all this says about him.