E-Bay sellers rant on Bose

leftwinger57

I was looking to see what DCM Time Frame 350s were going for these days. I have a set and mine off C/L were $120 and thankfully refoamed and resocked. The thing w/ TFs is that the socks if not protected from ir rays and the sun directly fade horribly. His set does have some minor issues but it's his description and rant vs. Bose that's is pretty funny.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DCM-TIMEFRAME-TF-350-SPEAKERS-WOOFERS-EXPERTLY-REFOAMED-THE-BEST-OF-THE-SERIES-/111653506645?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19ff114e55

boston1450

Those are beautiful speakers he has

Mikey081057

No highs-no lows - It's Bose.... Haven't heard that in 20 years... Classic.

westmassguy

http://www.bubblews.com/news/2584445-the-art-of-bose-bashing

AsSiMiLaTeD

I can't believe people still bother with bashing Bose. Doesn't everyone pretty much know they suck by now, what's the point?

westmassguy

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I can't believe people still bother with bashing Bose. Doesn't everyone pretty much know they suck by now, what's the point?

Painting with a very wide brush

mrloren

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I can't believe people still bother with bashing Bose. Doesn't everyone pretty much know they suck by now, what's the point?

Lots of people still buy their junk. My wife is Filipino, when we go over to friends or family almost all of them have that junk. When they come to my house they are amazed of how much better my HT sound is from their junk.

In 89-90 I had a part time job at DOW/Tweeter. That is when they came out with the cubes. We set up a wall just for them and we could not compare with other brands. Funny thing was once people had a good listen to the cubes I would take them to a real speaker room and play the same CD on some good speakers. 8 out of 10 would go for the good cheaper speakers than the cube crud. I did like selling the cubes, I made more money

One night just for giggles we setup a pair of book shelf and a sub on the cube wall. Well lets just say the cubes were no match for real speakers. A few weeks later A Bose rep found out about it, next day I lost a good part time job.

krabby5

old thread but, I agree that Bose can be low end/high price, especially on their older (do they even have newer?)HT systems..marketing gimmicks. But I just got a good deal on an open box SoundTouch 30 streaming system. For what it is..it's awesome. I have about 40 Gbs of music on my computer. I also have a newer generation iPod as well. You can get the app for IOS and control everything from there. I use a couple of the preset channels on Pandora and another for my iTunes library..works seemlessly. I can even Airplay directly from my iPad or iPod. And the sound is actually pretty good..in fact I had to turn down the bass as the default is maxed. Like I said it's great for what it is...streaming compressed music flawlessly and very fast with decent sound. Works great in the bedroom.

gimpod

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I can't believe people still bother with bashing Apple. Doesn't everyone pretty much know they suck by now, what's the point?

There fixed it for ya!


Sorry couldn't help myself, I'm sick and need help

Toolfan66

Polk has had its share of bashing in the audio world, yeah not to the extent as Bose but there nonetheless....

That was a good read Westmassguy... Thanks...

And by the way I like my apple products.. Get well gimpod..

westmassguy

Toolfan66 wrote: »

Polk has had its share of bashing in the audio world, yeah not to the extent as Bose but there nonetheless....

That was a good read Westmassguy... Thanks...

And by the way I like my apple products.. Get well gimpod..

It's a good read @Toolfan66, and applies to all loudspeakers, not just Bose. My Series II 901 Continentals will be with me till I'm on the wrong side of the lawn. They're not for everyone, but then again no loudspeaker is. The Series I & II are Acoustic Suspension, so more power is needed to drive them properly versus the later ported designs. The "Secret Sauce" is in the Equalizer. When 40+ year old general purpose Electrolytic and Film Caps are replaced with audio grade components, the difference is astounding (but we know that already from the Crossovers we rebuild). I have customers all over the world that are floored when they receive their rebuilt Equalizers.

ambiophonics

@westmassguy

I picked up a nice pair of 901 Series II with the stands and EQ locally the other day and am going to give them a try for a bit. I really love my upgraded SDA2BTLs but have never heard the Bose properly setup so I figure why not. Anyway, do you have any recommendations on upgrades to the EQ? I expect the electrolytics need to be replaced but if you happen to have a list of parts you'd recommend that would be helpful.

westmassguy

ambiophonics wrote: »

@westmassguy

I picked up a nice pair of 901 Series II with the stands and EQ locally the other day and am going to give them a try for a bit. I really love my upgraded SDA2BTLs but have never heard the Bose properly setup so I figure why not. Anyway, do you have any recommendations on upgrades to the EQ? I expect the electrolytics need to be replaced but if you happen to have a list of parts you'd recommend that would be helpful.

If you want to go high-end, two Panasonic FM Series and one Elna Silmic II 1000uf 35 volt caps in the power supply, six 100uf 25 volt and two (or four) 4.7uf Elna Silmic IIs for the remainder.
If you're replacing the metal film caps, you'll need four .1uf, six .015uf, and two 5.0uf Metalized Polypropylenes in place of the 4.7uf output electrolytics. Sonicap has all this values in the Gen I.
If you want "cheap and cheerful", you can also use Dayton 1% MP caps for the .1uf and 5.0uf cap, and WIMA MKPs for the .015uf. You can also change out the ceramic caps with Silver Micas, for unbelievable clarity and micro detail in the midrange and treble. Further upgrades to the power supply are also possible.
All the switches will need to be cleaned and lubricated with DeoxIT. Bypassing the Tape Monitor Switch eliminates one of the biggest headaches with the Series I & II EQs.
Here's a Series II I did a while back for an Australian Customer:

This build required a new 240 volt Transformer. I was also using a 1700uf Panasonic and two 1000uf Elnas, but have since scaled that back. The Elnas have a rather high ESR versus the Panasonics. The new Transformers are fine with that configuration, but the original Transformers can be weak.

ambiophonics

Thanks for the quick and detailed response. Looks like I have some parts to get on order!

westmassguy wrote: »

ambiophonics wrote: »

@westmassguy

I picked up a nice pair of 901 Series II with the stands and EQ locally the other day and am going to give them a try for a bit. I really love my upgraded SDA2BTLs but have never heard the Bose properly setup so I figure why not. Anyway, do you have any recommendations on upgrades to the EQ? I expect the electrolytics need to be replaced but if you happen to have a list of parts you'd recommend that would be helpful.

If you want to go high-end, two Panasonic FM Series and one Elna Silmic II 1000uf 35 volt caps in the power supply, six 100uf 25 volt and two (or four) 4.7uf Elna Silmic IIs for the remainder.
If you're replacing the metal film caps, you'll need four .1uf, six .015uf, and two 5.0uf Metalized Polypropylenes in place of the 4.7uf output electrolytics. Sonicap has all this values in the Gen I.
If you want "cheap and cheerful", you can also use Dayton 1% MP caps for the .1uf and 5.0uf cap, and WIMA MKPs for the .015uf. You can also change out the ceramic caps with Silver Micas, for unbelievable clarity and micro detail in the midrange and treble. Further upgrades to the power supply are also possible.
All the switches will need to be cleaned and lubricated with DeoxIT. Bypassing the Tape Monitor Switch eliminates one of the biggest headaches with the Series I & II EQs.
Here's a Series II I did a while back for an Australian Customer:

This build required a new 240 volt Transformer. I was also using a 1700uf Panasonic and two 1000uf Elnas, but have since scaled that back. The Elnas have a rather high ESR versus the Panasonics. The new Transformers are fine with that configuration, but the original Transformers can be weak.

westmassguy

ambiophonics wrote: »

Thanks for the quick and detailed response. Looks like I have some parts to get on order!

westmassguy wrote: »

ambiophonics wrote: »

@westmassguy

I picked up a nice pair of 901 Series II with the stands and EQ locally the other day and am going to give them a try for a bit. I really love my upgraded SDA2BTLs but have never heard the Bose properly setup so I figure why not. Anyway, do you have any recommendations on upgrades to the EQ? I expect the electrolytics need to be replaced but if you happen to have a list of parts you'd recommend that would be helpful.

If you want to go high-end, two Panasonic FM Series and one Elna Silmic II 1000uf 35 volt caps in the power supply, six 100uf 25 volt and two (or four) 4.7uf Elna Silmic IIs for the remainder.
If you're replacing the metal film caps, you'll need four .1uf, six .015uf, and two 5.0uf Metalized Polypropylenes in place of the 4.7uf output electrolytics. Sonicap has all this values in the Gen I.
If you want "cheap and cheerful", you can also use Dayton 1% MP caps for the .1uf and 5.0uf cap, and WIMA MKPs for the .015uf. You can also change out the ceramic caps with Silver Micas, for unbelievable clarity and micro detail in the midrange and treble. Further upgrades to the power supply are also possible.
All the switches will need to be cleaned and lubricated with DeoxIT. Bypassing the Tape Monitor Switch eliminates one of the biggest headaches with the Series I & II EQs.
Here's a Series II I did a while back for an Australian Customer:

This build required a new 240 volt Transformer. I was also using a 1700uf Panasonic and two 1000uf Elnas, but have since scaled that back. The Elnas have a rather high ESR versus the Panasonics. The new Transformers are fine with that configuration, but the original Transformers can be weak.

You're welcome. You can also do ALL the Metal Film caps with WIMA MKPs, depends on pricing. eBay is a good source for them.
Also, double check that your Equalizer is in fact a Series II. Series Is look similar, but are no as good as the Series IIs.

motorhead43026

I have always been intrigued by the 901 series speakers. My question being is placement even more critical than say SDA's.

westmassguy

motorhead43026 wrote: »

I have always been intrigued by the 901 series speakers. My question being is placement even more critical than say SDA's.

They have similar requirements. Minimum 3' from corners or openings, at least 5' of clear wall space behind each speaker. Spacing from 4' to 8' apart. 12"-18" off the back wall. The Tulip Stands are a requirement for propagation of the reflected sound waves. You can use small tables, but that would block a portion of the reflected sound.

daddyjt

I have done my share of "Bose bashing" in the past, but I have come to realize that Bose products do indeed serve a purpose. The Bose products have introduced millions of people to a substantially better music experience than they would have otherwise had from a regular table-top radio. A good portion of these people also moved on to what we all consider high fidelity sound. So in fact, even though we don't particularly care for the Bose sound, we can thank Bose for driving music sales, as well as driving many customers into the art of HiFi, both of which benefit us in our hobby indirectly.

tonyb

daddyjt wrote: »

I have done my share of "Bose bashing" in the past, but I have come to realize that Bose products do indeed serve a purpose. The Bose products have introduced millions of people to a substantially better music experience than they would have otherwise had from a regular table-top radio. A good portion of these people also moved on to what we all consider high fidelity sound. So in fact, even though we don't particularly care for the Bose sound, we can thank Bose for driving music sales, as well as driving many customers into the art of HiFi, both of which benefit us in our hobby indirectly.

I dunno about that big guy. If you recall, Bose had that ad which proposed you could get rid of all your hi-fi gear for their offerings. Bose was anti-hi-fi, and the people who buy into it are sold on the idea that there is little to no difference in SQ.

Bose having a hand in the move up buyer.....I might disagree there. More so the opposite.

westmassguy

tonyb wrote: »

daddyjt wrote: »

I have done my share of "Bose bashing" in the past, but I have come to realize that Bose products do indeed serve a purpose. The Bose products have introduced millions of people to a substantially better music experience than they would have otherwise had from a regular table-top radio. A good portion of these people also moved on to what we all consider high fidelity sound. So in fact, even though we don't particularly care for the Bose sound, we can thank Bose for driving music sales, as well as driving many customers into the art of HiFi, both of which benefit us in our hobby indirectly.

I dunno about that big guy. If you recall, Bose had that ad which proposed you could get rid of all your hi-fi gear for their offerings. Bose was anti-hi-fi, and the people who buy into it are sold on the idea that there is little to no difference in SQ.

Bose having a hand in the move up buyer.....I might disagree there. More so the opposite.

Don't know about the ad, but Bose made some decent speakers in the 70s, 301s, 501s, and 601s, in addition to the loved and hated 901s. All were well made, and sounded good. The original 601s were quite good. I rebuilt a pair for a customer in SoCal, re-edged the woofers with treated cloth surrounds, and rebuilt the crossover with Sonicaps and Mills Resistors. Sounded awesome. I've also owned two pairs of 601s. Quality went down starting in the 80s.

tonyb

That was before the cube idea hit them and table top all in one radio.

mantis

Bose to many might be junk but they sure do sell well. I for one have nothing against them. Actually good for them to have the ability to sell as well as they do.
I'll tell you all a little secret, People who buy Bose Love Bose. People who have owned them for years still love them.
I use to Install Bose back when I worked for Tweeter and we sold a ton of Bose. Every single job I did the end result was extremely happy people that loved listening to their music and watching movies and sporting event with their Bose systems.
Say what you want about them, they make people happy.

westmassguy

tonyb wrote: »

That was before the cube idea hit them and table top all in one radio.

Absolutely. The 1st incarnations had a gapping hole in the upper bass, where the bass module rolled off, and before the cubes took over.

voltz

My 1st semi-towers where the Bose 401's which I gave to our neighbors when they retired and moved to Colorado. Gary says he still loves using them.

leftwinger57

Like Dan I also became a Bose installer. My main job was as an alarm and fire alarm installer. Our main work was doing single family homes by the development which meant we had the pre-wire and finish rights and no other company could come in and wire a house until the house closed and they owned it. We became a Bose distributor right when the building boom of the late "80s was going on strong. We installed the 3 room amps which resembled car amplifiers and where meant not to be seen but hung on a basement wall or closet. Each amp hadled 3 zones of pairs of speakers, 1 subwoofer, and a volume control for each zone ALL Home Runs back to the hung amplifiers which also had inputs jacks for each zone using a multi cable a 8 wire I think w/ a unsheathed drain wire. All were controlled through a R/F remote, a six disc, radio combo.These usually went for $10 k using 3 amps per house. Then for the family rooms we installed The Lifestyle 3s and 5 systems @ about $5k per system. A