Bose lovers unite! (Or the end of audio retail as we know it)

I have a Bose Soundbar 500 in my living room under the TV & it sounds much better than the built-in speakers on the TV.

I think this quote from the article says it all "they are the single best multi-channel marketing company perhaps in the entire global economy"

not speaker company, not AV company but marketing company. I guess the cost of paper is catching up to them.

I hate Bose in home speakers, the sound is...well Bose. But they provide a product people love and is functional in their lives. Their car stereos are some of the most consistently good sounding of all I've heard, speaking from 15+years in the automotive industry repairing all makes. I love their noise cancelling headphones. IMHO they are the best combo of noise cancellation and sound quality and have made flights so much more enjoyable. And have you tried the new outside the ear tech? Pretty awesome.

Bose has often been at the front of industry trends, I agree with the article, them closing all their retail stores is a strong indication of where the industry is going. The middle is getting cleaned out, leaving the high end expensive nice products, and the cheap entry level stuff that to the average consumer sounds as good or better. Bose wins because they put what people perceive as amazing sound into a tiny package that fits anywhere and is convenient and easy to use.

Also when you put 400+ watts through a jewell cube they play really really loud for about two minutes. I used to work at a Bose store, loved blowing up the leftovers.

The 201 and 301 weren't bad at all.

I also had a pair of 301 that I enjoyed. Bought them at Sears for $200. Once I upgraded the fronts, the 301 became my surrounds. Arguably the best surrounds I’ve ever had. The “music everywhere” (Bose marketing) really worked well in a surround sound application.

Emlyn wrote: »

I must admit they have made some good products over the years including decent car stereo systems. Their products may be better now than ever before, especially their headphones.

Bose never actually made car stereo systems. They simply licensed their name. Most of the “Bose” car systems were made by Clarion if I remember correctly.

source: www.radioshackcatalogs.com (1974)

Radio Shack didn't make their own receivers in the 1970s...

and...

Inspector 24 wrote: »

Fixed it.

Polk uses Vifa tweeters, the car you're driving wasn't manufactured by the manufacturer, other than being particular and sharing random trivia, was there a point besides stimulating curiosity? It does make me wonder if the likes of Mark Levinson, Bang & Olufsen, and the other premium car audio platforms manufacture their speakers, or have Clarion et al. do them as well? Anybody care to google that while I wait 1-3 days for a response?

Ahh, your panties are all twisted...

I mentioned it because he pointed to products that he specifically felt that BOSE did well. So yes, I found it worth mentioning that Bose actually had nothing to do with the stereos besides hammering out a licensing deal, and that’s probably why you felt they sounded good.

To answer your other question, yes.

Pretty much all name brand stereos in automobiles are simply rebranded equipment from other manufacturers.

One of the only manufacturers that I know of that actually supplied upgraded and branded stereo equipment for automotive use was Dynaudio, for Volvo. However, once Volvo was sold to a Chinese firm Dynaudio stopped supplying to them.

At least for the drivers, the amps were B&O Ice amps if I remember correctly.