Bose Wave(TM) Music Systems--Anyone try/buy/have one?

In My Humble Opinion
21

The idea isn’t total BS. The higher the frequency the more focused it becomes. Good speakers attempt to create a wide sweet spot.

Bose pioneered a great idea with their acoustimass technology ™ , and then they ignored most of what they learned. Their only attempt to enter the monitor class of speakers was the 10.2 (and the follow-up 10.2 series II). These were phenomenal speakers for $1,100. They got rave reviews from serious stereo magazines. The only problem is that they didn’t have a complete line of high-end speakers. They literally had no outlet for this speaker. They dropped it and went back to the $700 and under class of speaker (and even managed to screw those up).

22

Tivoli Audio also makes decent sounding compact systems for not a whole lot of money. I have a model one and quite like it, especially for vocals. I plug my walkman CD player into an aux port in the back. It also has a headphone out and a line out in the back. Not bad for $100. They also have more elaborate systems.

23

I really do have to agree with don’t ask about headphones. I decided to go with a pair of Sennheiser headphones (HD 590, about the best pair you can get that don’t require an amplifier, $150 retail) instead of trying to build a surround sound system on a limited budget. They provide an unparalled sense of immersion in the music, with rich but not boomy bass. The problems of comfort and heat buildup you see in poor quality headphones just aren’t present in good ones. If you want to provide audio for a whole room, then speakers are your only option. However, if you just want personal audio, then headphones may be your best bet.

24

Now I’m not an audiophile, meaning I prefer to spend my time listening to my music and not to my system, and I think the Bose Wave System sounds remarkable for its size. If I could afford it, I would love to have one as an office radio or a workshop radio.

However, if I were looking for something to use as my main music center, I would buy a pair of their 602 towers for $580 and a decent receiver before I dropped $1000 on a glorified clock radio.

25

My recommendation:

Go and buy a pair of Paradigm Titan speakers.

Reviews:
Audio Video Magazine

Stereo Review

Hi-Fi and Music

HomeTheaterHifi.com

This should put Bose’s ‘value’ in perspective, because these speakers are $219/pair.

If you’re not interested in playing movies through this system, then you only need a stereo amp. My recommendation would be to get one used, because a ton of these things are on the market after people upgraded their stereo systems to 5.1 surround. You should be able to pick up an excellent stereo receiver from NAD, Harman-Kardan, Denon, or other top-line manufacturer used for less than $500. For a CD player, I’d spend a couple of hundred bucks on a DVD player that can play DVD-Audio and SACD high resolution formats.

This is an under $1000 system that will kick the BOSE around the block. Or, you could even combine the Paradigms with a new low-end H-K or Denon AV receiver and stay under $1000.

The best thing about this system is that it’s endlessly upgradable. If you want to get into an excellent home theater system, buy three more Titans and add a subwoofer. Or use the Titans for your rear surrounds, and get some Paradigm Monitor 7’s or Monitor 9’s for the front.

The Bose is a dead end. If it dies, it’s useless. If you want to upgrade, you’ll lose your shirt on resale (I had a pair of $2700 Bose 901’s when I was younger, and when I tried to sell them ten years later, I got $250 for them).

I bought a pair of Titans almost 10 years ago, and I still use them every day. They were bookshelf speakers for my office for a while, then they became the surrounds for my theater, and then when I sold my main speakers I moved the Titans up to the front as my main speakers until I buy a Paradigm reference series theater set up. I’m still happy with them. When I upgrade the stereo, these speakers will either go back in my office, or my daughter’s bedroom. You can’t get that kind of flexibility with an all-in-one system.

26

We just sold our Bose Lifestyle System (bought for $1500 about 3 years ago) because we needed some cash, and moved our computer into the room where it was. We’ve got a faux-Tivo setup on the computer, and outputs to the TV, so all the TV sound runs through the computer speakers. I can’t tell the difference, but my audiophile husband realized with some dissapointment that he was getting better sound out of the $300 THX computer speakers he bought a few years back.