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Audio_Empire Audio_Empire is offline
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Default Stereophonic Realism - a Tautology

In article ,
"Gary Eickmeier" wrote:

Audio_Empire wrote:
In article ,
"Gary Eickmeier" wrote:


First of all the system has to sound like music. With Bose 901s, you
have one strike against you right there. 901s sound terrible (to me)
they have no highs, the bass is muddy and slow (with the equalizer.
Without the equalizer they have NO bass) and that reflected sound off
the wall is, to me incredibly annoying and unrealistic.


This is, of course, the biggest and most frustrating stumbling block in
trying to relate my story. As soon as they get wind of my using 901s in my
system, "nanner nanner, he can't be right, he likes Bose 901s - ha ha, Bose,
no highs no lows, must be Bose." And I can sympathize with all who say that,
because they have not been demonstrated properly in about 40 years.

I opened my tale with how I discovered a tragic fault with the Bose owners
manual. It had us placing the 901s from a foot to a foot and a half from the
front and side walls. That is not just wrong, it is disaster in the making.
The only reason I can think of for them to be doing that is to make "the
public" think that they can be placed almost anywhere and give that great,
Bose spacious sound. Well, they can't, and no company can change the laws of
acoustics with an owners manual.

Long story short, I have mine 5 ft from front and side walls, and I am
incorporating a Velodyne F1800 subwoofer. My system images like a
striped-assed ape, puts out sound power like the Second Coming, and has a
power response that has no limits with any recording I have of my thousands.

Believe it or leave it, you have not heard 901s yet.


The pair I had I tried in every configuration imaginable including
around 5 ft (and 6ft and 7 fit. At the time I lived in a loft-like place
with huge open spaces) out from any reflective surface. I never liked
them and didn't keep them long. I didn't even think that they made
decent surround speakers.

You listen to the stereo system that you like and be happy that you
can come THAT close. Frankly, I'm pretty happy with what we CAN do. I
wish the industry would catch-up with me, but they have gone in
another direction entirely! Properly recorded stereo sounds magical
to me, I can turn out the lights (with a proper recording) and point
to each and every instrument in the ensemble with pin-point accuracy.
I can hear the highest highs (that my old ears can respond to) and
the lowest lows. The midrange is very realistic and distortion-free.
I'm content with that because I know what's possible and what's
impossible.


What are you listening to again? I forgot.


Martin-Logan Vistas. And while flat-panel electrostatics can be
considered bi-polar, M-Ls are not. The curved screen focuses the back
wave in on itself so the bi-polar effect is largely lost. Even so, I was
a Magnaplanar enthusiasts for many years (still am, actually, but I
think electrostatics are just better) and though they are true bipolar
speakers they do not do what Bose 901s do (thankfully).


BTW, MBL 101s only work in giant rooms. In the average 14 X 18 living
room they don't work at all.


That is because an omni is still a little too hot in the direct sound. You
need to back off from them a certain distance for the direct sound to go
down to something more Bose like, and live sound like.


Believe me, if Bose 901s sounded ANYTHING like MBLs, I would still be
listening to them.

Everybody has different tastes. I'm not trying to impugn yours, just
demonstrate how mine differs.

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