"BEAR" wrote in message
...
What you /need/ with a pair of Bose 901s is a flat real plaster and lathe
wall, free of all obstructions, dead floor (wood with carpet/rug is best),
and some degree of absorption and diffusion on the remaining surfaces.
Soft plush chair.
That and a Phase Linear 700.
THEN what is needed is a good TT and cartridge combo (not a Shure, Stanton
or similar).
FINALLY, you need pristine copies of early LED ZEP albums!!
Nothing sounds better! 
_-_-bear
You're getting to the heart of the issue now! How well I remember hearing
901 III's at "The Stereo Buff" in Springfield, MO in the late 70's! They had
them set up in what was probably an ideal arrangement: suspended from the
ceiling across one short wall. I have never heard a pair of speakers that
sounded more like a live concert! True, you don't get the hyper-imaging of
more directional speakers, but I find you don't get it in live sound either.
Which is not to say one is right and the other wrong, but just in at least
that parameter, the 901 is more accurate.
One aspect of the 901's performance I have always taken issue with though,
is image height. It seems to me that, hung from the ceiling, it's too high;
but on 18" stands, it's too low. Maybe 24-30" stands would work better, but
I don't know if that would weaken the bass too much or not. Then again, Bose
probaly knows best. I'm sure the stands they sell are 18" tall for a good
reasson.
I guess the 2-channel rig I'm imagining would consist of a pair of 901 VI
speakers driven by a pair of bridged mono amps putting out around 400-500W,
with the front end being a good 2-channel receiver functioning as a
pre-amp/tuner and a Slim Devices Squeezebox as the primary source, running
only losslessly coded files. Throw in a good but inexpensive universal disc
player and I'd be good to go.
I could also re-imagine the speakers as maybe some big Cerwin Vegas, but I
have to wonder if there's any quality there at the prices they are working
with. How do they make a profit selling 80-pound three-ways with 15" woofers
for around $300 a pop in todays economy? Are they pure crap or what? I
remember C-V's afrom the seventies as being rugged rock and rollers. Maybe
a bit thick in the mids, but rugged and dynamic with stout bass. I wonder if
they are still any good.
Another factor: Surely Bose is preparing a 901 Series VII, maybe in time for
the 40th anniversary. Ya s'pose?