B&W Matrix vs Nautulis


Just wanna see what the consensus is out there with reference to which series is the better speaker. I had a pair of B&W 801 Matirx...super speaker..loved it so much i figured the 801N HAD to be nirvana. Well i got a pair. Kept them for about 3 yrs and never quite felt comfortable
with them. I kept thinking how the 801 Matrix sounded. So after some soul searching i sold the 801N's and went back to the 801 Matrix. WOW ...magic...again. Does anyone out there also think the Matirx 800 series is superior to the
800 Nautulis series? The Nautulis is missing something.
They sound thin when compared to the Matrix series. Am i crazy ? does anyone agree? thx
128x128rocky
Hey Rocky, I'll weigh in here and agree all around. As I mentioned in another thread regarding the Matrix vs. Nautilus sound. There is a wonderful sweetness in the balance of the Matrix 801's especially in the upper mids and treble. Very palpable and real sounding and less analytical than the Nautilus. The Nautilus is clean and detailed, but doesnt have the richness that the Matrix TS26 tweeter has. They definately lost a little something going to the N tweeter IMO..Just my 2cents..Ken
Have had the Matrix 802 S3s for 2 years. Last year meditated changing to the Nautilus line. The Ns are also excellent speakers but I didn't hear enough of a difference to make the switch.
The only speakers presently tempting me are the big Thiels. Maybe I will &, then, maybe I wont.
Hey guys...thanks for your responses. I also forgot to mention the ton on cash i saved (got back) by going back to
the matrix 801's. Used the Matrix line is quite a bargain.
Got my 801 Matirx for $2500...compared to $11,000 for a new pair of 801N's. Also if you notice there are a ton of
Nautulis speakers for sale here. Not the case with the Matrix series. I think that kinda says something dont you think? People tend to hang on the the Matrix series..i know i will this time around...thx
This thread is so interesting!

I have seen Matrix 801 speakers around for absurd prices in the past couple of years. At one point, a local guy wanted to sell me a pair for something like $850, but we never got together as our schedules didn't mesh.

I presumed the Nautilus would be superior, but wanted them anyway. If nothing more than to have one of the best of the past. Now it seems, maybe they are better than the Nautilus.

I will say that a trend in the high end of the past five years has been towards detail and neutrality, often at the expense of musicality or ease of listening. It must be that other people feel as I do, and are not exactly happy with the sound today in all cases.
i agree completely
had a pair of 802 siii's and loved them
have traded mahu speakers in and out including genesis, revel f30's and now revel studios
i like the studios a ton BUT they can be fatiguing
i never had any fatigue with the b&w's
i also auditioned a set of nautilus 802's in my house against the 802 siii's
no cometition, i just felt the siii's were so lively and smooth!
i sometimes debate selling my studios and going back to 802's but the problem is the looks
im not so crazy about the looks and my wife hates the look
oh well
just my thoughts