B&W or JM labs

Friend

I hear lots of JM Labs when I visit a certain audio shop near me; and I must say that while they sound very nice - the nod would go to B&W. To me the B&W's seem to do the "realism" thing better. In the end - let your ears decide.

Studio1

How do you compare the music in both. High, low and middle range. What about warmth and harmonics. If you cna please give me details of both the sides a little.

I lived with the 802 and 800 for a few years and changed to JMLab (Nova Be) after evaluating both 802D and the Alto's.

Rather than repeating, click on 'answers' next to my login id for more on my experiences (including highs, lows & mids). Let me know if you need more info.

What amp and source are you using?

I am using the T+A PA 1530 for Just 2 channels. I have the T+A DD1535 for the surround. I am using Transparent Ultra MM's for cables. In terms of power cables I have the Anaconda Helix Alpha for the PA 1530 and the Electraglide Epiphany X for the DD 1535.

I personaly prefer JM Lab speakers over B&W and own a pair of JM Lab 946 Electras. I would say the B&W Nau. D series are the best of the bunch so far BUT still believe the JM Lab to be better. I find the B&W tend to draw attention to themselves where as the JM Lab Electra and Utopia series let me enjoy the music more and forget that it is coming from two speakers. Also most of the JM Lab line are very efficient speakers which is always a plus but the B&Ws seem to require a lot of power to sound their best.

T+A is the Bomb. The Diva Utopia needs room to breathe, but once positioned correctly, it kicks A**

As a former B&W owner and current JM Lab owner, I agree with Arnold's assessment. The JM Labs are all about the music although I really like the 803D. I also prefer the looks of the JM Labs and their build quality seems to be a notch above B&Ws - but they are more expensive...

The Divas do indeed need room to breath - you will choke them in a small room and their bass performance won't be as good as it could. They got "speaker of the year 2005" award in the French Diapason magazine which I highly respect.

Arthur

One thing people are oveer looking on the B&W 800 is there need to be at least biamped! Maybe the McIntosh Mc 1201 at 1200 watts mono okay, your gona need some real power to run these speakers. Or you have wasted your money. Yes you can get by with 300 watts on the JM Labs. This is a different game with huge load requirement differences. I wouldn't be a question as to the speaker I raise my hand for B&W.

Yeah the B&Ws do need a lot of power but funny thing is I HAVE heard the B&W Nau 801s driven by the McIntosh 1200 watt monos and was still not terribly impressed with their performance but I guess it all boils down to personal preference.

I own the 800's since a couple of weeks. They are great in some ways, but when you buy them you need a lot of power to drive them. When you play music with a few instuments a lot, the 800 is often more intimidate than many other big speakers. What you put in, will come out. So you need equipment of a high level. Think good, before you buy them. Listen to them with you own equipment en you know what you get. Before a bought them I auditioned them with my own equipment. A speaker is always a preference of a person, so audition them both with your own stuff.

I personally prefer JM Labs as well. But is your room large enough for Divas or 800s? They will need WAY more space than 805s do to sound good.

This is why I own the 805s and 805n I swear they image amongst the best out there. I do like the JM Labs Mini Utopia. I belive this is one of JM's better speakers. B&W-$2500, JM-$8000 Big difference in price.