I sold plenty of Bose 901 when in retail, back in the mid-to-late 70s. Bose marketing worked well and many customers loved those things. And for those who wanted them but could not afford them, they would often resort to the Bose 301. After hours we would sometimes remain at the store and party for a while in "the high-end room", powering up the 901s with an SAE amp or a Phase Linear amp (if it wouldn't blow up...which they so often did). With the 901 hanging from the ceiling we could get them, literally, rocking back and forth. Yes, they went very loud and provided fun for those party times. But for serious high-fidelity, they were never part of the equation. We had a saying; "no highs, no lows, must be Bose". But hey, if that is the sound that you enjoy, all the better to you. It's all about your own musical tastes and enjoyment.
Bose 901 Series 1 & 2 versus KEF 104/2's and 105/3's
I've been enjoying my 5 channel Sealed Box Bose 901's for almost 2 years. I was recently gifted 4 KEF 105/3's & 2 104/2's from a friend. The Speakers are on the whole in good shape. I've assembled one pair of perfectly working 105'3's from the four. The other two 105/3 need the Uni-Q midrange replaced and I blew out one of the Simply Speakers replacement Tweeters (no longer available). The remaining 4 Cavity COupled Woofers are in various states
I'd replaced the Ferrofluid in both 104/2 Tweeters and the foam Donuts on all four 8" Woofers.
My 901 impressions in our 28' x 17' Living Room in our Apartment (moving to a real house in a few months) are :
My KEF 105/3 & impressions in our 28' x 17' Living Room in our Apartment are :
My future plans when we do get a home are to run the 105/3's as my FR, LR, RS, & LS. One of the 104/2's will be the Center Channel. The other one will be for parts (maybe). I'm also thinking to Stack the 105/3's with the top 105/3 mounted upside down on top of the main 105/3. I'll remove the damaged Uni-Q Drivers on the top 105/3's. This way only one Tweeter, one midrange, but four midbass Drivers and four 8" Cavity Couples Woofers per side. The remaining 104/2's would then be my rear surrounds. Four 901's would hang from the ceiling for Dolby Atmos and two Ohm Walsh 2000's that were also gifted to me would be my side surrounds (movies/concerts only).
I'd replaced the Ferrofluid in both 104/2 Tweeters and the foam Donuts on all four 8" Woofers.
My 901 impressions in our 28' x 17' Living Room in our Apartment (moving to a real house in a few months) are :
- Bose 901's work best when the main front L & R Speakers are 2' in front of the Wall and very very far away form room boundary walls thereby eliminating Boomy Bass. There is little of the "reflecting effect" and more omnidirectional when placed along the long wall in the room 12' apart
- Using miniDSP instead of the old Analog Bose EQ's (which I'd personally rebuilt) gave the best results
- All highs, sweet mids, and Bass down to 30Hz.....it must be Bose !
- Always wanted a pair since I was a kid and it's been a long ($$$) strange trip indeed
- Great Speakers when setup correctly
My KEF 105/3 & impressions in our 28' x 17' Living Room in our Apartment are :
- The 105/3's have a great Upper Bass/Midrange/Treble balance and extension. The Cavity Coupled 8" Woofers in larger Bandpass enclosures have prodigious amounts of clean detailed Bass. No Subwoofers need apply !
- 104/2's by contrast are a bit more mellowed regarding Tonal Balance. Treble Extension/Vocal Sibilances can be subdued at times but when required. The highs are there when called upon. One of their Woofers has a lazy voice coil, nut works well
- Bass is more "polite" than the 105/3's. But like the highs. when called upon, they kick in !
- replicating the KUBE curve in miniDSP on both 104/2 and 105/3 Cavity Coupled Woofers did the trick. Very Deep Bass that over powers
My future plans when we do get a home are to run the 105/3's as my FR, LR, RS, & LS. One of the 104/2's will be the Center Channel. The other one will be for parts (maybe). I'm also thinking to Stack the 105/3's with the top 105/3 mounted upside down on top of the main 105/3. I'll remove the damaged Uni-Q Drivers on the top 105/3's. This way only one Tweeter, one midrange, but four midbass Drivers and four 8" Cavity Couples Woofers per side. The remaining 104/2's would then be my rear surrounds. Four 901's would hang from the ceiling for Dolby Atmos and two Ohm Walsh 2000's that were also gifted to me would be my side surrounds (movies/concerts only).