Bose 901 series with and ipod.


What do i need to integrate Bose 901 series 6 with an ipod and bluetooth

martyswerve

....was always curious as to what an array of 8 (or more; nothing like excess in the pursuit 😏) 901s' pairs 'stacked' into an array would be like, but that in a small space would court 'death by decibels'. *LOL*

"....we found a large smear of blood 'n bits of his body on the wall opposite the speakers....Poor devil..." ;)

@martyswerve Good luck & listening with the new set-up. 👍😃

Remember, being a type of omni speaker, the 901s’ prefer an unclutted space behind them for their full ’soundstage’.....and you ought to have enough watts available for said listening.

....I do remember with mine, of years gone by, could absorb everything my Marantz 2270 could deliver to the point of making the pilot lights dim with the bass line. It was noted to me at the time you could throw a kilowatt at them; was never able to test that since they played ’loud enough’ for me. *L*

Bose later marketed a ’stage version’, turning them 180 so the back faced the audience. Never tried that.... ;)

Using your cell v. iPod would allow you to opt for streaming various sources, and apps aplenty to futz about with as well. *G*

Enjoy...J

Thanks for your help. Did not go far enough in owners manual to actually see a diagram for the back. Appreciate your help

 

So if I am using the Yamaha s301  what inputs and out puts do i use for the Bose Equalizer since there is no pre amp in/out RCA jacks. I also assume that when using the Audioengine B1 that optical out to optical in on Yamaha is used.

Thanks

@asvjerry 

 

  my one and only iPod is long gone.  I regret that I actually bought the docking cradle made by Wadia.  It extracted the files on the hard drive and bypassed the Apple DAC .  It was truly a great product, worked as advertised, but hey they still were mp3 files, and who wanted to haul the iPod out of gym bag anyway?  I probably used it 3 times and then donated it to a thrift shop.

  Anyway, if anyone actually knows if the iPod did Bluetooth, please chime in.  And if it did do bt, it was probably the first BT codec, which sounds awful.

OP, use your phone as a source into a BT receiver, you will be much happier 

@mahler123 , well....my bad if I've assumed the app for BT isn't on an iPlod...

;) ....not an Apple fan here.  And has the $ to not miss me, either. *L*

Personal experience with that sort of arrangment employing a lightweight lux for source is a Pixel feeding the shop audio....

Dust issues. so it's that or a CD after a spritz with the air compressor...

@asvjerry 

 

The question was whether an iPod does Bluetooth, not a phone.  I haven’t used an iPod in a long time and I don’t remember using Bluetooth with the one that I had.  And wasn’t Apple resistant at one point in time to Bluetooth?

@martyswerve , good luck & listening...*S*  Esp' to this bunch.... ;) *L*

Btw, the 901s' can handle an inordinate amount of watts...but I suspect you already know that....

I think it'd be hard to not have a cell that won't BT, except for a burner   *shrug*

 

Thanks everyone for your advice on the integration of the Bose 901. Some interesting responses . I do believe i have all the info I need.Again Thanks for your helpl

 

The speakers require amplification - ACTIVE refers to the separate equalizer.

The Audioengine B1 (already mentioned) should do the job for <$200 if the OP already has a suitable amplifier.

 

DeKay

The Yamaha integrated posted would work well, as long as you use the 901 eq.  

Getting back to the OP question, I didn’t realize that these speakers are active. I had read the description on the Bose site and was specifically looking for that, so my bad. At any rate if they are active speakers all the OP needs is a Bluetooth receiver such as the Audioengine that I referenced earlier. Does anyone know if the iPod does Bluetooth? It has been a long time since I’ve had one.

 

A more general point is active speakers with DSP.  The only active speakers that I have ever heard are Audioengine.  However there are so many new AS on the market, and I might be moving in a few years and starting to consider AS for their space conserving values.  Are there other brands that add DSP as well?

@yogiboy Reasonable caution. On the other hand, people poked fun at me. It was not that hard to withstand -- indeed, it's worth the price of admission if one is really seeking information. Maybe give the OP credit for a slightly tougher skin or sense of humor? Meanness and cruelty are over the line, but a little fun? Surely the psyche has to be built with some durability or how are we going to survive?

This site is for people asking questions. The OP is new to this site and was asking a question about his Bose speakers. I have never listened to a Bose. I did not think that poking fun at him was the right thing to do. I doubt that the OP will post here anymore because of the many that made fun of his speakers. Kapish ?

@yogiboy I have but it's been a long time, and not in the spirit of close or careful listening, tbh.

@yogiboy -

     Little Caesars and Chef Boyardee sell a lot of pizza too. 

         heaps of hype + mindless masses = super sales

@hilde45 I’ve never listened to a Bose. Have you? There are many that like them and I always wonderd why many poke fun about them. After all they were one of the best selling speakers of all time! 

Bose 901 Series VI Review

Bose has been building a speaker for 45 years that seems to turn conventional wisdom on its head. Does hi-fi history need to be rewritten? Or is the legendary 901 just a clever design?

When NASA set out to conquer the moon, Bose founder and namesake Amar Bose, who was already allowed to study at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a 17-year-old, developed a loudspeaker that seemed to be built contrary to all the usual rules. So it was with nine broadband Loudspeakers, eight of which radiate from the back against the listening room wall.

If you look at where Bose’s idea came from, it seems less eccentric since he was concerned with the psychoacoustics of concert halls. But, in fact, the direct sound component of the instruments in a concert only makes up a comparatively small part of the sound energy that reaches the listener. By far, the most sound reaches the ear via many reflections from the room.

Rearview: The transparent model shows the internal structure, which has remained the same for decades, with eight rear full-range speakers and bass reflex plus a chassis to the front.

PROS:

  • Amazingly deep, powerful bass.
  • Easily adaptable to the listening room using standard EQ
  • Sounds spacious and powerful

CONS:

  • Unable of generating micro dynamics and low-level details adequately
  • Speakers can sound dulled if they are too close to walls or corners.
  • The Inline EQ requires slightly more configuration than modern DSP-based speaker sets.

Direct or reflective?

The basic concept of the 901 has not changed since it was first introduced in 1968. Nine high-impedance full-range speakers are connected in series. Four of them emit the sound diagonally to the left and right and one straight forward directly to the listener – hence the name “Direct Reflecting.” This division determines the balance between direct and indirect sound.

Does that sound too absurd to you? Something like that can’t sound like it? If we look at the credit side, the whole thing is turning in a different direction. Technically, Bose builds an array of full-range speakers with the Bose 901 Series VI. This is how the most modern large-scale PA systems work. The membrane surfaces add up to an active surface. The membrane surfaces add up to a giant emitter, which still has the properties of a good midrange speaker in terms of impulse fidelity and precision, but now suddenly also knows how to transmit deep bass with power.

So come out of the tested 901 series VI V240 Hertz unchecked – and with a decent level. In practice, the compact little box pushes more than great volumes into the room – with the right amount of power and thrust. The individual full-range driver in the front is responsible for localization and the direct sound component, not unlike the conventional midrange driver of a three-way box. That works fine.

Equalizer

“It still can’t sound good, even if the Americans couple almost a dozen ‘midrange speakers’!” That’s right, so Bose also uses active equalization that compensates for frequency response, and that’s where Bose was way ahead of its time over four decades ago. The standard equalizer not only equalizes the frequency response across the board it also allows a very wide adjustment in the bass and the treble to adjust the tonal balance to the listening room.

In the case of stable walls, the bass can also be reduced across the board towards the deep bass. The equalizer is looped into a tape monitor between the preamp and power amp. Since the equalization sits before the amplification, this is by definition an active control. And because the power amp sits directly on the drivers, it also exerts very direct control—active speakers with room equalization that doesn’t sound absurd anymore. It comes as standard with every 901 pair, Bose’s Active Equalizer. It allows two switchable deep bass levels; the two sliders can control the tonal balance of bass and treble.

The 901- an active speaker!

Bose offers stylish feet with curved plates to match the speakers. These allow cable feedthrough if the cable is sufficiently thin. The upper plate covers the connection terminal and can be screwed to the box. Appropriate grits for pre-drilling are already applied to the bottom of the case; the only clumsy thing is the lack of a cable feed in the bottom plate of the foot. Ideally, the loudspeaker cable comes out of the floor at the right point or has a connection terminal. Otherwise, you have to give the base plate rubber feet and lay the cable through the feet.

Bose 901 Series VI- Hearing test

According to Bose 901 Series VI stands about 30 centimeters in front of the wall opposite the listening position on the comparatively low stands in the listening room. With the equalizer initially set to neutral, we play music from the server. The first impression creates a certain relief because the modern 901 also sounds significantly more modern than the historical 901, which I was previously able to experience with the German Bose boss Anton Schalkamp. Right from the start, the current box delivers significantly more detail and fine dynamics than the Series II chassis technology provided.

No wonder who knows more about small full-range speakers than Bose? And then the smile comes back to the tester’s face. Like its predecessors, the Series VI also convinces a full-bodied, almost powerful sound that you hardly believe the small box is capable of. Nevertheless, that’s a bit too much, and the second bass equalization sounds more balanced.

The 901 conveys fun

Although the Bose somehow sounds different than everything else, it still never sounds wrong. The disproportionate diffuse sound component almost sounds as if they were overwriting the recording room with the listening room. One gets the impression that the musicians are playing in their own space rather than recording. Despite the comparatively blurred stage image, this conveys an unusually high level of intimacy in the reproduction.

But what, the 18 full-range drivers can convey a good portion of dynamics, especially in musical passages with a portion of the attack. Piano attacks and drums then sound amazingly vivid, and despite certain discolorations, voices and saxophone always have charm and timbre. In short, listening to music with the Bose 901 is still a lot of fun!

Bose 901 Series VI Review

Bose 901 Series VI Review

 

 

The OP asked about BT in his original post.

I am assuming the iPod in question does Bluetooth.  If it doesn’t, then I don’t think you can use it as a source.  If it does Bluetooth then you need amplification and a Bluetooth receiver.  A basic integrated amp that doesn’t have a DAC will keep it simple.  For Bluetooth receiver I recommend the Audioengine, probably the B1.  This will connect the amp by RCA connection, and the amp needs to be wired to the Bose speakers.  The Audioengine Bluetooth DAC/receiver can also be used with your phone as a source, so if the iPod doesn’t do Bluetooth, or if it dies on you in the near future, you can play the same music from your phone.

  It may actually be more economical and probably sound better to purchase Audioengine speakers, or another company that offers comparable products.  These speakers contain the amplification and the Bluetooth receiver.  All you need to do is pair your iPod or other mobile device 

  As you may have surmised, Bose has a bad name amongst Audiophiles, and invoking it on a site like this invites ridicule.  

@yogiboy LOL! I can't resist a good joke, especially involving (a) Bose and (b) a sledgehammer. OP, please do ignore me, though I am only half  jesting.

Post removed