Bose 901

No, they don't compete with any of the speakers you mentioned. Most consumers who aren't well versed in music reproduction think Bose and Cerwin Vega are the top of the heap, but they don't have a point of reference. I'd consider a pair if I got the 901's for $100 or less and used 'em in a workshop system along with a vintage receiver. What equipment would you use with the 901's? Music preference, room? If you're considering a pair of Bose due to budget restrictions we can make recommendations for better speakers in the same price range.

IMHO - A lot of the new $4000 "bargain" speakers don't compete with properly set-up, tweaked, and re-tweetered Dahlquist DQ-10's either, not to mention DQ-20i's or Dq-30's.

While technology does improve, a cone attached to a coil suspended inside a magnet isn't exactly high tech. Crossover design and construction still use the same exact elements. In general I think it's Marketing that marches on.

Drivers are lighter and stiffer but if you ask me, the most important speaker advancements have been in the understanding of time and phase issues - something which Bose designs not only have no concept of, but completely mangle. Bouncing a bunch of mid-range drivers into side and rear walls while listening to the ported end directly - I don't think so.... unless you're pretty sure your walls are properly timed and have flat frequency response :)

The Bose line NEVER measured up to better speakers of it's day. So it still doesn't measure up. What Bose had was an imagination unfettered by the actual performance of his designs, and the marketing savvy to convince a growingly affluent, yet unknowledgable, public of his imaginary prowess.

Just wait till you need to refoam all those little drivers, too. Loads of fun.

My first bad experience with stereo equipment came with an early pair of 901s when I was about 9-10 years old. My dad brought home a pair from his bar along with a new Sansui receiver. The 901s needed to have a special pre-amp or post amp? I can't remember, but it needed some other box to work right with most amps. I hooked them up straight from the speaker outs of the receiver and promptly fried it. After that we hooked it up with the proper additional box and ran it with a Fisher tube receiver. I remember thinking that it filled up the room with alot of sound but after about a month we went back to his old KLH Model 6 speakers that sounded more natural to my young ears.
They might be cool if you were trying to make a retro '80s room for historical purposes :) but like Hack said only if they were cheap.

I started this thread after reading a review about the 901's from an audiophile. He was very enthousiastic about the speakers, although he also has heard many other high end speakers from very respected manufacturers. He said nothing compares to the sound and musicality of stacked 901's, despite the age and oddness of the design etc., etc. (And he was not blowing weed at that moment).
It reminds me somehow of audiophiles who are saying that they've never heard better sound than that coming from stacked Quad 57's.

Only when a Yugo beats a Porsche in the 1/4 mile!