How good are the B&W 801...Series 2 Speakers ????

Hi Autospec

Let me add a few words here and see if I can also be of help. My curent system is similar to yours.LS25,ARC PH3 SE, VPI Aries, Wadia/Electrocompaniet Dac. except I run a Plinius SA250/2. I have owned the 801 ser2 and now have the Ser.3(Anniversary LE editions)
of the 801. The ser 2 are very good and the ser3 are indeed better, smoother with tighter bass, very much as stated by Hifimaniac. That said, the 2's are a great speaker, and the 801's are one of the few loudspeakers I have had that are a pleasure to listen to at length inspite of some of their shortcommings(mostly loose bass in room)

I think also, ideally, that they would indeed be better served by a powerful SS amp as described above rather than even your VT100, yet they would sound good on the tubes.As the case with the 802's, better served with SS, you may want to rethink the amp for the 801's.or perhaps indeed seek another speaker to match up with the VT-100. I can only offer that as an 801's owner, they are well worth the price, and trouble in finding the right amp to drive them. It's well documented that although they are not effecient at 87db and present the amp with a nominal 8 ohm load, yet they do like power to drive them..current specifically..is when they sound their absolute best. So the choice becomes probably to switch amps..or keep your VT100 and go with another speaker that match better with your good sounding 100. hope this helps some. :)

Autospec-
I have sent you a lenghty email off thread with some thoughts! Hope this helps.

Here are a few comments regarding the B&W 801 Matrix Series 2 speakers taken from reviewers quotes in Audio publications over the years:

..."If you are searching for emotional involvment only live performance can provide,and are willing to live with absolute sonic honesty, then the B&W 801 Series 2 Matrix Monitor is musically the end of the road"..Lewis Lipnick, Dec. 1987 Stereophile.

"Iv'e never heard my drums sound so real...I had to have them"..Billy Cobham, Noted Jazz Drummer.

" Despite it's vintage, the 801 is a grain free, smooth sounding, basically neutrally balanced transducer, that remains competetive 15 years after it's introduction. It is no wonder that, even at it's $5000. price per pair equivilent to around $13K in todays money,the B&W 801 sold extremely well throughout the late 1980's and early 90's ".......John Atkinson- Stereophile

The 801 is not a perfect speaker of course. It is however a great speaker with excellent drivers which are still today regarded well( see www.NorthcreekMusic.com web site and read what George Short, reknown speaker builder and crossover designer, and President of NorthcreekMusic has to say of the 801's drivers. The 801 has excellent drivers and a very intellegently designed cabinet only to be let down ultimately by the stock crossovers who's components were not up to equalling the rest of the superb speaker. Having owned many different speakers over the years and some really excellent designs from Apogee's, Vandersteens,Thiel, Martin Logan, Sound Labs (DynaStats and Pristines)and a host of others, I have found that the Matrix 801's are a truly very good sounding speaker that is well balanced and so easy to listen to. It combines very good dynamic punch( with the right amp) with the smoothness and non fatiguing mids and highs that are very revealing, yet not harsh nor forward in it's presentation. I first heard them in a dealers demo room around 1990 and thought they were just Okay at the time..probably not set up or driven properly... and I didn't have $5900 to spend. I purchased Apogee Stages that day instead for less than 1/2 the cost of the 801's. I never thought I'd come around and actually own the 801's( I would have laughed actually...afterall, time and technology march on and these were old hat by now)..But, Ill tell ya, Set them up and feed them good stuff and they will reward tremendously. Ive ordered George's Northcreek 801 External Crossovers for my pair of Rosewood Anniversary 801's. If Northcreek is correct as stated in their site literature, then the new crossovers will make the 801's a truly world class speaker competitive with some of the best out there.
Good Listening! :)