2. speakers
  3. 191618-155017

No bass on B&W 800D2

Hi,

I’ve been a B&W fan Since the late 90s and have owned many different speakers over the years. I’ve owned a pair of 802Ds (first gen) For a long time and those had always been my dream speaker. 

I recently had the opportunity to upgrade to a pair of 800D2. I had never heard the 800 or the second generation diamonds before, but was tempted by the idea of owning the flagships. I don’t like the looks and sound of the newer generation 800 so in my mind, I was upgrading to the top of the line speaker of the last generation that I like.

I’ve had these speakers for three months now, and I’ve played around with positioning and levels of my subwoofers. when I first set them up I immediately noticed a lack of bass compared to the 802’s. I listen in the near field and have the 800 approximately in the same position as the 802, although with slightly more toe in and a little further away from the wall as they seem more sensitive to room placement than the 802s did. Even pushed up to the wall there is not more bass, just boom. 
 

I’m powering them with a Classé sigma amp 2, which doubles to 400W a channel on 4 ohms. Before you say it’s the amp, the 802s sounded exactly the same on my Denon 4520 as they did on the Classé amp after I upgraded to that - so I don’t really subscribe to the “more power” idea and believe an amp won’t change the sound dramatically as long as it’s decent quality and has enough power. I mostly listen at lower levels anyhow. 
 

Has anybody had the same issue with the 800D2 lacking so much bass compared to the 802D? The midrange sounds about the same and the highs are way more tame, which I like, but this lack of low end authority is making me seriously consider selling these again which makes me sad - since they are absolutely gorgeous in the looks department. 
 

thanks for your thoughts in advance - would appreciate hearing from actual owners of these. 

seb_audio
davetheoilguy
146 posts
 

@seb_audio 

”do the woofers on your 800 move noticeably under load? Mine barely move while my subs are going nuts.”

No, not really.  And yes my 16ultras are visibly moving. But keep in mind SVS specializes in subs and has big movement (and air) because it designs purpose built woofer drivers.  You can’t have big movement like that and multitask into the lower midrange like the 800s do.  It’s completely normal.

Do get a flashlight and look for foam (or a sock) or whatever stuck in your speakers.  Sometimes, with age and poor handling it could have even fallen down from where it is mounted.  This would prevent proper movement of the 800 drivers.

My money on the issue is a weird null for no logical reason (it’s called acoustic “theory” for a reason) or, slightly more likely, you’re a bass addict.

It’s a fatal disease.  Chronic.  The only cure is MORE POWER.

tomcarr
1,491 posts
 

Maybe, just maybe one of the speakers is wired inverted.

Try swapping + and - on one speaker only and see if it changes bass.

Then do the same on the other speaker only.

 

mm1tt77
148 posts
 

@seb_audio anyway you can borrow or trial an amp known to handle hard to drive loads?  Watts are only part of the equation.  Highly likely your speakers need an amp more capable of driving them.  Amps that have a large power reserve, that are stable across a wide impedance curve.  Class A typically has high power reserves, amps that double in watts from 8 to 4 ohms, if they reference being able to go down to 2 ohms, good sign.  Hegel, Coda, Parasound, Music Fidelity, McIntosh, Krell, Odyssey and Emotive.  If you get really pricey, Gryphon, T & A, D’Agostino. Class D designs can also offer the grunt needed.  If you could try one of these with your speakers, you would be able to compare.  Watts alone don’t tell you if an Amp is designed to handle a wide impedance curve and is stable as you dip below 8 ohms, that’s what your speakers need along with a power reserve that can drive your speakers consistently through the peaks and valleys. Your speakers are known to like amps that have a lot of grunt, amperage, power reserve.  It’s needed to really wake them up.  

mikhailark
230 posts
 

My take is the room. Could be amp if it does not provide enough current for a demanding speaker. Cables - no. They may change sound a bit, but they can't fix lack of response. I'd check impedance curve - how easy are speakers to drive? Do they dip really low, like 2 Ohms somewhere? Sensivity? 

james633
1,004 posts
 

Since you have subs why not just add a highpass or active crossover? I have had a number of large speakers and always highpass 60hz. Almost all speakers that are not large super speakers or powered start rolling off at 60hz and hand off to the port. Every system I have owned sounded better highpassed at 60hz. 

More to discover