Good review. Having been a HiFi enthusiast for nearly 40 years, I will tell you this. Companies will spend huge budgets on marketing and design, with poor sounding products. There is a ton of BS in equipment reviews and from sales reps in stores. Bottom line: no matter what people tell you (experienced or not) if you don't 'hear' the difference, there's no point in spending a ton of money on it.
Cheapest solution to approximate tiwards the very expensive B and W 801 D4 would be a pair of active ATC scm 100s ( providing same level of detail, as B and W) with a high quality tube pre- amp ( to soften the analytic nature of the atc) You can save on high end speaker cable using XLR cable.
I had them ...and not have the D4......and i must agree with you....The d3 cabinet looks better......but the new tweeter that's recessed looks better.Would like to combine them both !!!!!
I own both the D3 and D4. Over time the D4 has become to look more trim while the D3 seems to have “puffed cheeks”, even though they both have very similar dimensions.
Well having heard all the competition, all i can say is if u like the B&W sound, then there’s simply no comparison. IMHO, the only bookshelf spk that will really challenge the 805D4s are Marten parker duo or Duke 2. There’s always something about those expensive Accuton drivers. But the parker duo costs about £10k more than the 805D4. IMO, the 805D4 with a good sub might really give the parker duo a good run for the money
just to add a spanner to the works...if you like Accutons...XTZ make the 'Divine' series of speakers which are very price competitive with these B&Ws. I believe they use Accuton drivers. The competitor to these B&Ws would be the Divine Delta, coming in at less than half the price
Ah the B&W sound, made for old uncles with a slight, or perhaps even heavy hearing loss in the upper treble region. Gan CK, misplaced your hearing aids again? Don't forget to schedule your next ENT specialist appointment 🤣 When you get back home, don't forget to add +10db to anything 5khz and above, so everything will sound neutral to you again👌
@@meesmo4 wow some crazy ass dude has stalked me until here?? I m impressed! But on 2nd thoughts, i do think u need help. No worries, i can help u find a good shrink. I know a couple. Ask & ye shall be given. 😉🤣 Wow the ENT dept is going to flourish cos there’s so many B&W owners around…
@@ganck1147 yawnnn, uncle are u ok? Wanna show us some of your new stamp collection? 😀 Anyway if you're truly convinced your little B&W bookshelves are better than the Wilsons, Magicos, TADs, Borresens of the world, i think the one who truly needs help is you LMAO.
I think if you are shortlisting the 805 D4, then your taste has to be bright-leaning. By that I don't mean the B&Ws are bright per se, but it merely "leans" in that direction in being extremely airy and perhaps with a little more sparkle up top. To me, whether I end up buying it or not will solely depend on the competition. Having looked at the above list of competition, perhaps aside from the Focal, assuming you are not tight on budget, I would also audition the Diablo Utopia Colour EVO on top of the Sopra No.1. But, I probably wouldn't touch the Dynaudio Confidence 20 as I see them belonging to a different family of sound, that being a tad more relaxed up top with their famous soft dome tweeter for extended listening. But, I will definitely add 2 more candidates onto the list and they are as follows: MBL 126 and 120 followed by Marten Oscar Duo. Both are extremely airy and if budget is not an issue, they should be auditioned. MBL's omnidirectional tech is legit, apart from being airy it will throw a very wide and precise soundstage too.
The T9X setup correctly blew my mind. Disappears into my system and pressurizes my listening space better than my SVS ported sub. Try finding a better transient response and integration at that price point. Just my opinion.
I own both the Bowers and Wilkins 805 D3 (2 1/2 years)and D4 (1 year). Very similar speakers though the D4 is noticeably more refined in the treble. The bass response between the two is essentially identical in my experience. Those reviewers who praise the bass on these speakers are listening to the quality and resolution of the bass, rather than the quantity. You can hear differences in the bass range, say, between an open string vs a stopped string on a string bass. Or what kind of bass guitar was used. A tuba or a tuba in unison with a bassoon. If you want wallop, there are plenty of floorstanders in this price range from which to choose.
New subscriber here. I think you're reviews are fantastic - which includes both critical and favorable comments. Whereas other audio reviews in YT say ONLY good things. I find your reviews more balanced and honest.
I think the fritz would be the only bookshelf I would spend 3k on. I prefer towers since I only have one area open for my sub. If you're talking crazy money then I guess the TAD.
@@daniannaci3258 do you like D3’s? I now have a 100% dedicated space for stereo listening and home theater. With my 805 d3/s I have REL s5 SHO subs and b&w HTM2 D3. Is it oissible to have both a decent 2 track room double as theater room?
Really loved the SF Electa Amator. The looks! But they have a somewhat peaky treble and noticeably voluptuous bass which for me would become bothersome over time. Very entertaining but it’s a sound signature, or coloration, that overlays everything you listen to. I prefer something more neutral and occasionally use tone controls for “color”.
you would think the money you spend you should not need a sub If you factor in cost of good sub and then these your better off going to floor standers from the start
sounds like no-one is blown away! by the look at it!.....I reckon that they are not a complete speakers but they can sound great with mediocre recordings because of the level of treble that they expose!.
This reviewer here is picking and choosing isolated comments or sentences and presenting them out of context with his uninformed judgmental commentary. Never once did he actually HEAR the darn speakers or most of the competition. All you folks need to actually spend some time in front of this speaker - or any speaker for that matter - before you make any judgement that could be considered even remotely valid.
Question - will you be shortlisting the B&W 805 D4?
Good review. Having been a HiFi enthusiast for nearly 40 years, I will tell you this. Companies will spend huge budgets on marketing and design, with poor sounding products. There is a ton of BS in equipment reviews and from sales reps in stores. Bottom line: no matter what people tell you (experienced or not) if you don't 'hear' the difference, there's no point in spending a ton of money on it.
Yup, I find it hard to believe that these will sound better than a pair of ATC's at half the price...
6:25 “Nice” acting and review summary. This did save me time - keep it up!
Glad it was helpful!
Cheapest solution to approximate tiwards the very expensive B and W 801 D4 would be a pair of active ATC scm 100s ( providing same level of detail, as B and W) with a high quality tube pre- amp ( to soften the analytic nature of the atc) You can save on high end speaker cable using XLR cable.
I like the 805 D3 look more looks more classical
I had them ...and not have the D4......and i must agree with you....The d3 cabinet looks better......but the new tweeter that's recessed looks better.Would like to combine them both !!!!!
I own both the D3 and D4. Over time the D4 has become to look more trim while the D3 seems to have “puffed cheeks”, even though they both have very similar dimensions.
Well having heard all the competition, all i can say is if u like the B&W sound, then there’s simply no comparison. IMHO, the only bookshelf spk that will really challenge the 805D4s are Marten parker duo or Duke 2. There’s always something about those expensive Accuton drivers. But the parker duo costs about £10k more than the 805D4. IMO, the 805D4 with a good sub might really give the parker duo a good run for the money
just to add a spanner to the works...if you like Accutons...XTZ make the 'Divine' series of speakers which are very price competitive with these B&Ws. I believe they use Accuton drivers. The competitor to these B&Ws would be the Divine Delta, coming in at less than half the price
Ah the B&W sound, made for old uncles with a slight, or perhaps even heavy hearing loss in the upper treble region. Gan CK, misplaced your hearing aids again? Don't forget to schedule your next ENT specialist appointment 🤣
When you get back home, don't forget to add +10db to anything 5khz and above, so everything will sound neutral to you again👌
@@meesmo4 wow some crazy ass dude has stalked me until here?? I m impressed! But on 2nd thoughts, i do think u need help. No worries, i can help u find a good shrink. I know a couple. Ask & ye shall be given. 😉🤣
Wow the ENT dept is going to flourish cos there’s so many B&W owners around…
@@ganck1147 yawnnn, uncle are u ok? Wanna show us some of your new stamp collection? 😀
Anyway if you're truly convinced your little B&W bookshelves are better than the Wilsons, Magicos, TADs, Borresens of the world, i think the one who truly needs help is you LMAO.
Audiovector R 1 Arrete will give the 805 D4 a run for it's money too
I think if you are shortlisting the 805 D4, then your taste has to be bright-leaning. By that I don't mean the B&Ws are bright per se, but it merely "leans" in that direction in being extremely airy and perhaps with a little more sparkle up top. To me, whether I end up buying it or not will solely depend on the competition. Having looked at the above list of competition, perhaps aside from the Focal, assuming you are not tight on budget, I would also audition the Diablo Utopia Colour EVO on top of the Sopra No.1. But, I probably wouldn't touch the Dynaudio Confidence 20 as I see them belonging to a different family of sound, that being a tad more relaxed up top with their famous soft dome tweeter for extended listening. But, I will definitely add 2 more candidates onto the list and they are as follows: MBL 126 and 120 followed by Marten Oscar Duo. Both are extremely airy and if budget is not an issue, they should be auditioned. MBL's omnidirectional tech is legit, apart from being airy it will throw a very wide and precise soundstage too.
The T9X setup correctly blew my mind. Disappears into my system and pressurizes my listening space better than my SVS ported sub. Try finding a better transient response and integration at that price point. Just my opinion.
I have found better. It's called the SVS SB3000
@@geezerintotecheeww. Bye
@@erics.4113 I owned both SVS and REL, not even close to each other.
@@geezerintotech you are out of your mind
You said you had 805 D3. What do you have now and what eas the bass response like on the D3.. please?
I own both the Bowers and Wilkins 805 D3 (2 1/2 years)and D4 (1 year). Very similar speakers though the D4 is noticeably more refined in the treble. The bass response between the two is essentially identical in my experience. Those reviewers who praise the bass on these speakers are listening to the quality and resolution of the bass, rather than the quantity. You can hear differences in the bass range, say, between an open string vs a stopped string on a string bass. Or what kind of bass guitar was used. A tuba or a tuba in unison with a bassoon. If you want wallop, there are plenty of floorstanders in this price range from which to choose.
I have the Dali Epicon 2 powered by good valve amps and the are extremely good.
New subscriber here. I think you're reviews are fantastic - which includes both critical and favorable comments. Whereas other audio reviews in YT say ONLY good things. I find your reviews more balanced and honest.
Part of it is equipment pairing and wiring too
I think the fritz would be the only bookshelf I would spend 3k on. I prefer towers since I only have one area open for my sub. If you're talking crazy money then I guess the TAD.
No more comments until you actually HEARD the speaker!! Sheesh…
Can it be good for surround sound speakers
Great video wish you’d do this with 805 D3 worthy of a video like this
Thanks for sharing - i'll definitely consider it :)
Yes please 805 D3 ‘s
What do you want to know? I own both the D3 and D4.
@@daniannaci3258 do you like D3’s? I now have a 100% dedicated space for stereo listening and home theater. With my 805 d3/s I have REL s5 SHO subs and b&w HTM2 D3. Is it oissible to have both a decent 2 track room double as theater room?
@@daniannaci3258 Hi , Im currently using D3 , is it advisable to upgrade to D4 .Please share your thoughts .
Two questions- What about Sonus Faber Electa Amator ? What, my boy, is on you head?
never heard them so your guess is as good as mine!
Really loved the SF Electa Amator. The looks! But they have a somewhat peaky treble and noticeably voluptuous bass which for me would become bothersome over time. Very entertaining but it’s a sound signature, or coloration, that overlays everything you listen to. I prefer something more neutral and occasionally use tone controls for “color”.
Sonus Faber over Bowers ANY DAY, bowers are way too bright for me
What did you do to calibrate the 805d3s?
Reviews are commercials, ADS, that we voluntarily read to convince us to buy expensive shit.
(off topic--what kind of headphones are those?)
ergo model 2
I would like to get Kef Reference 1 meta
B&W Very bright and exhausting imho
alot of people agree with you
I own these and don’t forget nd brightness or harshness in them at all
I own these and find them bright and harsh
you would think the money you spend you should not need a sub If you factor in cost of good sub and then these your better off going to floor standers from the start
I would buy Kef Reference 1 meta instead of these 👍🎶❤️
probably a good choice!
I love bass
sounds like no-one is blown away! by the look at it!.....I reckon that they are not a complete speakers but they can sound great with mediocre recordings because of the level of treble that they expose!.
This reviewer here is picking and choosing isolated comments or sentences and presenting them out of context with his uninformed judgmental commentary. Never once did he actually HEAR the darn speakers or most of the competition. All you folks need to actually spend some time in front of this speaker - or any speaker for that matter - before you make any judgement that could be considered even remotely valid.
805 is it good for movies , do it good bass
Quoting Shane Lee, lol...seriously?! He is a joke - both him and his tiny room.
10k for 805's ?!? ...geesh love the series but wow.. then you need a sub and stands. YIKES
i know lad i wonder who actually buys em
So you didn't hear these, you're just reading reviews to viewers?
Why do you have waffles on your ears?
Help me obi wan kenobi.
I would buy the Audiovector R1 Arrete instead. It's one of the best under 10,000$
What in the world are those things on your ears?
B&W
1ST