Page 1 of Amps & Bose speakers

Hi,

Has anyone had any experiences of Bose speaker systems? My local hifi dealer recommended the system 15 (@ £1000 !) linked to a good amp. I was thinking Yamaha A5, Sony DB940 or Denon 3300 (if I can find one in a sale).

Unfortunately while I have been able to convince her-in-doors that the new dvd player really needs surround sound to make it worth while, I have had to compromise on speaker size - i.e. no floor standers & nothing big and ugly - apparently I fit that role already :0)

So if anyone has an opinion on whether it is worthwhile spending the extra on an amp, or any opinions on Bose and alternative speakers please let me know.

Many thanks,

R.

Hi Rover,

I`ve got the same problem as you and needed speakers that were inobtrusive.

When I was looking around at amps and speakers I had the opportunity to listen to an A5 connected to some of the new Mission FS2-AV`s these are the new-fangled NXT flat panel speakers and were superb!! They will be the next upgrade to my system...

Mark

I can say that the bose speakers are very impressive
for thier size I had the accoustimas 10 set and they
cost £800 new you dont need any more than that.
I had mine powered by the Denon avr2700 the Denon amps
are in my opinion far superior to anything else on the
market for the money and the sound quality for both DVD
and CD play back are superb.Depending on your budget
I highly recomend the Denon AVC-A10SE + the Denon POA- T10
these will cost £ 1299 for the A10 + £ 500 POA this will make
your amplifiers nyon future proof as this will give you
Dolbt Digtal 5.1,Dolby Digital EX ,DTS ,DTS ES, you will just
need a couple of extra bose speakers for the center rear chanels
I hope this has helped a little good luck with your set up

Thanks for the replies.

However I have surfed the discussion groups, and comments on Bose mainly seems negative (e.g. http://www.geocities.com/trustnoho/boseframes.html ). I have not looked into the Mission NXT speakers - how much would they be?

I don`t think I can stretch to the A10SE + T10, however it is reasuring to know that Denon is rated highy.

I may still go for the Yam A5, if I can get one, as I`m not sure I`ll be able to tell the difference between it and the Denon 3300 (which is about £200 more) ... or will I ?

R.

Hi Rover,

Glad I`m not the only one who`s missus won`t let me have floorstanding speakers!

I`ve also been told by my local dealer that Bose is best when I enquired as to the Mish FS2AV in comparison. £1000 for Bose and although small, the Missions are definately more tempting, £669 from www.hifibitz.co.uk

Although I`ve not heard them yet, I will no doubt go for the mish after Mark`s comments.

Got my Yamaha A5 from www.unbeatable.co.uk £276.98 (incl p+p)
Great price, Excellent service! More than I can say about the company from whom I`m still awaiting the DVD player. They shall remain nameless (unless someone asks me, of course!)

So, get theYam amp and put the £200 towards the Mish speakers.

SORTED!

bought a bose lifestyle before xmas, 5speakers +amp+active sub, hooked up to 46 wide screen tosh and a crapy alba 103, best sound i could have asked for .neighbors complain its to loud.

My Dad has the Missions linked to a Dennon amp Not Sure which one but it was £900. It is absolutely superb great rumbling sound from the sub. Also as they are located down by the floor you can hide them as they are non-directional. As long as you dont place anything within a foot you are okay. So they are definitly women pleasers as he was`nt allowed it unless it was discreet.

"Also as they are located down by the floor you can hide them as they are non-directional."

Is this just the sub or this satelites as well? I thought they had to be high up?

I read a review in a magazine ,`Home Cinema` or something, which detailed the Mission specs. This highlighted that the upper sub range ended 100Hz below the satelites start point. How much an issue is this?

R.

Bose rocks!

I don`t just say that because my Brother in Law works from them at their USA headquarters. He has a Bose setup in his house and it is brilliant.

When he upgraded I inherited his old Companion system. Had to send £70 on a mains transformer and that was it.

A mate who has a set up with huge floor speakers came around and was blown away when I played the opening of Gladiator. He could not believe such a big sound came from such small speakers =O)

A couple of points:

If you had posted this in the hardware forum you may have got more responses - I`m sure Westy would have some comments to make!!

The Mission NXT speakers can be got for around £436 (up to £799 RRP depending on colour, so a fantastic price!) from qed-uk.com - see here
http://www.qed-uk.com/?i=75BnY0uDJl31&bg=216&v=8 - look for the MISSION FS2-AV 5SPK+ACTIVE SUB GREY/SILVER/WHITE items.
They used to be more for the different colours, but all seem to be the same price now. At that price, you could buy them, and also get yourself a "proper" sub to underpin the whole thing (the Mission sub basically fleshes out the satellite speakers to give them a "normal" full dynamic range, which doesn`t really cover the really low home theatre stuff), and have loads of change from £1000.

The Yamaha A5 is a very old model, and (although I have one), I would recommend you go for something a bit more current. There are several amps such as the Denon 1602, Marantz 5200, or even the Yamaha 620 (the A5`s successor, but still a bit long in the tooth). I have seen mention that the Denon is having problems with Dolby on a few discs (apparently Dolby is aware of this), so maybe something to check out, as otherwise it is very well thought of.

Bose speakers are meant to sound great, but I don`t think anyone would say that they give the best "bang for your buck" - auditioning different candidates next to each other is the only way for you to decide.

I would seriously consider the Mission NXTs - they are less fussy about placement than "conventional" speakers (so you can tuck the already discreet things away), have great reviews, and you can see if you feel the need for a full monty sub to go with them later.

HTH