The perfect speakers? B&W/Bose?

teeejay · Nov 23, 2012

Hello guys,

I finally decided to get some speakers for my PC/Mac.

My mainly usage for them will be playing flac and at least 320 kbps MP3 files. But also watching some 1080p movies, which one will suite the best?

I wanna also listen to music and watch movies while in bed, not only in front of my PC. Bed is approximetly 2 meters from my PC.

I was looking at:

B&W MM-1
Bose Companion TM 5

But when I saw B&W Zeppelin Air, for same price as MM-1, I thought, they ll be better deal, as long as Zeppelin is bigger and we cannot deny physics, exactly in this case, when we are talking about better quality sound etc.

But know, I am not quite sure what to buy, so I am asking for your help.

Sorry for my english, I think, there ll be plenty of mistakes.

Looking forward to your opinions.

MCAsan · Nov 23, 2012

Alter lancing airplay 5000 for around $250

Podifer · Nov 24, 2012

I can only comment on the B&W Zeppelin - we have the slightly older non-AirPlay version and the sound quality is phenomenal

. Rich, clear sound which fills the room - if you can get to an Apple store for a demo, go for it.

teeejay · Nov 24, 2012

Podifer said:
I can only comment on the B&W Zeppelin - we have the slightly older non-AirPlay version and the sound quality is phenomenal . Rich, clear sound which fills the room - if you can get to an Apple store for a demo, go for it.

I absolutely adored it! But I have not heard MM-1`s yet

sjhwilkes · Nov 24, 2012

I have MM-1's in the bedroom on an Airport Express, and another set on my desk. Clearly I like them a lot

ChrisA · Nov 25, 2012

teeejay said:
Hello guys,

I finally decided to get some speakers for my PC/Mac.

My mainly usage for them will be playing flac and at least 320 kbps MP3 files. But also watching some 1080p movies, which one will suite the best?...

"Best?" Do you have a budget? What is the most you can spend and what is the largest physical size you can stand.

You'd do best to buy a pair of self-powered studio monitors.

BTW is the not good to ask for "The Best" or else someone will point you at something like a "Focal CMS 65" or something like that. But for MUCH less money the same type monitors made by Sampson are not bad, pretty good really. Look at a Samson Resolve A6. Samson does not have the reputation of Focal but they are not bad and pretty accurate sounding. I have them on small stand on my desk hooked up to a 27" iMac.

I'd stay far away from Bose, they use some "tricks" to reduce the size but when you A/B test them with real monitors you will hear what you are missing

Acari · Nov 25, 2012

B&W hands down :apple:

teeejay · Nov 25, 2012

ChrisA said:
"Best?" Do you have a budget? What is the most you can spend and what is the largest physical size you can stand.

You'd do best to buy a pair of self-powered studio monitors.

I am limited by space a lot. I need something the size of MM-1s, I listened to them in local official retailer store, but I just could not decide to buy or not buy, since there was a lot of people and it was hard to listen that details etc.

And I also saw the A7 from B&W and it looked nice too. It is not big and it could sound great and could be used much better to watch movies, since they could be plugged into pc.

I fear that there is problem with MM-1s, that they wont be powerful enough to provide me with great sound while lying in bed, watching movie, listening to music etc. That they can sound great just when you sit 4 feats away from them.

----------

And also, I am quite a perfectionist, so it just must look awesome and sound even more awesome.

jaglad · Nov 25, 2012

I have some MM-1's, and they are by far the best computer speakers I have heard. I upgraded from some JBL Creatures, at first I missed the bass of the subwoofer, but the more I listened to the MM-1's the more I liked them. I kept switching between the two speakers and the JBL's ended up sounding harsh and hollow.

If you like lots of bass you might find the MM-1's slightly lacking especially if you are going to use them for movies, however if you like a full clear rich sound then the MM-1's are just awesome. I love mine and every time I listen to them I love them more.

Get a pair, run them in for a bit and i am sure you will love them too. If not return them!

teeejay · Nov 25, 2012

jaglad said:
I have some MM-1's, and they are by far the best computer speakers I have heard. I upgraded from some JBL Creatures, at first I missed the bass of the subwoofer, but the more I listened to the MM-1's the more I liked them. I kept switching between the two speakers and the JBL's ended up sounding harsh and hollow.

If you like lots of bass you might find the MM-1's slightly lacking especially if you are going to use them for movies, however if you like a full clear rich sound then the MM-1's are just awesome. I love mine and every time I listen to them I love them more.

Get a pair, run them in for a bit and i am sure you will love them too. If not return them!

I am switching from about 5 years old Genius 2.0 speakers, so I think, that will be huge improvement, I hope, they ll sound at least twice as good

magid · Nov 25, 2012

I would highly recommend checking out some reviews on both the Audioengine A2 and A5.

bobr1952 · Nov 25, 2012

MCAsan said:
Alter lancing airplay 5000 for around $250

Listening to these right now--great to be able to steam using AirPlay from my Mac or my iPhone--great sound and great price--$250 from Amazon is 1/2 off list price--highly recommended.

teeejay · Nov 25, 2012

I do not like the design of those

alphaod · Nov 26, 2012

Bose is… don't even bother.

I have a Zeppelin Air and the MM-1; both are great. The former great for music, and the latter great companion for my MacBook Pro. Now the issue is neither of these are any good for watching movies on your bed. The stereo separation on the Zeppelin pretty much fails after like 3 feet, the MM-1 is really just for desk use.

Have you considered using headphones instead? For the price of some quality speakers, you can get very good headphones.

teeejay · Nov 26, 2012

alphaod said:
Bose is… don't even bother.

I have a Zeppelin Air and the MM-1; both are great. The former great for music, and the latter great companion for my MacBook Pro. Now the issue is neither of these are any good for watching movies on your bed. The stereo separation on the Zeppelin pretty much fails after like 3 feet, the MM-1 is really just for desk use.

Have you considered using headphones instead? For the price of some quality speakers, you can get very good headphones.

I actually own Bose QuietComfort 15, I bought them 4 years ago, when I was in California. But you know, when you are in front of PC, you just do not wanna listen all day with your headphones on. It is quite uncomfortable, especially for me.

---------------------------------

I am quite confused, because I asked another owner of MM-1 on youtube about that movies and he answered:

"it's perfect for that application. you will love it. you will simply amazed by the sound. and the best part is that the ground noise (hissing) which I have mentioned in the video won't be detectable for the human ears from 3meters of distance. which means that the overall audio quality will be the best with this unit from that spot. please report back about your experience. i'm really thinking about to buy a second mm1 system in my living room because it's that goooood."

davidjearly · Nov 26, 2012

Ignore the Bose haters. They are as bad as the Apple haters and the Android haters.

The truth of the matter is, Bose make some good products, although I wouldn't buy any of their higher end systems.

That said, the Bose Companion 2 Series II are some of the best value speakers you can buy for your Mac in the $100 price range.

teeejay · Nov 26, 2012

davidjearly said:
Ignore the Bose haters. They are as bad as the Apple haters and the Android haters.

The truth of the matter is, Bose make some good products, although I wouldn't buy any of their higher end systems.

That said, the Bose Companion 2 Series II are some of the best value speakers you can buy for your Mac in the $100 price range.

Thank you for your opinion about haters

Hammie · Nov 26, 2012

Not sure if you made your selection yet, but here are my two cents.

The Zeppelin is a fantastic piece of equipment. I love mine and I feel that it can carry the sound and fill very large areas. I use mine outside in the summer during parties and it provides the perfect background music.

The Zeppelin also has great sound quality. I own B&W 800 Series speakers and although the Zeppelin doesn't compare, it does give them a run for their money at lower volumes. There is detail and separation in the highs. As we get into the deeper volumes, the Zeppelin starts to show its limitations. It has great mid-range but the bass is slightly above average. Keep in mind that a 5" subwoofer cannot compete the 7-8" drivers with the air space of the 800 Series speakers.

If you were watching a movie on a bed and the Zeppelin was under the TV, then I would say that would be a very nice combo.

I also own the MM-1's. Although they fair the same as the Zeppelin in almost ever aspect. The bass is even a little less at higher volumes.

I think these would also fair as a great combination for movie viewing. The bonus, or plus, of the MM-1's is that you can move the speakers in order to get the perfect separation if you need it.

However, in my opinion, either would be a great movie speaker for a bedroom. I say this since I do not think you would need super deep bass for a bedroom setup, especially if you are not considering a surround setup.

You may feel that I am biased since I own so many B&W products. However, that is not the case. I like what I like. Other options that you could look into are Orb, Klipsch, KEF, and even Polk Audio.

On a whole different concept, have you considered sound bars? They have come a long way over the last could of years. B&W has one, Polk, KEF, Vizio, and Definitive Technology are some to consider.

Hope this helps.

teeejay · Nov 26, 2012

Hammie said:
Not sure if you made your selection yet, but here are my two cents.

The Zeppelin is a fantastic piece of equipment. I love mine and I feel that it can carry the sound and fill very large areas. I use mine outside in the summer during parties and it provides the perfect background music.

The Zeppelin also has great sound quality. I own B&W 800 Series speakers and although the Zeppelin doesn't compare, it does give them a run for their money at lower volumes. There is detail and separation in the highs. As we get into the deeper volumes, the Zeppelin starts to show its limitations. It has great mid-range but the bass is slightly above average. Keep in mind that a 5" subwoofer cannot compete the 7-8" drivers with the air space of the 800 Series speakers.

If you were watching a movie on a bed and the Zeppelin was under the TV, then I would say that would be a very nice combo.

I also own the MM-1's. Although they fair the same as the Zeppelin in almost ever aspect. The bass is even a little less at higher volumes.

I think these would also fair as a great combination for movie viewing. The bonus, or plus, of the MM-1's is that you can move the speakers in order to get the perfect separation if you need it.

However, in my opinion, either would be a great movie speaker for a bedroom. I say this since I do not think you would need super deep bass for a bedroom setup, especially if you are not considering a surround setup.

You may feel that I am biased since I own so many B&W products. However, that is not the case. I like what I like. Other options that you could look into are Orb, Klipsch, KEF, and even Polk Audio.

On a whole different concept, have you considered sound bars? They have come a long way over the last could of years. B&W has one, Polk, KEF, Vizio, and Definitive Technology are some to consider.

Hope this helps.

Thank you for your response, I have not decided yet. Actually those bars are a bit big. I cannot place them anywhere, but in the end, I think I ll stick with MM-1. I hope there wont be any upgrade of them soon :

teeejay · Nov 28, 2012

Just wanna inform you, that I have finally decided and bought MM-1 speakers. I am really satisfied with them, how they can handle flac files, for example Evanescence - My Immortal sounds just fantastic.

Design - masterpiece

The only thing what is wrong about them is, that they have such a short USB cable.

:apple:

Deltaphase · Nov 28, 2012

teeejay said:
B&W MM-1
Bose Companion TM 5

If you need quality sound get eg. DacMagic Plus from Cambridge Audio and hook in a proper earphone Beyerdynamic T1. It comes with a long cable and it will give you a superb sound for most music. The Dacmagic Plus will install automatically with your Mac and you can set the sound being upscaled to reach its capacities.
Any average good speakers will do with Dacmagic Plus if you have to listen through speakers....
Nothing can beat the earphone DAC combination

bobr1952 · Nov 28, 2012

teeejay said:
Just wanna inform you, that I have finally decided and bought MM-1 speakers. I am really satisfied with them, how they can handle flac files, for example Evanescence - My Immortal sounds just fantastic.

Design - masterpiece

The only thing what is wrong about them is, that they have such a short USB cable.

B&W is always a fine choice for audiophiles.

----------

davidjearly said:
Ignore the Bose haters. They are as bad as the Apple haters and the Android haters.

The truth of the matter is, Bose make some good products, although I wouldn't buy any of their higher end systems.

That said, the Bose Companion 2 Series II are some of the best value speakers you can buy for your Mac in the $100 price range.

I agree mostly because speakers are highly subjective--the most subjective part of any sound system. You can quote performance stats and specifications but in the end it is up to your ears as to which speakers work best for you. I am not a big fan of Bose but that is just me and my ears.

jaglad · Nov 29, 2012

teeejay said:
Just wanna inform you, that I have finally decided and bought MM-1 speakers. I am really satisfied with them, how they can handle flac files, for example Evanescence - My Immortal sounds just fantastic.

Design - masterpiece

The only thing what is wrong about them is, that they have such a short USB cable.

I am glad you are pleased with them, they really are superb speakers!

The perfect speakers? B&W/Bose?

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