Bang & Olufsen ...? Good deal??

[Anonymous]

ok Bigboss ... will tell you what I bought for my small budget

Pioneer SA-9800 amp for £275 and in mint condition

Marantz CD63 MKII K1 signature amp for £130

B&W DM2 speakers (1st version handbuilt 3-way transmission speakers) ... paid £50 ... drivers are in excellent condition .... cabinets had a few scratches in places and a friend french polished them and sorted them and looks stunning

Silver High Breed Coherence interconnect for £34 (think it cost £34), but was given a free Silver High Breed synergy interconnect which I have not used yet

and am currently using cheap speaker cable ... My silver high breed 10AWG speaker cable will be despatched next week ... paid £55

soundstage 5 tier hifi cabinet for £72

so in total I have spent £616 (includes the speaker cable still to be despatched) ... and with the cheap speaker cable, it sounds superb ....

does it sound better than a £3000 B&O system? .... cannot really say, I as I have not heard that system, but hope that the B&O sounds better at that price!

As for looks (am not really bothered what my system looks like, but here is a pic of a SA-9800, so you tell me?)

http://www.classic-audio.com/pioneer/pics/sa9800.jpg

 

[SHAXOS]

OOOH Just remembered! I used to have a bel canto pre and power...
These also use B&O ice power and were superb for me.

 

[Anonymous]

SHAXOS:OOOH Just remembered! I used to have a bel canto pre and power... These also use B&O ice power and were superb for me.

suppose the hifi trade is similar to the motor trade .... an example: like the the Lotus motorcar .... they take some Toyota parts (very good parts) then tweak and modify them to produce a brilliant motorcar .... or in the hifi trade, they take phillips cd componets, modify and tweak them then produce a very good CDP

just winding you up!

 

[bigboss]

dim_span:

ok Bigboss ... will tell you what I bought for my small budget

Pioneer SA-9800 amp for £275 and in mint condition

Marantz CD63 MKII K1 signature amp for £130

B&W DM2 speakers (1st version handbuilt 3-way transmission speakers) ... paid £50 ... drivers are in excellent condition .... cabinets had a few scratches in places and a friend french polished them and sorted them and looks stunning

Silver High Breed Coherence interconnect for £34 (think it cost £34), but was given a free Silver High Breed synergy interconnect which I have not used yet

and am currently using cheap speaker cable ... My silver high breed 10AWG speaker cable will be despatched next week ... paid £55

soundstage 5 tier hifi cabinet for £72

so in total I have spent £616 (includes the speaker cable still to be despatched) ... and with the cheap speaker cable, it sounds superb ....

does it sound better than a £3000 B&O system? .... cannot really say, I as I have not heard that system, but hope that the B&O sounds better at that price!

As for looks (am not really bothered what my system looks like, but here is a pic of a SA-9800, so you tell me?)

http://www.classic-audio.com/pioneer/pics/sa9800.jpg

You're missing the point dim_span. You cannot compare a designer brand with a mainstream brand. You can get a more beautiful Timex than, say, a Tag Heuer. But you still cannot compare them. The Tag Heuer will still command a premium price

TBH, the design of the Pioneer SA-9800 is not to my taste. I prefer modern designs, like the B&O (although this doesn't mean anything).

The bottomline is, B&O is a DESIGNER BRAND. Like all other designer stuff like Hugo Boss or an Omega, they will be ridiculously expensive which you can't justify. In the same way as you wouldn't want to be associated with cheap non-branded chinese hi-fi systems, footballers don't want to be associated with a Panasonic or Samsung (the mainstream brands we are usually associated with). The clientele of B&O are generally people who don't have a budget when deciding on a home cinema or a hi-fi system. They don't know what budgeting means!

 

[Anonymous]

Bigboss .... I fully understand what you are saying .... the original point was that the original poster asked for advice .... and was given advice by several people ....

the advice given was than the B&O is good, (no one slated B&O) .... but for the £3000 he can get much better (soundwise) .... If the OP (original poster) is serious about music, he would then take all comments on board and decide for himself .... thats what forums are all about..... however, I think that he had already made up his mind before posting here and just wanted reassurance

 

[Craig M.]

after all the heat on this thread i thought i would have a look on their website, does this stuff look better in the flesh? otherwise it looks like something from the eighties to me

if i was after design, give me chord anyday.

 

[chebby]

Can a mod resize those pics to the 400 pixels width that we all have to adhere to?

 

[matthewpiano]

I really don't think that you can call B&O a designer brand in the common sense. That DOES under estimate the quality of engineering that goes into their products. Take high street jeans Vs designer jeans and you'll often find the high street ones will outlast the designer ones. Many designer labels are all about the surface and not the substance. B&O sits on a higher plane than this. There is substance to their product in engineering, reliability, design, sound, and technological innovation as well as incredible levels of customer service.

However, we are discussing this on a hi-fi forum and consequently there are bound to be many many different takes on this. It is hardly surprising that many of us accept the quality of B&O products but also add the proviso that, IN TERMS OF MAKING MUSIC and PROVIDING THE BEST AUDIO REPRODUCTION AT THE PRICE, you can do better for the same or slightly less money.

 

[Andrew Everard]

chebby:Can a mod resize those pics to the 400 pixels width that we all have to adhere to?

Which pics?

 

[bigboss]

dim_span:

Bigboss .... I fully understand what you are saying .... the original point was that the original poster asked for advice .... and was given advice by several people ....

the advice given was than the B&O is good, (no one slated B&O) .... but for the £3000 he can get much better (soundwise) .... If the OP (original poster) is serious about music, he would then take all comments on board and decide for himself .... thats what forums are all about..... however, I think that he had already made up his mind before posting here and just wanted reassurance

You're right. The OP asked for others' opinions about B&O. Most of the posts have logically advised better systems for the price, & some posts (like mine) have justified the price of B&O. Yes, even I think he had already made up his mind before posting here & wanted reassurance......I've given him some reasons to be reassured. But if he's still on two minds, then this thread will be useful for him to decide if B&O is for him.

 

[Anonymous]

the problem is people cant compare b&o stuff with other products easily

also people are blithely saying you can do better for the money when they dont know if you can or not because most people dont go out and listen to bo when theyre shopping for hifi

does a lafitte taste better out of a plastic tumbler or a lalique wine glass its the same thing

 

[chebby]

Andrew Everard:
chebby:Can a mod resize those pics to the 400 pixels width that we all have to adhere to?

Which pics?

They've been resized since I made the comment.

 

[matthewpiano]

one off

No blithe comments from me at all. I've heard several B&O systems and have always been impressed but I've also heard a lot of other hi-fi at similar price points which sonically out-performs them.

I slightly take offence at your insinuation that some very experienced hi-fi and music lovers on this forum might cast opinions on equipment that they haven't experienced.

 

[Anonymous]

unfortunately i suspect its true

 

[JamesPianoman]

B&O released 1st quarter financial results today (08 Oct) and they're hoping to break-even by the end of the year, after losing £44m in the full year to May 09. Their automotive business is doing well however...

 

[Andrew Everard]

The point being?

 

[JamesPianoman]

... now would be an opportune time to negotiate an even better deal. In my experience B&O products peform well for years, and the after-sales care is pretty good, as has been posted.

 

[Andrew Everard]

JamesPianoman:... now would be an opportune time to negotiate an even better deal.

Ah, right...

 

[Anonymous]

dim_span:
ok Staggerlee, assume a week ago I had a budget of £3000 to buy some gear ..... these are the item that I would have given serious thought to:

Technics SU-9600 Hi-fi Stereo control center and SE-9600 Hifi stereo power amp .... ebay item 220487029372

seller was asking for £1500 ... item never sold, would have offered perhaps £1200

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

Celestion Ditton 44 speakers .... ebay item 270457689088

sold for £441

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

that leaves you with £1059...so then a brand new Rega Apollo for £600 ... that leaves you with £459 for a decent interconnect and speaker cables

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

I prefer the older gear, and have never heard this combination, but my gut feeling says it will shame any B&O system (soundwise) ...

so bottom line, if you are serious about music, it's the quality of sound produced, not the way it looks combined with your home decor/furniture or colour of your carpets and curtains





So you are saying that you need good hifi to be serious about music?Complete nonsense! Lots of people I know are just as into music as I am but have cheap little micro systems.

None of us need Hifi, expensive watches,cars or clothes but alot of people have some if not all these things. They all do a job that can be done,maybe not quite as well mind you, for less money.

Do you really think that any of our systems are the ultimate in terms of sound per pound? Not a chance. All our ears are different for a start and there will always be something better. So is sacrificing a little sound quality for something that looks amazing wrong? With B&O you are paying a premium for materials,build quality and exclusivity. How many times have we read hifi reviews stating that although a 3 grand amp sounds great build quality is lacking. Doubt very much that this could be said for a B&O product.

Anyway im just rambling. Its all been said before. You could spend the money more wisely than buying B&O. You could spend it more wisely than buying Naim, Arcam or Cyrus too. But wheres the fun in that?

All this talk of B&O makes me want a Beosound 9000 and Beolab 8000 setup. Beautiful! First system I saw years back that got me interested in Hifi.

 

[matthewpiano]

I don't think dim span was saying that you 'need good hifi to be serious about music'. I think he was actually saying that if you are buying good hi-fi BECAUSE you are serious about music (which isn't a universal reason, believe me) it is the quality of sound produced that matters most.

 

[Anonymous]

then isnt that the case with b&o its just an added bonus that it looks good too in the end they are a high end hifi manufacturer just like naim krell electrocompaniet and so on and people who buy them are just as serious about music as anything else

anyway this thread has inspired me to look for some b&o speaker to go with my old b&o electronics wich is good

 

[SHAXOS]

"So you are saying that you need good hifi to be serious about music?Complete nonsense! Lots of people I know are just as into music as I am but have cheap little micro systems.

None of us need Hifi, expensive watches,cars or clothes but alot of people have some if not all these things. They all do a job that can be done,maybe not quite as well mind you, for less money."

Completely with you on this one! I love my hifi and love reading/knowing about hifi, similar to cars, football and other things which i love. Only in hifi have i encountered complete pretentious snobbery on a regular basis. Its a means to an end - the end being to make a noise. If it can look stunning doing so then great!

 

[manicm]

And B&O's new 8 series TV, I'd sell my GF if she'd let me 🙂

 

[manicm]

but then she's always accused me of style over substance he he. Lucky she does not come here often...

 

[plastic penguin]

one off:

excellent gear beats the rest in the design stakes

boring boxes may sound better but they look rubbish

Not quite true.....