Bose 301 questions

I have a few questions about the Bose 301 series V speakers. For weeks I’ve googled and read tons of reviews on the speakers as well as running a search here on the AVS website to read what people have to say but it still leaves me with questions. Two of the biggest reasons I’m writing in to ask about the Bose is because most reviews are years old and I’m now thinking of upgrading my center and surround speakers. I have junk HTiB speakers from Sony that I am slowly upgrading and before going out to buy more 301’s or 201’s for surround as well as the VCS-10 center speaker I wanted to be sure I cleared up the questions I have with Bose and to ask if it really is worth it to buy a different brand.

Reading reviews I get a mixed response about Bose in general as well as the Bose 301’s. Most reviews are negative but it seems that the majority of reviewers talking down about Bose is either talking about the tiny acoustamass satellite speaker systems or they are using the Bose in the wrong type of application. I totally agree the acoustamass system is junk because there is no way to get great sound from such a small speaker. They just can’t get a good frequency range to work with from the little cube which leads me to believe that is where most of the “no bass” complaints come from. As far as wrong applications, I think a lot of people are buying the Bose and think they will be able to blast Hip-Hop music or anything with a lot of bass that comprises most of the music track and they don’t use a subwoofer. I read one review bashing the VCS-10 only to find out it was the only speaker he had for his TV/stereo.

I personally think that the Bose 301’s I own sound great. I like how crisp and clear sounding the midrange and high frequencies are without being harsh or brash and they do have acceptable bass from them that isn’t overpowering. With the addition of the subwoofer it’s easy to get the amount of bass just right. I know buying speakers is all subject to the listener and if I’m happy with them I should just buy more, but I haven’t been able to actually compare Bose with other brands side by side which brings me here to ask opinions of other users.

What I am looking for is an honest opinion on the Bose 301’s vs. other speakers priced about $300/pair that can faithfully reproduce soundtracks without sounding “colorful”. The main use for the speakers is for the home theater to watch movies so sounding good while playing the latest radio top 100 hits isn’t that important. If it helps any, my wife does listen to music such as Opera, Pop, Alternative and Hip-Hop as well as watching Opera on DVD/BlueRay. My music of choice is Punk Rock, Alternative and Classic Rock. I currently have an Onkyo TX-SR706 receiver.

Thank you in advance for any input. Please only give your thoughts if you actually have experience with the Bose 301’s. Just posting Bose are junk and I should buy “x” brand but you never actually heard the Bose 301’s when set up properly isn’t much help to me.

Thank you again and I look forward to your input.

Thanks! That is good news others have had luck with Bose
I also have a Yamaha sub and have no complaints with it. It will be the very last thing to upgrade when the time comes. First comes the center speaker, then I'll upgrade the rear speakers and finally the side speakers.

Erie isn't that bad at all. There are a few home theater stores in my area that I have visited but wanted to get non sales person opinions as well. No offense to salesmen, just covering all bases. I will look you up and maybe make the trip out that way, it’d be great to actually hear a side by side comparison.

I forgot to mention that I’m a bit against the idea of giving up the perfectly good Bose I’m happy with. If I do switch brands I’d want to go with the same brand all around to keep them matched acoustically, but I’m open to changing if there is a big improvement.

I'm currently running 5.1 but going to 7.1 soon. Never heard the Klipsch though.

I'll take a look as well. I am happy with the Bose but wondering if I can be more happy for the same price
I'm searching options before spending more money. I have heard speakers that sound great on their own but am wondering if they'd sound good once I get them home. Speakers that are tuned to put out a lot of base tend to sound a bit more "muddy" to me which is why I do like the crispness of the Bose. They have just enough bass without sounding muddy with the subwoofer picking up where the Bose leave off.

Thanks everyone, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one satisfied with the 301's and I will stick with Bose to finish out my HT. Is it possible to buy a Bose sub woofer without buying the whole acoustimass package? I'll have to take a trip to a few stores and check it out. The sub woofer is last on my list to upgrade so I have some time to figure that out. What's nice is I have a Bose factory outlet not far from me, I should start there.

Thanks again for the input!

I've heard that Bose doesn't like to have the acoustimas speakers next to other systems but I do see the bookshelf speakers next to others everywhere. Is it a good comparison to play them next to others in such large stores?

I did not know the Bose "Bass module" wasn't a sub. I never looked into them since they are only sold as a package. That is good info for me so I don't look on E-bay for one :P
Thank you.

So it seems I will try out different speakers. I was in the local home theater store (not Best Buy, this store is only home theater and custom install) and the rep did say the 301's are decent but could be better. He recommended B&W but they go a bit above the price range I want. If anything I could convince my financial adviser (wife) that I should just pick up two new front's and center channel, use the 301's for rear surround to replace the tin can's I have now. It'll be more up front but possibly worth it. I really want to get a new center channel first since mine is not great at all but want to keep it matched to the front left/right speakers. As it is right now it drives me crazy as the sound pans from left to right and I can tell the difference as it goes between brands.

I just thought of something. I'd suppose if I brought my 301's with me to the store and asked nicely they'd be more than happy to hook them up so I can compare what they have to offer.

So now I have a new question; seems like I'm full of them, sorry about that. I just read on this forum about the B&W 686's that:

"The new 600 series are a very bright speaker and can get fatiguing when listening for long periods of time."

So when comparing speakers how can you tell if it'll make your ears tired after a long period of listening?

I'd never bring my Bose to a Bose store to compare against other speakers )
The HT store near me doesn't sell Bose so I'm sure they'd let me bring mine in if it helps their sale.

I did check out the link, thank you for pointing me to it. It looks to be avery good sub and at a great price, thing is the sub is last on my list to replace so it might be some tmie before I get around to it. I do plan on checking out the Paradigm speakers, I hear a lot of good things on them. Later tonight I'm going to scour the web and read as many reviews as I can on them.

I've been reading up on the PSB Alpha B1 and the Paradigm Titan Monitor and they both get some great reviews, as I expected they would. Looking at the specifications though it seems that on paper the Bose would out perform both speakers. Both the PSB and Paradigm have 5.25 inch woofer with one 3/4 inch or 1 inch tweeter respectively, while the Bose has an 8 inch woofer and two 2 inch tweeters. The frequency response for both the PSB and Paradigm start at 65Hz while the Bose starts around 40Hz. All three reach 20k Hz. Input power for the PSB and Paradigm is 80 watts while the Bose is 150 watts.

It seems that listening to them will be most important. The Paradigm's look great but the PSB get more glowing reviews (from what I've seen in the limited reading I've done so far). What troubles me is that my stereo is 100 watts per channel which exceeds the PSB and Paradigm. I know I never turn my volume all the way up But I do get it rather loud at times. Would lower wattage ratings mean the speakers sound quieter than the Bose at the same volume dial position?

Wow! Thanks guys. You are right cdy2179, I totally blew the spec on driver size with the Paradigm, funny thing is that is the page I was reading before posting my reply last time.

I'm not sure on the decibel drop on the 301's Pete. I had read that they are actually listed as 30 - 20k Hz but they start to roll off at around 45Hz and can't be heard below 40Hz. Bose doesn’t post the specs so it was all second hand information. I'm also sure I don't get anywhere near the full 100 watts when playing movies, at most I only turn it up a little above half way.

That makes sense about over doing it on the power, I'm in electronics by trade and understand amplifiers and clipping which is why I like having a bit more than I actually need so I don't run the equipment at full capacity. Yes the room is large but even at half volume it is still rather loud, I just want to be sure the speakers are a bit over built as well so I don't run into any problems. The Paradigms are starting to look more up my ally but I’m going to look at the PSB Image series now and see what they are like. There is an authorized PSB dealer 22 miles from my house so it’ll be easy to drive on over to have a listen maybe this weekend. I really think either the PSB or Paradigm may be what I end up going with.

Thanks for all the input and help guys!

Oh, and yes I read the review, it had nothing good to say about the Bose. Since I like the Bose as much as I do I’ll probably fall in love with either of the other two brands we’ve been talking about.

Thanks for your 2 cents Paul! I'll put that in my pocket to help me purchase my new equipment.

You are right, I do need to just listen to speakers and pick what sounds best to me. I’m the one who has to live with it but I do like having the selections narrowed down before walking into a store. I’d love to just forget about the wallet and buy what I like best but I may not have a wife after that is all said and done
Hmmm….

While I ponder that I’ll keep your advice in mind. I’m sure going to a few Home Audio stores around here the sales reps will have me try a few brands we have not talked about. B&W was one such brand from a recent visit to a store. They didn’t have the PSB’s or Paradigm’s though, not that I remember.

Thanks for the compliment on my car as well. I love driving it and it’s hard to stay out of trouble in it. By the way, it has a Bose sound system in it as well which I think sounds phenomenal as a factory installed system. hehe