B&W Owner's Thread - Page 256

Size of the drivers isn't necessarily the important factor when deciding on matching sound characteristics. The CMC2 and CM7+ all use the FST midrange which none of the monitors use not to mention crossover networks, cabinet construction etc all vary. What I will say though is this, I wouldn't worry about matching the rears. Either the CM1 or 5 will be perfectly fine because they are in fact voiced very similarly.

I hear ya Saprano and agree, I auditioned the 683s last weekend at home.

BUT - I live in a 4th floor apartment and drive a car that is lucky to fit a bag of groceries in it, let alone a set of floorstanding speakers. I also have 2 ruptured discs in my lower spine. The thought of making more temporary transport arrangements and lugging 5 more sets of heavy speakers around was enough to put me off listening to music full stop.

So in my reasoning.....store/my place - close enough
.....683s/CM9s - close enough!

The worst result is they don't work and the store will take em back in the first couple of weeks

OK, my CM9's are a few days away and hopefully next week I will be auditioning some amps with them at home, as long as the local stores are accommodating.

Is it fair to say that the CMs are not as traditionally "warm" sounding as previous B&W models? The reason I ask is that when I auditioned them it was on a NAD integrated amp, which if you read forums, is a warm sound and not supposedly a good match for B&W? Sounded great to me with a load of detail, and the Dali Mentors were just a touch brighter on the same amp.

My apartment is very modern with wooden floors etc. and I really want to err on the side of warm sounding if possible.

Hopefully if I can get a few amps to demo then I will find out for myself, I am just curious in case getting enough demos is a problem.

If you mean "warm sounding" to mean a increase in upper bass and decrease at around 2-7 kHz, the cm series has that. Regardless of what you heard to be good matching amps, I've found that Nad bee, cambridge azure, rotel, Mcintosh, krell, and classe do well. I wouldn't necessarily spend a disproportionate amount of money on the amp, but cm series are less efficient and need more power than 800 series for same loudness and same room size. So do get an amp that can power your cm9 appropriate for your roomsize = try to get in home audition of amp with your speaker and crank up your favorite tunes and movies!

where are u located?

i need a bit of help.... i been looking to get speakers to match my new beautiful Pioneer 151 TV.... i want something with great sound and very nice look.... i was told B&W probably are the best speaker brand out there.... now this is all new to me as far as audio and i got a couple of questions, hopefully someone can help me with. I'll be looking to build a 5.1

1. What kind of receiver would be a better match for B&W, Yamaha, Onkyo, Denon, Marrantz?

2. my local dealers don't have the FMP6 on display.... how do they sound, ill be watching mostly movies and sports.... i also like the cm9's but a lot more expensive... are the FPM6 plenty? Or should i invest in the cm9's instead

Malmo Sweden - wanna drop by for a beer?

....ummm B&W is certainly not the best speaker brand out there, there is no "best" as a generalization. Whilst I am not an expert by any means, (far from it) everyone will tell you that the best speaker for you is the one that will suit your receiver AND your room AND sounds good to you. I bought the CM9s for 2.0 channel listening and they just happen to be in a home theatre setup as well. Unlike most of the AVS site, I am not that interested in HT, so I guess I should just keep my mouth shut

How many high-end speaker makers produce entry level or midrange speaker systems? How many mass market brands cater to the high-end? You could probably count them all on one hand there are so few of them. B&W produces systems that span across the board and in each class offer high performance at each price point. In this regard B&W can be considered a "best" brand.

It's true system synergy and room acoustics play important roles in sound reproduction but it is ill advised to buy speakers on the principle of "sounding good to you". The problem is that most people don't really know what sounds good nor will they be able to identify it when it occurs. That's because they lack a proper frame of reference to make the distinction between good and not so good.

Seriously, how many people know what a true piano sounds like? Most people's experience is limited to what they hear on the radio, or an mp3 player or a silvery or vinyl disk or they make judgments based on amplified equipment and horn loaded speakers from PA systems (aka concerts and the like). Unless you have some exposure to real vocals, and real instruments what you think sounds good will not sound good at all. THIS is why many enthusiasts constantly change their equipment because they don't know what sounds good, they have poor frames of reference.

If you care about the details you are better advised to buy speakers with the aim of reproducing music authentically as possible as far as your budget will allow.

someone here must be able to help me with my previous post please

All have their strengths and weaknesses. Of the choices you list Denon will compliment the B&Ws nicely.


If you intend to expand your system to 5.1 surround you'll get more mileage (performance and options) from the CM series. The FPM series is a lifestyle over sound quality choice. They sound fine but will be constrained to produce much realism.

That's the short and quick of it.

thanks for the info.... i think the cm9's are pretty pricy if im not mistaken....

would u suggest any other brands/line with same performance but not as expensive

Dali and PMC comes to mind but I couldn't comment on current pricing. Paradigm is another alternative but they are a little darker sounding than B&W OTH they have more options and prices than the other suggestions. I would probably suggest a different front-end to go with them as well.

what you mean front end?

Technically pre-amplifier. AVR (Receiver) in your case.

would u go with the FPM's or cm5's?

My priorities may differ from yours. It is sound quality over aesthetics for me so I would pick the CM5's. They have an elegance about them too just not as tightly integrated as the FPM's would be with your PDP.

im more for sounds then aesthetics.... i can still get my floor standing speakers to look clean and everthing......

correct me if im wrong a 2.1 cm9 system will sound better then a FPM6 5.1 right?

The LCR are by far the most important channels to be concerned with for a home theater. If you can comfortably live with a phantom center then the 2.1 CM9 system is the way to go for the best performance. But if you're like me and like a casual listening experience where you can sit where and how you like without your head locked into a virtual vise then my vote would be for the 5.1 FPM6's.

Surround speakers are important to create a fully enveloping sound field but if you put some time and care into setting up the front channels (and treating the room to cooperate with controlled sound redirection) you can create a surprisingly believable surround sound effect without dedicated channels doing the work.

what i might end up doing it, and thats doing it right, build my system slowly.... i was also reading buying used wouldn't be a bad idea, i can find some cm9's or 804/805 diamond is great condition for used at a good price....

aesthetic wise i love the cm9's over the 804/805, is there a huge difference in sound?

That would be a wise move to build up slowly given budget constraints.

The B&W house sound is apparent across the entire line. As you go up in price the sound becomes more refined, but no, there isn't a huge difference in character between similarly priced/configured adjacent models. There are, however, minute improvements between models that accumulate as you climb up the range creating a more noticeable difference.

I would not compare the CM9 to the 805D2 but a comparison to the 804D2 is valid. The 804D2 is an reasonable improvement over the CM9's but not in a "huge" way. I think it is a little pricy in comparison so the jump from the CM9's in that regard is a lot to ask but refinement at that level usually is.

Since this is a HT we are talking about and you have a budget to maintain I would stick with the CM9's and not get carried away with the next best thing. They perform admirably and would suit your plans well (if you decide 2.1 HT is it). I would reserve the Diamond series for more critical listening endeavors.

The bolded could not any further from the truth in all aspects from finish, craftsmanship and sound. You go from the 600 series that has an overly elevated response in the botton and upper octave with a forward presentation, to the CM which is has a bit of a suckout in the upper midrange with a recessed presentation and much overall warmer sound to the 800 series which are more linear in the response and lower overall distortion and cabinet resonance.

Yup, that is my take on the differences between B&W the lines as well. Dynaudio, Paradigm, and Revel have integrity across their lines, but B&W speakers sound distinctly different from one model line to the next. I have to wonder if they are intentionally "dumbing down" their lower lines to create more of a gap between them.

would i be happy with a 5.1 of cm9's? or if i heard a 5.1 of a 804, the cm9 will disappoint?

Hard to say. Depends on what you prefer, the type of music you listen to, the acoustics of your room, and the quality of your electronics.

The CMs are going to be more "polite" and the midrange will sound a bit more distant than the 800 line.

I suggest that you burn a couple of CD's of your favorite music and go listen to every speaker in your price range in your area, like user "cat-like" just described on the last page.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...6#post19292346

You'll know the right speaker for you when you hear it. And it may or may not be a B&W.

i doubt my system will ever be used for music, mostly movies and sports... it will be in the basement as well.... the thing is this, its not like i'm upgrading to any speakers, i don't have any speakers or anything.... this will be my first home theater, so anything might sound good to me... but at same time, i don't like spending a lot of money on something that i will have to change in a year or 2.... i plan to have these speakers for a long time.... so thats my issue....

The description is not only accurate but precise. The entry level series CM do not radically depart from the flagship 800 series in character. You are not going to mistaken the CM's for another brand. But the devils in the details and that's what separate's the lines (of similar models) which I indicated and you cannot neglect budgetary concerns. A balanced fit for the requirements definition cannot be ignored. The 800's are more refined and I stated so and your elaboration qualifies the remark rather than opposes it. Don't let your investment cloud rational advice to the uninitiated.

Even if you don't plan on listening to music, music is still a good reference point for judging the sound quality of the speaker. However, you can do a similar test with a couple of your favorite movies. It just may be more time consuming and more difficult to find the speakers you want to listen to in a home theater demo room.

Because you want this to be a long term investment, it is even more important that you go test drive all the speakers that you can in your area.

You wouldn't buy your next car based on internet opinion alone, right?

Brands to consider:
B&W
Paradigm
PSB
NHT
Monitor Audio
Dali
Era
Revel
Dynaudio

so in other words the CM9's should be fine for me? lol

They all have integrity and budgetary concerns to satisfy if they are going to remain a profitable company. What you label as "dumbing down" is merely the appropriate compromises that must be made along the way to reaching their goals for the class of speaker and target audience.