B&W 703 Floorstanders

[JohnMichael]

Hi, pdmonty, and welcome to AR Forums.

I tend to agree that a system is only as good as it's weakest link, but you aren't going to get a rise out of RGA. He bailed from ARF a few years ago in a fit of peak because he was scolded for for a hyperbolic political opinion.

Ah yes I remember it well.

[pdmonty1965]

Hi, pdmonty, and welcome to AR Forums.

I tend to agree that a system is only as good as it's weakest link, but you aren't going to get a rise out of RGA. He bailed from ARF a few years ago in a fit of peak because he was scolded for for a hyperbolic political opinion.

Thanks for the greeting. I wasn't trying to get rise as much as I was venting a little in defense my beloved speakers. It irritates me when people throw out negative opinions without due diligence. I believe that most us here want to engage in a civil and educational exchange of information. It's sad that some only serve to foster dissent and negativity. Thanks to all of you belonging to group A. I'm learning a lot!

[Jack in Wilmington]

Thanks for the greeting. I wasn't trying to get rise as much as I was venting a little in defense my beloved speakers. It irritates me when people throw out negative opinions without due diligence. I believe that most us here want to engage in a civil and educational exchange of information. It's sad that some only serve to foster dissent and negativity. Thanks to all of you belonging to group A. I'm learning a lot!

I don't think RGA threw out negative comments without due diligence. He is in fact a published reviewer for an audio magazine, or at least he was. He did have a tendency to ruffle our feathers from time to time with his love for Audio Note gear, but he was knowledgeable. If you're looking for people who agree with you all the time, you might as well read the national publications such as Stereophile and The Absolute Sound because they've been accused for years of never writing a negative review. This is a hobby where you will run into people who have owned your gear themselves and have moved on to better gear and will tell you so for their own reasons.

[pdmonty1965]

I don't think RGA threw out negative comments without due diligence. He is in fact a published reviewer for an audio magazine, or at least he was. He did have a tendency to ruffle our feathers from time to time with his love for Audio Note gear, but he was knowledgeable. If you're looking for people who agree with you all the time, you might as well read the national publications such as Stereophile and The Absolute Sound because they've been accused for years of never writing a negative review. This is a hobby where you will run into people who have owned your gear themselves and have moved on to better gear and will tell you so for their own reasons.

Hi Jack, thanks for the response. I was not making inference nor can I attest to or diminish, either way, RGA's knowledge base and I do not expect everyone to agree with me all the time. In fact if everyone did I would never be challenged and would therefore never learn new concepts. What I did take exception to was his ludicrous, blanket statement that B&W speakers were "garbage". First of all, that is his opinion and as we all well know opinions vary and are rarely unbiased in nature however, here is my point. When discussing products that fall into an "elite" category such as B&W, a speaker brand world renowned not only for the quality of their sound but also for their fine furniture grade build quality as well as being routinely compared to other great products from the likes of Martin Logan, Aria, Dynaudio, Paradigm etc. A company who's flagship 800 series are used as professional monitors at studios ranging from Abbey Road to LucasFilms...it is difficult to conceive that anyone's "honest" and unbiased opinion is that they are "garbage". That, to me, is like saying that Lamborghini's suck because you happen to drive a Ferrari. So again, IMHO anyone who, regardless of their perceived intelligence or knowledge base, issues counter-intuitive statements, such as the one now being discussed, seemingly geared only towards getting a rise out of people, is suspect and somewhat diminish themselves as is evidenced by the fact that he abandoned this forum...

Best

[blackraven]

I agree with you P-65. I try never to put down any one's gear. We all have different likes and dislikes as well as different gear, musical tastes and listening environments.

[Jack in Wilmington]

Hi Jack, thanks for the response. I was not making inference nor can I attest to or diminish, either way, RGA's knowledge base and I do not expect everyone to agree with me all the time. In fact if everyone did I would never be challenged and would therefore never learn new concepts. What I did take exception to was his ludicrous, blanket statement that B&W speakers were "garbage". First of all, that is his opinion and as we all well know opinions vary and are rarely unbiased in nature however, here is my point. When discussing products that fall into an "elite" category such as B&W, a speaker brand world renowned not only for the quality of their sound but also for their fine furniture grade build quality as well as being routinely compared to other great products from the likes of Martin Logan, Aria, Dynaudio, Paradigm etc. A company who's flagship 800 series are used as professional monitors at studios ranging from Abbey Road to LucasFilms...it is difficult to conceive that anyone's "honest" and unbiased opinion is that they are "garbage". That, to me, is like saying that Lamborghini's suck because you happen to drive a Ferrari. So again, IMHO anyone who, regardless of their perceived intelligence or knowledge base, issues counter-intuitive statements, such as the one now being discussed, seemingly geared only towards getting a rise out of people, is suspect and somewhat diminish themselves as is evidenced by the fact that he abandoned this forum...

Best

Not to defend RGA, but he did refer specifically to the 700 series and not all B&W speakers. He does go overboard as he usually did in describing his dislike for the 700 series. Now I wouldn't say that B&W would fall into the "elite" category. Their 800 series do get mentioned when the trade magazines talk about their recommended products, but there are a lot of speaker companies out there that are held in higher regard IMHO. I had the 703's at my house when I was going to upgrade from my Paradigm Monitor 9's a few years back and I honestly didn't hear that much difference, so I kept looking. I would have never called them "garbage" but just not what I was looking for.

[Hyfi]

I am only assuming the 700 series has been around for a while or very similar to earlier series.

EDIT- just checked and it would have been the 600 series /EDIT

When I ended up buying my Dynaudio 82s, I was narrowed down to them and the comparable B&Ws. I went back and forth between them using entry level B&K gear.

I was a total Bass Head back then and also had a thing for Dynaudio speakers since the first time I saw and heard them and went with the Dyns. They did have better bass. I may appreciate the B&Ws more now that I have morphed from Bass to Midrange preferences.

I did recently hear the 802 Diamonds driven by the Mc 600wpc monos and was blown away.

[Jack in Wilmington]

I am only assuming the 700 series has been around for a while or very similar to earlier series.

EDIT- just checked and it would have been the 600 series /EDIT

When I ended up buying my Dynaudio 82s, I was narrowed down to them and the comparable B&Ws. I went back and forth between them using entry level B&K gear.

I was a total Bass Head back then and also had a thing for Dynaudio speakers since the first time I saw and heard them and went with the Dyns. They did have better bass. I may appreciate the B&Ws more now that I have morphed from Bass to Midrange preferences.

I did recently hear the 802 Diamonds driven by the Mc 600wpc monos and was blown away.

My local dealer was a B&W distributor for years and then dropped them because they weren't selling. The 800 series would sell to the higher end customer and the 600 series was popular with the everyday guy but the 700 series didn't find their niche. They eventually picked up Sonus Faber and Wilson Audio and had former B&W customers coming in looking for a trade-in deal. I switched to Usher speakers and then eventually to Dynaudio like Hyfi.