Bose brings back the 901
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Way back in the 1960s, Bose introduced a musical legend. The 1968 Bose 901 speakers are famous in audiophile circles, with some reviewers claiming that they were among the best speakers of all time. As one reviewer, Julian Hirsch, wrote: "I have never heard a speaker system in my own home which could surpass, or even equal, the Bose 901 for overall realism of sound."
And now they're back
Very limited production
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Friends had a pair. I never need to hear Thus Spake Zarasthustra again.
Was in their home many times. Wonder who got them in the divorce.
“I’m at an age when remembering something right away is as good as an orgasm.”—Gloria Steinem to Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Wiser Than Me
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@CHAS said in Bose brings back the 901:
Wonder who got them in the divorce.
Right after I read your post, I stumbled upon this CL listing:
It’s Over Garage Sale (Jefferson Park)
Ah, that timeless divorce rite-of-passage — selling as many of one’s valuables as possible because they now represent toxic memories! Our loss is your gain. It’s all going: glassware, linens, platters, cast iron, small appliances, golf clubs, and even a portable backyard party canopy. Because, the party is over. Help us make it a wrap and move on.https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/gms/d/chicago-its-over-garage-sale/7796500901.html
When the world wearies and society ceases to satisfy, there is always the garden - Minnie Aumônier
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In a house, Bose 901s can overwhelm and deafen you with sound. A friend from the Army had Bose 901 speakers. 901s rely on bounced sound reflection off of a wall. I think it had nine speakers facing the rear and one speaker facing the front and they could handle lots of wattage. You need a powerful receiver to really take advantage of 901s. They were expensive too as I remember. Because they’re so powerful at loud volumes, they’re better for discos and roller skating rinks than home use. Playing the Bachman Turner Overdrive song “Sledgehammer” at full volume would cause the walls to vibrate.
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My system at school had Bose 301's. The build quality was better then. This translated to loudness and clarity. On the other hand they were base heavy and lacking in the mid range.
I was familiar with the 901's. They were part of the cultural scene of my parents' generation. Our next door neighbor had a set. They used them at low volume but I think they were meant to make a statement more than anything else.
I personally didn't understand and/ or believe in direct/ reflected technology. I still don't truth be told.
I want a pair of monitor speakers.
I bought a set of barely used tube amplifiers once. It was an impractical phase but they were art. I was trying to build a specific type of system but it was a money pit.
I've accepted I'll only ever have a solid state system if I'm lucky but that's ok because monitor speakers are my favorite type emphasizing the midrange and creating a holographic effect and they can only be paired with solid state amplifiers.
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@Qaanaaq-Qaalaaq said in Bose brings back the 901:
In a house, Bose 901s can overwhelm and deafen you with sound. A friend from the Army had Bose 901 speakers. 901s rely on bounced sound reflection off of a wall. I think it had nine speakers facing the rear and one speaker facing the front and they could handle lots of wattage. You need a powerful receiver to really take advantage of 901s. They were expensive too as I remember. Because they’re so powerful at loud volumes, they’re better for discos and roller skating rinks than home use. Playing the Bachman Turner Overdrive song “Sledgehammer” at full volume would cause the walls to vibrate.
Yes, good point. My school had a set of Bose speakers and we used them for outdoor parties every weekend. They were base heavy not surprisingly and were very, very loud.
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@Daniel said in Bose brings back the 901:
I was familiar with the 901's. They were part of the cultural scene of my parents' generation. Our next door neighbor had a set. They used them at low volume but I think they were meant to make a statement more than anything else.
I personally didn't understand and/ or believe in direct/ reflected technology. I still don't truth be told.
I think Bose 901s sound better at high volumes than at low volumes. For sure. When I first heard of them, I thought that reflected sound speakers like the 901s were gimmicky. 901s are supposed to be placed a few feet away from a wall for best sound fidelity. You want to bounce the sound waves off the wall. I remember one time we reversed the 901s so that the nine drivers on the rear side of the speaker were facing the room and the one driver on the front side was facing the wall. I didn’t notice that much of a difference. 901s do sound better when compared with most other speakers for sure. I’m not an acoustical engineer though and there is a scientific basis for reflected soundscapes. On an opera house backstage group tour that I once took, the docent told us that the opera house was designed for maximum sound reflection and that meant minimizing the use of carpeting and upholstery. They couldn’t get rid of all the opera house’s carpeting because of floor safety reasons. Before I left the Army, I bought unidirectional JBL speakers from the PX. I like them better than 901s.
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Interesting!
I love opera.
I have the discernment for it not to be modest but have an inability to concentrate enough to listen to one from beginning to end. My inability would be worse at a live performance. It would be a diaster.
I choose which ones I listen to carefully listen to them in segments and they always end up being recordings of live performances.
Someone once made an interesting comparison between opera and rock/ pop. She said the performance of rock/ pop is on an elevated stage whereas with opera it is reversed and the audience is elevated over the stage. I'm not sure what this might mean but pop is also one of my favorite genres.
My 301's had one front facing driver with two small ones on the side one of which faced the back wall, iirc.
I was happy with them. It was the last time I had a system per se. I miss having one.
