Bowers & Wilkins 685 S2

Art K.

The Voodoo You Do!
...are in the house.

Sorry, no unboxing video.

Unboxing revealed a speaker of only modestly better build quality than the Wharfedale Diamond 10.1. Yes the vinyl wrap fits just a bit better but that's about it. As the reviews state, nothing remarkable to look at.

I immediately placed them on my 23.5 inch Solid Steel stands where the Wharfedale Dentons had been placed and turned on the Marantz SR5005 to warm up. The Marantz CD6004 is on 24/7 with the auto standby disabled.

More later.
 
Echoing BadassBob's sentiments Art. My pair are coming in Wednesday and I'm getting antsy.
 
Last edited:
The 685's are certainly a far brighter speaker than the Dentons or the 10.1's. That would seem a recipe for disaster especially for someone who hates bright speakers but so far it's not. The HF are far more refined and grain free than with the Wharfedales, and it's concentrated at the top of the range rather than the upper midrange. That does occasionally manifest itself in just a bit of discontinuity between the drivers as has been reported in some reviews. However the crossover is less noticeable than on any of my speakers with the exception of the Spendors. That smooth hand off makes for a less bothersome problem with driver integration than it has potential to be.

More later.
 
Are these a replacement for the Denton's, Art? The 685 S2 would be on my short list if I was shopping in this price bracket for a new pair (along with the Dali Zensor 3). I'd describe the tweeter on my 705 the same way...refined and grain free. Probably the best part of the 705 are the highs. One of the better metal domes that I have had the pleasure of owning.
 
Are these a replacement for the Denton's, Art? The 685 S2 would be on my short list if I was shopping in this price bracket for a new pair (along with the Dali Zensor 3). I'd describe the tweeter on my 705 the same way...refined and grain free. Probably the best part of the 705 are the highs. One of the better metal domes that I have had the pleasure of owning.

These will likely be a replacement for the Wharfedale 10.1's. I am going to move on my Wharfedale HT speakers (10.1's, 9.1's and 10CS) for a B&W HT setup. I haven't really been able to get into my music performance videos with the Wharfies as much as I once did with a Paradigm Studio HT.
 
Would you say part of the differences may be- slightly warm/laid back Marantz + slightly warm/laid back speakers (Dentons/others) = :boring:

??? :scratch2:
 
I'd like to hear more of your impressions of the 685 S2's. I was looking for a 6-1/2" bookshelf and they were on my short list. I actually went to buy them but the retailer did not have them in stock yet. I returned another day and ended up buying the CM5 S1's instead.

I'm currently comparing them with another equivalently priced bookshelf speaker I picked-up to see which one stays.
 
Last edited:
You've had these for a while now Art, care to add to your impressions or is the jury still out? :)
 
I have never been a fan of the 600 series B&W's and that is in part to the tweeter which to me is overly crisp and annoying.

If I was to buy any B&W's, it would be the lines above the 600 series.

I have heard these and feel the integration between the midwoofer and tweeter could have been done better. When I listened to them, there seemed to be a hole in the midrange.

I am looking forward to your review Art. I am a 'tin ear' it seems :D

I guess it is all the time I am listening to my Royd Audio speakers that does that. :D :D

Same tweeter in 600 S2 series as the CM S2 series and in fact it was introduced in 600 S2's first. One review states that the tweeter is better integrated in the 600 S2 series than the CM S2's.
 
I have never been a fan of the 600 series B&W's and that is in part to the tweeter which to me is overly crisp and annoying.

If I was to buy any B&W's, it would be the lines above the 600 series.

If you think the S1 600's are overly crisp, I'm sure you will find the S1 CM series too bright for your tastes. IMO listening to them both in my home, the CM's are much better than the 600's (both S1's). I found Bob Reina's review of the CM5's (S1's) to be pretty accurate but that detail, resolution and transparency can have its drawbacks although it works very well for some music at certain volume levels.

http://www.stereophile.com/content/bowers-amp-wilkins-cm5-loudspeaker

I may pick-up the 685 S2's to see how they differ from the CM and 600 S1 series.
 
Hmm, impressions so far after a week.

Simple...both the B&W 685 S2 and the Wharfedale Denton 80th are very compromised designs with what appears to be some esoteric goals that have little if anything to do with music.

The 685's have have little if any PRaT but are divinely resolved with better than expected timbre. Very bright yet very little if any fatigue...unusual.

The Dentons have nice PRaT...very little resolution and better low end tone than high end. Warm and yet sometimes fatiguing. Primarily due to the ragged high end.

What a bizarre set of circumstances.

Do keep in mind that this is all in the HT system. I compared each speaker to each other tonight and also played the same discs in the big rig which is right next to the HT...more to say about it later.
 
Very bright yet very little if any fatigue...unusual.
I have been describing them like that in AK chat. Definitely no fatigue for me though as I listened to them 5 or so hours straight last night with no issues.
I'm holding off on any critical review until I get them on some good stands(Christmas probably).
 
Back
Top Bottom