Bowers & Wilkins 685 S2

Straight from the horses mouth. Alan Shaw never said he preferred Sound Anchor stands as is stated in the ToneAUDIO review. It ain't so.

My dealer is pretty emphatic about them, though. Skylan or Sound Anchor...I would buy a good light weight stand like the Foundation's if I could find them. Hate the look of the Something Solid stands...ah such first world concerns!
 
Not sure, probably a week or so.

The A6R is a great speaker so let me say that up front. To my ears the new midbass driver is so excellent and resolving that it leaves the tweeter sounding a bit gray and grainy. Just not as smooth as I would expect it to be. I actually prefer the tweeter in S3/5R2.

The D7 is supposed to be pretty incredible.

Yeah, I hadn't realized just how important a woofer could be to a speaker's midrange tone. The midbass driver in the Dentons is the key to it's unique sound, and I can't imagine it was an easy match. The LS50 must have taken a while to get right.

I'm itching to hear my Dentons right now, but I just don't have a good space to set them up right now (or ANY standmounter for that matter), not without blocking the W90's.
 
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Today my wife said...I still see those B&W's sitting in their boxes. Why don't you put them in my office and see how I like them...OK, done.

Straight up...the resolution of 685's is so good that they really exposed what has been missing in my other speakers. They are what inspired me to move the Spendors on. The Harbeths are right on par for what I was hoping for.
 
I'm not sure they are. They are just different. They shed a bit brighter light on the detail that most interests my wife. The Quads are considerably more laid back and quietly detailed. Please read John Darko's review of the Quad 11L Classic. It is spot on.

Thank you. I have read that review and I have had those Quad 11L Classic for 2 years now and still like them. They're in my partner's office now. The B&Ws are a bit more expensive, that's why I was wondering if they were better. Now I know. I've only heard the new B&W CM6 S2, which are in another league.
 
didge, how did you find the CM6 S2's? I had a brief listen to them not long ago and was fairly pleased with them, as usually the CM series didn't really do much for me. Curious what equipment you might have listened to them on?
 
Thank you. I have read that review and I have had those Quad 11L Classic for 2 years now and still like them. They're in my partner's office now. The B&Ws are a bit more expensive, that's why I was wondering if they were better. Now I know. I've only heard the new B&W CM6 S2, which are in another league.

Actually the 685 S2 retails for $699 and the Quads $749. When we bought them they were on a special.
 
Actually the 685 S2 retails for $699 and the Quads $749. When we bought them they were on a special.

Ok. I was talking about European prices, where I paid 450 Euros for the Quads in High Gloss and the 685 S2 are 650 Euros here.
 
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didge, how did you find the CM6 S2's? I had a brief listen to them not long ago and was fairly pleased with them, as usually the CM series didn't really do much for me. Curious what equipment you might have listened to them on?

I liked them a lot. They're easy to listen to, nice tweeter, not too bright, excellent midrange and good bass for their size. They had a very wide soundstage, I thought. I listened to them on a Rotel RA-1570 and a Marantz PM-6004 (shop's choice). I wouldn't go with either of those amplifiers but I liked it best with the Rotel.
 
Thanks didge, the dealer I listened to them briefly also had a Rotel setup which I cannot recall the models at the moment, and we also listened to them on the end of a Naim XS-2/CD-5. I enjoyed them but would like to spend a bit more time with them for fun.
 
Art, are the B&W's easy to drive? I'm thinking of getting a set, but have doubts about playing big orchestral music through them. Also, do their brightness lend itself to fatigue at all? I'm very familiar with the Harbeth's, so it would be helpful to know in comparison.
 
They have been in y wife's office for the last couple of months. She is driving them with an NAD D 3020. They are easy to drive.
 
As far as place in the lineup that may be so however for performance I'm not sure. It would be interesting to find out by listening.
 
Today i got a tour around some shop, looking for 685 s2. Some sales said that Yamaha as500 don't get enough power to fit with 685, can't show all the ability of 685, is it right ?

I've as500 with wharfedale 10.1, should i replace by 685 s2. Cause i can't find a store to trial-listen 685 around here.
 
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Today i got a tour around some shop, looking for 685 s2. Some sales said that Yamaha as500 don't get enough power to fit with 685, can't show all the ability of 685, is it right ?

I've as500 with wharfedale 10.1, should i replace by 685 s2. Cause i can't find a store to trial-listen 685 around here.

Welcome to AK. I'm not real fond of Yamaha amps, maybe the sales staff isn't either. Who knows. As to power, the Yamaha has plenty to enjoy the 685's. The 685 S2 is easier to drive than your Wharfedales. I know, I have them both. If you believe that the Yamaha is sufficient for the 10.1's then it should do quite nicely for the B&W's.
 
Thanks a lot for your promptly help. Im a newbie in this.

By the way. I have a question, in amplifier, i see an adjustment of loudness with value in range of Flat - -30db. I don't know what is it for ? If adjust to - 30db, could it harm speaker ?
 
By the way. I have a question, in amplifier, i see an adjustment of loudness with value in range of Flat - -30db. I don't know what is it for ? If adjust to - 30db, could it harm speaker ?

From the owners manual:

Adjusting the LOUDNESS control
Retain a full tonal range at any volume level, thus compensating for the human ears loss of sensitivity to high and low-frequency ranges at low volume.

If the PURE DIRECT switch is turned on with the LOUDNESS control set at a certain level, the input signals bypass the LOUDNESS control, resulting in a sudden increase in the sound output level. To prevent your ears or the speakers from being damaged, be sure to press PURE DIRECT switch AFTER lowering the sound output level or AFTER checking that the LOUDNESS control is properly set.

1 Set the LOUDNESS control to the FLAT position.

2 Rotate the VOLUME control on the front panel (or press VOLUME +/– buttons on the remote control) to set the sound output level
to the loudest listening level that you would listen to.

3 Rotate the LOUDNESS control until the desired volume is obtained.

After setting the LOUDNESS control, enjoy listening to music at your preferred volume level. If the effect of the LOUDNESS control setting is too strong or weak, readjust the LOUDNESS control
 
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