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Bose 901 Placement

crackerkorean

crackerkorean

Striving for Polymathdom!
I know I know alot of you guys done like Bose. I will start off by saying these are not mine and im just trying to help a friend out.

I have a friend that really enjoys music but is not willing to spend a sizeable amount on a system.

This is what I have to work with.

Bose 901 (newer black ones with active xover) - from his wife before they were married.
Yamaha HT receiver.

I thought I would just start by setting the receiver for stereo instead of surround for CD listening and properly placing them and go from there.

I know for most Bose speakers they are room dependant. I am curious to know how these should be setup.

Thanks for the help.
 
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Hey, if they please your friend, that's all that matters.

Don't forget that these each have 8 out of their 9 drivers facing rearwards, so they're gonna reflect almost everything they're fed. That said, I'd personally put them at least a couple of feet away from any and all walls, and make sure they're not covered with anything. No drapes, no bookcases, no record racks, nothing. The size of the room helps, too. They do better in larger rooms than smaller ones. You may have to shift 'em around a bit to adjust for standing waves and such.
Just my two centavos. :)

Tom
 
Proper placement of these speakers is critical, more so than for most speakers.

They need to be 2-3 feet from the ceiling or floor. The point of the rear "V" should be 18" from the rear wall and perpendicular, the front flat panel of the speaker should be facing out into the room. The sides of the speakers should be about two feet from the side walls. This setup will allow the best use of the speaker's direct/ relecting properties.

Also make sure you're using a Bose equaliser.

A common error with these speakers is the point the V into a corner.

Cheers.
 
Paul Klipsch said he tested Bose 901s and thought they sounded best with the speakers turned backwards and pushed into corners, exactly opposite the way ole Amar intended. He told us this at the Hi-Fi Hutch back in the 1970s.

But PWK would have thought that. Worth a try though.
 
Tom Brennan said:
Paul Klipsch said he tested Bose 901s and thought they sounded best with the speakers turned backwards and pushed into corners, exactly opposite the way ole Amar intended. He told us this at the Hi-Fi Hutch back in the 1970s.

But PWK would have thought that. Worth a try though.
Click to expand...

Think that would help me out??

:D
 
The problem with placing a Bose 901 (or any speaker) exactly in a corner is that the distance from the woofer cones to either two or three walls will be the same. The tends to accentuate the "comb filter" effect (a series of peaks and troughs in the frequency response.)

Fred Longworth
 
"The tends to accentuate the "comb filter" effect (a series of peaks and troughs in the frequency response.)"

Well old PWK said that pushing the 901s into the corners backwards made for a drastic reduction in cone excursion and distortion for a given output. Given a choice between comb filtering and distortion it's reasonable to choose less distortion, I reckon it depends on what faults in a speaker set off your hackles; some people it's one thing and some people another.
 
I've tried these speakers in many different configurations, with results ranging from spectacular to mundane. The interesting thing about these is that they respond to room placement probably more than any other speaker made. Don't be afraid to even try placements that are not recommended. It's fun to find out what these speakers are capable of. I've tried them facing in, out, up down, and the results are really a personal choice. I've concealed them behind couches facing up, and the sound is definitely everywhere and since its completely out of sight, very unique as the listener cannot pinpoint where the music is coming from.

Probably the most fun speaker out there to experiment with.....:scratch2:
 
I haven't had a chance to play with my 901's yet as I don't feel that I currently have sufficient power to run them properly nor is my present listening area open or large enough to allow them to breathe let alone reflect.
My work area is coming along though so soon I will get that chance.
If I am off-base here, someone please tell me but this is my take on it.
I would think that offsetting the distances from back and side walls is pretty important in relation to the direct-reflect system. To line up in perfect symetry with the corner would seem to tend to produce equal reflection in both directions which may actually dampen the response at certain frequencies depending on distance from the corner. Offsetting the distances should serve to actually allow for more complete reproduction over the entire frequency spectrum.
I have 2 pairs of 301's that I have been moving around in a pretty small, quite cluttered sound stage and have found that there is quite a bit of fine-tuning available in positioning of even those.:smoke: :smoke: :smoke:
 
They like a solid wall behind them, such as brick or CMU. The perfomance is not so great with single ply sheetrocked or paneled surfaces.

Good luck, and feed 'em plenty of good clean watts.
 
Tom Brennan said:
Paul Klipsch said he tested Bose 901s and thought they sounded best with the speakers turned backwards and pushed into corners, exactly opposite the way ole Amar intended. He told us this at the Hi-Fi Hutch back in the 1970s.

But PWK would have thought that. Worth a try though.
Click to expand...

Now was he actually IN the room with them once they were positioned? :lmao:
 
KrackerKorean, make sure that you hook up the equalizer correctly to the receiver. They were designed to go into the tape output/inputs if the receiver has them. If not, then they can go into the preamp outputs-to-power amp inputs if it has them and make sure the tape monitor switch is engaged. Many of the most recent receivers do not have the capability, though.

Lastly, this is strictly a 2-channel setup so make sure that the receiver is driving only 2 channels into the speakers - none of the surround/matric modes will help in your placement efforts.

I installed *many* 901s in the 70s and can tell you that you can be quite flexible with their placement. I agree with Aldo that there really aren't any rules regarding placement. They will sound different in each, of course, and some may not agree that all placements throw a good sound stage. That's the part where your friend will have to decide what he likes best.

Cheers,

David
 
Thanks for the help guys. Hopefully I can make my way back over to my friends place in a couple of weeks and see what I can do to help him out. They both love music but are not gear heads and just want something to listen to. I know they are using an early 90s yamaha HT receiver.
 
cheon57 said:
I haven't had a chance to play with my 901's yet as I don't feel that I currently have sufficient power to run them properly nor is my present listening area open or large enough to allow them to breathe let alone reflect.
Unless you have series I or II, you have sufficient power. All the later series were more efficient.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
I was running 901 series 1 with a Marantz 35 wpc amplifier with very good results.....:thmbsp:
 
I've had 901s for decades, always a series that used their active EQ. Also had 802s suspended from an auditorium ceiling for sound reinforcement. Position is crucial for best performance. Follow the manufacturer guidelines when your room allows. But, what if your space is limited? Play with them. Try different distances and heights, on stands and off, on top of furniture, even suspended from a ceiling. NEVER place them on the floor. And yes, if they sound muddy, even try facing them backwards with the multitude of drivers facing forward, like they are 802s. I currently have mine like this. Your ears will tell you when it's right. Also play with the EQ settings. The differences are NOT subtle. The specifics of your surroundings will affect the way they behave more than ANY other speaker I've used. They can sound like complete crap when not placed properly. But "proper" is a subjective judgement. Experiment with them and in a good sized space and you should be able to get extremely satisfying results from them. They have never been my first pick for accuracy or balance but when used optimally, 901s can make a room come alive. I wouldn't recommend using them with low to moderately powered amps. They crave power (80+ wpc is ideal) and they sound better at louder playback volumes. But if these aren't limitations for you, they can sound tremendous. Anyone that says 901s are crap hasn't taken the time to play with them. And if you want to party, the sky's the limit.
 
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