Bose 501 series IV vs 901 series I

[jozeppy26]

Should I bother replacing capacitors? I’m not hearing much non-vinyl-related pops but I’ve heard the crossover functions less efficiently as capacitors age.

 

[jozeppy26]

901 Series I don't need refoaming at all as they use treated cloth surrounds. Series I eq's are easy to find on the bay or even here at AK

The seller even showed me a picture of the surrounds and they were in what looked like great shape. The problem for me was she wanted $250 for the set without stands and without the equalizer. I also had trouble finding Equalizers for that series that weren’t an additional $200 with no guarentee the equalizer still functioned. But I do agree, the solid wood enclosed and beautiful grill cloth made those 901’s much much prettier than the 501’s. Perhaps I’ll stack both together in the future?

 

[slick.one]

If you ever buy 901s in the future, I suggest Series I or II with a series II equalizer
The series II equalizer allows for more emphasis on the highs if you desire it. They can sound quite good with Series II equalizer and a bunch of stout power.

 

[BilboBaggins]

Thanks for all the replies everyone! I ended up purchasing a pair of 501’s for $50, however the seller was incorrect and they are actually series I (something I realized when I saw they were 4 ohm speakers). They are cosmetically perfect. I have replaced the foam surrounds on each woofer and I am truly impressed by how wide the sound is (aka it completely fills a room). The wife wishes I would have went with the 901’s but the price difference between the two made this an easier choice for me. Also hearing what you all had to say about speaker placement was much appreciated information. I was a bit afraid people on here would destroy me for considering bose and I am super glad to hear otherwise.

I think you made the right choice. The 501s need less power to drive them as well. I auditioned quite a few 901s when I wanted to try them out, and every time I went out, they were plugged into a 30 watt amp and sounded like crap! Then I got the next seller to come by my place with his 901 series 2s with the carrot that he could hear them with the amp that was designed to drive them. I bought them and liked them, but they are harder to place and I never did like them more than my Kef 105s.

Another important aspect to keep in mind is that if you choose a series 1 or series 2, you will need some hefty amplifier power. I did recently have a pair of series three that sounded quite good with a MAC1900 though.

People on this forum are overall pretty good about not bashing members on their equipment choices. There are so many options out there. And there are some pretty well respected members who are experts on Bose.

I recently bought a Bose Sound link 3 for traveling, and here I am on vacation in the Laurentians, and my portable Bose speaker is sitting in a box beside the kitchen back home. I forgot to put it in the car!

 

[freQ(*)Oddio]

the 501s will be a great speaker match, the 901s would probably like more power. get the 501s

 

[Audiokingman]

I have 501 series IV's in the garage. They typically go for much more then ANY 901s (in nice shape of course) so if you can find them cheaper then 901s I would say jump on them.

My experience is the opposite. Condition being equal, 901's sell for more than 501's................now (for reasons unknown and puzzling), 601 series III are getting a little ridiculous!

 

[rjag46]

Go with the 501,s I have a pair of series 4, Oldies but Goodies, great imaging and you will have money left over 2 buy more stuff!

 

[jberger]

Perhaps I’ll stack both together in the future?

That makes things MUCH more complicated,

The 901's would need a signal that's equalized specifically for them, and that would be very wrong for the 501's.

The only way that I could think to make that work would be to add a separate power amp for the 901s (preferably one with a level control, so you can match the two), and go from the preamp outputs on the Pioneer to a Y-cable with two male and one female RCA to the 901 EQ to the power amp inputs. The other male connector from the preamp outputs would loop back to the receiver's power amp inputs. If your receiver doesn't have them, this won't work, and you'll need to replace it too.

 

[nfafan]

Flip a coin. Before the intertoobs and audio experts came along, properly set up Bose 901s and 501s in the 70's gave you goosebumps and you couldn't wait until you could afford either. I'd have either/both by now if I had control over my own living space.

Seriously, flip the coin - you know you want a 2.0 setup in more than one room anyway.

 

[78' JVC's]

All of the Bose direct reflecting speakers need empty space around them to sound properly. The 501 has tweeters that face the rear at an angle to reflect sound off the wall between the 2 channels. The 501 comes in left and right pairs, and they are labeled as such. Make sure your getting a proper set.


As a side note, I just finished refoaming a set of 901's. I like to refer to it as refoaming purgatory.

I inherited 4 sets of 901 IV's and a Series VI on the original chrome Tulip stands. He had a dozen new speakers still wrapped. and a box of surrounds.
I've re-foamed a couple dozen. That's just the 901's. Let's say he really liked 70's vintage speakers. lol
I feel like the dude rolling the boulder up the hill, only for it to roll back to the bottom. And he rolls it again. and again. lol
I'm pretty good at mounting foam surrounds to those killer little speakers. lol
I actually play guitar through 2 full sets of 901's.
Great sound! Who would have thought? lol
They are straight drivers.

 

[valvenator]

I actually play guitar through 2 full sets of 901's.
Great sound! Who would have thought? lol
They are straight drivers.

I'm not all that surprised actually. Most guitar speakers are focused between 80hs to 5000hs.
Anything below or above that range is noise.
Those bose speakers seem to do very well in that range without the EQ.

 

[damacman]

I inherited 4 sets of 901 IV's and a Series VI on the original chrome Tulip stands. He had a dozen new speakers still wrapped. and a box of surrounds.
I've re-foamed a couple dozen. That's just the 901's. Let's say he really liked 70's vintage speakers. lol
I feel like the dude rolling the boulder up the hill, only for it to roll back to the bottom. And he rolls it again. and again. lol
I'm pretty good at mounting foam surrounds to those killer little speakers. lol
I actually play guitar through 2 full sets of 901's.
Great sound! Who would have thought? lol
They are straight drivers.

you won't believe what the chrome stands sell for on that big auction site ... i just sold a pair there ...

 

[78' JVC's]

you won't believe what the chrome stands sell for on that big auction site ... i just sold a pair there ...

I couldn't believe how much people are asking for them.
Some of them for sale look odd. They look like bar stools from the 60's and 70's.
Are there different ones for each year?
People are gonna ask a lot for this old electronic equipment, especially the hardware. There's only so much of it left.
I have 1 set of 501's that need some grille cloth. The OP got a good deal, but I would have definitely taken the 901's over the 501's, EQ or no EQ..
I run a Boss 7 band car EQ with the 901's. They have subwoofer jacks. I run a couple powered bass cabinets for low end.
It's all in how you position the 901's.
I like the 301's, good little speakers.