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Boston Acoustics A200 - wow!

S

simonz

New Member
Just connected up my new (to me) Boston Acoustics A200 and they are awesome. These are totally effortless and open with lots of clarity. Also they have great bass and are much more efficient that the A100's and A70 - no comparison. They also play great at low volume levels. To my ears, the A200's sound similar to my Polk Monitor 7C's, but with deeper bass, and not much like the lesser models of the Boston Acoustics A-Series which sound constrained in comparison.

Time to rethink where the A60, A70 and A100, and KLH Model Fives fit into my room with a new king in town.
 
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"effortless"... yep, that's definitely a word I would also use for describing these.

They're just a very dynamic speaker, that has no problem with ANY type of music...

Regards,
Gordon.
 
Glad you like 'em. :thmbsp:

I agree with you concerning the A100. I refoamed a pair and they sounded good, but I like my New Large Advents much more.

I finally moved the NLA's out after I got my A400's.

I really like the Boston Acoustic A series and judging by your collection...I know you do too. :thmbsp:
 
How doe the A150 rate in this group? Seems very similar in drivers to the 200 but smaller cab? I had A100's and now have A150's. Both good but thought the A150 resolved mid range better and is more balanced.
 
I would also like to know how the A150, A200 and A400 sound compared to each other. If anyone has owned these different models I'd be interested in hearing their opinions.

It's my understanding the A150 and A200 use the same drivers but different cabinets. Does anyone know if the crossovers are the same or different?

It's also my understanding the A400 used two 8" woofers and a mid (6"?) larger than the A150/200 used... Two questions here: are the larger drivers (physically larger mid and larger total surface area for the woofs) meant for more volume? Are the two 8" woofers driven identically, or does a crossover send different frequencies to the different woofs?

I keep checking Craigslist for A200's or A400's to come up in the Indianapolis area. Have yet to find anything. Bummer....

Malcolm
 
How would A150's with a good subwoofer (musical, not "boomy") compare to A200's or A400's?

I know the larger speakers had the mids and tweets higher to ear level... other than that, how would they compare?

Malcolm
 
I've owned and heard all but the 400s.

The a40s are a delightful small bookshelf. Many versions, including a "v" series, that is video shielded.

The a60 is a nice speaker, but falls short of the ability of the A70- the A70 is a better speaker. The 60 initially used a cone tweet- this was a "price-point" speaker. Later models used domes. Also the size was what one would consider more "spouse friendly". It's smaller than the A70 and suffers for it.
 
The a70 is a favorite of mine, and competes along the lines of the dynaco a25, klh6 & 17, AR 4ax, a/d/s/ l570, EPI 100, small advent, and more. It is in my opinion better than all of them, including the Dynaco, and equivalent to a/d/s/.

This may cause raised eyebrows- the Dynaco is great, but I have found it to be boomy in some rooms, with some gear, and with certain recordings.
 
The a100 was considered to be, from BA's own literature, their first "no compromise" speaker. It's what I'd call a placement-friendly Large Advent, with smoother highs and less bass. This model featured more internal bracing than the 70s and below...
 
A150s were the real competition to the large advent, and if rumor is true, what andy Petite/Kostasos designed to be the "better" LA. Andy worked with henry Kloss at Advent, remember.

These were the three-way BAs. And filled in any (minor) midrange issues of the a100.

The a200 used a different midrange than the a150, and a larger cabinet. The result was an a150 with more "breath". And a bit more dominance.

The a400 dropped the a200's single 10" woofer for twin 8" woofers. Same box size as the a200.

I've not heard the a400- some folk claim it's a toss-up in which is better- the a200 or a400. This can be argued about other speakers- like the ads 1090 and 1290- but here's my guess on it...

The a400 should provide a slightly tighter bass control, and more bass- BUT this could easily unbalance the overall sound of the smooth relaxed and muscularly capable a200.

I would think the a400 would need a big room to work properly.
 
mcgeorge said:
It's also my understanding the A400 used two 8" woofers and a mid (6"?) larger than the A150/200 used... Two questions here: are the larger drivers (physically larger mid and larger total surface area for the woofs) meant for more volume? Are the two 8" woofers driven identically, or does a crossover send different frequencies to the different woofs?
Malcolm
Click to expand...

From the sales brochure-

"The combined radiating area of the two 8-inch drivers is equal to that of one 12-inch woofer. However, the A400 is superior in reliability to single woofer systems because each woofer is required to handle only half the power fed to the system. This is especially important when reproducing the low frequencies and high levels common in Digital Audio Disc records. Additionally, the use of two active, smaller cone woofers insures transient response equal to the most demanding resources."

There you go, that's what Boston Acoustics has to say.
 
I've also heard some prefer the A200 to the A400.

I wouldn't turn either away if I could find them locally. There's a pair of A400's in Cleveland, but since I'm married with little kids a day trip is not in the cards...

Do you think A150's with a nice musical subwoofer would be the equivalent of the A200 or A400?
 
Welcome to AK Malcom!

Adding a sub to your A150's would certainly help give more weight to the sound, which is my biggest beef with the smaller cabinet A-series speakers. How everything else compares is another question I don't have an answer for since I have not heard the A150's or A200's.
 
A100 stacked with A60 Series II

I find my A100's have good bass but are lacking in midrange and presence. To improve on them, I stack an A60 Series II on each of my A100's and run each pair out of separate amps. The result is a much improved midrange and presence than with the A100's all alone. This stacking arrangement sounds great, like a different speaker system, but I still think the A200's have an edge.
 
A150s and A200s are very similiar. An a150 with a subwoofer should in fact produce more bass output than an a200 alone. Trick will be properly integrating it.

What the a200 offers over the a150 is, like I subscribed above, a bit more ease to the sound, a bit more range.

Remember- the a150 was the big seller of the larger models- a combo of good price, optimal sound, and reasonable size, these factors enough to convince most folk to opt for the a150 over the 200 and 400.

Both the a150 and a200 should be plenty to delight most listeners. And note that even the a200 can be a bit big for some rooms.
 
thedelihaus said:
The a70 is a favorite of mine, and competes along the lines of the dynaco a25, klh6 & 17, AR 4ax, a/d/s/ l570, EPI 100, small advent, and more. It is in my opinion better than all of them, including the Dynaco, and equivalent to a/d/s/.

This may cause raised eyebrows- the Dynaco is great, but I have found it to be boomy in some rooms, with some gear, and with certain recordings.
Click to expand...

thanks for the motivation....I have a set of A70's that need a refoam. Got the surrounds from Gene, will try to get them done this week.
I have a pair of A150s hooked up now, like that neutral sound they produce.
 
I should have jumped on those A200s Gordon had a couple years ago. 100s and 150s pop up on Craigslist from time to time. Still have my eyes peeled for a nice pair of 200s....
 
Satisfied original owner of A400s

Great thread, folks! I love to talk BA A-series...

I have owned a set of A400s since 1984 and picked up some A-150 Series II's about a year ago. I've been using the A400s in a large room for years and they sound fantastic. I would not class them as a "hard rock/party" speaker because of the problems I've had with my amps overheating--the whole 4 ohm issue. (FYI, I have alternated between bridging and bi-amping my 1984-vintage NAD 3150 (integrated) and 2150 (power) 50 wpc amps--bridging is supposed to compound the 4 Ohm load issue but I've never noticed much difference). I think the A400's are an absolutely great speaker for jazz, acoustic--pretty much everything except high-volume, hard rock.

I can't compare to A200s--never heard 'em.

The A-150s sound great and have a similar tightness and detail as the A400 but just can't fill a large room as well as the 400s. I've heard A100's but it's been a long time so I can't offer much advice about adding a sub. I would think it would be helpful.

--Matt
 
Yup, I've owned my a200's for 3 years already, they're my first set of speakers. I love them.
They're one of the reasons I joined this site.
 
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