The Bose 301 Series IV Speaker Pair
- Thread starter jdscott60
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rose jackets
Member
I'm very glad you like your speakers. I enjoyed the set I owned in college that would have been similar vintage to yours.
Unfortunately, there may be other visitors to this thread with nothing nice to say.
Unfortunately, there may be other visitors to this thread with nothing nice to say.
aidynphoenix
Super Member
like me!
although what i said isnt negative
lol enjoy your speakers
although what i said isnt negative
lol enjoy your speakers
I've had a couple pairs of Bose and sold one pair. Can't remember the model but was not the x01 series. they sounded pretty good and were small. I still have some 201s...The jury is still out on them. I think I will try and snag some 301s if I get the chance.
i have 2 pair of 301's.
A series 2, and a series 4.
i have them in separate locations and have never done an A/B comparison...but they sound ok . i like the series 4 better.
They're not the greatest sounding speakers, but they disperse the sound well, and I appreciate the size and weight .
you have to play with the location to get the optimal sound from them. refer to the owners manual, or download it right from bose.
A series 2, and a series 4.
i have them in separate locations and have never done an A/B comparison...but they sound ok . i like the series 4 better.
They're not the greatest sounding speakers, but they disperse the sound well, and I appreciate the size and weight .
you have to play with the location to get the optimal sound from them. refer to the owners manual, or download it right from bose.
mikeybc
Listener
dshoaf
That high voltage buzz
Here's my experience with the 301:
I remember the day the Bose rep came around and explained there was a new speaker in the line - this would have been about 1977 or so - to compliment the 901 and the 501s. It was to be an 'entry' level speaker to help dealers sell more Bose speakers and take advantage of upgrades.
The Bose rep arranged for us to come to a local hotel where he had rented a conference room for the unveiling and demo. Earlier in the day he had come to the store to borrow some gear; he took: Pioneer SX-1010 receiver, a Sony PS-X6 turntable and a set of JBL L-100s to complement the Crown tape recorder he brought. The sales guys on the floor snickered that this 'evening with Bose' was going to be a debacle - "what on earth would these 'entry' level speakers do with a set up like that?", they asked.
So, the store closed and we all went to dinner on Bose in the conference room where the gear was all covered so we couldn't see what speakers were being played at low volume throughout the dinner. The gear was arrayed along the long wall of the room and our seating put us right into the point of what we now know as the Cardas triangle - the sweet spot.
After dinner, the rep then went into what was clearly a presentation he had done many times (thank goodness we didn't have PowerPoint back then!). The demo itself consisted of a well-recorded tape of both live recordings and some well-known recordings typically used for demos in that day - Sheffield Labs, etc. Of course, the speakers were switched back and forth quite a few times and at various volume levels including _very_ loud. We were not allowed to see which ones we were hearing and any given time. At the end of the demo, the rep asked each of us to determine what speaker we had been hearing - a blind test sort of thing.
Frankly, I had great difficulty determining whether I was hearing the JBLs or the 301s. There was no trickery in the demo - just the use of the Pioneer's A/B speaker switch. The only real difference I could hear was the the JBLs did not start to compress their sound at higher volumes. That is, while the sound stage, bass slam and air around the instruments on both the 301s and L-100s appeared, in the sweet spot, to be about the same, the 301 performance started to become noticeable when pushed hard with lots of power by not getting any louder. One area where the 301s excelled was that sound stage was wider - you could step out of the sweet spot for the L-100s and you could then tell when the 301s were switched back in as the sound stage expanded again.
The sales guys were completely impressed and used similar demo setups in their sales pitches on the floor and sold a _lot_ of 301s. As the bench tech, I was usually called upon to design and install sound systems for many restaurants, cafes and other smaller establishments. For these applications, I found the slanted-front 301s to offer lots of flexibility for placement and sound coverage. We installed many, many sets for this reason, too.
Clearly, the speaker's design center and product positioning was well-done as the product still sits in the product line some 40+ years later. This is a testament to well-executed, targeted marketing, IMHO.
Cheers,
David
I remember the day the Bose rep came around and explained there was a new speaker in the line - this would have been about 1977 or so - to compliment the 901 and the 501s. It was to be an 'entry' level speaker to help dealers sell more Bose speakers and take advantage of upgrades.
The Bose rep arranged for us to come to a local hotel where he had rented a conference room for the unveiling and demo. Earlier in the day he had come to the store to borrow some gear; he took: Pioneer SX-1010 receiver, a Sony PS-X6 turntable and a set of JBL L-100s to complement the Crown tape recorder he brought. The sales guys on the floor snickered that this 'evening with Bose' was going to be a debacle - "what on earth would these 'entry' level speakers do with a set up like that?", they asked.
So, the store closed and we all went to dinner on Bose in the conference room where the gear was all covered so we couldn't see what speakers were being played at low volume throughout the dinner. The gear was arrayed along the long wall of the room and our seating put us right into the point of what we now know as the Cardas triangle - the sweet spot.
After dinner, the rep then went into what was clearly a presentation he had done many times (thank goodness we didn't have PowerPoint back then!). The demo itself consisted of a well-recorded tape of both live recordings and some well-known recordings typically used for demos in that day - Sheffield Labs, etc. Of course, the speakers were switched back and forth quite a few times and at various volume levels including _very_ loud. We were not allowed to see which ones we were hearing and any given time. At the end of the demo, the rep asked each of us to determine what speaker we had been hearing - a blind test sort of thing.
Frankly, I had great difficulty determining whether I was hearing the JBLs or the 301s. There was no trickery in the demo - just the use of the Pioneer's A/B speaker switch. The only real difference I could hear was the the JBLs did not start to compress their sound at higher volumes. That is, while the sound stage, bass slam and air around the instruments on both the 301s and L-100s appeared, in the sweet spot, to be about the same, the 301 performance started to become noticeable when pushed hard with lots of power by not getting any louder. One area where the 301s excelled was that sound stage was wider - you could step out of the sweet spot for the L-100s and you could then tell when the 301s were switched back in as the sound stage expanded again.
The sales guys were completely impressed and used similar demo setups in their sales pitches on the floor and sold a _lot_ of 301s. As the bench tech, I was usually called upon to design and install sound systems for many restaurants, cafes and other smaller establishments. For these applications, I found the slanted-front 301s to offer lots of flexibility for placement and sound coverage. We installed many, many sets for this reason, too.
Clearly, the speaker's design center and product positioning was well-done as the product still sits in the product line some 40+ years later. This is a testament to well-executed, targeted marketing, IMHO.
Cheers,
David
I'm not familiar with the Series IV, but years ago, I was impressed by earlier 301's. They sounded like my 901's, but cost much less. Their owner was modest about this.
On the other hand, a record store (remember them) I frequented had speakers on the walls. A pair of Infinitys in the back. A pair of Boses in the front. I don't know what model. They might have been 201's. Smaller than the 301's. They sounded terrible, compared to the Infinitys. The Bose had a thin, sterile sound. So it seems that there was a big jump in quality between some of Bose's smaller bookshelf speakers and the 301's.
My understanding is that the 301's have deeper bass compared to other bookshelf speakers. The trade-off is a dip in the frequency response higher up. A typical bookshelf speaker in that price range will be flat down to about 80Hz, so you can upgrade when you're ready by adding a subwoofer. If you want to upgrade your 301's, replace them with more expensive speakers.
On the other hand, a record store (remember them) I frequented had speakers on the walls. A pair of Infinitys in the back. A pair of Boses in the front. I don't know what model. They might have been 201's. Smaller than the 301's. They sounded terrible, compared to the Infinitys. The Bose had a thin, sterile sound. So it seems that there was a big jump in quality between some of Bose's smaller bookshelf speakers and the 301's.
My understanding is that the 301's have deeper bass compared to other bookshelf speakers. The trade-off is a dip in the frequency response higher up. A typical bookshelf speaker in that price range will be flat down to about 80Hz, so you can upgrade when you're ready by adding a subwoofer. If you want to upgrade your 301's, replace them with more expensive speakers.
rose jackets
Member
Great story. For some reason I love hearing this sort of thing.
Parnelly
Well-Known Member
I agree. I love when dshoaf gives us a vintage memory of his from when he was a stereo guy. I often sit and think how cool it would have been to be around in that day. When a stereo shop sold stereos. These days you'd be lucky to see a bose rep anywhere.
www.records
Quality over Quantity
I have owned several pair of BOSE over the years. Had a pair of 201 and then some 601. Gave the 201 to one of my kids when he was a teenager. I gave the 601 to a local kid who I met here on AK a few years ago. Got some 301 later and gave those to a friend. Yesterday a guy gave me a nice pair of 901 with EQ but am unsure where I am going to put them.
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OLDTIMESOUND
Active Member
the 301's are a decent pair of REAL bookshelf speakers.
For all that's been said, all I can say is from all the speakers I have ever heard or owned, the IV 301's are the most accurate, and clean. When I bought them, I was in a 'speaker' listening' room at Circuit City. There were Altec Lansings, Fishers, Pioneers, Cerwin Vegas, etc. The little 301's knocked every other model out of the room, ca. 1991
