BOSE hi-fi

Hi

I am seeking some advise from members of this site on whether to purchase Bose related equipment especially their wireless range.

FYI their Wave systems - radio and radio/cd sets can be upgraded to play music generated from a PC through their wireless upgrade.

Firstly, what does member think of their wave systems sound quality? Is it value for money? 3 models ranging from radio only RM 1.6K, radio/cd RM 2.1K and RM 4.4K!

The wireless add on is RM 790.

Hence if I am looking at the combo source of either radio / cd and PC output I am looking at estimate about RM 3K.

So for RM 3K, i get a radio /cd player that can receive wireless signal from a PC. Is this a good deal?

How would that compare with
a. a hi-fi combo costing RM 3K in terms of sound quality - I would need a cd player, amp and bookshelf speaker?
b. a highend midi system?

many thanks in advance.

ps the range is 60 feet

I am not very aware of their products but most hifi / av enthusiats condemn BOSE. Some even called them "Buy Other Sound Equipment" if you google around can find plenty of reviews.

As for your question: Are they value for money? No!

Most of the time their HT gear can easily cost 5 figures and many other brand systems can perform on par on better with half the asking price of Bose.

IMO, people buy Bose is due to their design and simplicity to use / install.

Alex

Many thanks for your comments.

In my case I am not looking into HT but rather audio. Would similar comments be valid?

What about alternatives providers that have wireless solutions?

Hi pengembara,

As mentioned, I am not very aware of BOSE products. But when it comes to radio first thing that appears in my mind is Tivoli.

You might want to check them out. As far as I am concern A&L @ Amcorp mall carries them. Perhaps you can audition and compare urself then.

Happy hunting.

Some readings for you before you make any decision: http://www.tivoliaudio.com/home.php?xid=e6f1468af140148b03634c9933fddd27

i will check them out and post a review if i bought them

If it sounds alright to you, there's not much else that compares to the one-box simplicity of that radio, which is actually quite decent.

Tivoli is more musical but has a more limited frequency range (cut off lows, highs). If you add the 2nd speaker and the sub then it gets expensive and very complicated, wires everywhere. Personally I think the single-box Tivoli is a good buy if all you need is radio, but not worth it if you add all the extra modules.

B&O looks nicer an sounds better (though still not fantastic) but is even more expensive.

On the other hand, you will get better sound from a mini component system. Look at units from Denon, Marantz and Yamaha - CD player, tuner and amplifier in one small box for $1k-2k. Then you can add a nice pair of compact bookshelves for another $1k.

For digital audio, you can consider an Airport Express which you can control with your iPod Touch / iPhone, or a Squeezebox.

If i remember correctly, Bose (punjabi guy who opened shop in the US) became famous for 1 reason : Their all in one cd/amp/dvd setup, which is today called "theater in a box" which every other brand carries too. They sold the idea that it was not necessary to have a bulky set-up to enjoy the home theater experience.

I remember the bose demo quite well in the 90's. They played music and scenes from movies......The system was : 2 huge speakers in front, a multitude of AV equipment, 2 large speakers at the back. It was enjoyable, and we all went - "wow, nicelah....good sound"...At the end of it, the salesperson opened the large speakers to reveal smaller speakers inside, and show your their theater in a box as being the source of the whole thing, not the cluster of AV equipment. THIS WAS THEIR SELLING POINT. Not the sound as such, but that it came from a single box, and small speakers. Any newbie would have been as good as sold!!

However, BOSE also became quite infamous for several reasons. They passed off some crappy headphone gear as "state of the art" and sold it to the American Air-Force at such exhorbitant prices. It was quite a scandal. Also, someone got hold of their CAPEX and found out they were spending much more on advertising, then on the products themselves. So that started a Love-Hate relationship with the public.
As for the products - well i really cant say they are bad, but they do come at a price....since the brand is a pioneer in the field.

I would suggest visiting their showroom in KLCC, and comparing other similar AV equipment before deciding what you are looking for. Cheers

Thanks everyone.

I think Bose is a professor of acoustics in MIT. he came out with a patented system/s especially his radio and then radio/cd which i can recalled was modeled after the human ear. anyway all components in bose product are proprietary.

yes i remembered the demo. could not afford a bose then. ;-)

i checked out a&l in amcorp for tivoli. no stock. i went and tested a china-made system in another shop. quite decent sound and good package incl power conditioner, cables, etc for around 8K (cd player, amp, floor standing speakers)

still undecided between the bose radio/cd (epl season coming to end but heck bfm plays my type of music) @ rm2400 while you add another 700 you can have your pc transferring music to be broadcaste through the radio/cd which i thought was pretty neat.

so guys for slight under 4K what kind of quality / sound system can i buy?

cheers

This is very intresting...I love the look of the cd wave, almost bought it but if you can wait year end they give give some discount. They always demo with their cd, it always sonds good. Bring your favourite cd and test it out! I did that and am not impressed, i think Sony mini compo sounds better! Any way for branding and a nice display alarm clock why not??

Do let us know the outcome do let me know! I might join too...