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RE: Not in the market, but if anybody in the desert Southwest is looking for B&W 801 Matrix?

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In Reply to: RE: Not in the market, but if anybody in the desert Southwest is looking for B&W 801 Matrix? posted by David S. on July 20, 2017 at 09:05:10

Bidding has just STARTED on these, expect them to go for upwards of 1500.00
I used to own these, and w/o the easy to do Van Alstine mod, I wasn't crazy about them.
But with the mod, that is blessed by B&W BTW, they are great, except, there are no more tweeters to be had for these.
The APOC Protection circuit sounds like shit, unless it is bypassed.
So, if you fry a tweeter, here is what it means
You must go to the series 3 tweeters, and that requires the series 3 crossovers, major surgery, major money, and get this.
The series 3 tweeters are ferrofluid filled, and sluggish sounding, compared to the non ferrofluid series 2 tweeters.

Honestly, I would not pay over 500.00 for a pair of these wonderful old speakers, for the reasons given above

Follow Ups:

RE: Not in the market, but if anybody in the desert Southwest is looking for B&W 801 Matrix? - tullman 16:06:32 07/21/17 (1)
Good points about the tweeters. It's really shame that B&W didn't keep the tweets available. I wouldn't want to mess around with new crossovers either. Nice speakers though.
- 801M S2 are indeed nice speakers... - Steve O 16:42:32 07/21/17 (0)
  ...Fragile tweeters were a known issue with this speaker thus the APOC circuit among other things. I liked mine so much I bought a spare pair of non-ferrofluid tweeters when they were still avail just in case . Haven't needed them so far so in storage but reassuring nonetheless.
RE: Not in the market, but if anybody in the desert Southwest is looking for B&W 801 Matrix? - brush001 05:12:31 07/21/17 (1)
Yeah cost a lot if tweeters go south........ hard to say whats left in other parts I never looked.
Not worth paying to much but a lot of people never go to manufacturer's website or contact to check current parts availability.
Once a speaker gets on 15 to 20 years best look up.Even some companies after 10 years
Some 802's now out of stock on some stuff.
- RE: Not in the market, but if anybody in the desert Southwest is looking for B&W 801 Matrix? - ka7niq 05:45:15 07/21/17 (0)
  Klipsch CF Series 3 and 4 are the same way, NO REPLACEMENT WOOFERS are to be had.
  I own Dunlavy SC IV's, and God help me, if a driver blows, since all the drivers are not made anymore, and each one was hand matched to the other drivers.
  Same with my DBX Soundfield 1A's
  The woofers aren't made anymore, and neither is the main tweeter.
I agree with some of that, but? - David S. 14:36:25 07/20/17 (4)
This is the 3rd time around for these, as far as I can tell.

First 2 times, there were NO bids at $450.

Won't defend the speakers much more than that - as I have 802s, and they are "S3," so my tweeters are just fine. :)

But? WILL say plenty of folks prefer the S2 & earlier. If local? I'd snatch them up for just cabinets & drivers.

p.s.? Exchanged some emails with Mr. Frank Van Alstine - he said he had no mods or suggestions for the S3 (at least as far as my 802 speakers went.) Do have quite a bit of respect for some of his mods & gear.
- RE: I agree with some of that, but? - ka7niq 14:48:58 07/20/17 (3)
  Frank Van Alstine's B&W 801 series 2 mod was said to have actually came from B&W !
  I had a friend in Seattle who was a B&W Dealer, and B&W was sending this mod out to their dealers.
  The word is, B&W was getting many complaints from their dealers about the musicality of the stock B&W 801 series 2
  The 801 series 2 was designed to be a monitor, with near ruler flat response.
  Many people don't really want an accurate speaker, they want a speaker that makes recorded material sound better then life.
  So, B&W Scooped the midrange with the so called Van Alstine Mod.
  The series 3 already has this done to it.
  
  A recording engineer seldom likes a speaker with a scooped midrange, just go to Gearsluts, or any forum frequented by recording engineers.
  They want a ruthlessly accurate monitor.
  - RE: I agree with some of that, but at it's age the xover should be done - A.Wayne 14:55:38 07/21/17 (0)
    And With the stands and xover updates these are very good speakers for the money ...
    
    Regards
  - RE: I agree with some of that, but? - fantja 15:05:21 07/20/17 (1)
    I have always found the 805N and 805D to be an accurate monitor.
    - RE: I agree with some of that, but? - ka7niq 15:12:45 07/20/17 (0)
      I believe my Dunlavy SC IV's to be accurate speakers.
Yup... - kootenay 12:43:06 07/20/17 (0)
This is one of the reasons I went with the 801 S3. BTW, I don't find the tweeter sound sluggish if anything it sounds transparent and concise. Perhaps this is attributed to the equipment that I'm using with it.

If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing well
(Proverb)

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