They no longer sell the Bose Acoustimass 5's. The closest thing I found is this Bose Acoustimass 6 system on Amazon. Bose Acoustimass 6 (5.1 channel system) amzn.to/3qSaRiq There are a few of the direct/reflect jewel cubes left if you're interested: Bose Jewel Cubes Direct/Reflect: amzn.to/3SziFl9 My Speaker Leaderboard: bit.ly/SpeakerLeaderboard Disclosure: The Affiliate links above earn me a commission if you purchase using those links. This is at no additional cost to you.
Joe, I agree. I think some audiophiles tend to make the mistake differentiating between lifestyle and audiophile products. Some people don’t want to spend thousands for components. Especially, when they have limited space. it’s ok to prefer lifestyle no fuss products. Thank you for educating the viewers Joe.
To be truthful, Bose was never priced, advertised, or sold, as a "Lifestyle" product, but as a high performance product. Bose owners overwhelmingly believed they owned the best audio system money could buy. It was more than fair for audiophiles to take issue with that.
@@TemujinScott80 That may be true, but that didn't apply to audiophile's views of Bose. BTW, the AM5 was part of a Bose component system. Bang & Olufsen has been making lifestyle product for nearly just as long as Bose, yet never received a quarter of the grief from audiophile. There's a reason for the difference.
@@Cakebattered that’s a matter of opinion. Each person has their preference. Some tend to fault folks for their preference. It’s their money and what they like
In my house are many media rooms and one listening room. My main media room is still rocking a surround set up (5.1) with the AM-5s (dual stack cubes) for the fronts, AM-3s for the rear and another set of AM-3s for the B channel placed at ear level on the side walls. My center is a Bose VCS 10. I run them all whenever my 3 year old 65” Sony is on…through a vintage Sony STR-D715 receiver. The Bose are all approx. 30 years old and the receiver is 20+ (I think) and not one hiccup with any of this equipment after all these years and 3 moves. For what I use them for, the Bose subs and cubes have been great. My listening room is a pair of Klipsch RP-160Ms mated to a vintage Carver AV100 , a Technics SL-1600 turntable and a JVC CD player….and a wire from my iPad to the Carver to stream my Apple Music library. I’m no audiophile but am pleased with all my musical toys. They all serve the purposes I use them for. My brother in law has a pair of vintage Klipsch LaScalas, a 10 watt tube amp and a $5k turntable and visiting him reminds me of the investment required to own very good equipment…lol! Btw in the ‘70s I bought a pair of Bose 901s and a Pioneer SX-1010. The Pioneer died about 10 years ago but I sold the 901s to a vintage audio dealer in Arizona 3 years ago on eBay…for $200 less than I paid for them in the ‘70s!!! Evidently someone out there still appreciates Bose.
Absolutely, excellent content. So glad to see a modern day review of such an iconic/infamous product of the 90s. That's said, I was a poor audiophile college student in the 90s who remembers the Bose AM5s in the context of their day. $800 back then was a lot of money. That amount typically paid for a pair of bookshelf speakers AND a receiver. Paradigm's Mini Monitors or NHT's Super One's are great examples of 6.5" 2-ways that cost $350/pr and were better in everyway sonically, just less wife acceptance factor. You also had offerings from Kef, B&W, ADS, Celestion, etc in that $800 price range. I personally think Bose rightfully earned their infamous reputation.
These were the speakers I remember being used for my dad's surround sound setup around 20 years ago. I remember a bunch of family and friends having them as well. Dad said he got rid of his huge 80s Cerwin-Vegas and got these to save space. I know that these did the job for his surround sound very well, and he liked them for that, but I've never heard him wax nostalgically for their sound.
That’s the Acoustimass 3 series IV system actually, it only has the single cubes and the sub module only has a single dual coil driver. The 5 has double cubes and two single voice coil drivers. Both very impressive systems for their small size. Love the video, always nice to sip some coffee and watch some speaker videos! My Acoustimass 10 ii gets down to 30hz with authority, I actually have two stacked on each other for the extra boost and my house sounds like a club lol.
That is actually not a bad response (for a bookshelf) which you could be brought down with a simple treble control on amps which is usually centered at 10khz, since the rise is rather linear. The crucial 800 - 3khz area looks pretty smooth. Truth to be told, I was working for Bose way back in Malaysia in the KLCC showroom on the 3rd floor and I had my fare share of removing the 'large loudspeakers' to make everyone go wow. I was then transfered to the Bandar Sunway HQ for outdoor duties and I was handling outdoor events for a few years before I jumped shipped to another hifi shop called A&L Audio. I was impressed with that sound back then, and I wish I could hear all that again with the added knowledge I have now.
Hi Mark, it's a small world, I actually purchased my Bose AM5 system way back in Sept 1987, at an audio shop in Singapore - it could just as well have been Kuala Lumpur cos I passed through KL on our way to Ipoh.
Nice seeing someone appreciate all the work that Bose put into it and I have the Acoustimass 10 ii and it has 3 woofers and doesn’t sound bad for what is, fills my living room pretty well. Got a few other Acoustimass systems as well but feel like the 10 shined the most for me. Especially with the port facing a front corner. The Acoustimass 10 ii gets down to 27hz and pressurizes my listening space nicely.
My 20 year old purchased new series 6 is still going strong with a Pioneer VX 830 feeding it. I put on Audeze EL-8 headphones with PS Audio Sprout amp for my music pleasure. Thanks for sharing. It's still fun turning up the volume and visitors asking where the sound is coming from.
Thanks for a great review; I bought the original Bose Acoustimass AM5 four cube (2 x 2 stacked) system in the mid-80's. Powered by my Cambridge amp, yeah sure they have a huge gaping mid-range hole - nonetheless I still love them for what they offer, a perfectly acceptable audio experience for my ears. I'm not at all ashamed to admit the marketing and demo sucked me in, since they do exactly what they are designed for - to give a wide bright nice soundstage, minus the need for the space and footprint requirements of conventional speaker cabinets. I also have a far superior second 'modest' system (Acoustic Energy speakers, REL subwoofer, Yamaha amp), but I'll always love the AM5's for its very interesting and novel performance. Nowadays, their whole classic speaker line up (ie. 301, 501, 601, 901, Acoustimass etc.) is a bygone era, and it saddens me that it appears Bose put no effort in innovating their range to stay relevant in the passive home speaker market.
I bought the Acoutimass 15 the latest version in 2005 and i still have. Still people when they come to my house still say what a nice speakers you have. The sound in my living room still sounds good for me and i still enjoy movie's.
My wife's cousin had these when they first came on the market back then it was a new concept,it sounded good and bass out of nowhere(subwoofer)out of sight,to my ears sounded good.
Most audiophiles probably can't even hear the high frequency roll-off. It's most likely the sound of paper cones or directivity. I always found that Bose had more than enough "highs" and enough bass, though contoured a certain way
Great walk down memory lane. I had the Acoustimass 5’s , 301’s and 601’s in my earlier 20’s and I thought I was at the pinnacle of Audiophileness lol. This was in the early 90’s when CD’s and cd players were affordable and really taking off. I remember stores have full Bose areas. There should be some kinda of college course on Bose marketing because they were on fire!
@@MrMegatron85 Whoa! That is a bit insane, given the drivers may well need some love and care by now. The 501 and 601 were some odd designs back then, reminds of those extremely odd Sonab omnidirectional boxes - they were so bizarre!
Wow, your assessment was accurate. I bought the Bose VCS-10 center channel and Bose 301 speakers to replace the front split cube LCR. I still have the rear split cubes and bass module and they sound pretty good in my living room. It's a simple 5.1 setup paired with a Denon AVR-889. The speakers are 20 years old and the AVR is about 15 years old. I forgot about that until you mentioned it. LOL 😆 Great video and cool idea. I never thought to run REW on my living room system. I was always focused on my multimedia area setup. Now I have to get the UMIK-2 and laptop and test those old Bose speakers, just for fun.
The AM5s (with the stacked cubes) where my intro to modern hifi when my father's Zenith Allegro system finally gave up the ghost. I remember being astounded at how much sound came out of this setup. When I started working at Circuit City I sold my share of Bose product although I hated it as I always tried to steer people towards the better hifi we sold but it was obviously hard to get someone to look at infinity Kappas or Cerwin Vegas when all they wanted was something that sounded good and didn't take much space.
@@anthonyperez_audiophile Especially on home audio and car audio stuff. 50% if I remember correctly. That just goes to show the markup on those items was really high.
Everything you’re saying is exactly true with the dip in the mids. I remember listening to certain music where it did sound like there was a slight hole in the mids. I used to have a set of the AM5 s2, dual cube version. It was what started my love affair with good sounding music/audio.
The Bose AM5 series were pretty awesome for the time. Bear in mind that there were a few versions - I think it's the 2nd or 3rd version that had the 8th order bandpass bass module. The first version used a 6th order bandpass module. And the last version I believe used an offset-transmission line arrangement, basically what you see used in the Bose AM6. Don't let moisture get anywhere near the cheap chipboard panels of the bass module.. 🙂. Your measured response of the 8th order bass module looks... unusual. It's certainly different to other measurements I've seen. Perhaps one of the drivers is damaged? I measured a similar wonky performance from another AM5II module, and it turned out that one of the bass drivers had a ripped surround. The drivers themselves have an Fs just under 60 Hz (at least, the ones that I measured did), and not much linear travel, so it's pretty amazing that Bose managed to squeeze bass down to the 40's from them. As for the summation notch at 230(?) Hz, the size of that notch would likely be very dependent on the positioning of the satellites and bass module wrt the listening position, and the room is going to have something to say about it as well. Mounting the bass module down on the floor and near a corner with the satellites a bit out in the room will likely eliminate that notch for example. The overall response of the AM5 system does resemble one of those old "loudness contours" a bit, which probably contributed to its popularity. Finally, the general 80 Hz "standard" for subwoofers I think is based on how much their output would be attenuated at 200 Hz, given a 12dB/octave LP filter @ that frequency, because it's around 200 Hz that localization of the subwoofer becomes easy. A steeper cutoff slope means a higher Fc can be used.
Good knowledge there! 👏 I thought the response of the bass module was rather good. It may not seem like that based on my scaling, but it's mostly between +/-3dB of flat within its operating region. The 3 peaks seem indicative of an 8th order bandpass where they may have used 3 different tuning frequencies for each chamber.
I have them and i listen daily. Incredible and MIND BLOWING sound from such a small bass module and tiny speakers. DFX audio enhancer for windows and Boom audio for Mac is enough to boost Treble and punch. I am so IMPRESSED. Now I am buying Bose L1 Pro16. All negative videos on Bose are paid by their opponent to bash dear Bose. salute to Amar Bose and its team. Truth always comes out. And now they are shining! Respect and too much love...💌
See my posts above, yep, I love my AM5's dearly, they are indeed genuinely incredible given what you see in front of you vs. the quality of the sound they output. Whist I have a far superior audio system comprising Acoustic Energy (Aegis 2) speakers & REL subwoofer, I'm just as happy listening to my Bose AM5's for their transparency, wideness and audio cleverness.
Joe Thanks for the review and the trip down memory lane. I'd like to point out that the speaker you reviewed here is the AM-3, not the AM-5. The performance of these two speakers were quite a bit different in terms of bass repose and power handling. In addition the treble was mush smoother on the AM-5. The AM-3 used a single 5.25' woofer in the bass module, while the AM-5 used two 5.25' woofers in a larger cabinet. This helped to fill the frequency response gap at 250hz. As you also indicated in your great review, the use of two cubes smoothed out the mids and treble compared to the AM-3. In the end, I felt they were too expensive compared to the Cambridge Soundworks New Ensemble 2 (which I still own) Take care and thanks again 😊👍
Hi Joe, minor correction, the original AM-5 use two x 6" woofers in the bass unit (as per Bose AM-5 user manual and promotional brochure). Note: Stereo Review (April) 1987 quote a different figure again ie. two x 6.5" drivers for the bass unit.
These make for great wide, surround, or height/atmos speakers in small rooms/ room that reqiure WAF approval. In larger rooms I would use the double acoustimas cubes (the 7). Not separating or pivoting top and bottom even in surround situations. That version should be for 5.1 music not stereo as speakers can be very cumbersome in space. In my experience that I have, I used 2 pairs of acoustimas 5s, one set for left, the other for right. Thereby utilizing the L/R, the surrounds, and the 2 bass modules one on each side left and right. This gave me a little more bass separation (at times it can be noticeable). I used a center channel that it was of higher quality. This set up eventually wounded up being only used as my surrounds when I got a 7.1 system and was able to upgrade my LCR Channels. This was good for basic music needs and then eventually for when I wanted to watch a movie. That saved me a lot of headache with the significant other and I was able to achieve the results that I needed under the budget that I had. I recommend the 7 because most people might not have a theater set up and desire one but can't have 1 due to space limitations. Using this gives you better sound than a sound bar for the same price. With the 7 or 9 set up, you would be able to have the center channel and the rear surround channels with the extra speakers. The ones that Joe mentioned is nice but I moved on from that as soon as my situation changed and just used them as back surrounds, and the rest of speakers in the bedroom and kitchen using a wireless set up.
I almost bought that system for a friend of mine from Russia by his request in the mid 90-s. I was looking for a best price and went to some speaker repair shop on Sunset Blvd. by downtown LA that was listed as an official Bose dealer. The owner of that place was very surprised and asked a tech to play me some Tannoy bookshelf speakers. I called the friend and stopped looking for a Bose that very day. Eventually, I have sent him 3 pairs of floorstanders to choose from: KEF Q-70, NHT 2.5 and B&W DM-630. Also I would definitely get him a pair of Mission 735, but couldn't get them at a discount price.
The Bose "Acoustimass Module" isn't a subwoofer and isn't claimed to be one. Think of this speaker set as a set of bookshelf speakers, but they took the low/mid frequency drivers out of the box and put them in a separate box from the high frequency drivers that you can stick someone more convenient.
I own the Bose Am-5 produced in 1986 that included two 6.5"" bass drivers, I believe it was the first Acoustimass system that was originally developed. The sound is amazing for such a compact system, recently! I bought the YAQIN MC-13S tube stereo integrated amplifier that further improved the sound experience.
The active EQ and compressor definitely does its job at regular volume. It does get thinner sounding as you turn them up, however most people aren't turning speakers this small up so loud
I used my dads old set of acoustimas 5’s, up until a couple of years ago. I upgraded to a modern 5.1 theater system, because I wanted true separated channel sound. My old Bose system upmixed 2 channel audio into its 5.1 speakers, so it was a big upgrade going to a true separated 5.1 system for home theater sound. Otherwise, I would still be using my old 28 year old Bose system. It sounds wayy better than built in TV audio, and sounds better than most sound bars.
Very cool review, Joe. There is a difference between consumer audio and high end. As in any human interest, there are practical things, and then there are items created to stretch concepts and what can be done. The AM5 is pleasant and aesthetically pleasing. If it hits the spot for the user, its not a bad unit.
I have similar white 90’s jewel cubes wall 7:18 mounted from the previous owner and they hadn’t used them in years…. Hooked them up to a old Panasonic 5.1 system and used with the TV… The sound is absolutely amazing! Always loved older Bose products the quality is amazing and they still hold up almost 3 decades later! 💙
I bought a Bose Acoustimass 5 (dual swivel tweeters) system in the early 1990's from a friend who wanted more impressive looking speakers. I paid somewhere between two or three hundred. Not a terrible price. In the early 2000's when multichannel sound entered the marketplace via DVD's I bought a Denon 5.1 receiver. It had no digital video capabilities but it did have SPDIF/TosLink for audio. It also only can decode Dolby Digital and DTS compressed audio. So what did I do for a surround sound speaker system? I bought a new Bose Acoustimass 5 set. It was around five hundred dollars. The new set was now the "front" channels and the older set was for the "rear" channels. I bought a generic brand center channel speaker for under one hundred dollars and twelve inch subwoofer also for around one hundred. I eventually got rid of the subwoofer because two Bose "Acoustimass" modules put out plenty of bass for the smallish (~12' x 20') room I'm in. 120DB 5-20 Hz is too much "woof" for me! I still use the system as is. It sounds "good enough." If I had a 10,000 square foot home and excessive funds I probably would go all out for a super home theater system. But I don't. So I won't. 🤫
I have an old Bose cinemate i got for 50% off upsell with a tv prolly 15 years ago. They still work flawlessly and sound pretty good imo (the speakers are prolly twice the size of the ones in this review and are quite heavy). I use them to compliment my tv audio. I have a soundbar with 2 wireless rears. I have it's 2 speakers as the front let and right to add a bit to the bubble and its bass module. I actually have to attached the tv using a small dac that has bass and treble controls through optical to dac and RCA to them. My main complaint with them is the bass module was so mildly tuned with no EQ to increase it which they added in the later models. This is what the DAC was for and completely fixed that and works well. The module is a lot more capable i thought it would be honestly and i'm not sure why they kept it so tame. Speakers often don't sound bar tweeters to push the dialog and clarity over them easily. Pretty solid 250 bux as I more than got my money worth over the years.
The Klipsch the Fives I have in my living room connected to a record player through Phono, a phone through BT, a computer through USB and a TV through HDMI are the least audiophile system I have owned since I was a teen. But they are so easy to live with, looks amazing with real wood faner and I dont need a sub because there actually is some base below 50 Hz. Once I could dial up the mids through the app they where as perfect as I can expect for the price and size. And sometimes the soundstage, even though they stand too close surprise me. Looks and convenience are just as important for most of us as long as the sound is good enough. 👌
I bought the Bose 5 lifestyle system new in 2000 .........23 yrs later and I still have it - the only thing I've done is to buy a digital converter to plug into the back of the TV so I can run the tv sound through it - the sound is amazing and I wouldn't swap it for the world.
Joe, Great video!I have the Bose Acoustamass 7. Do you still believe that this cubed system sound better than most soundbar systems? If so , where would you say is the cutoff in comparative quality.
BOSE does what most manufacturers don't . They have continued through research to push the boundaries of physics... One great recent example is their newest bluetooth speaker the Bose SoundLink Flex... When I first heard it I like most tech reviewers wondered what kind of sorcery they were using to pruduce such great sound from such a small enclosure .. I hope other manufacturers will make the same kind of investment in their products
Hi Stephen, your comment has me intrigued. I have the Soundlink Mini 1, which I rate as incredible sounding for its size and portability. I believe it has L and R drivers, plus twin passive radiators ie. multiple drivers in that tiny solid shell. Despite distortion at full blast, Its a fantastic Bluetooth speaker IMO. I must therefore have look at the Flex, cos' I thought it would have been inferior with only having 1 single driver (to 'do it all') compared the the Mini 1.
Another awesome video, I remember seeing this demo at the San Francisco Bose store years ago. I’m working on my RVs “theater” system as we speak and was considering some of these little cubes as there is already something similar but lower quality in the ceiling. Thanks for the flash back, measurements and review. I just ordered a polk magnifi mini to go with my lil pico projector but now I’m like 🤔.
My friend especially for your situation which is way more of a obstacle than I had, go with the acoustimass (The last ones that they made) set up that I had mentioned as well as getting a quality slim 10" subwoofer and call it a day.
the technical view is overkill for me. I am wondering how will the cubes sound if I connect them directly to a reciver? and how much power output in Watt is each satellite (Bose acoustimass 10 series iii)rated?
Agreed, one of my setups consists of a Bose Soundbar paired with the Bose Bass Module 500 and my 20 year old acoustimass system paired with two Bose surround speakers on my other set up blows the soundbar away.
great review, I remember getting these back in the day at my local Best Buy, tried at home, and returned the same day, there was no match with my JBL speakers paired with a 10inch sub.
Hi Joe, thanks for your videos, I always enjoy watching and appreciate your perspective.I think that the real no highs no lows are really attributed to the 901 series, I remember setting up a pair with the active crossover for a friend years ago as a young audio emphasis , those were really a disappointment to me , I thought I had set them up incorrectly as they lacked luster at the time, yes it was a new pair. Years later I heard the am5 system and yes heard the “hole “ in the frequency response, however, the highs and lows were much improved over what I remembered from the 901. Bose is a definitely a controversial brand and I agree with you, definitely a lifestyle product. Keep posting your videos, I always look forward to them. Best to you.
I’m a Bose guy. I’m not an audiophile and have been buying it my entire adult life. I wish they made car audio stuff where you could put those headphones on and get the sound optimized. I do understand why they don’t make car audio products other than what they put in some factory automobiles.
they save money making loud but making cheap drivers but i have to say they did a great job visualizing there acoustic energy and transforming it into sound!
I would love to see a comparison of the model you reviewed to the last series bose made. The series V. They have a fixed angle design with the satellites and different drivers.
Would love for you to test the Cambridge Audio Minx MIN22 or even the MIN12. They are very similar to these Bose and would probably make for an amazing stealthy atmos setup. Just put 12 of those little things all around and aimed at you and they’ll be like no other setup.
If you listen to these side by side with even average speakers, you definitely notice the lack of detail. I have some Elac bs41 and they sound way better than the Bose system. And the BS41s are rolled off on the top too. Maybe if you get the sub and match it with some small speakers with a tweeter, it might sound decent.
I need some help. I can not decide between all the bose 2.1 systems. We have this model, we also have cinemate, and we also have 321 series. What model is the best ?
Great video, as usual. I see your wife has the S.M.S.L SA300, which I've been thinking about getting. What do you think of it? Edit: found your review of it.
Had the AM5s about 25 years ago, they were great to me at the time, made better when paired with a mates Bose Interaudio 2000s which seemed to fill the midrange gaps the AM5s had. By todays standards these are seriously lacking, but they were great at the time. Current system of Krix Neuphonix and SVS Pb13 Ultra blows them out of the water.
Hi Joe it’s been awhile since I visit your channel. Nice video supporting Bose. I have a Bose lifestyle not sure which version (with a stack angle satellite speakers) being a audiophile I still love then for movie mainly because I have a really small place. With all respect not sure why I thought you dislike Bose maybe because of one of your old Bose video that you “commented” long ago keep popping up.
My uncle is giving me his set. I had no idea it was a completely passive system (which I like). Gonna find a place for them in my bedroom or master bath.
@@joentell I bought the AM 5 from eBay for about $80 shipped, and I use them with a Dayton DTA-120BT in my bedroom. With the two cubes aligned and pointing straight ahead or angled inward in an audiophile fashion the sound is very “peaky” as if the lower treble has a spike in the sound. Turn the cubes away from each other as intended and it sounds much better. And the bass module sounds best in a corner. With the Bass Module placed in the left corner of the room I ran a frequency sweep (treble down to bass) of the right speaker and I can hear the sound shift from the cube on the right to the Bass on the left about 250Hz.
Joe, a fun throwback review, nice work. However, docking you a point or two for not using period demo music from Vanilla, Brittany, Janet, Ricky, or Whitney 😁
thanks for the math and technicalities it was fun and enjoyable to listen. the system sounds pretty good. could you give me an example of a book shelf system that could out perform these
Hey, im just curious, im currently using the bose am5, and there is no low and high on my pioneer av receiver vsx-531 is there any solution to improve the frequency responses?
For that time it was a briljant product and also its marketingstrategy. When auditioning, separate stands/rooms, so no competition, lol. Enjoyed this one Joe, many thanks! 👌 And to be honest, it didn't sound bad at all (ref. to the sounddemo).
I also remember being incredibly impressed by bose back in the day. But to be honest, the waf was through the roof and if set up well it can sound pretty decent :-) one has to remember that a lot of speakers looked like shit back in those days. Today we have a lot more clean looking lifestyle systems like sonos and soundbars to cater for this audience.
Actually this isn't really as bad as I thought. The high frequency extension isn't really that bad and not a lot of adults can hear much above 16khz, (I can hear up to 16.3khz test tones, although slightly attenuated), the rising response can be EQ'd. I would really liked to have seen some off-axis measurements to get an idea about the power response.
There's an off-axis measurement in there somewhere when I show the directivity index of the cubes. I do on-axis, listening window, and sound power measurements.
These things annoyed me, but not as much as sound bars do nowadays. Everyone's always looking for the easy way out, although I guess I can understand it when it's for aesthetic reasons.
Credit to BOSE for getting me into good audio. I disliked their sound so much that I researched better options and now I enjoy my hobby as headphone enthusiast. So in a weird way thanks BOSE for sucking so bad that I made a hobby out of NOT BOSE.
Great review, Joe, congrats!! I just don't stand people reviewing and talkin' sh***t bout BOSE products, of course there are tons of hi end brands, however BOSE are very hi quality products ment for users thar like good quality sound right of the box, there are no complicated set ups or else. as Joe said, BOSE IS GOOD ENOUGH... and VERY good enough.
Nice video with measurements and analysis seen for first time anyone doing it properly Full marks Joe 👏🏻👍🏻 Hope someone can suggest a good diy solution for a 2.1 like acoustimass with passive components nothing active I would like to drive a stereo amp so maybe we need a DVC sub and 2 FR
They no longer sell the Bose Acoustimass 5's. The closest thing I found is this Bose Acoustimass 6 system on Amazon.
Bose Acoustimass 6 (5.1 channel system) amzn.to/3qSaRiq
There are a few of the direct/reflect jewel cubes left if you're interested:
Bose Jewel Cubes Direct/Reflect: amzn.to/3SziFl9
My Speaker Leaderboard: bit.ly/SpeakerLeaderboard
Disclosure: The Affiliate links above earn me a commission if you purchase using those links. This is at no additional cost to you.
Its time to buy Bose L1 pro16. !!
Joe, I agree. I think some audiophiles tend to make the mistake differentiating between lifestyle and audiophile products. Some people don’t want to spend thousands for components. Especially, when they have limited space. it’s ok to prefer lifestyle no fuss products. Thank you for educating the viewers Joe.
To be truthful, Bose was never priced, advertised, or sold, as a "Lifestyle" product, but as a high performance product. Bose owners overwhelmingly believed they owned the best audio system money could buy. It was more than fair for audiophiles to take issue with that.
@@Cakebattered some audiophiles always take issue with more user friendly, lifestyle-esque audio products. Not everyone wants components
@@TemujinScott80 That may be true, but that didn't apply to audiophile's views of Bose. BTW, the AM5 was part of a Bose component system. Bang & Olufsen has been making lifestyle product for nearly just as long as Bose, yet never received a quarter of the grief from audiophile. There's a reason for the difference.
@@Cakebattered that’s a matter of opinion. Each person has their preference. Some tend to fault folks for their preference. It’s their money and what they like
@@TemujinScott80 I guess you had to be there to understand.
In my house are many media rooms and one listening room. My main media room is still rocking a surround set up (5.1) with the AM-5s (dual stack cubes) for the fronts, AM-3s for the rear and another set of AM-3s for the B channel placed at ear level on the side walls. My center is a Bose VCS 10. I run them all whenever my 3 year old 65” Sony is on…through a vintage Sony STR-D715 receiver. The Bose are all approx. 30 years old and the receiver is 20+ (I think) and not one hiccup with any of this equipment after all these years and 3 moves. For what I use them for, the Bose subs and cubes have been great.
My listening room is a pair of Klipsch RP-160Ms mated to a vintage Carver AV100 , a Technics SL-1600 turntable and a JVC CD player….and a wire from my iPad to the Carver to stream my Apple Music library. I’m no audiophile but am pleased with all my musical toys. They all serve the purposes I use them for. My brother in law has a pair of vintage Klipsch LaScalas, a 10 watt tube amp and a $5k turntable and visiting him reminds me of the investment required to own very good equipment…lol!
Btw in the ‘70s I bought a pair of Bose 901s and a Pioneer SX-1010. The Pioneer died about 10 years ago but I sold the 901s to a vintage audio dealer in Arizona 3 years ago on eBay…for $200 less than I paid for them in the ‘70s!!! Evidently someone out there still appreciates Bose.
Absolutely, excellent content. So glad to see a modern day review of such an iconic/infamous product of the 90s. That's said, I was a poor audiophile college student in the 90s who remembers the Bose AM5s in the context of their day. $800 back then was a lot of money. That amount typically paid for a pair of bookshelf speakers AND a receiver. Paradigm's Mini Monitors or NHT's Super One's are great examples of 6.5" 2-ways that cost $350/pr and were better in everyway sonically, just less wife acceptance factor. You also had offerings from Kef, B&W, ADS, Celestion, etc in that $800 price range. I personally think Bose rightfully earned their infamous reputation.
Thank you for that! Appreciate you sharing your story.
"iconic/infamous" - a great description !
These were the speakers I remember being used for my dad's surround sound setup around 20 years ago. I remember a bunch of family and friends having them as well. Dad said he got rid of his huge 80s Cerwin-Vegas and got these to save space. I know that these did the job for his surround sound very well, and he liked them for that, but I've never heard him wax nostalgically for their sound.
That’s the Acoustimass 3 series IV system actually, it only has the single cubes and the sub module only has a single dual coil driver. The 5 has double cubes and two single voice coil drivers. Both very impressive systems for their small size. Love the video, always nice to sip some coffee and watch some speaker videos! My Acoustimass 10 ii gets down to 30hz with authority, I actually have two stacked on each other for the extra boost and my house sounds like a club lol.
That is actually not a bad response (for a bookshelf) which you could be brought down with a simple treble control on amps which is usually centered at 10khz, since the rise is rather linear. The crucial 800 - 3khz area looks pretty smooth. Truth to be told, I was working for Bose way back in Malaysia in the KLCC showroom on the 3rd floor and I had my fare share of removing the 'large loudspeakers' to make everyone go wow. I was then transfered to the Bandar Sunway HQ for outdoor duties and I was handling outdoor events for a few years before I jumped shipped to another hifi shop called A&L Audio. I was impressed with that sound back then, and I wish I could hear all that again with the added knowledge I have now.
Hi Mark, it's a small world, I actually purchased my Bose AM5 system way back in Sept 1987, at an audio shop in Singapore - it could just as well have been Kuala Lumpur cos I passed through KL on our way to Ipoh.
Nice seeing someone appreciate all the work that Bose put into it and I have the Acoustimass 10 ii and it has 3 woofers and doesn’t sound bad for what is, fills my living room pretty well. Got a few other Acoustimass systems as well but feel like the 10 shined the most for me. Especially with the port facing a front corner. The Acoustimass 10 ii gets down to 27hz and pressurizes my listening space nicely.
My 20 year old purchased new series 6 is still going strong with a Pioneer VX 830 feeding it. I put on Audeze EL-8 headphones with PS Audio Sprout amp for my music pleasure. Thanks for sharing. It's still fun turning up the volume and visitors asking where the sound is coming from.
Thanks for a great review; I bought the original Bose Acoustimass AM5 four cube (2 x 2 stacked) system in the mid-80's. Powered by my Cambridge amp, yeah sure they have a huge gaping mid-range hole - nonetheless I still love them for what they offer, a perfectly acceptable audio experience for my ears. I'm not at all ashamed to admit the marketing and demo sucked me in, since they do exactly what they are designed for - to give a wide bright nice soundstage, minus the need for the space and footprint requirements of conventional speaker cabinets. I also have a far superior second 'modest' system (Acoustic Energy speakers, REL subwoofer, Yamaha amp), but I'll always love the AM5's for its very interesting and novel performance. Nowadays, their whole classic speaker line up (ie. 301, 501, 601, 901, Acoustimass etc.) is a bygone era, and it saddens me that it appears Bose put no effort in innovating their range to stay relevant in the passive home speaker market.
I bought the Acoutimass 15 the latest version in 2005 and i still have. Still people when they come to my house still say what a nice speakers you have. The sound in my living room still sounds good for me and i still enjoy movie's.
My wife's cousin had these when they first came on the market back then it was a new concept,it sounded good and bass out of nowhere(subwoofer)out of sight,to my ears sounded good.
Most audiophiles probably can't even hear the high frequency roll-off. It's most likely the sound of paper cones or directivity. I always found that Bose had more than enough "highs" and enough bass, though contoured a certain way
It's just limited as a full range driver with no dedicated tweeter.
Great walk down memory lane. I had the Acoustimass 5’s , 301’s and 601’s in my earlier 20’s and I thought I was at the pinnacle of Audiophileness lol. This was in the early 90’s when CD’s and cd players were affordable and really taking off. I remember stores have full Bose areas. There should be some kinda of college course on Bose marketing because they were on fire!
I still got some 601 series III. Still very impressed by them, and the amount they go for on eBay is insane
I think you're right about their marketing strategy. Masterclass for sure!
@@MrMegatron85 In that they are very inexpensive, or they are becoming a (pricey) collectors item ?
@@127Foxtrot they seem to be somewhat of a collectors item these days. I've seen really good examples go for $1000
@@MrMegatron85 Whoa! That is a bit insane, given the drivers may well need some love and care by now. The 501 and 601 were some odd designs back then, reminds of those extremely odd Sonab omnidirectional boxes - they were so bizarre!
I like Bose, I still have them and use them, I also have a Klipsch THX Ultra 2 system which also sounds amazing. I love both! Great video!
Wow, your assessment was accurate. I bought the Bose VCS-10 center channel and Bose 301 speakers to replace the front split cube LCR. I still have the rear split cubes and bass module and they sound pretty good in my living room. It's a simple 5.1 setup paired with a Denon AVR-889. The speakers are 20 years old and the AVR is about 15 years old. I forgot about that until you mentioned it. LOL 😆
Great video and cool idea. I never thought to run REW on my living room system. I was always focused on my multimedia area setup. Now I have to get the UMIK-2 and laptop and test those old Bose speakers, just for fun.
The AM5s (with the stacked cubes) where my intro to modern hifi when my father's Zenith Allegro system finally gave up the ghost. I remember being astounded at how much sound came out of this setup. When I started working at Circuit City I sold my share of Bose product although I hated it as I always tried to steer people towards the better hifi we sold but it was obviously hard to get someone to look at infinity Kappas or Cerwin Vegas when all they wanted was something that sounded good and didn't take much space.
Hey, you worked at Circuit City also! Sell that ESP! 🤣
@@joentell ESP wow that brings back memories.
@@anthonyperez_audiophile President's Club 🤣
@@joentell Accommodations were even better.
@@anthonyperez_audiophile Especially on home audio and car audio stuff. 50% if I remember correctly. That just goes to show the markup on those items was really high.
Everything you’re saying is exactly true with the dip in the mids. I remember listening to certain music where it did sound like there was a slight hole in the mids. I used to have a set of the AM5 s2, dual cube version. It was what started my love affair with good sounding music/audio.
The Bose AM5 series were pretty awesome for the time. Bear in mind that there were a few versions - I think it's the 2nd or 3rd version that had the 8th order bandpass bass module. The first version used a 6th order bandpass module. And the last version I believe used an offset-transmission line arrangement, basically what you see used in the Bose AM6. Don't let moisture get anywhere near the cheap chipboard panels of the bass module.. 🙂.
Your measured response of the 8th order bass module looks... unusual. It's certainly different to other measurements I've seen. Perhaps one of the drivers is damaged? I measured a similar wonky performance from another AM5II module, and it turned out that one of the bass drivers had a ripped surround. The drivers themselves have an Fs just under 60 Hz (at least, the ones that I measured did), and not much linear travel, so it's pretty amazing that Bose managed to squeeze bass down to the 40's from them.
As for the summation notch at 230(?) Hz, the size of that notch would likely be very dependent on the positioning of the satellites and bass module wrt the listening position, and the room is going to have something to say about it as well. Mounting the bass module down on the floor and near a corner with the satellites a bit out in the room will likely eliminate that notch for example.
The overall response of the AM5 system does resemble one of those old "loudness contours" a bit, which probably contributed to its popularity.
Finally, the general 80 Hz "standard" for subwoofers I think is based on how much their output would be attenuated at 200 Hz, given a 12dB/octave LP filter @ that frequency, because it's around 200 Hz that localization of the subwoofer becomes easy. A steeper cutoff slope means a higher Fc can be used.
Good knowledge there! 👏 I thought the response of the bass module was rather good. It may not seem like that based on my scaling, but it's mostly between +/-3dB of flat within its operating region. The 3 peaks seem indicative of an 8th order bandpass where they may have used 3 different tuning frequencies for each chamber.
I have them and i listen daily. Incredible and MIND BLOWING sound from such a small bass module and tiny speakers. DFX audio enhancer for windows and Boom audio for Mac is enough to boost Treble and punch. I am so IMPRESSED. Now I am buying Bose L1 Pro16. All negative videos on Bose are paid by their opponent to bash dear Bose. salute to Amar Bose and its team. Truth always comes out. And now they are shining! Respect and too much love...💌
See my posts above, yep, I love my AM5's dearly, they are indeed genuinely incredible given what you see in front of you vs. the quality of the sound they output. Whist I have a far superior audio system comprising Acoustic Energy (Aegis 2) speakers & REL subwoofer, I'm just as happy listening to my Bose AM5's for their transparency, wideness and audio cleverness.
Joe
Thanks for the review and the trip down memory lane. I'd like to point out that the speaker you reviewed here is the AM-3, not the AM-5. The performance of these two speakers were quite a bit different in terms of bass repose and power handling. In addition the treble was mush smoother on the AM-5. The AM-3 used a single 5.25' woofer in the bass module, while the AM-5 used two 5.25' woofers in a larger cabinet. This helped to fill the frequency response gap at 250hz. As you also indicated in your great review, the use of two cubes smoothed out the mids and treble compared to the AM-3. In the end, I felt they were too expensive compared to the Cambridge Soundworks New Ensemble 2 (which I still own) Take care and thanks again 😊👍
Hi Joe, minor correction, the original AM-5 use two x 6" woofers in the bass unit (as per Bose AM-5 user manual and promotional brochure). Note: Stereo Review (April) 1987 quote a different figure again ie. two x 6.5" drivers for the bass unit.
These make for great wide, surround, or height/atmos speakers in small rooms/ room that reqiure WAF approval. In larger rooms I would use the double acoustimas cubes (the 7). Not separating or pivoting top and bottom even in surround situations. That version should be for 5.1 music not stereo as speakers can be very cumbersome in space. In my experience that I have, I used 2 pairs of acoustimas 5s, one set for left, the other for right. Thereby utilizing the L/R, the surrounds, and the 2 bass modules one on each side left and right. This gave me a little more bass separation (at times it can be noticeable). I used a center channel that it was of higher quality. This set up eventually wounded up being only used as my surrounds when I got a 7.1 system and was able to upgrade my LCR Channels. This was good for basic music needs and then eventually for when I wanted to watch a movie. That saved me a lot of headache with the significant other and I was able to achieve the results that I needed under the budget that I had. I recommend the 7 because most people might not have a theater set up and desire one but can't have 1 due to space limitations. Using this gives you better sound than a sound bar for the same price. With the 7 or 9 set up, you would be able to have the center channel and the rear surround channels with the extra speakers. The ones that Joe mentioned is nice but I moved on from that as soon as my situation changed and just used them as back surrounds, and the rest of speakers in the bedroom and kitchen using a wireless set up.
I almost bought that system for a friend of mine from Russia by his request in the mid 90-s. I was looking for a best price and went to some speaker repair shop on Sunset Blvd. by downtown LA that was listed as an official Bose dealer. The owner of that place was very surprised and asked a tech to play me some Tannoy bookshelf speakers. I called the friend and stopped looking for a Bose that very day. Eventually, I have sent him 3 pairs of floorstanders to choose from: KEF Q-70, NHT 2.5 and B&W DM-630. Also I would definitely get him a pair of Mission 735, but couldn't get them at a discount price.
The Bose "Acoustimass Module" isn't a subwoofer and isn't claimed to be one. Think of this speaker set as a set of bookshelf speakers, but they took the low/mid frequency drivers out of the box and put them in a separate box from the high frequency drivers that you can stick someone more convenient.
Sure it is
I own the Bose Am-5 produced in 1986 that included two 6.5"" bass drivers, I believe it was the first Acoustimass system that was originally developed. The sound is amazing for such a compact system, recently! I bought the YAQIN MC-13S tube stereo integrated amplifier that further improved the sound experience.
Thank u for this review Sir. Because of this video I just bought my Bose Acoustimas 5 S2 for 75USD.
I had some companion 20's for my PC, and the amount of volume and bass they put out was astounding, considering it's size
The active EQ and compressor definitely does its job at regular volume. It does get thinner sounding as you turn them up, however most people aren't turning speakers this small up so loud
I used my dads old set of acoustimas 5’s, up until a couple of years ago. I upgraded to a modern 5.1 theater system, because I wanted true separated channel sound.
My old Bose system upmixed 2 channel audio into its 5.1 speakers, so it was a big upgrade going to a true separated 5.1 system for home theater sound.
Otherwise, I would still be using my old 28 year old Bose system. It sounds wayy better than built in TV audio, and sounds better than most sound bars.
Very cool review, Joe. There is a difference between consumer audio and high end. As in any human interest, there are practical things, and then there are items created to stretch concepts and what can be done. The AM5 is pleasant and aesthetically pleasing. If it hits the spot for the user, its not a bad unit.
I have similar white 90’s jewel cubes wall 7:18 mounted from the previous owner and they hadn’t used them in years…. Hooked them up to a old Panasonic 5.1 system and used with the TV… The sound is absolutely amazing! Always loved older Bose products the quality is amazing and they still hold up almost 3 decades later! 💙
We got our Bose system at a garage sale14 years ago and have never ever had any problems and they sound great powered Sony STR-DE 435
I bought a Bose Acoustimass 5 (dual swivel tweeters) system in the early 1990's from a friend who wanted more impressive looking speakers. I paid somewhere between two or three hundred. Not a terrible price.
In the early 2000's when multichannel sound entered the marketplace via DVD's I bought a Denon 5.1 receiver. It had no digital video capabilities but it did have SPDIF/TosLink for audio. It also only can decode Dolby Digital and DTS compressed audio.
So what did I do for a surround sound speaker system? I bought a new Bose Acoustimass 5 set. It was around five hundred dollars. The new set was now the "front" channels and the older set was for the "rear" channels.
I bought a generic brand center channel speaker for under one hundred dollars and twelve inch subwoofer also for around one hundred. I eventually got rid of the subwoofer because two Bose "Acoustimass" modules put out plenty of bass for the smallish (~12' x 20') room I'm in. 120DB 5-20 Hz is too much "woof" for me!
I still use the system as is. It sounds "good enough."
If I had a 10,000 square foot home and excessive funds I probably would go all out for a super home theater system.
But I don't. So I won't. 🤫
I have an old Bose cinemate i got for 50% off upsell with a tv prolly 15 years ago. They still work flawlessly and sound pretty good imo (the speakers are prolly twice the size of the ones in this review and are quite heavy). I use them to compliment my tv audio. I have a soundbar with 2 wireless rears. I have it's 2 speakers as the front let and right to add a bit to the bubble and its bass module. I actually have to attached the tv using a small dac that has bass and treble controls through optical to dac and RCA to them. My main complaint with them is the bass module was so mildly tuned with no EQ to increase it which they added in the later models. This is what the DAC was for and completely fixed that and works well. The module is a lot more capable i thought it would be honestly and i'm not sure why they kept it so tame. Speakers often don't sound bar tweeters to push the dialog and clarity over them easily. Pretty solid 250 bux as I more than got my money worth over the years.
The Klipsch the Fives I have in my living room connected to a record player through Phono, a phone through BT, a computer through USB and a TV through HDMI are the least audiophile system I have owned since I was a teen. But they are so easy to live with, looks amazing with real wood faner and I dont need a sub because there actually is some base below 50 Hz.
Once I could dial up the mids through the app they where as perfect as I can expect for the price and size. And sometimes the soundstage, even though they stand too close surprise me.
Looks and convenience are just as important for most of us as long as the sound is good enough. 👌
I bought the Bose 5 lifestyle system new in 2000 .........23 yrs later and I still have it - the only thing I've done is to buy a digital converter to plug into the back of the TV so I can run the tv sound through it - the sound is amazing and I wouldn't swap it for the world.
Ive owned the 2 cube per side version...acumas 5 I beleive for 24 years and ive used them as my resrs in a 5.1 setup
Hello from Japan
I have been using AM3 for 30 years.
AM3 is not perfect.
But it is a good enough system to integrate music into my daily life.
I bought a whole series 5 surround set at the bose outlet store in the mid 90's for $250. They are still working and in my basement tv room.
Joe,
Great video!I have the Bose Acoustamass 7. Do you still believe that this cubed system sound better than most soundbar systems? If so , where would you say is the cutoff in comparative quality.
BOSE does what most manufacturers don't . They have continued through research to push the boundaries of physics... One great recent example is their newest bluetooth speaker the Bose SoundLink Flex... When I first heard it I like most tech reviewers wondered what kind of sorcery they were using to pruduce such great sound from such a small enclosure .. I hope other manufacturers will make the same kind of investment in their products
The new Link sounds better than both my Sony XB speakers and it’s smaller 🤷🏼♂️
Hi Stephen, your comment has me intrigued. I have the Soundlink Mini 1, which I rate as incredible sounding for its size and portability. I believe it has L and R drivers, plus twin passive radiators ie. multiple drivers in that tiny solid shell. Despite distortion at full blast, Its a fantastic Bluetooth speaker IMO. I must therefore have look at the Flex, cos' I thought it would have been inferior with only having 1 single driver (to 'do it all') compared the the Mini 1.
Another awesome video, I remember seeing this demo at the San Francisco Bose store years ago.
I’m working on my RVs “theater” system as we speak and was considering some of these little cubes as there is already something similar but lower quality in the ceiling. Thanks for the flash back, measurements and review. I just ordered a polk magnifi mini to go with my lil pico projector but now I’m like 🤔.
My friend especially for your situation which is way more of a obstacle than I had, go with the acoustimass (The last ones that they made) set up that I had mentioned as well as getting a quality slim 10" subwoofer and call it a day.
Had the Acoustimass 10 ii in my camper and was a blast!
the technical view is overkill for me. I am wondering how will the cubes sound if I connect them directly to a reciver? and how much power output in Watt is each satellite (Bose acoustimass 10 series iii)rated?
Agreed, one of my setups consists of a Bose Soundbar paired with the Bose Bass Module 500 and my 20 year old acoustimass system paired with two Bose surround speakers on my other set up blows the soundbar away.
great review, I remember getting these back in the day at my local Best Buy, tried at home, and returned the same day, there was no match with my JBL speakers paired with a 10inch sub.
I always wanted them in 5.1 but they were too expensive for me. now that I know what sound can be and should be, no thank you...
Hi Joe, thanks for your videos, I always enjoy watching and appreciate your perspective.I think that the real no highs no lows are really attributed to the 901 series, I remember setting up a pair with the active crossover for a friend years ago as a young audio emphasis , those were really a disappointment to me , I thought I had set them up incorrectly as they lacked luster at the time, yes it was a new pair. Years later I heard the am5 system and yes heard the “hole “ in the frequency response, however, the highs and lows were much improved over what I remembered from the 901. Bose is a definitely a controversial brand and I agree with you, definitely a lifestyle product. Keep posting your videos, I always look forward to them. Best to you.
hello, which Bose has more bass BOSE PS Subwoofer 18 series iii or BOSE PS Subwoofer 18 series ii
"No highs..? No lows..?
It's must be Bose..."
😂
Joe , thanks for the great video , may I ask what amplifier compatible , 50 watts , 100 watts , 200 watts , 300 watts ...is it over kill 😅😉
Why did Bose discontinued with AM5/10? Wanted to acquire 1 new set but unlucky me :(
I had heard it as "All high and all lows, must be Bose" I think refering to the fact you in essence have a sub and tweeters, and no mids.
I've still got these and use them with my main TV today.
I’m a Bose guy. I’m not an audiophile and have been buying it my entire adult life. I wish they made car audio stuff where you could put those headphones on and get the sound optimized. I do understand why they don’t make car audio products other than what they put in some factory automobiles.
they save money making loud but making cheap drivers but i have to say they did a great job visualizing there acoustic energy and transforming it into sound!
Best explanation ever for some people getting good is good enough
I still have a set and I use them as rear speakers in a 5.1 setup
Please suggest a Bluetooth amplifier for Bose Accoustimas 5 Series III.
I would love to see a comparison of the model you reviewed to the last series bose made. The series V. They have a fixed angle design with the satellites and different drivers.
Haha love the throwback! These and the Waveradios were everywhere! Also, these were totally speaker A in your blind test!
Hahahahaha! You caught me!
@@joentell I'm onto your schemes!
@@adamjj85 I'm sure you are by now! 😁
yeah I remember that frys, and that set up with the sub fill with that stuff... wish I could get one of those. great video...👍😉👏👏👏
Would love for you to test the Cambridge Audio Minx MIN22 or even the MIN12. They are very similar to these Bose and would probably make for an amazing stealthy atmos setup. Just put 12 of those little things all around and aimed at you and they’ll be like no other setup.
If you listen to these side by side with even average speakers, you definitely notice the lack of detail. I have some Elac bs41 and they sound way better than the Bose system. And the BS41s are rolled off on the top too. Maybe if you get the sub and match it with some small speakers with a tweeter, it might sound decent.
Excellent presentation
I need some help. I can not decide between all the bose 2.1 systems.
We have this model, we also have cinemate, and we also have 321 series.
What model is the best ?
Could u use the stacked cubes for surrounds for home theater?
That’s a very entertaining video! I don’t understand 90% of the audiophile terminology but it is very intricate! Great jokes by the way! 😅
I appreciate you letting me know you enjoyed the video. That makes me happy
Great video, as usual. I see your wife has the S.M.S.L SA300, which I've been thinking about getting. What do you think of it?
Edit: found your review of it.
Had the AM5s about 25 years ago, they were great to me at the time, made better when paired with a mates Bose Interaudio 2000s which seemed to fill the midrange gaps the AM5s had. By todays standards these are seriously lacking, but they were great at the time. Current system of Krix Neuphonix and SVS Pb13 Ultra blows them out of the water.
Hi Joe it’s been awhile since I visit your channel. Nice video supporting Bose. I have a Bose lifestyle not sure which version (with a stack angle satellite speakers) being a audiophile I still love then for movie mainly because I have a really small place.
With all respect not sure why I thought you dislike Bose maybe because of one of your old Bose video that you “commented” long ago keep popping up.
My uncle is giving me his set. I had no idea it was a completely passive system (which I like). Gonna find a place for them in my bedroom or master bath.
Only the surround sound versions have powered subwoofers.
only the surround sound versions have powered Acoustimass modules.
I believe these are the Acoustimass 3. The AM 5 use the double swivel cubes
You might be right. The eBay listing was wrong!
@@joentell I bought the AM 5 from eBay for about $80 shipped, and I use them with a Dayton DTA-120BT in my bedroom. With the two cubes aligned and pointing straight ahead or angled inward in an audiophile fashion the sound is very “peaky” as if the lower treble has a spike in the sound. Turn the cubes away from each other as intended and it sounds much better. And the bass module sounds best in a corner.
With the Bass Module placed in the left corner of the room I ran a frequency sweep (treble down to bass) of the right speaker and I can hear the sound shift from the cube on the right to the Bass on the left about 250Hz.
Sir can i ask a question can bose acoustimass 6 module models can handle double cubes speaker? Hoping for response thanks
New subscriber!!
I appreciate this video. Looking forward to more from you. 👍🏾👍🏾
That "subwoofer" stops at the point my subwoofer starts playing XD
Your reviews and information are excellent. Thank you.
Had my accostimas V for 14 years now and doubt I will buy anything else. Hadn't given me an issue at all
I remember going in to buy them but the sales guy ended up talking me into the klipsh quintet 3 systems with a 10 inch sub
Are you happy you went that route?
Joe, a fun throwback review, nice work. However, docking you a point or two for not using period demo music from Vanilla, Brittany, Janet, Ricky, or Whitney 😁
Shhhh, don't give away my secrets! 😁
My Bose soundbar measures FLAT. It’s so good that I’ve held off on building my theatre system.
That subwoofer was the worse version btw.
thanks for the math and technicalities it was fun and enjoyable to listen. the system sounds pretty good. could you give me an example of a book shelf system that could out perform these
Most of the bookshelf speakers under $500 will easily handle this bit.ly/SpeakerLeaderboard
Hey, im just curious, im currently using the bose am5, and there is no low and high on my pioneer av receiver vsx-531 is there any solution to improve the frequency responses?
Have you ever tested out the Bose Acoustimass 15?
very well done enjoyed listening to your review one of the very best out there
you know this video just caused me to subscribe im not a BOSE hater I'm a BOSE Congratulator
I think they sound beautiful
Your suite my understanding in audio system 👏✅ thank you very much
My father owns this bose speakers system
For that time it was a briljant product and also its marketingstrategy. When auditioning, separate stands/rooms, so no competition, lol.
Enjoyed this one Joe, many thanks! 👌
And to be honest, it didn't sound bad at all (ref. to the sounddemo).
I also remember being incredibly impressed by bose back in the day. But to be honest, the waf was through the roof and if set up well it can sound pretty decent :-) one has to remember that a lot of speakers looked like shit back in those days. Today we have a lot more clean looking lifestyle systems like sonos and soundbars to cater for this audience.
Please do a review on the Bose 901s.
Actually this isn't really as bad as I thought. The high frequency extension isn't really that bad and not a lot of adults can hear much above 16khz, (I can hear up to 16.3khz test tones, although slightly attenuated), the rising response can be EQ'd.
I would really liked to have seen some off-axis measurements to get an idea about the power response.
There's an off-axis measurement in there somewhere when I show the directivity index of the cubes. I do on-axis, listening window, and sound power measurements.
Bought today an Acoustimass 5 Series III in absolutely mint condition for 39.- 😮😅
I look the glasses look...u look like a bruce lee teacher in his very early movies..its a compliment just in case i get a back lash😊
What's the song?
These things annoyed me, but not as much as sound bars do nowadays. Everyone's always looking for the easy way out, although I guess I can understand it when it's for aesthetic reasons.
Credit to BOSE for getting me into good audio. I disliked their sound so much that I researched better options and now I enjoy my hobby as headphone enthusiast. So in a weird way thanks BOSE for sucking so bad that I made a hobby out of NOT BOSE.
i have bose acoustimass 10 series but the subwoofer is not working anymore it just ok if i use another subwoofer like polk audio?
I don't think so. I'm not sure if the series 10 is different, but the sub in these has crossovers for the cubes
Great review, Joe, congrats!! I just don't stand people reviewing and talkin' sh***t bout BOSE products, of course there are tons of hi end brands, however BOSE are very hi quality products ment for users thar like good quality sound right of the box, there are no complicated set ups or else. as Joe said, BOSE IS GOOD ENOUGH... and VERY good enough.
Hold these jewels in the palms of your hands. ... stawwp. 😂
Nice video with measurements and analysis seen for first time anyone doing it properly
Full marks Joe 👏🏻👍🏻
Hope someone can suggest a good diy solution for a 2.1 like acoustimass with passive components nothing active I would like to drive a stereo amp so maybe we need a DVC sub and 2 FR
Thank you! 🙏