Is the Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 5 the best speaker made today? (1 Viewer)

[DaveHo]

So you work for B&O huh?

 

[CanaryBlue]

Sure sounds that way, but, no, I don't work for B&O. Just giving credit where it's due.

 

[pink]

i think goldmunds at $268.000.-- a pair might sound a little better the the b&o's

 

[CanaryBlue]

One would certainly hope so...

 

[Talbot]

I finally bought a pair, lucky me.
Are they worth it? Absolutely and some.
When you buy something like BeoLab 5 it's a purchase that should last you 20 years minimum, do they sound so expensive now?
Whats a 16K car worth in 20 years time?
Every time I play an old CD through these things It's like a whole new listenening experience.

How nice to see forums debating on whever or not these are the best speakers in the world, all I can say is if they are the second or third best they are certainly a bargain comparded to whatever is supposedly "the best".

Yes they are worth every penny and no I do not work for B&O.

 

[RNRGAGNE]

I liked the sound of them when I heard them - but not fond of the aesthetics.
I've been a B&O fan for a while, I've still got a B&O turntable and my amps use the same B&O ICEpower modules used inside the BeoLabs and a couple of channels power my IB sub, so I'm not surprised by the quality of the bass.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

When you buy something like BeoLab 5 it's a purchase that should last you 20 years minimum, do they sound so expensive now?
Whats a 16K car worth in 20 years time?

Well considering this thread is getting on 5 years old, we're well on our way to knowing.

 

[excalibur]

5 years ago, when a friend of mine got married, he managed to get these speakers to his wedding. It took place in a tent... So there was no real 'room-sound'. And we calibrated the speakers (they do it automatically by putting out a small mic and adjusting the sound to the environment.

After this we had time to do some serious listening before the guests arrived. It was an awesome experience. My brother who never takes care of his things turned up the volume to levels where I was sure they would explode! I have heard KEF 107's tried at much less than these soundlevels, and they sounded just like sorry boxes. The elegance totally lost them at high volumes.

NOT SO WITH THE BEOLAB 5. During the test, that to me was done at way to high volume to be safe for the loudspeakers, they performed completely in control and with an enormous control of the bass. I dont like mushy bass. And the BeoLab 5 really removed my prejudices about the B&O brand. I had always thought that they were only design - not serious Hi-Fi. Boy was I wrong.

I had read about the new technologies like the lens system, invented by a British inventor, and the ICE-power amps invented by a student at the University of Aalborg, Denmark. All this sounded very promising during the 1990'es. But then they released the BeoLab 5 employing these technologies together in, what I think is quite bold design (WAF is quistionable if you do not have a huge living-room). And I went twice to hear them in a shop. But I never could find an opportunity to stress-test them and find their limits.

But during that wedding preparation I sure got the opportunity to carefully listen to themat all volumes. Ever since I have wanted to win the lottery. And they are absolutely just what I would rush out and order on the spot.

I think I absolutely lost my heart to Hi-tech loudspeakers at this listening test.

15 years ago I was very much into Hi-Fi. I've had loudspeakers from KEF (104-2), Magneplanar (electrostats) and STAX headphones (also electrostats). Before my BeoLab 5 experience my best loudspeaker experience was from these STAX headphones. I just missed the feeling in your stomach from the bass at high volume. The classical 'Also Sprach Zarathustra' fades when you cannot feel the bass in the belly... But they sounded fantastic.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Gee, another 1 post count poster in the Beolab thread, to go along with all the others (not to mention the 3 post guy where 2 out of the 3 were to deny he works for B&O ). Thanks for keeping it to one thread guy(s)!

 

[Sirhowy Noel]

how many people sit between a sound source and the wall. give me my E.V pa's ,B & W DM4's',yamaha studio moniters or as j marshall discovered CELESTIONS are just the deal .compare _marshall on stages every where WHY ,do i need to spell it out ,b&o spot one if you can.people who waste their money on a $16-20000 darlek all money no sense .BUY A DECENT NAD PRE/ POWER SET UP WITH A SET OF $2000 SPEAKERS .also a speaker is only as good as it's source system. how many people walk around stage during a concert i never have, ANYBODY HERE WHO HAS THOUGHT NOT .so get you hands of your d### and spend your money on a car/or donate it to a charity

 

[JoeCool6972]

Are they the best hyped? The best at paying off reviewers? Spent the most on advertising? The most expensive? The ugliest? But the best... I call BS. Just because a speaker costs $20,000 doesn't mean it sounds any better than say one for $1000.

 

[dillonjackson]

wow, i too am suprised that a b&o product is competing in the coveted "best loudspeaker" category, regardless of its price.

its great to hear such a readily available, easy to set up and small proportioned loudspeaker is being coveted so much but at that price point I would stretch a little extra for a pair of Meridian DSP7200 (Suprised no one has mentioned these as they are the most natural competitor (READ originator)- beautiful design, active, digital signal processing etc.).

Also, how do beolab owners drive their speakers? through fluffy, comprimised b&o cd/server systems or through proper cd players. The source is pretty important!

On the subject of best loudspeaker, if the beolab 5 can be compared to a merdian dsp7200, what about the monster flagship Meridian, the almighty DSP8000!!

would love to hear opinions of someone who has heard both speakers?

 

[darrenyeats]

I have auditioned, at length, the following:
Linkwitz Orion++
Beolab 5
ATC SCM50ASL with ATC C4 Sub

All three are fully active systems. My impressions are below in time order. (Because this is a thread about the Beolab 5 and I feel most parts of the Beolab's bass performance are exceptional, I have made a particular comment about the bass for each.)

Linkwitz Orions++ (includes Thor subs)
Environment: large, tall domestically furnished room. No sound treatments.
Able to take a wide range of acoustic recordings and produce a truly realistic result.
Amazing 3D soundstage with accuracy. Even room boundaries disappear. It's almost disturbing.
Quite accurate and transparent.
Very fast, clean bass down to deep frequencies. However the sub bass was lacking in power, I felt.
Summary: a glass of champagne - sound to celebrate!
Wife summary: great but she had a feeling they need a big room

Beolab 5
Environment: large demo room. Some furnishing and angled diffraction zones on the walls. Not damped enough, perhaps. Caveat: it may have suffered from poor set up - the B&O dealer refused to position the speakers away from the room corners. Perhaps he wanted to demonstrate how the bass self-optimised but he didn't reckon on how it might affect other aspects.
I got a variable impression from this speaker - some tracks showed its capabilities and they sounded great. On some tracks it seemed things like guitar squeaks and sibilance were exaggerated and my wife heard the same with female voices.
The bass response was deep, even and very powerful. However, it seemed to lag a bit sometimes.
The bass on Bjork's 'Play Dead' was particularly impressive, considering I'd never appreciated that sub bass line before!
Summary: a potent cocktail.
Wife summary: look like darleks (which she liked!) and deliver in many ways but not with everything e.g. female voices

ATC SCM50ASL with ATC C4 Sub
Environment: medium size room, some treatments but non-ideal placement.
Very accurate and transparent on a wide range of recordings.
Although the bass wasn't an exceptional statement like the Beolab 5 and the soundstage wasn't an exceptional statement like the Orions, there was nothing to criticise. My impression was that I was hearing something close to the original recording in all aspects on every track (rock, pop, jazz, classical or electronic).
They won't exaggerate good aspects or gloss over recording artifacts, which for some recordings may spoil the impression of reality! At first, this may sound disappointing but after a while we appreciated that very thing.
Fast, deep, transparent bass and sub bass.
Summary: a glass of water.
Wife summary: give you exactly the recording you've got

Which is "the best" in my opinion? Your interpretation of our comments will depend on what you're after and that is entirely a matter of taste. All are a lot of fun. Remember, the above are just our personal impressions and those are always subject to state of mind.
Darren

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Amazing! Yet another person who's first post is an almost spam-like "review" of the beolab speaker. If'n I were the suspicious type, I'd think this thread was full of sock puppets.

 

[darrenyeats]

Jeff, thanks for your input. Those three systems are all active and all about the same price in the UK. So I thought my personal impressions would be of interest.
Always I advise listening and deciding for yourself before buying anything because what pleases one person doesn't please another. This is the only absolute fact in audio.
See, a second post. So my "review" quotient is now just 50 percent!
Regards, Darren

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Darren, there is no doubt in my mind that you have many more posts in this thread than 2. Posting under multiple usernames is called sockpuppeting, and is against forum rules.

 

[ShanonS]

Won't this thread ever die... Is there not a way to block new members from posting to any thread older than a year for some probationary period?

 

[darrenyeats]

Chill, people. Next week or a couple of years from now, someone may google Beolab 5 and end up here. If so, I hope they find my posts constructive.
Darren

 

[Jeff Gatie]

And that someone will probably be you, using yet another sock puppet username.

 

[David Willow]

BOSE is best.