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Will Bose Acoustimass 3 Series IV work as subwoofer for a 7.1 surround system?

post #1 of 6
8/12/09 at 5:51pm
Thread Starter 
I have some Bose bookshelf speakers for the front and a Sony for the center speaker and I have an Onkyo 7.1 receiver.  I needed a subwoofer and some side surround speakers. I ordered A Bose Acoutimass 3 Series IV thinking I could use it as a subwoofer and then small speakers for side surround.

Now unpacking the box (and this is not revealed on any website or at Amazon where I bought it) and I find that it is not a subwoofer like any other I have ever used. It does not plug into the subwoofer output of the receiver.

Now I think I can't use this at all.  Should I return them?

Would they have the right cross-over characteristics?  Would the subwoofer channel of the receiver be wasted or do the Bose somehow interpret it from the left and right channels (which is how it's supposed to work).


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post #2 of 6
8/12/09 at 7:25pm
Return them now.  That's not even a sub.  That's a bass module that fills in where those smaller than optimal, cube speakers fall short.  How much did you pay for it?  We can use that to find you a real sub.

-Robert
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post #3 of 6
8/13/09 at 5:15am
Blain,

The second problem I see with your setup is the mixing of the BOSE and Sony in the front.  The L/C/R speakers should be 'timbre matched', meaning the should sound the same (think of a voice panning from left to right - it should sound the same in all 3 speakers).  The best way to do this is get speakers designed to work together.  That means getting the BOSE center, getting the matching Sony mains, or getting all new speakers for the front (my recommendation).
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post #4 of 6
8/13/09 at 8:33pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the feedback. I've decided to use them in my wife's studio.

Audiophiles seem to despise Bose speakers but I'm pretty happy with the sound I get from mine.  They are replacing some Polks (good but too big) and some Panasonics that were terrible and before that some ARs (good in their day but not anymore).

I did have some Bose 901s that were a disaster but we have Bose shelf speakers with the plasma and in the living room and love the clean sound.
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post #5 of 6
8/14/09 at 7:30am
"Clean" is a good euphemism for lack of fidelity and dynamics.  Still, if you want an unobtrusive looking and sounding system, Bose is certainly a way to go, though you can do it for a fraction of the price with something like Orb.  When I say fraction, I do mean anywhere from 1/3 to 1/5 the price.
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post #6 of 6
8/14/09 at 10:11am


Quote:
Originally Posted by triglyph View Post


I did have some Bose 901s that were a disaster.

 
In what respect were the 901's a disaster?   They are hard to properly set up in a room,  as proper placement is critical.  They also are hard to team up with other speakers in a surround system.   Woman and interior designers hated them.    If you bad mouth any product you should give a reason. 
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