Bowers and Wilkins DM 601 S2 S3 vs 685
If you are out for a bookshelf, & dont know if the Bowers & Wilkins 601 is a good buy compared to the newer 685 then I have good news.
Get the cheaper older speakers!!
I would go so far as to say that even if you can afford the new 685s, save the dosh & buy the older 601 S2/S3.
If you have a good floor stander like the 683/684 & want to use the 685s for surrounds, the you might have some marginal benefit in going with 685 as there is the probability of better timbre matchting, but I personally doubt you would tell them apart in surround use anyway...
Advantages of the older B&W 601:
1) Better bass
I think its the bigger cone that helps, but the bass out of the 601 sounds quite smooth.It has a particularly nice roll over with the B&W ASW 608 subwoofer.
If you're using bookshelves for mains, I highly recommend the ASW 608, its one awesome sub & often a tad under-estimated due to its small size, but dont let that micro footprint fool you.
Have a read of my article on the Bowers & Wilkins ASW608 sub woofer here.
2) Better Vocals
Contrary to what a moajority of reviews seem to find, I felt the newer speakers actually had an unpleasant sharpness in the vocals. You want frank sinatra to sound crisp, but not shrill, if you get what I mean. The older speakers were significantly mellow & had the signature bowers and wilkins sound of warmth that we usually like. Maybe the older bigger cone was more mellow, but there is definitely a lot about the new 685 vocals that I wasnt impressed with.4) Cheaper to buy now!
The older speakers are cheap, & being quite under-rated are often selling for a couple of hundred dollars on trademe & eBay. They are the best bargain hifi speaker for anyone on a budget, or new to hifi.I cant say if the 601 S3 woulc be the same as the S2, but given they both share the newer tweeter & what looks like the same bass/mid drivers, I would hope they sound similar.
The 601 Series 1 has older drivers & I havt tried those.
Any of you folks tried the 601 with the golden tweeters? Are they as good as the newer 601 Series 2 & series 3?
Let me know what you think, & what amp you were using.
Had audition of 685 s2 in leeds with audiolab q dac and m pwr ampage. Returned home and found my old 601 s3 sweeter, more rounded and overall a more engaging experience. Even allowing for burn in, I found the 685 a tad harsh. Sticking with old faithfuls.
ReplyDeleteSo true, the new stuff isnt always better. I find the 686 S1 to be miles better than the 686 S2. However I do find the 685 S2 to be much better than the 685 S1.
DeleteYou nailed it. My experience exactly, including the ASW608. I also found the 601's to sound much better at very low volumes than 685's (which require some power). New doesn't always need to be better than the old.
ReplyDeleteThanks, glad to hear Im not the only one who felt that way.
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