Bose vs. Logans...Not what you think

[slowGEEZR]

Back in the '70s, when I was in the military and stationed in Okinawa, I purchased both Bose 501s and 901s. I thought the 901s sounded better than whatever else I had listened to at that time. Trouble was, I guess they couldn't hold my interest, as I didn't listen to them all that much and ended up trading them, along with some other audio gear, for a Norton 850 Commando.
I've been involved in Motorcycling for 40 years and when I think of Bose, I curiously think of Harley Davidson. In the world of audio, Bose spends more money on advertising than any other brand I believe. The same holds true for Harley in the world of motorcycling. As there are many better speakers, for less money, that can run rings around the Bose, there are many better motorcycles, for less money, that can run rings around a Harley. But, in either case, trying to tell that to a Bose lover or a Harley lover and you will get nowhere!

Ok, flamesuit on.

 

[asindc]

Back in the '70s, when I was in the military and stationed in Okinawa, I purchased both Bose 501s and 901s. I thought the 901s sounded better than whatever else I had listened to at that time. Trouble was, I guess they couldn't hold my interest, as I didn't listen to them all that much and ended up trading them, along with some other audio gear, for a Norton 850 Commando.
I've been involved in Motorcycling for 40 years and when I think of Bose, I curiously think of Harley Davidson. In the world of audio, Bose spends more money on advertising than any other brand I believe. The same holds true for Harley in the world of motorcycling. As there are many better speakers, for less money, that can run rings around the Bose, there are many better motorcycles, for less money, that can run rings around a Harley. But, in either case, trying to tell that to a Bose lover or a Harley lover and you will get nowhere!

Ok, flamesuit on.

Steve,

I think the big difference between Harley fans and Bose fans is that Harley owners seem to have a better understanding of what a Harley is relative to other motorcycles. Bose owners tend not to know what other brands have to offer. A generalization, of course, but I'm basing it on personal experience with friends and family.

 

[amey01]

Back in the '70s, when I was in the military and stationed in Okinawa, I purchased both Bose 501s and 901s. I thought the 901s sounded better than whatever else I had listened to at that time. Trouble was, I guess they couldn't hold my interest, as I didn't listen to them all that much and ended up trading them, along with some other audio gear, for a Norton 850 Commando.
I've been involved in Motorcycling for 40 years and when I think of Bose, I curiously think of Harley Davidson. In the world of audio, Bose spends more money on advertising than any other brand I believe. The same holds true for Harley in the world of motorcycling. As there are many better speakers, for less money, that can run rings around the Bose, there are many better motorcycles, for less money, that can run rings around a Harley. But, in either case, trying to tell that to a Bose lover or a Harley lover and you will get nowhere!

Ok, flamesuit on.

You'd think I work for Bose, but sorry, I don't agree. I'm just trying to be fair.

Bose are not "better" or "worse" than 'Logans - just different. While ML strives to the ultimate sound quality for a given price (important to me and the rest of us), Bose strives for other things.

Let's face it - Bose is cheaper than ML, and they give customers:

* An easy to integrate product
* A high WAF product
* A trendy product
* An easy to use product
* An easy to set up product
* An easy to live with product
* A better sounding product than Sony, Panasonic, et. al. consumer stuff

It's the same with the bike or car example I gave earlier - if you want raw speed, you'll buy a Ferrari, no questions asked.....but if you demand other things (such as luxury, large boot space, accomodation for five passengers, ability to carry four tonnes of concrete) then you might have to look a little further afield - to a Mercedes, or a Chevy pickup!

None are better or worse - they are built for different purposes. Bose is built for a different purpose to ML - IT IS NOT BETTER OR WORSE!

To be totally fair to Bose - even if you look at their own marketing, they are not trying to be a high-end company - they are trying to market on what I listed above.

PS - Flamesuit really on!

 

[JASONDMAGUIRE]

"BOW-ASS" as my 83 year old grandfather calls them. After hearing my old ht system he decided he needed to get one. He asked me if he should get one of them "bow-ass" systems cause they sounded so good. I asked him when he had ever heard them and he said never. He had read in a magazine that they sounded good!
Now aside from that. I will agree back in my retail days as a slave to Circuit City we sold lots of Bose. Hell it PAID me! Did I ever like it? NO! Have I ever owned it? Yes. I did get a wave radio as a good sounding alarm clock.

I now work for JVC electronics and we make some HTIB that sounds as good if not better than Bose, cost a hell of a lot less and has more features. Think they sell? NO! Why? Because like everyone has said Bose is a marketing company that has the major retailers by the short hairs to sell them.

BOSE= No highs? No low? Must be Bose!

 

[amey01]

"BOW-ASS" as my 83 year old grandfather calls them. After hearing my old ht system he decided he needed to get one. He asked me if he should get one of them "bow-ass" systems cause they sounded so good. I asked him when he had ever heard them and he said never. He had read in a magazine that they sounded good!
Now aside from that. I will agree back in my retail days as a slave to Circuit City we sold lots of Bose. Hell it PAID me! Did I ever like it? NO! Have I ever owned it? Yes. I did get a wave radio as a good sounding alarm clock.

I now work for JVC electronics and we make some HTIB that sounds as good if not better than Bose, cost a hell of a lot less and has more features. Think they sell? NO! Why? Because like everyone has said Bose is a marketing company that has the major retailers by the short hairs to sell them.

BOSE= No highs? No low? Must be Bose!

I'm always intrigued by this saying - Bose is all highs and lows - no mids.

Boom-tizz, boom-tizz......

 

[Rich]

I'm always intrigued by this saying - Bose is all highs and lows - no mids.

Early on, I bought a set of the Bose Acoustimass speakers hoping for some decent home theater/music speakers to fit in a small apartment. I found them to be very thin and bright for music listening. The "bass" module puts out some lower mids and maybe a little upper bass, but it does not go very low with at all. The highs are there and are very bright. The mids are there, but with no depth -- very thin.

By the way, if you are curious what the actual frequency output of these speakers is you will have to measure it for yourself. The only "specs" Bose provides on their website is the dimensions. That gives you an idea of how serious they are about true hifi sound vs. just marketing BS.

 

[Brad225]

As many have said already. Bose is the master of marketing their music systems and more power to them if it works.

In the 1970's I bought a pair of 901's after hearing them at my local dealer. They sounded very different from most of the speakers available to me at the time. Most of which were standard dynamic front firing cone configuration. At the time I had 2 pairs of large Advents driven by a Mac integrated amp.

The 901's were in a room set up just for them and with the reflected sound were quite striking. I traded in my 4 Advents and went home with the Bose. It only took about a month before I realized there was no way to set them up in the house I was living in to sound anything like the store. Back they went and Klipsch Heresy's came home.

This didn't mean they were a bad speaker (maybe IMHO) but were much harder to integrate into a room than ML's are. I bought into the full range driver new technology of their marketing dept and sales staff and no doubt convinced by self that this new sound must be good. My bad.

The average American has probably never heard what high end music is all about and my guess would be that it doesn't matter to most all of them. I can only base this on my experiences and the quality of programing on TV today.

Through 25+ years I have had what most people would consider a some what high end system.

During that same time there have been probably been conservatively at least 200 different people in our home.

I can remember maybe 3 people that ever asked to hear any music because they were curious what it would sound like. Most would comment on what unusual speakers I had but no interest the hearing them.

At one point in spite of my addiction and to please my wife I packed away my Accoustats that had replaced my massive flat black folded corner horns (talk about no WAF) and bought an Bose Acoustimass ? system. That was painful for about 1 1/2 years.

Over all people were more fascinated by the tiny Bose speakers than any other speakers I have had. Go figure.

I knew people in the 70's that loved the Zenith "Circle of Sound" quadraphonic system. I never understood that one.

I wince every time I see the Bose ad on TV for their HT system and people give testimonials of how "It sound better than systems costing 10 times as much" or what ever exact wording is.

It is just a mater of what we all perceive our value for a dollar is. My friends and relatives often make fun of me when we are out somewhere and I refuse to spend $5 for something when they know I will spend what they think is an insane amount of money on audio gear.

The thread started out with "How can people think Bose sound better then ML's". All you can do is try to educate them and after that sell them what they want and earn your paycheck. Maybe some day they will figure it our and come back.

 

[VanDaRo]

Back in the '70s, when I was in the military and stationed in Okinawa, I purchased both Bose 501s and 901s. I thought the 901s sounded better than whatever else I had listened to at that time. Trouble was, I guess they couldn't hold my interest, as I didn't listen to them all that much and ended up trading them, along with some other audio gear, for a Norton 850 Commando.
I've been involved in Motorcycling for 40 years and when I think of Bose, I curiously think of Harley Davidson. In the world of audio, Bose spends more money on advertising than any other brand I believe. The same holds true for Harley in the world of motorcycling. As there are many better speakers, for less money, that can run rings around the Bose, there are many better motorcycles, for less money, that can run rings around a Harley. But, in either case, trying to tell that to a Bose lover or a Harley lover and you will get nowhere!

Ok, flamesuit on.

No flamesuit needed my friend... I completely agree with your Harley / Bose analogy. The bottom line is that you do not get any real performance value for your hard-earned money. But where I find Bose indefensible, I can at least jump on the Harley bandwagon in saying that they are EXTREMELY easy to ride.... they are effortless in this regard.

Nevertheless, my choices are bias toward the high performance -- much like yours. I enjoy scratching up my knee-sliders and some good ol' fashioned acceleration for my money... Just like my Logans...

Bose is to Harley what Martin-Logan is to Yamaha (my preference !!).

 

[VanDaRo]

And no...Those aren't chicken strips. My bike has a grand total of 99 miles on in this year and the cheap chain lube that I bought (Maxima s*cks !!) flung all over my tire, making it hard to get my full lean on in the hills....


My other babies include:

2007 Yamaha YZF-R1 0-- My corner carver deluxe.
2007 Kawasaki Ninja 250 -- Wife's bike.
2006 Honda CR85 -- 1st son's race bike.
2006 Yamaha YZ85 -- 2nd son's race bike.
2004 CRF80F -- Pit Bike for the AMA races that I spend so much money on...

~VDR

 

[amey01]

The average American has probably never heard what high end music is all about and my guess would be that it doesn't matter to most all of them.
.....
Over all people were more fascinated by the tiny Bose speakers than any other speakers I have had. Go figure.

Exactly - I can hear it already. Show them ML next to Bose and they'll say "yeah, yeah - it sounds better, SO WHAT - I want the little cubes".

Different market, different product.

 

[VanDaRo]

Exactly - I can hear it already. Show them ML next to Bose and they'll say "yeah, yeah - it sounds better, SO WHAT - I want the little cubes".

Different market, different product.

Yeah..... But does it not suck that so many people that have the means to buy ML, or Thiel, or Magico end up screwing themselves for the long run by purchasing that plastic-y junk ???

I have not, in 14 years, brought a buddy to my home and not made an electrostatic lover out of them. Some of those Logan-atics reside on this board to this day..... FYI, I have converted a few to the loveliness of Siltech cables too !!

Gentlemen...:bowdown:

~VDR

 

[amey01]

Yeah..... But does it not suck that so many people that have the means to buy ML, or Thiel, or Magico end up screwing themselves for the long run by purchasing that plastic-y junk ???

I have not, in 14 years, brought a buddy to my home and not made an electrostatic lover out of them. Some of those Logan-atics reside on this board to this day..... FYI, I have converted a few to the loveliness of Siltech cables too !!

Gentlemen...:bowdown:

~VDR

Different strokes for different folks.........

 

[slowGEEZR]

No flamesuit needed my friend... I completely agree with your Harley / Bose analogy. The bottom line is that you do not get any real performance value for your hard-earned money. But where I find Bose indefensible, I can at least jump on the Harley bandwagon in saying that they are EXTREMELY easy to ride.... they are effortless in this regard.

Nevertheless, my choices are bias toward the high performance -- much like yours. I enjoy scratching up my knee-sliders and some good ol' fashioned acceleration for my money... Just like my Logans...

Bose is to Harley what Martin-Logan is to Yamaha (my preference !!).

Sweeet! That's my R6 (now sold) in my avatar. Pic taken at Jefferson Circuit, Summit Point, in WV.

 

[VanDaRo]

Hammerin' the twisties.... Thank You, Killboy for the SWEET ARSE action shot. He catches a couple of me every time I go to Deal's Gap. This one was my front page shot earned by daring the cops to catch me.....

~VDR

 

[tsmooth]

As most of you have already made the point, GOOD sound really doesn't matter too many people. I have brought several friends over to hear a SACD on my system and they have heard many things; a) they have never heard before and b) they didn't think were possible on a home audio system. Did that make them go out and buy ML, no, they where content with their iPod shelf systems or their out of the box theater speakers. We are like anybody who likes cars, boats, beer cans, etc; we will pay the price and will not compromise for anything but the best we can currently afford (or not for that matter). It all makes sense to the person dropping the coin, but unless you are equally as passionate, you look like a person with a cool, expensive hobby.

 

[VanDaRo]

As most of you have already made the point, GOOD sound really doesn't matter too many people. I have brought several friends over to hear a SACD on my system and they have heard many things; a) they have never heard before and b) they didn't think were possible on a home audio system. Did that make them go out and buy ML, no, they where content with their iPod shelf systems or their out of the box theater speakers. We are like anybody who likes cars, boats, beer cans, etc; we will pay the price and will not compromise for anything but the best we can currently afford (or not for that matter). It all makes sense to the person dropping the coin, but unless you are equally as passionate, you look like a person with a cool, expensive hobby.

Amen, brotha !!


But what you for get to mention is that we who have the means still dedicate our very expensive time to listening....

 

[VanDaRo]

I, for one will not be giving up my audio-habit until the kids are done with college. Then, I'll go nuts, and the wiffie won't be able to complain about anything !!!

~VDR

 

[bleusol]

I feel your pain, I work at Tweeter in North Carolina, and we get that " Bose is the best.......right" question all the time. This is the way I see it, If they come in and ask for it, give it to them, because more than likely they don't want hear what you have to say. Prime example, I had customer on Monday, he wanted to hear an on wall speaker, size was not that important. So I let him the Focal Sib/Cub, surely you'll agree that it is far greater than Bose, and its less money because you don'nt have to buy brackets to mount them ( Its on Sale). He said that he is not familiar with the Focal symbol, this is after I told them that Focal makes $95k+ speakers! He still did'nt care. So I said all that to say again, If they ask for it give it to them, don't waste your time, don't get attached to trying to save the world from bad hi-fi. PEACE!:music:

 

[amey01]

Amen, brotha !!


But what you for get to mention is that we who have the means still dedicate our very expensive time to listening....

This is probably the key. I dedicate a lot of my VERY VERY EXPENSIVE time to listening - so much so that it annoys me sometimes. I want to get out and do other things, but listening is a priority.

For others, that music is background only - that is they never ever dedicate time to listening - Bose is sufficient (even excess)!

 

[JonFo]

You know, sometimes, you do just have to let it go. If they like what they hear/see and are comfortable with the price, then hey, it’s their money.

I always tell people who ask that Bose blows, and that there are any number of better choices, I even offer to do the config/shopping/setup for them (if they are close enough friends). So far, only two uptakes on that in the last 12 years. Others take the advice and go shopping on their own and wind up with whatever the salesperson convinces them of. When I hear it, it’s never as good as my recommendation was, and funnily enough, often much more expensive.

The problem is, some people just don’t care about total audio quality. I’ve been training my wife for close to 31 years now on how to appreciate good audio reproduction, and have had some of the best systems we have known over the years. However, she’s just as happy listening to her iPod played back through a cheap Sony boom-box in her sewing room, complete with >3% THD (which drives me nuts).
But when listening to the big system in the HT, she really digs the detail and clarity. But it’s not crucial to her.

On the plus side, she’s totally supportive of my addiction and helps me get over my penny-pinching upbringing and will say things like ‘just get it, you know you want it, and you can afford it’. Man, on those days, I really love her :angel: