right away that 802 throws very smooth details sound. The other one has more prominent mid to upper register but very fatiguing to listen, its clarity is harsh and piercing that i get tired with in just few notes of the song. Nice Sansui though!
Great choice in music Andrew, luv Mark Knopfler and Dire straits. Late 70s and 80s+ high-end hi fi shops in London used Dire Straits a lot to demo stuff, the track, Follow Me Home, was a popular choice.
Having been a B&W Fan since 1977 I have grown old having 14 pairs of various B&W speakers including the 802's Important is to not forget that at that age they really and truly do need new High-End Poly Caps (like Sonicaps or even Mundorf though quite costly) plus a few other old and worn out electronic parts to bring back to the Full Blown Quality and sound range they originally had, (same deal with the IQ's) after a professional crossover renewing on the electronics I would love to see a new review :) I am sure you will be blown away by the sound improvement of both speakers ;-) I think that restoring both to almost new value will be a fair contest, what are your thoughts? (maybe just do one of each speaker and compare the before and after sound so one can hear and experience their original amazing sound)
Ik heb zowel de b&w Matrix s 2 als de s3 gehad en mijn voorkeur ging toen naar de series 2. De Matrixen zijn beiden ongelooflijk goed en hebben alles, kracht, warmte, finesse, detail enz. Het enig nadeel vind ik is dat deze speakers een kerncentrale nodig hebben om te laten horen wat ze echt kunnen. Toen ik de eerste keer mijn Sony tan 77es aansloot wist ik niet wat ik hoorde. Maar toen we de Sony 77es op het laag en de Sony taf 800es op het hoog aansloten was het echt onvoorstelbaar hoe de Matrixen klonken. Leuke video 👍 Andrew.
Inderdaad - biampen is de boodschap bij deze jongens! Meer transparantie, meer kracht in het laag, cleaner geluid... en het voordeel dat je nog wat controle hebt over de balans. Ik deel je ervaring...
Mijn ervaring . Ik heb B&W matrix 3 speakers. Ze klinken ongelooflijk goed maar inderdaad je hebt een energiecentrale nodig. Mijn eindversterker is een Technics Se-a3 . Met deze kerel en vier matrix 3 luidsprekers erop aangesloten is het echt genieten.
I would say that the B&W sound is more lay back and warm instead of the IQ's which are more to the front and has a bit clearer and "cooler" sound. This has to do in my opinion that the IQ's have a more wider spectrum in the mid and higher tones. The lower end is a bit less then the B&Ws. If you do listen for music a long period of time the IQ's could be more fatigue than the B&W's. At the end most of the times it has all to do with sound taste based on the music you like. I do have one advice that you may want to take into consideration and that it would be nice to have 3 songs, each in different music genres, which you use for these kind of sound speaker testing and always use these same 3 songs for future testing
Very nice video 😍 thanks for your efforts. In my opinion IQ speakers more beautiful than B&W because of its transperancy. But lack of bass feeling with RU-vid and headphone. I'm sure reality of those German speaker's will very tight bass and more bright in mid frequencies. And very interesting thing is 'You and your friend' is very good testing song all over the world 😊😍 Thank you sir ❤️ love from India
Both are very god sounding speakers. The IQ's are better in Vocals the Singer is more narrow and clearer but the bw's have god bass and mids . Its one listener and the Music you prefer to listen with the speakers Greetings from Stuttgart
B&W for sure sounds much better to me. Other sounds like it's in the Grand Canyon.🤪 Good mic, sound recording by the way!😬 It just shows by looking at the comments it's all subjective!🤪😝😇
I get a similar sound to the B&W's with my JBL L112's, but a little less cloudy, . The IQ's are cleaner (like a little sterile), seem more efficient. The sliding guitar and the vocals tells you most of what you need to know. To be honest, both are very good in their own way.
The bass from the B&W are indeed stronger but the weaker bass from the IQ is nicer bass and the mids are better from the IQ but If I had to make a choice between them It would be very but very hard. If only the IQ's would go 5 to 10Hz lower the choice would be very easy but a sub can offer this solution too, in combination with a sub the IQ wins.. In Germany you see sometimes the 300T's(bigger brother) for around 1500 euro. I believe those should sound perfect because of the bigger woofers. Because I am always reselling, the B&W is easy to resell and the IQ not because not many know these speakers ...that would be the only reason to choose for the b&W but sound-wise i prefer the IQ... I didn't test the IQ's with the bass knob( on the back) on maximum, that can also be a game-changer. Will test that out when I do vs test against the Heco's...I am still learning these speakers, just now, 8 hours after I uploaded this video, i was tweaking the speaker with the 3 knobs and now my favorite stand is treble and mid on 2 and bass on 4....I even think of selling my Heco's and keep these because the bidding's on dutch ebay(marktplaats) are so low that I better can keep them because I had them almost for free...but have still to do a vs test against my Heco's before I make the final decision. When I scored these speakers I didn't really love them at first sight but the longer I play with them the more and more I starting to admire them
Nice video, I would like more tests with the IQ speakers, They are quite special. I do think you can not compare loudspeakers trough RU-vid, but these IQ speakers performed much better than I was expecting. For 100 euro it was a great deal. If you want to keep the IQ, but you do not like the color you could het them professionally painted in high gloss white, It will cost you between 500 and 1000 euro. It is still acceptable because you got them so cheap.
The bass from the B&W are indeed stronger but the weaker bass from the IQ is nicer bass and the mids are better from the IQ but If I had to make a choice between them It would be very but very hard. If only the IQ's would go 5 to 10Hz lower the choice would be very easy but a sub can offer this solution too, in combination with a sub the IQ wins.. In Germany you see sometimes the 300T's(bigger brother) for around 1500 euro. I believe those should sound perfect because of the bigger woofers. Because I am always reselling, the B&W is easy to resell and the IQ not because not many know these speakers ...that would be the only reason to choose for the b&W but sound-wise i prefer the IQ... I didn't test the IQ's with the bass knob( on the back) on maximum, that can also be a game-changer. Will test that out when I do vs test against the Heco's...I am still learning these speakers, just now, 8 hours after I uploaded this video, i was tweaking the speaker with the 3 knobs and now my favorite stand is treble and mid on 2 and bass on 4....I even think of selling my Heco's and keep these because the bidding's on dutch ebay(marktplaats) are so low that I better can keep them because I had them almost for free...but have still to do a vs test against my Heco's before I make the final decision. When I scored these speakers I didn't really love them at first sight but the longer I play with them the more and more I starting to admire them
I love essential style and deep concentration to serve better your "friends" ... You are a very useful person! I didn't get your name though! .. Andrew? God Bless you marino los angeles
IQ the winner ... easy! .. it is like to be in a concert .. bravo! .. please post me the best comparison you think you did! ahah studying your character ! lovely!
B&W sound like the speaker I would want to turn the volume up with a little warmer guitars and voices. I would love to hear the IQ with classical music and hear all the instruments and details. They could sound great mixed in different amps at the same time, one speaker fill the other.
@@mustaq10k I would not say harsh, I think the IQ got more enfasis in the high-mids, so they are gonna proyect more detail. Harsh is unpleasant... and in my speakers sounded good enough. And is it a closed cabinet??? Maybe that's why the bass is different. The B&W got a front port. I would love to hear those speakers with the Sansui AU-919
The IQ’s image better in the midrange and highs… bass seems a little held back but it’s shining point is that sweet mids! The BW sounds a bit woolly like there’s a thick veil on the music… bass seems better which is surprising for aBW speaker which is famous for its over the top highs! But Andrew I think you should have taken the grill off the BW’s … there’s a possibility the sound may change even if so slightly! The IQ’s are without grills perhaps y the more crystal image! I think with the grills off the BW it just may surprise you and the sound will fall into place. These tests are subjective too Andrew depending on all things being equal. For instance if either speaker was away from the wall by one feet more than the other speaker or if the distance between each pair of speakers is different in the same room then they would reflect a different sound signature! All things have to be equal to have a good “VS “ test as you call it.😉 Just my opinion! Happy testing and listening! 🍺🍺🍺
@@vintagestereo Thanks for your reply Andrew…. I’ve been following you since you began your channel every now and then whenever time permits…. I enjoy your stuff coz I’m also an average audiophile but I love sound but without the big bucks to build up a reputed system. Hence I enjoy your videos as they are more towards an average audiophile and I agree completely about second hand gear 👍…. I managed to get my top of the line towers for half price in mint condition also my integrated second hand for half price and enjoying both immensely! Intact every six months I sell my amplifier just to try something new…. all second hand of course 😉 I send you my best all the way from India Andrew! Good health and happiness always! Keep doing what you do… it’s a lot of fun to watch and learn too🍺🍺🍺
Hi. Its hard to juge, in some words I may say that the IQ seem more accurate in the high frequencies and the B&W more spacious and warmer sound they are both good sounding speakers. May be you have to test on different amplifiers and some music to deliberate. But you made a very good deal for the IQ
The iq. S. Let the music free more easy then bw. S....iq.s are a little bright now.... But that you could fix whit a rugg before speakers.. Or on the wal.. Try another amplifier also.. Amplifier are the heart in a system... A good one can do wonder on cheap speakers to...thanks for a good lissening.. You use good music and recordings 👍🙏🕺
I made 6 video's middle in the night from the B&W's vs IQ's with a sound pressure from max 95db/1meter(I have a sound pressure meter on my phone) so no, this time my neighbors don't like me but I knew the next day my B&W's would be sold so I didn't had another opportunity. The buyer contacted me yesterday late and I replied at once, the deal was closed in 30 minutes.
The BMW's and the iq's sounds pretty close can't really tell on that song I don't know that dire straits song but what I can hear the iq's sounds more present has better voicing and highs are crisp they sound better than the Bmw's I think on that song they look better too.
Sadly I don't know this song, but that may help? Yes good question here, the Bm's are warmer sounding, and probably won't tire you out over a long listen, but do they reflect the content? The IQ's sounded more like the original Dire Straits I used to listen to, Brothers in Arms etc. kind of forward, maybe too forward. I wonder if that could make you turn your volume up or down on these. I was playing this on my speakers, and could hear the difference, it was huge, I think I would overall prefer the Bowers And Wilkins. I think with these are both good speakers, but their signature sound will suit probably different types of music... or I completely wrong. Just my two cents worth...
Often there is a difference in efficiency so one speaker sound louder as the other but in this case they sounded even. The reason why i was turning the volume knob is because in some parts the microphone came to much in the red
B&W 801 & 802 were top speakers back in '80's & early 90's.....very expensive then when new....could not afford then but can now..............but they need a LOT of power for them to work. A nice vintage brand now to look for is ADS. Here, the IQ's wins in the mids and highs department, which are really where all the sound & magic happens. Could get a sub if you really like low end exaggerated, I am not a sub person. It's like night an day on your test.
IQ is just louder and lacking body and soul.B&W sounds more real and relaxing...And im not a fan of Bowers at all but like his caracter more in this comparison.
There's more life in the IQ 's. Bowers and Wilkins sounds more stabil but i never liked the timing on the B&W's like something is always off. I mean not correctly placed. I heard comparison with Dali Epicon 8. This speaker nails it time and time again.
The B&W's have fame and are easy to resell and the bass is really low, the IQ's let you hear everything, they don't sound as damped as the B&W's. The IQ's sounds very open, like you say, there is more life, more things to hear from the IQ thanks to the perfect mids..
HAHAHA, I just went on Hifishark to see how much these Dali Epicon 8's cost.....you are very funny, normal that these speakers are much better sounding they cost second hand 6 to 8 times more, so I wonder what the new price from these speakers is
@@wielentschoten575 Yes, but those Dali's are speakers way out of my budget. There is a returned set with opened packaging for sale on hifiklubben for 11,000 but my max is really 2000 and then I'm talking about how much I will ever spend max for my own speakers. I don't give more than 500 for test speakers for my youtube channel, provided it is a super bargain. If I were buying speakers today because I would have had a big financial windfall I would go for the Nubert NuVero 170, very cheap for what they can do. You have probably never heard of them because the brand is not that well known in the Netherlands. Those Nurberts are best tested in the class up to 20,000 but only cost 7,500 a pair.... it is rare that a much cheaper speaker beats much more expensive speakers and that judgment comes from multiple reviewers: www.nubert.de/nuvero-170/p3201/?category=224 ....Only the weight is a problem, 71 kg, not sure how I would get those downstairs. If I can score these in a few years for around 3.000 I will not hesitate
@@vintagestereo Nice. According to many reviewers the Dali Epicon 8 can compete with speakers up to 30000 euro's. They say really they are that good! I am surprised second hand now they are still so expensive. Did not expect that. Well nice talking to you once again!
It really annoys me these sort of recordings you can't tell just by that, are hearing more of your room than the speakers! and the recording setup is flawed. you didn't have the IQ flat set? you had the treble turned up and the mid-range? the bowers and Wilkins crossover sounds like they've got issues with electrolytic. always tighten up your screws on your speakers your have a better sound from them
@@vintagestereo Your sales technique is like fishing, you just wait for the right buyer and the right price. When I sold a lot, I wanted to get a deal as soon as possible and sell a lot for a low price.
Typical.german sound vs uk sound. If you like the high sound en sharpness of the German speakers 'uk sound more relaxing. Geen speakers more open but not always good mids. Same like magnat and mb quart. Al 4 ohm speakers
