I use 804S on the end of 135s, and that’s a really musical combination. When I auditioned the 804s I listened to the s & D, I found that for my taste the diamond tweeter was over-bright with the olives. Having briefly heard the 804 and 805 D3 with black boxes, I’d say I much prefer the diamond tweeter in the new range, it wasn’t too bright at all, and I’d certainly listen to the 805D3s as an option with Naim.
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Cheers … that is reassuring I thought that tweeter may just be a bit overpowering. Having said that my pmc 21’s are fairly vocal in the upper registers…it may well suit my cloth ears!!!
Right … speakers arrived at dealers…I had a demo with a ND555/252/NAP300 they were pretty darn good. Unexpectedly fruity at the bottom end - but well controlled with good timing. The top end was quite sparkly - but to me not excessive. Overall it played tunes very well indeed. My only observation is a slight curious mid-range effect which to my ears kinda sounded like some vocalisation being contributed by the port… to be fair I am used to the clarity of the 552dr and 500dr so maybe when I home dem I will be able to pin it down. What was clear to me is just how good the PMC20.21 are … I left feeling overall that the B&W’s were definitely slightly better - I will feed back on Monday after I have had a home demo…the injection of the 552/500 may add to the joy. One last thing … these speakers were the signatures the finish is stunning - I am still concerned that the bass may well activate my hostile room mode.
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Looking forward to hearing about your results. Yes the signatures finish is stunning!
I been using 805D3’s for about a year, firstly on the end of a SuperNait 1 with HiCap and now with a NAC282/HiCap/NAP250DR.
These are superb speakers which replaced my Allaes which I had enjoyed for about 14 years. Good as the Allaes are these 805D3’s are in a totally different class.
They don’t attract attention to themselves and just play music with realism and refinement and in a way that really makes one appreciate their long term value despite the not inconsiderable retail price.
I love ‘em.
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I can see why… I can’t wait to try them.
Will be picking up 805D3’s on Monday… I am going to have a quick session… I suspect I am going to have substantial bass issues - there seems to be allot more ‘upper’ bass. This is something I have noticed with some of PMC’s designs the upper bass is very dry and a touch light - which I quite like. The B&W seems a bit more lively and fuller around the 70-120hz mark - which surprised me - it is not unpleasant and it tends to propel the driving beat of music more enthusiastically. So I will install the speakers … remove DSP and do a frequency sweep from 25-150hz and then play some tracks. Also as a matter of interest I will see if I can try a set ATC STM11’s or 19’s just to see what the impact of an infinite baffle speaker would have…
@Richieroo I would also put into the Mix Kudos Titans T505, I have been very impressed by these speakers when heard them, bookshelf and about the same size as the 805, they are on my list when the time comes
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And if you have a dealer near you, Marten Duke 2 well worth a listen… there’s a review on Ear.
Cheers thanks … I am a bit scared of ported speakers and my room but I will keep those in mind… … I thought the ATC might just be interesting to try being an infinite baffle. One speaker that would possibly be wonderful is the new Magico A1 … but that would be quite a stretch for me at the moment…
I have 805 D3s. They are attached to a SN2 and HiCap DR. I home demo’d them after a dealer audition against some competing speakers price-wise. In short, I’m happy with them. I listen in a very small room but thanks to some GIK treatments don’t have any bass issues. The diamond tweeter brings out plenty of detail which I like but doesn’t spill over into harshness (which I don’t). So recommend by me for an audition. Speaker cable is the much maligned on this forum Kimber 8TC but I find it brings out the qualities of the system which I like. Good luck.
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Hi, If it’s of any interest and help I first purchased the B&W 804s model approx. 10 years ago with my then nac202/napsc/hi cap/nap200. I home demo’ed the 804s against a number of other brands especially as B&Ws didn’t seem to have many fans on these pages ( as Ebor remarked) but the 804s saw off all comers according to my taste. (dynamics, detail, overall tonality, etc). I’ve since replaced the 202 with a 282 and a couple of years ago at the time the 804D3 was launched my dealer made me a great part exchange offer to trade in the 804s for 804D3. Initially I thought I had made a mistake as the tweeters seemed over bright, but once burned-in they now sound great with a massive improvement in clarity and detail over the 804s. I’m very pleased with them and greatly enjoy listening to them. One other thing I’ve experienced:- if friends have called by who are not that interested in hi fi or music and happen to have overheard the system playing in the adjacent music room they have all spontaneously commented on the amazing sound. I’ve never had comments like that before getting the 804D3 version. I hope the 805D3 works for you. Next stop for me will be a 250DR to replace the 200.
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Hi,
I have a set of B&W 805D3 Prestige Edition on their B&W FS803D3 stands. My system is NDX2, 282, Supercap DR, 250DR.
They are wonderful with this system. They’re not bright and they’re not short of bass. They sound dynamic and are capable of great seperation. Percussion and drums sound real.
Best speakers I’ve ever had and very compatable with Naim in my opinion. (previously had Harbeth M30.2 (40th anniversary), Harbeth SHL5+ (40th anniversary) on previous iterations of this system.
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Thanks all… I thought the demo with the nd555,252,300 was very good found the speaker quite energetic… the bass - particularly the mid bass was lively and tuneful…I am still out on the port tuning…only a home demo will finally tell me what I need to know. Tweeter was very good.
Hi Althepo … what are the dims of your room…and how close do you have 805’s to rear wall. Do you fire across or down the room… cheers
Forgive me Richieroo if this comment in unappreciated but my experience with b&w loudspeakers is that they must be far from the back wall. They appear right and nice having that upper bass power (nice for electric guitar etc) but it is actually congesting the sound. If moved far from the wall they open up and midrange become clearer and bass more sophisticated.
You could also try to close the bass reflex ports to reduce the bass.
Hi. The music room is the ‘snug’ of the house. Dimensions 9 feet front to back wall, width 8 feet 6 inches. The B&W’s are 28 inches into the room (wall to front baffle). I have GIK floor to ceiling bass traps in the front corners and a further two traps behind the speakers. Two floor standing panels to the side of each speaker at first reflection points. Finally, a trap/diffuser wall mounted behind my listening chair. Oh and two IKEA paper light shades close to the ceiling at reflection points (I didn’t want further panels up there) as recommended by Paul Rigby, the Audiophile Man on his website piece on room acoustics on the cheap. They’ve all helped control the sound in what was a problem room when I first moved in. Hope this helps.
Hi that is very very helpful … I am contemplating placing the speakers … around 21 inches off rear wall to front … but I could always pull them away a touch more maybe around 24 inches. My room is 8.8 feet wide x 11.6L x 7.6 Ceiling … this slopes … I will let you know how I get on…
Cheers…
Any issues controlling the 805 D3’s with a SN2/HiCap DR?
As I recall they come with foam bungs to tame the bass if using close to a wall. I have them in a bay window but well forward and bass is not an issue at typical volume levels.