ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Even in 2018 there are some jewels that show B&Os classic DNA for me:
- Essence remote (especially with the new software allowing BT + IR simultanously)
- BLGW
- NL Converter
- Beointegration,
- Beocreate amp
- Light control with a Beo 4, 5, 6, Beoremote one, Essence remote (with Philips Hue, Osram Lightify, Lutron etc.) I hate using a phone / tablet for such simple things.
- Beosound 1
- Beosound 2
Even the Beoplay A1 which is not very beautiful and has very lousy ergonomics replaces two Beosound 3s that died due to the unreliable keypad (which is still a shame!). The Beoplay A1 is a good bathroom speaker if you don't want to install cables in your bathroom and seems to survive even if the bathroom is really foggy after intense showers. :-) Of course you still can listen to your morning radio with it by using your phone, tablet or simply a good Bluetooth transmitter connected to your B&O audio system. Due to some nice colors there's the desire to collect it in various colors, too. (Which shows, that this Beovirus is still active...)
But, and this is a BIG But: Some indispensable core elements of B&Os DNA are clearly missing:- reliability
- quality
- (timeless) design
- mechanical magic (yes, it might be difficult in an unreliable app world, but the Essence remote shows, that it's possible, as well as the new Beosound 1 and 2.
- Made in Denmark
Don't listen to all those McKinsey etc. wannebe's who don't have a clue even about their own strategies, numbers... those companies are only good at getting paid high for bullshit while damaging or even ruining other companies because they don't care about any company. You can't replace people like Geoff Martin with some accountant or marketing guy.The majority of customers wouldn't buy a Rolex made in China or a Bentley made in Europe. Even the cheapest products can be produced in their domestic countries. Have a look at those cheap Swatch watches for example. (This is the "rant part") :-)
@Lyle: Will there be the possibility to use a Beovox Cona subwoofer with the Beocreate amp and e.g. CX 50 speakers, too? That would be a great combination! Maybe we should post all the Beocreate amp information inside another thread.
Hi TWG, thanks for ranting together with me 😄
If I understand correct, the Essence Remote can control philips hue?! If so thats amazing news to me! And yes I do agree that the Essence remote have gotten a fair share of what I would concider the old school B&O DNA👍🏻 Simple, solid and just besutiful. Especially the table version.
Hmm you got an interesting point about the A1 replacing the BS3. I guess the A6 does the same for the old Beosound 1, much more so than the new Beosound1 does.
I would love for the Beoplay series to come in polished aluminium and colours, like the old Beolab speakers. And not just the matt colours available now. That to me would feel a bit more ”back to basics”. Though I do love and adore some of the colours available on the A1 and P2.
Regarding mechanics and magic, I can not think of any better example than the glass doors on the Ouverture series. I really would like to see new products with some cool version of that.
How about a hand sweep gesture in the air, to start up a TV!
It cant be hard to implement. For axample over the TV, to avoid starting accidentally when walking in front of it. That to me would feel 100% B&O!
The more I think about it now, the more I WANT the handsweep to start a TV!
Start up with last played source, or handsweep start a programmable option. For example, one sweeps and the TV start up, the stand turn to that specific position set for just the sweepstart, and the programmed source starts.
I guess the hand sweep could work as the fourth MyButton on the Remote One!
Come on B&O R&D team make it happen!!! That really is a truly B&Oisch feauture!
Lyle Clarke: Hej BeoJeff, I have a feeling there must be another thread on the Essence Remote options that could be brought back to life with specific questions about the options. Maybe you could find that and ask some specific things there, with a starting point in what feels like it is missing from the documents downloadable from BeoIntegration.
Hej BeoJeff, I have a feeling there must be another thread on the Essence Remote options that could be brought back to life with specific questions about the options. Maybe you could find that and ask some specific things there, with a starting point in what feels like it is missing from the documents downloadable from BeoIntegration.
There are several threads, which covers this issue - mostly rather short ones.
Maybe this - I guess the first one - would be ideal for a revival:
https://archivedforum2.beoworld.org/forums/t/11344.aspx?PageIndex=2
On page 2 the extented table of codes is presented.
I have a feeling, that a lot of the beoworlders would like to know more about the thoughs behind these functions.
Why add all these options and not tell about them? Or not bringing them into real life?
Did the B&O rd guys loose interest in these capacities, as the bluetooth controlling took over?
Was the further evolution of the ‘wheely’ stopped.....for ‘some reasons’?
Another interesting thread could be this one:
https://archivedforum2.beoworld.org/forums/p/19923/164560.aspx#164560
This is as much ‘documentation,’, that I can find on the Beointegration site:
http://beointegration.com/uploaded/BeoSound_Essence_Remote_IR_modes.pdf
Imo that is too little information - we need user cases, examples of how to....
MM
There is a tv - and there is a BV
DanTop: Hi TWG, thanks for ranting together with me 😄 If I understand correct, the Essence Remote can control philips hue?! If so thats amazing news to me! And yes I do agree that the Essence remote have gotten a fair share of what I would concider the old school B&O DNA👍🏻 Simple, solid and just besutiful. Especially the table version.
The Essence Remote can be put into "LIGHT" mode. When set in that mode, it sends LIGHT commands to the BLGW (via a nearby IR receiver). It has several LIGHT commands that can then be programmed into BLGW macros to trigger Philips Hue or any other systems supported by the BLGW. You can even use the wheel for dimming.
... and you can use it with the older MLGW, too. btw: "beojeff" is one of the gurus regarding programming of these things and I was always glad for his help and support! :-)
Millemissen: Why add all these options and not tell about them? Or not bringing them into real life? (...) Imo that is too little information - we need user cases, examples of how to.... MM
(...)
Which is another fault to rant about on Bang & Olufsens side: Lousy information about the products capabilities! Often we get required information only through this forum as it doesn't seem to be documented well enough for customers and is therefore not found in any of the official customer documents. This must be one of the causes the Beo 5 and 6 remotes failed: Most people (even many dealers!) didn't know what it is capable of and here in our forum are so many beautiful and amazing examples what you can do with it. Ok, if you have to program it, you better do some sport before and some yoga after programming to prevent you from freaking out. ;-)Another example? How do you reset sound adjustments to "0" or factory default on a Beolink active, passive etc.?
Beojeff, that sounds really good. But no way then to control directly without the BLGW and IR receiver?
Thanks for taking the time to explain it to me👍🏻
DanTop:Beojeff, that sounds really good. But no way then to control directly without the BLGW and IR receiver?Thanks for taking the time to explain it to me👍🏻
Beojeff, thank you. I see that you definately have good knowledge in this field.
I will try to take a look in the mentioned forum.
DanTop:Am I the only one to feel that the true DNA of Bang&Olufsen is gone?
@ DanTopNo, you're not the only one who feels Bang & Olufsen's true DNA is gone
BEOVOX141:So why not do it right instead of "as difficult as possible" I have had active CX 100 with Powerlink connections for 15 years and a wireless version for the last two years.. It really is very simple.
@ BEOVOX141
You talk and talk. I have shown how to draw drawings, so get started instead just to talk.
PeterPan, I feel a little bit better now 😄
BEOVOX141: ...Beocreate So adding massive amounts of processing hardware, ripping out the original crossover, hacksawing the chassis and hot glueing 3D printed parts, just to turn it into a BT device, does that make the CX 100 a better speaker? Sorry guys, full wireless functionality could have been achieved far easier, better and simpler,- which for the technical part would have been the real B&O DNA. If B&O was sincere about keeping the old products alive and up to date, they would release the documentation for the products they no longer wish to or can support!
...Beocreate
So adding massive amounts of processing hardware, ripping out the original crossover, hacksawing the chassis and hot glueing 3D printed parts, just to turn it into a BT device, does that make the CX 100 a better speaker?
Sorry guys, full wireless functionality could have been achieved far easier, better and simpler,- which for the technical part would have been the real B&O DNA.
If B&O was sincere about keeping the old products alive and up to date, they would release the documentation for the products they no longer wish to or can support!
Adding to Lyle's earlier response...
These loudspeakers sound better than ever with the new hardware. We are free from the limitations that the original, passive components and that has enabled us to fine-tune them in the same way as the BeoLabs you know and love are tuned. Whether this makes it a better loudspeaker, I'll let you be the judge of that.
BeoCreate is a completely new philosophy for B&O and we do many things differently than what you're used to. Getting one's hands dirty and exploring is one of the things we love and want to empower and encourage other people to do as well. It's not about shipping a complete, finely crafted modern-day Beomaster, if you will.
The software is very much work in progress, I realise that and want to personally apologise to everyone who has experienced issues with it. We're all on this journey together, learning. You will see things get better, and I am positive that over time we can introduce more of that B&O magic that everyone loves – BeoCreate is not something that should be regarded as a "finished product", this is an ever-evolving, long-term project and we can't wait to do more cool things with it.
— Tuomas | Bang & Olufsen | Bang & Olufsen Create
DanTop: Beovox141, hmm that sounds pretty sweet. Would you be able to post some photos here? Would love to see how you set it up👍🏻 And if you feel to, please do ”hijack” this thread to post the details of the wireless version. I do not mind the slightest since it is exactly what I meant for this thread, ways to update old stuff!
Beovox141, hmm that sounds pretty sweet. Would you be able to post some photos here? Would love to see how you set it up👍🏻
And if you feel to, please do ”hijack” this thread to post the details of the wireless version. I do not mind the slightest since it is exactly what I meant for this thread, ways to update old stuff!
Hi DanTop.
I will do a separate thread about this no later than this weekend, but one idea usually spawns another one.
I grew up with Legos and B&O, and I owe much of my life's accomplishments to the engineers of those two companies. The simplicity and precision of the bricks, with the hidden possibilities coded into the geometry of the studs, what seemingly is impossible, can be still be achieved if you apply a bit of imagination. And B&O,- The brilliance of the optical illusions in the BM 1900, the use of AM radio filters to create the best IR remote ever, doing the best finger touch control ever on the CDX because someone applied the properties of a transistor or just having the imagination to visualize the clutch assembly for the first BM6000. These guys were out of this world. and to make it even better they were teamed up with designers like Jensen and Lewis.
I have always been awestruck, by the simplicity and hardcore engineering, and being a Dane, I am sure the demography of my country made the difference, both companies were originally based in the western part of Denmark.
I quietly observed, for many years when I was a teenager and decided that I would like to be like those guys, my role models if you like.
In some way, I feel like DNA is within me, and its hard to accept its all gone. Beoplay will most likely survive, and perhaps the Beolab line, but the rest will quietly disappear.
In my office at work, I have a framed version of a B&O add from the seventies,- It reads "We think differently"
(hell would properly break loose if anyone knew it came from a Penthouse Magazine).
Perhaps this might be the time, I give a bit back to the guys who gave so much to me! Starting with powering up the CX100 the B&O way!
tph:These loudspeakers sound better than ever with the new hardware
Which input? Wireless BT? How do you maintain the closed box design if you need to get to input connector on the amp?
How is the antenna performing inside an aluminium enclosure sitting behind a ferrite core?
How do you turn off the speaker? How do you know is off or on for that matter?
What is the latency?
Do you have the T/S parameters of the drivers? All of them? the 75, 35?
What happens when you pad the Class D amp with damping material? (thermal)
How much heat will the board dissipate @ full load?
Can I playback Flac wirelessly to a set of Beocreate speakers in a stereo configuration?
How does this stack up to a B&O transmitter/receiver (WISA) Beoamp 2 solution?
I am not being facetious, these are all question that would be asked in any regular "engineering review".
I absolutely love the idea of bringing back life to classics, most of this site is dedicated to that very thing, but you lost me completely @ "The software is very much work in progress"
Beovox141, that sounds good. Looking forward to start reading it. I have a feeling what you are doing is way to complicated for me, compared to Beocreate, but I am very curious and would love to see more.
Those things you mention there were indeed marvels of the time! And both Jensen and Lewis made some stunning designs worthy of museum exposure.
Needless to say, the Danes have come up with some of the worlds most iconic things, just the beer I don't like
I think the Beoplay line will survive, for sure, but it feels like it sadly will go towards a cheaper and cheaper feeling.
it wouldn't surprise me if we in the not to far future start to see the regular Chinese copies of the products, just because the lineup will get to simple, and thus cheap enough to start replicate.
With less clever ideas and less extraordinary solutions and mechanical/technical details, it will soon follow the path of most other brands. Perhaps I am to harsh in saying this, and I hope that I am wrong, but it is a fear non the less.
When it comes to Beolab, there are still a couple of heavy weights in the lineup, BL50 and BL90, and the shape of the BL18 is still iconic enough to keep going, unless it gets changed to much.
But for the brand to not have the "Pencil", in some way, would be the final nail in the coffin... At least for me.
The TVs, well I really like the Avant, and I feel the Horizon is a nice homage to the older type TVs, but.... I don't know, it just feels weird at the moment when it comes to the TVs.
And for Beocenters or Beosounds, that already dead and gone. The Core is a really smart product, but thats it, smart. It´s made to hide.... B&O main units should not be made to hide away! a B&O unit should be the center of the living room! Displayed on a stand or attached to the center of an empty wall, with a light shining at it.
It´s like buying art, you buy it to look at it, to enjoy it. Thats how I used to see B&O, as technological art.
I understand your way of approaching the CX100, but for people whom are not able to tinker at home on a level that sophisticated, I do think that Beocreate is nice, it still lets people enjoy their old speakers. Most people don't even have a soldering iron at home.
Jeff:Did you notice any difference in the bass due to the volume of the components, especially the toroid? Seems like depending on the transformer and such you could eat up a significant amount of the internal volume and change the bass alignment.
I was very much aware of this, but here is my thinking. as the driver's age, they go softer and thus the q lowers slightly. the total box volume is about 4 litres and a guestimate would be about 3 deciliters for the discrete solution, i.e less than 10%, so if anything here 20 years after the manufacturing date I'm properly @ original spec. Besides my reference track for the CX, Peter Gabriel, Sledgehammer, showed no sign of a difference.
Here is the kicker,- the CX design 2-2.5 way carried over into most of the B&O speakers you know,- about 4 litres- 2way almost the same crossover frequency. Check the specs of the BL4000 or the AVANT CRT for that matter, and you will see the DNA of the CX.
Actually, if you scavenged the power amp from an AVANT you could run the CX with the active crossover, except that it wouldn't fit. Neither the Sanyo hybrid nor the LM3875 version.
BEOVOX141: I absolutely love the idea of bringing back life to classics, most of this site is dedicated to that very thing, but you lost me completely @ "The software is very much work in progress"
A lot of questions here. If you're interested, I think we should move to the Bang & Olufsen Create thread, but I won't take part in a contest to find out which solution wins – I believe it's not fruitful, as each has their benefits and downsides, and which one is the best is entirely up to the person and the use case.
As to the quoted bit, I was responding to the following bit (emphasis mine):
BEOVOX141: The idea of upcycling the CX was great, unfortunately (No offence Lyle ) it was hit by the new B&O DNA, - overly complicated, semi-beta software driven, no design elements and expensive.
The idea of upcycling the CX was great, unfortunately (No offence Lyle ) it was hit by the new B&O DNA, - overly complicated, semi-beta software driven, no design elements and expensive.
One of many solutions.
Normal 0 21 false false false DA X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4
Peter Pans drawings.
/ Peter Pan.
BEOVOX141:I will do a separate thread about this no later than this weekend, but one idea usually spawns another one.
@ BEOVOX141 Exciting. I am looking forward to seeing it. / Peter Pan
PeterPan, thank you very much for posting the guide👍🏻
DanTop:Am I the only one to feel that the true DNA of Bang&Olufsen is gone? In my opinion B&O now feels like any other electronics brand out there (almost). Good TVs, both expensive highend speakers and more budget friendly speakers, headphones and, well... thats it... What has happened to the old B&O tradition of producing cool lifestyle oriented products? Such as the Beotime, the beautiful little keyring and other things like that. Those things that gave the lovers of the brand the posibility of surrounding themselves with clever and cool small gadgets, and most important beautiful and functional gadgets. Those things that filled a little desire here and there. To live daily life with the influence of the brand! I love that and I really miss all those things! Sure we have alarmclocks in our phones now, and I dont know anyone whom is not using that function, but its not the same thing, its not even comparable. We have the new beautiful B&O app that makes it possible to turn on the speakers at the door step, or even on the walkway going up to the house, so the old little keychain remote is not ”important” anymore, but its not the same thing! I guess B&O as a brand is not in need anymore of showing their skills in aluminium work, ok I understand that, everyone understands that. They make so much other beautiful details on the products, to show that to us. But I miss the old times! I want to be able to get something fairly useless and expensive from B&O, because those things made me a little bit more happy (crazy materialistic thinking?), those small products and details were for me a big part of the brand and the B&O DNA. Did those fun things go away with Jacob Jensen? Or is the reason for it, that the market simply is not in need of products like that anymore. Things I would love to see; A small keychain remote with IR/bluetooth, to turn on multiroom last played source, and change volume, simple as that. With focus on a cool minimalistic design in aluminium and leather. A new version of Beotime with option to control the new TVs and multiroom products. Simple design as the old one and not that cheaper look that most Beoplay products have nowdays. Instead of a bottle opener, make a simcard tool for iphone, with a unnecessarily big handle with the logo. Why? Why not, it’s just for fun! I can think of several more things, but what do all of you think? Any opinions and ideas for fun and functional things, or beautiful and unnecessary things? or am I just an old fool indulging in reminiscence of the past glory days, having a hard time to appreciate all the new nice things?
Aussie Michael:Interestingly when I read the title “is the old b&o DNA gone” and when I read the opening sentence “the true DNA” I feel these can mean different things. Each of the new products have the B&o DNA. They may be different to what the B&O customers would have bought 20 and 30 years ago because the technology had changed. I don’t believe it feels like every other electronics brand out there as the retail experience is different and the level of house wide integration is a little different. I am glad that B&O don’t make those products from 20 and 30 years ago. Sure some things from the current catalogue could express a little more magic in some regards but how the majority of people actually utilise their products nowadays has changed and as are expectations from a whole range of customers that have grown up with technology in different ways. Your question about cool lifestyle products is also good. I guess you mean sort of “halo” products. Although b&o have the BL90 as their halo product, what type of other lifestyle products would people pick. I wonder if B&O had decided to do B&O “Traditional” or “B&O Legacy” (read “signature) as a sub brand instead of Play (which I think they are getting out of by looking at the P6) , if that would have had the same rate of return and effect on the balance sheet ? I guess not. When they become cashed up maybe a B&O nostalgia line would be their halo products. Re runs of the “old” stuff. But has the B&O DNA gone forever ? No. Who has a smile when they turn on their Avant or BV11,14 etc, or when they touch the wooden interface of the moment or when the other half has the BeoRemote hidden from your touch so you pick up your phone and turn it off from the app. Smart touches. That’s B&O DNA.
BEOVOX141: Jeff:Did you notice any difference in the bass due to the volume of the components, especially the toroid? Seems like depending on the transformer and such you could eat up a significant amount of the internal volume and change the bass alignment. I was very much aware of this, but here is my thinking. as the driver's age, they go softer and thus the q lowers slightly. the total box volume is about 4 litres and a guestimate would be about 3 deciliters for the discrete solution, i.e less than 10%, so if anything here 20 years after the manufacturing date I'm properly @ original spec. Besides my reference track for the CX, Peter Gabriel, Sledgehammer, showed no sign of a difference. Here is the kicker,- the CX design 2-2.5 way carried over into most of the B&O speakers you know,- about 4 litres- 2way almost the same crossover frequency. Check the specs of the BL4000 or the AVANT CRT for that matter, and you will see the DNA of the CX. Actually, if you scavenged the power amp from an AVANT you could run the CX with the active crossover, except that it wouldn't fit. Neither the Sanyo hybrid nor the LM3875 version.
Well, I think your assumption about the drivers getting softer is questionable. Certainly any CX will have to have had the surrounds replaced, they tend to stiffen and crack and rot away, but also my experience with old drivers is that the spiders and such get stiff and even brittle as they age. So, say the surrounds are the same, the best I think you can hope for is that the speaker is the same as it was new, worse case is it will be stiffer with a higher Fs.
It would be interesting to test the speaker for LF response and compare it to one without the components inside.
Jeff
I'm afraid I'm recovering from the BeoVirus.
Hi Aussie, I do agree that they can mean different things. I guess they for me mean one and the same. In my opinion the older style of B&O feels more true to the brand.
I miss the old design and stability. With that said, yes I understand that the brand has moved towards new trends and that effects it in many ways.
The BL90 is in my opinion a cool product. But I think that what i miss perhaps most, is the line of Beocenters/Beosounds. The head units. I am aware that they are not needed but I feel they are a part of that ”lost DNA”.
do I understand you correctly that you think the new P6 is a step out of the Beoplay range? If so, how? I am curious now.
Does anyone here think that it could be possible to in some way include wood in the Beoplay products? And not like the legs on the A9, but somehow on/in the units themselves.
It will of course not withstand the ravages of time as good as an all aluminum casing, but could it be possible to implement the wood in some way?
Yes it was done on the moment, and very nicely so, but to put wood on for example something similar like the Beoplay A1, will requiere a smart solution.
Could it be done in a way of functionality as well and not only for the looks?
Any ideas?
I don't think B&O has lost it's DNA. I think B&O has underestimated the rapidely changes in technology and price trends in the last years.
Many things, that conveyed the special DNA are found suddenly everywhere.
MCL and masterlink were unique for quiet a long time. Multiroom today works with a new B&O product after the 5th or 10th update. If you wanna have a multiroom music system that works with more or less no problems you have to buy SONOS.
Who needs the PUC, when there is HDMI-CEC, with the big advantage, it doesn't matter if the 3rd party product needs bluetooth commands.
TV technology has changed suddenly rapidely - better resolution, smart platforms, every year better screens. The B&O prices are beyond good and evil and technology was behind (especialy in the smart section).
I think B&O can't decide what kind of clientele they wanna support. On one hand side they need the masses to sell the required number of pieces, on the other hand side the costs are outside of the masses. B&O has to decide between 200 employees, and exclusiv systems (audio/video), where they just need to sell 500 pieces a year or 2000 employees and many sold units.
In my eyes B&O has killed the hearth of every multimedia system - their tv range. Why should someone buy a BV Horizon 40" (as the entry tv), when you get for less money a 55" QLED (the new ambient modus in the samsung 2018 is what i call magic) or OLED. I think a HDMI-CEC soundbar or a signal converter to control 3rd party tvs would be one of the best selling products. And many BeoremoteOne would be sold too.
B&O has to decide between 200 employees, and exclusiv systems (audio/video), where they just need to sell 500 pieces a year or 2000 employees and many sold units.
You forgot the third option they seem to be pursuing...20 employees and all design, engineering, and production outsourced to a company in China.
Brigantinus, thanks for your input👍🏻
Its true about the Horizon for example, I do really enjoy the look of it, but I ha e never meet anyone who even talked about buying it. I know it sells, but I have no idea who the buyers are.
Old B&O costumers who just want a small TV for the kids or the guest house perhaps?
Jeff, it’s really sad but your third option is absolutely spot on...
DanTop:Jeff, it’s really sad but your third option is absolutely spot on...
StUrrock, a sad posibility perhaps. I dont know how much they scaled down vs sent away for production. But it is non the less the path for most companies today, and the current ways of B&O does hint at it
DanTop:Hi Aussie, I do agree that they can mean different things. I guess they for me mean one and the same. In my opinion the older style of B&O feels more true to the brand. I miss the old design and stability. With that said, yes I understand that the brand has moved towards new trends and that effects it in many ways. The BL90 is in my opinion a cool product. But I think that what i miss perhaps most, is the line of Beocenters/Beosounds. The head units. I am aware that they are not needed but I feel they are a part of that ”lost DNA”. do I understand you correctly that you think the new P6 is a step out of the Beoplay range? If so, how? I am curious now.
Aussie Michael: I think the DNA is linked to when you started first purchasing the brand. So obviously it’s different for different people
I think the DNA is linked to when you started first purchasing the brand. So obviously it’s different for different people
That’s a good definition - thanks Michael ;-)
However, I started 50 years ago.
My first B&O was a BeoMaster 900K.
On Beoworld you can read about that: ‘The first product of the new era was launched in 1964’
Obvisiously the ‘DNA’ has changed over the years.
None the less - as you - I embrace all the new possibilities with this ‘our-new-era-B&O-products’ (including B&O Play).
Aussie, yes for sure, the more variables available, there will also follow more risk of problems.
Indeed, someone born in the 50s or 60s would probably argue the design of that era as the ”true” one. But I do think, even when looking back, that the most beautiful and also mechanically fun design from B&O was in the 80-90s
DanTop: Aussie, yes for sure, the more variables available, there will also follow more risk of problems. Indeed, someone born in the 50s or 60s would probably argue the design of that era as the ”true” one. But I do think, even when looking back, that the most beautiful and also mechanically fun design from B&O was in the 80-90s
I agree, to me the 80/90s were peak B&O for style. While I truly do appreciate the earlier, 70s products, to me even the later Jensen stuff is not as impressive as the David Lewis designs, though the Jensen products were very stylish as well.
My Beogram 3000 tangential is a Jensen design, but the rest of my daily use kit is all Lewis.
Jeff, Lewis did the Beo4... for me that is the pinnacle of it all!
Its almost unbelievable how many things he did besides that. CD changer, sliding doors, the banana and my favorite the BV7, to name just a few.
What I love with Jensen is his use of wood, and still keeping the products in general so futuristic, compared to all the other brands.
Jensen and Lewis are without any doubt the two best designers of modern time.
The Beo4 is a classic. The only thing I wish it had was a backlight for the buttons and display for dark rooms, but I can understand why they might have avoided that on the main models of it for battery life. Still hands down, no pun intended, the best remote ever for how it feels in the hand to me. Such a comforting weight.
For my AV setup I use a Harmony by Logitech, it works splendidly, but doesn't have the same satisfying feel. If Harmony made the exact same thing for a hundred or so bucks more that was metal and such I'd have spent the extra cash on it.
I still remember the first time I was at the hifi store and saw the Beosound 9000 when my friend who worked there excitedly brought out the first one and unboxed it. I have never in my life had such a reaction to any electronics product. Usually I studied and thought long and hard about my selection, but that day I knew immediately that I absolutely had to own that CD changer! It was lust at first sight. Today, 20 years later, I still use it daily. It's lasted longer than any other piece of stereo or AV gear I've ever owned, except for my Beogram.
BeoGreg:I’m so desappointed by B&O at the moment that I don’t even want to talk about it... The DNA is lost in the chinese and korean skys.
I share that feeling...
To such an extent, that I lose my interest in any new product they launch, I'm sure that the last purchases will also be the final last.
"Believe nothing you read and only half of what you see, let your ears tell you the truth."
Jeff, that would have been some nice extras indeed. But in some way it would also take away it’s minimalistic feeling a bit.
They weight is the thing I miss the most with the Beoremote One. It feels plastic, end even though it looks cool, the feeling is cheap.
BS9000, one of Lewis’s masterpieces.
Chris, B&O had a crisis many years ago, and they pulled through. Hopefully that will do the same again. I am sure they are selling and making good profit these days but non the less they are in my opinion in ”crisis mode”.
They need to launch something spectacular to get back on track!