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
A stroke of good luck has delivered back to me a repaired set of BL 8000s Mk I. They're attached to a BC 9500/BG 3000 combo. As I remembered, smooth mid-range and nice imaging. But they do lack bass.
What are the thoughts of this group for adding a BL 11? From what I've read it has mixed reviews. Some think it doesn't extend low enough to be glorified with the term 'subwoofer;' others praise it for its musicality. Others think it lacks punch.
My use case here will be to listen to stereo music (my surround system is in another room). I listen to classical, some jazz, 80's alternative, and a lot of Berlin-school electronic music. There's a lot of low frequency in the latter.
The esthetics of the BL 11 are *very* appealing. Is that counter-balanced by poor performance? Your thoughts or experience?
Thanks in advance.
I'm stated this numerous times.In my setup the addition of a BL11 made a HUGE difference to my setup (BL8000's and (then) BeoVision3.)
My neighbours never complained with the 8000's alone, but received numerous remarks once the BL11 was added. It does not go down as deel as a BL2 but it does ad serious bass to the 8000s! And it's very noticeable!
Karel.
Agree, I think that the BL11 makes a big difference for a pair of BL8000 and yes the BL2 has more bass but I think it's a bit too much when playing music and from my taste it would be my choice for movie setup. But, for pure music I'll like the BL2 far better as it's more snappy where the BL2 sounds a bit too bassy and slow. In my setup I have 2 pairs of BL8000 in the living room (rectangular shape) where on one side I have the BL8000 + BL11 connected to a BV10 and other end of the room which is dinning area is where the other pair standing. Quite nice also to play all 4 speakers to fill out the room completely.
It's all about personal taste; if you want the umpa-umpa sound then go for BL2.
@Fredric
Can’t say if you will agree, once you have a BL11 in your configuration/room, but I appreciate what my BL11 is doing in my setup.
No other advice from me than........only tryIng it out at your own place will tell!
However, if ‘a lot of low frequency’ is your aim, it might not be the right choice.MM
There is a tv - and there is a BV
My own experience with the combo 8000 & 11 is very positive. Can't say the bass goes super deep or is very pronounced, but the 11 definitely improves the music. And the 11 is a very beautiful object. Better looking than the 2 or 19 imo
I have wall mounted 8000s mrk1. I have tried with both BL2 and BL11.
The 2 is far too boomy for music reproduction.. the 11 on the other hand is just right. Sharp enough to keep up where the 2 lacked in timing.
BL11 is the one. (For music)
RichardIII: My own experience with the combo 8000 & 11 is very positive. Can't say the bass goes super deep or is very pronounced, but the 11 definitely improves the music. And the 11 is a very beautiful object. Better looking than the 2 or 19 imo
A stunning piece of art, almost worth buying for that alone regardless of performance.
Jeff
I'm afraid I'm recovering from the BeoVirus.
As you can see from my sig and photos I have posted - I have BL 11 and BL2 as well as BL 8002 and BL 6000. I have tried them in all combinations. IMHO, the BL 11 does not improve the bass for the BL 8002 . The BL 2 is another matter! The BL 2 adds excellent bass but might be a little slow for some types of music. Overall it is great and punchy - one of my favorite subs. The BL 11 isn’t really a subwoofer. It lacks punch and is one B&O product I would never buy again. It adds a little bass and adds a little punch to the BL 6000 and it might be OK for that. However, adding a Core to my BL 6000 made a bigger difference to me for music than the BL 11.
My 2 cents worth.
B&O in my life 😊:
The Beolab 11 is a very beautiful piece but soundwise it's only ok for small Beolab speakers (e.g. Beolab 4...) and very small rooms. If it needs to be a Bang & Olufsen subwoofer you'll better go for- Beoplay S8 subwoofer (black)
- Beolab 14 subwoofer (white)
- Beolab 2 (good for movies, ok for music with smaller speakers like Beolab 6000 and 8000)
- Beolab 19 (no personal experience with this one)If it doesn't need to be from Bang & Olufsen there are plenty of other options for active subwoofers.
Livingroom: BL3, BL11, BV11-46 Kitchen: Beosound 1 GVA, Beocom 2 Bathroom: M3 Homeoffice: M3, Beocom 2 Library: Beosound Emerge, Beocom 6000 Bedroom: M5, Essence remote Travel: Beoplay E8 2.0, Beoplay EQ, Beoplay Earset
Jaffrey2230: As you can see from my sig and photos I have posted - I have BL 11 and BL2 as well as BL 8002 and BL 6000. I have tried them in all combinations. IMHO, the BL 11 does not improve the bass for the BL 8002 . The BL 2 is another matter! The BL 2 adds excellent bass but might be a little slow for some types of music. Overall it is great and punchy - one of my favorite subs. The BL 11 isn’t really a subwoofer. It lacks punch and is one B&O product I would never buy again. It adds a little bass and adds a little punch to the BL 6000 and it might be OK for that. However, adding a Core to my BL 6000 made a bigger difference to me for music than the BL 11. My 2 cents worth.
I agree with you regarding BL2 being my favorite sub also. But about the slowliness and not fitting for music listening, like we can read sometimes about it, I totally disagree. It is 100% matter of setting it up properly, and room response probably. BL2 is quite simple to setup to achieve excellent results, much easier than a BL19 actually.
Recently I acquired a BL19 for my home office, to run with Beovox CX50 as main speakers. I never succeeded in according properly the CX50 and BL19 and obtain a good result despite the many setting options the BL19 is providing, never. I then decided to give a try with the BL2 I had in my bedroom. In 5mn I have been able to setup with such an amazing result, using CX50 and BL2 on a BM4500.
The BL19 moved to the bedroom, connected to the BV11, so managed directly by the built-in Beosystem 4. And believe it or not, the BL19 managed by the sound processor of the BV11 gives a better result than the former BL2, surprisingly.
In my setup/rooms, definitely the BL19 is better than the BL2 connected to the BS4/BV11 (mainly used for movies), and the BL2 gives such an incredible result for music only, better than the BL19.
I actually agree with you. For all my listening (I listen to music way more than watch TV) I love the BL 2! I should have clarified that there are some who complain about it being slow, it might be for the types of music I don’t listen to 🤷🏻♂️
The BL 11 is a beautiful subwoofer but I would not buy it as a subwoofer. I agree with the poster who said it adds some bottom end to the BL3 and that is what he wanted. Plus his set up looks amazing 🙂
Great discussion. Thanks for the various opinions - without the ability to listen to any of the B&O subs (or quasi-subs ) before committing to purchase, your experiences really inform. 'Appreciate it.
So how will you decide, then?
MM
I believe that if you're using a BeoVision/BeoSystem that the way the BeoVision handles bass management could make a difference. The older version of the technical sound guide has a handy chart at the end the shows how the bass management and re-direction is handles based on the speakers. The latest version of the technical sound guide no longer includes this chart. The chart shows that bass is removed from a BeoLab 4000 or BeoLab 6002 and sent to a BeoLab 11. However, it shows that bass is NOT removed from a BeoLab 8002 for re-direction to a BeoLab 11.
I completely agree on that! It's defintiely the most beautiful subwoofer on the market, and maybe the only one which can be wall-mounted. I have to admit that I became almost a passionate collector of BL11 covers
BTW, I am running BL11 hooked to a pair of BL3 and it's an awesome addition to gently "fill" the lower frequency range
Damir
I bought a beolab 11 to compliment beolab 6000's. There was a noticable difference for sure and an improvement but for the money it was tiny! So was I happy? No, not really.
But i kept it. It is a very cute unit. It is now solely connected to a Beovision 11 to add a little extra and it does do that quite well, but again for the money??? Questionable.
It's a lot to spend when it still cannot get close to a Beovision 7 with Beolab 7-2.
Friends ask me why I am boiling a kettle next to the TV?