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
Decided to buy a marble Balance this week.
Had a little play before I take it up to the office. Interestingly, I find my various BeoSound 2's as offering better performance. There's something lacking in the mid-range.
Looks good though.
BV Harmony 65 / Eclipse 55 / BL 50 / 19 / 18 / BS 2 all brass
BV Horizon 48 / V1 40 / BL 17 / Beoplay S3 all black
V1 / BL 3 / BS Essence MKII / Beoplay A3 all white
BS Moment / BS 3000 / BS 3200 / BL 400 all silver
Headphones / bluetooth speakers / BLC NL-ML / BLGateway
I know…B&O virus has grown on me !
Looks amazing! As well as your dining room.
Thats one expensive essential oil defuser. But you should try some sandalwood ;)
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BeoLab 18's. Beolab 3's. A8. A9. A2. H7.
AnalogPlanet: Looks amazing! As well as your dining room.
I just put it there to set up/test. It will go in to the office.
Surprised the BeoSound 2 sounds more 'rounded' though. That's the strange thing about B&O speakers, they all sound different. For example, the Edge sound is....odd. The A9 is superb, BeoSound 2 best bang-for-buck, Balance is decent top-end and bass, but voice sound a bit robotic.
Severed_Hand_of_Skywalker: Thats one expensive essential oil defuser. But you should try some sandalwood ;)
We're not allowed to say negative things about B&O products. Our US friends get very unhappy. We can only say good things....even if we own them!
moxxey: Severed_Hand_of_Skywalker: Thats one expensive essential oil defuser. But you should try some sandalwood ;) We're not allowed to say negative things about B&O products. Our US friends get very unhappy. We can only say good things....even if we own them!
The opinions of the few outweigh the experiences of the many.
As much as I wanted to like the Balance, I was not super impressed either. I returned mine. I felt the Stage sounded better and was less expensive. It didn’t feel full enough for me
And I agree, the A9 is fantastic. Sold my 2nd gen, hopefully getting a 4th gen soon. Hoping it sounds even more robust.
Cheers Chris, you have already answered the question I would have asked about comparison with the BeoSound 2! I assumed the Balance might have been better but it was never in contention for me because the design didn’t appeal as I am sure you may remember. Good you are able to compare though and interesting result.
B&O products are V1-32, BS2, H95, E8 and an Essence remote.11-46 now replaced with Sony A90J 65”, Sony HT-A9, Sony UBP-X800M2 and Sony SRS-NS7.
And I am puzzled a bit, as the initial feedbacks from some of the early reviewers here in Forum were like Balance was a comparable experience to a pair of BL17s (minus the stereo separation, obviously). Seems like it isn't so impressive afterall? Perhaps it sounds better in your office moxxey?
Beovision 7-55 MK1 red, Beolab 10 red. Beolab 50, all black. Beolab 17 broken ice. Beolab transmitter. Apple tv4 and apple express 2.
moxxey:Balance is decent top-end and bass, but voice sound a bit robotic.
B&O do say, "A wireless speaker with a dynamic acoustic performance designed to be positioned up against the wall on a shelf or side table in your home." To me that says, even if they also have freestanding/wall/corner settings, that they have tweaked the mid-bass frequency response to sound better just an inch or two away from the wall. (Perhaps "tweaked" is something *not* done, i.e. just the position and enclosure of the driver generates the response.) As opposed to the usual advice allowing placement of small omnidirectional speakers up to 10" away from the wall -- which is, for example, what Apple recommend for their "Pods".
Probably you listened that way and placed it in the middle of the room just for the photo shoot (else where would the mains plug be on your dining table?). But if not, I (we!) would be interested in your opinion in wall-tight position? (...whether or not you try all 3 EQ's once positioned that way. Hint, hint.:-)
Some excellent observations and suggestions track...
I agree. The mids on the Balance sounded tinny and lacking depth. It has nice bass, but the mids caused me to not like the sound as a whole. I’m surprised more people haven’t noticed this.
trackbeo: Probably you listened that way and placed it in the middle of the room just for the photo shoot (else where would the mains plug be on your dining table?). But if not, I (we!) would be interested in your opinion in wall-tight position? (...whether or not you try all 3 EQ's once positioned that way. Hint, hint.:-)
I've been using B&O kit for years and own 2 x Stage, 2 x BS2's, 1 x BS1, 1 Edge and 1 Balance. You'd think I'd have the gist of how to understand positioning and this configuration by now? And the Balance is actually in the office. I just took a photo on the dining room table.
I'm explaining that it's simply not quite as dynamic or rich as a BS2. It has a slight "robotic" mid-range in comparison to the BS2. It's slight. I also said "bit" which indicates a small margin?
For me, the BS2 edges the Balance. And I own both. I can make an honest opinion owning both, which is what I'm doing. Hint hint :)
Austin: I agree. The mids on the Balance sounded tinny and lacking depth. It has nice bass, but the mids caused me to not like the sound as a whole. I’m surprised more people haven’t noticed this.
You might be told you don't know how to configure your own product shortly.
But, yes, the BS2 is the best all-round speaker I own (not as good as my old A9). Neither my Edge, Balance and certainly not the Stage can match it.