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
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Present: BL90, Core, BL6000, CD7000, Beogram 7000, Essence Remote.
Past: BL1, BL2, BL8000, BS9000, BL5, BC2, BS5, BV5, BV4-50, Beosystem 3, BL3, DVD1, Beoremote 4, Moment.
seethroughyou:The Beolab Pentas as we can see today and in a multitude of forums over the years were loved and still cherished now. The Beolab 5 were a 'Concorde moment' for B&O pushing the envelope of speaker technology and acoustics and also deeply revered but what happened to the Beolab 1s...? So little mention and so little a following if at all. Why is the case? Were they unremarkable, dull and unadventurous design and 6000s on steroids? Lets hear your views and experiences.
Why is the case?
Were they unremarkable, dull and unadventurous design and 6000s on steroids?
Lets hear your views and experiences.
This has, actually been covered ad nauseam on this forum over the years as I found out when I was researching BeoLab 1s at the beginning of my "beovirus" phase.
The bottom line is there ARE some VERY dedicated and loyal BeoLab 1 fans on this site, they just aren't as numerous as the majority of the members.
However, the easiest way to explain the lack of overall love for them is that the Lab 1s simply shot off in a completely different direction from the majority of Beolabs, including even the 6000 and 8000. B&O speakers tend to have a warm signature and unfortunately now after having owned both, no speaker exemplifies this better or more clasically than the Pentas. The 6000 and 8000 were closer to the BL1, but customers who bought BL1s were typically coming from Pentas. So to follow up such a cherished design with a replacement that looked absolutely stunning but took a stark and completely different direction sonically basically sealed their fate (this is what I was talking about when I mentioned in your BL5 thread that "newer" is not always "better" and that it's no guarantee the BL5 replacement will actually surpass them sonically).
Year or two afterward the BL2 came along to try and shore up some of the lost character in the BL1, but Lab 1 never really took a foot-hold in the BO line-up and led to the development of the BL9 based on the footprint of the BL5, restoring the warmth that had been lost in the BL1. BL1s are also probably the single most placement-sensitive Lab B&O ever released. If you had a smaller, carpeted room like I do, it just killed them. This I will say, there has *never* been a more detailed or precise midrange and treble in ANY Beolab I have heard, including the 5s I currently have. In this sense, they were closer to the B&W 802 Diamond which is a speaker I highly revere.
I am a big fan of the 1s. Placement does make a big difference in the sound. I relocated my 1s to a different room when I upgraded to 9s. The 1s sound much better in the second room than they did in the first.
Beolab 28s Beolab 9s Beolab 12-3s Beolab 1s Beolab 6000s 2 pairs Beolab 4000s Beovision 7-55 Beovision 10-40 Beoplay V1 32 inch Beovision Avant 32 inch Beosound 1 (CD player) Beosound 3000 Beosound 5 Core Essence MKII Beoplay M5
I don't know if it's unloved...I really like the design of the Beolab 1's and I have always wanted to have a set. But I don't know where to place them, as I already have a pair of Penta's and a pair of Beolab 5000's -and a pair of Beovox MC 120's -and a pair of BL 4000's -and a pair of Beovox 4500's -and a Beolab 2000. And then there's no more rooms in the house to put the BL 1's
I confess to never having owned them but from my instore experiences "shrill" would be the word that springs to mind first. To the openers point, my history was passive speakers but, as nice as they looked, I always found them overly "sharp".
Ban boring signatures!
I really enjoy my bl1s. Detailed / Sharp / Shrill? vs Warm / Dull / Muddy? I guess this just proves we all hear differently which makes arguing about which speaker is best rather pointless. I like what I like, but why should I expect others to agree? Or maybe I am just lucky to have a room they sound really good in.
Stan
To me one of the best and very robust loudspeakers from B+O. They are placement sensitive but can shine in any room. I have them in 3 rooms, delivering sound from BS5, BS3200 and BV7-55. They are very crisp and deliver a nice sound bouquet already at low output. When listening to a Cd or to the same music via BS5, the BL1 shows a certain sensitivity with highly compressed MP3. Poor input ... Poor output at higher volume.
Personally I would never trade them, they will "soldier on" and provide a very precise sound which I enjoy second to none in our household with BL3 and BL8000. The combination with BL2 is used in the room with TV. In the other rooms and given that I hardly ever boost volume, I do not miss the BL2 "enhancement" at all.
As far as I understand, one of the reasons for discontinuation was related to their use of exotic aluminium combinations. (recyclability?). Their build with the huge piece of milled aluminium is an achievement by itself. A lot of reasons to like them...iconic and a statement of time and progress.
Puncher: I confess to never having owned them but from my instore experiences "shrill" would be the word that springs to mind first. To the openers point, my history was passive speakers but, as nice as they looked, I always found them overly "sharp".
Now that last night's pub quiz humiliation and accompanying ale have been properly digested I will remove the term "shrill" as this is obviousy far too strong a word but I did always think them too "trebley". Of course this could easily have been the store set up and in any case, as I would always point out to others, listening in store is never enough to make an informed decision. This means that my original post was uninformed, beer fuelled nonsense and should be ignored!
Carry on
Love my bl1's !
Puncher: beer fuelled nonsense
Stay off the Newcastle brown ;-)
I had a set. They did not sound the best in the room I had them in. 'Shrill' definitely comes to mind. They also had a real lack of bass. I was surprised at this, when it was B&O's 'flagship speaker' at one time, and such a large speaker. I ran MK II 8000's beside them in the same room, and preferred, them, as did all the friends when I asked their opinion. 8000's were not as loud or powerful, but had a better rounded sound in my opinion, and didn't take up as much room. Not sure what they sound like with a lab 2, but I am not convinced that the lab 2 is perfect for music. It's too rumbly and slow for my liking compared to something like a B&W powered sub for instance. It is not fast and tight like a sub for music should be in my opinion. Beautiful design though. Better for surround sound application.
Rex: I had a set. They did not sound the best in the room I had them in. 'Shrill' definitely comes to mind. They also had a real lack of bass. I was surprised at this, when it was B&O's 'flagship speaker' at one time, and such a large speaker. I ran MK II 8000's beside them in the same room, and preferred, them, as did all the friends when I asked their opinion. 8000's were not as loud or powerful, but had a better rounded sound in my opinion, and didn't take up as much room. Not sure what they sound like with a lab 2, but I am not convinced that the lab 2 is perfect for music. It's too rumbly and slow for my liking compared to something like a B&W powered sub for instance. It is not fast and tight like a sub for music should be in my opinion. Beautiful design though. Better for surround sound application.
I've seen Rex's opinions before and I have to say his definitely mirror mine almost to a tee. I too temporarily added a Lab 2 and just felt that it didn't actually mesh with the Lab 1s terribly well being a bit slow as the best way to describe it. And I too felt the 8000s were much better rounded overall, if no where near as delightful in the mids and highs.