Are you looking for the best?
Well, there’s one brand that manufactures Hi-Fi speakers and has a reputation like no other – Bowers & Wilkins.
Yup, this speaker company has grown at a phenomenal rate ever since its inception back in 1966. It was no surprise to us when Sound United LLC acquired Bowers & Wilkins last year. I mean, Who wouldn’t want to?
Bowers & Wilkins still carry out the manufacturing process at their headquarters in Sussex, England and their speakers have been a favorite of recording engineers and audiophiles the world over. Their 800 series were launched in celebration of their 50th anniversary and were some of the best speakers till date (you’ll see why).
Today we’re going to focus on the best of the best from Bowers & Wilkins and i’ll take you through what each of them has to offer.
| Top 8 Best Bowers & Wilkins Speakers | Features |
| B&W 606 S2 Anniversary Edition | 30cm Tall Speakers; 13cm Silver Continuum Drivers; 120W Power Output |
| Bowers & Wilkins Formation Duo | Wireless Connectivity; Bluetooth aptX, Wi-Fi; 125W Driver Units |
| B&W Mini Theater M-1 | Dual Driver Units; Good Cable Management; Anti-Resonance Plugs |
| Bowers & Wilkins CL Series AM-1 | Waterproof; Auxiliary Bass Radiator; Rust-Proof Design; |
| B&W 603 | Decoupled Double Domed Aluminum Tweeters; Continuum Cone FST |
| Bowers & Wilkins ASW608 | 200W Class D Amplifier; Stereo Line-in, Speaker-in; 200W Power Output |
| Bowers & Wilkins A5 | Bluetooth/Wireless; Android/iOS Support; 2 x 40W Drivers, 2 Nautilus Tube Tweeters |
| Bowers & Wilkins Series 800 D3 | One High-frequency Diamind Dome Tweeter, One Continuum Cone, Two Aerofoil Cone Bass Units; 47.9″ Tall Speakers |
Table of Contents
Top 8 Best Bowers And Wilkins Speakers
B&W as it’s commonly called produces some of the best speakers in the world. They have been lauded for their top notch collection of Hi-Fi speakers that can make any audiophile go crazy.
Without further adieu, here are the best B&W speakers according to me.
B&W 606 S2 Anniversary Edition
An A-class top-rated speaker unit to invest in this year will be the 606 S2 Anniversary Edition, hands down. It’s loud, crystal clear and there’s absolutely nothing you won’t love about this speaker.
It offers a cleaner and more engaging performance and is reasonably priced making them extremely sought after speaker units. These 30cm tall speakers have been improved, with new bypass capacitors, a 25mm decoupled dome tweeter and the power-hub of it all, the 13cm silver Continuum driver units.
Features
- The Continuum woofer design improves the speaker’s overall performance and helps deliver leading class vocals, with fast and well-paced bass.
- It’s customizable and is available in three color options, you can choose between black, white and oak to suit your room.
- Unfortunately, these speakers are not wireless and you will have to connect them to an AV unit or an amplifier.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 25mm Decoupled Dome Tweeters; 13cm Silver Continuum Driver Units |
| Sensitivity | 88dB |
| Max Power Handling | 120W |
| Nominal impedance | 8ohms |
Bowers & Wilkins Formation Duo
The Formation Duo is an exceptionally wonderful multi-room speaker that’s both wireless and comes equipped with Bluetooth aptX HD which is key to an uninterrupted playback experience. These speakers are truly precise units that deliver raw performance this sounds good until you hear a scratched record.
One of the best things about the Formation Duo is t he fact that you can pair with with any device via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and even connect it to Spotify and Apple AirPlay 2
Features
- These speakers are truly wireless and can be connected with each other no matter what room they’re kept in. They are powered by large 125W drivers that drown out any external noises in the room.
- It supports Apple’s AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and can be paired to your smartphone, laptop, AV unit and even your TV via Bluetooth.
Specifications
| Power Output | 2 x 125W |
| Sensitivity | 80dB |
| Connections | Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect, USB, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi |
| Nominal impedance | 8Ω (minimum 4Ω) |
B&W Mini Theater M-1
The B&W Home Theater M-1 produces quite an impressive sound while being impressively compact. This item comes as a single speaker unit and if you’re looking for more than one speaker then you’d have to buy them individually.
B&W M-1 is designed to sit anywhere in the room and to compliment the surroundings, you can position it on a bookshelf or can be mounted on the wall with the help of its swiveling base.
The M-1 is capable of being connected with other units to create a mini home-theater or by adding a single sub-woofer that will be perfect for smaller rooms.
Features
- The tweeter on the M-1 is tube-loaded, quite similar to the ones used in the Nautilus. This type of tweeter design works by soaking up unwanted resonance from the rear of the speaker so what comes out from the front is clear and detailed.
- For the bass/mid-range, the driver features B&W’s anti-resonance plug which is designed to soak up resonance and reduces cone break-up allowing you to hear everything clearly and in detail.
- This unit comes with really good cable management, it passes up through the stand making it a work of art.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 1x ø25mm (1in) metal dome high-frequency; 1x ø100mm (4in) woven glass fiber cone bass/mid-range |
| Sensitivity | 85dB spl (2.83V, 1m) |
| Recommended amplifier power | 20W – 100W into 8Ω on un-clipped program |
| Nominal impedance | 8Ω (minimum 4Ω) |
Bowers & Wilkins CL Series AM-1
The AM-1 is B&W’s most durable speaker ever that can be used both indoors and outdoors without having to worry about rust formation or damage from adverse weather conditions. This architectural monitor is easy to install and can be mounted either vertically or horizontally depending on how you want the room to look.
When it comes to being placed outside, it compliments the natural surrounding without looking out of place. Connect a few of these bad boys together and you’re in for a wild night.
Weather proof aside, the AM-1 is quite powerful and uses an auxiliary bass radiator to give you extra low-end punch.
Features
- The AM-1 features a design that lets you use the speaker anywhere. The rust-proof grill and super-rigid cabinet make the speaker ultra durable.
- It comes with an inverted driver array that guarantees optimum sound dispersion even if the speaker is mounted high on a wall. It even uses an advanced bass-radiator design to maximize low-frequency performance.
- The speaker also has an ABR (Auxiliary Bass Radiator) that helps it produce truly remarkable bass response, making it one of a kind.
- AM-1 was designed to be installed with ease. It uses an elegant cast aluminum wall bracket and a one plug monitoring system.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 1x ø25mm (1in) aluminum dome high-frequency; 1x ø130mm (5in) glass fiber cone bass/mid-range |
| Sensitivity | 86dB (2.83V, 1m) |
| Recommended amplifier power | 20W – 100W into 8Ω on un-clipped program |
| Nominal impedance | 8Ω (minimum 5.2Ω) |
B&W 603
The Bowers and Wilkins 603 is a set of tower speakers that deliver stunning vocal performance with details like you’ve never heard them before. They’re the first B&W speakers to come with magnetic grilles and are equipped with B&W’s Continuum cone material that is normally found on their high-end products.
These speakers are fitted with a sturdy base and deliver an expansive sound stage allowing you to immerse yourself in anything you listen to. At just over a cool grand, these speakers are not meant for everyone. They’re powerful, deliver tons of detail and require a large room so it doesn’t sound to jarry.
Features
- These speakers feature a decoupled double domed aluminum tweeter, a Continuum cone FST for mids, Paper bass cones and a Flowport.
- Ideal for your home theater, the 603 are large standing speakers that sound impressive and can be customized based on your requirement.
Specifications
| Driver Units | Continuum Cone FST; Decoupled Double Dome Aluminum Tweeter |
| Sensitivity | 88.5dB |
| Max Power Handling | 200W |
| Nominal Impedance | 8Ω (minimum 5.2Ω) |
Bowers & Wilkins ASW608
The ASW608 sub-woofer speaker from B&W uses an 8” driver that is designed for bass that is both fast and dramatic. It’s perfect for in-door use and is compatible with the M-1 allowing you to build a home theater from scratch.
This sub-woofer compliments the Award Winning 600 Series of speakers and sits well in any room whether it’s big or small.
Under the hood you’d also find a powerful amplifier that’s capable of letting you have a brilliant movie experience. The Sub-woofer uses an RCA Phono Stereo line-in so it can directly be plugged into your external amplifier.
Features
- The ASW608 features a nice cubed body that packs quite a punch. Its 8” driver is capable of delivering deep bass that’s fast and tight.
- It houses a high-performance 200W Class D amplifier that’s capable of driving impressive sound from such a small unit.
- With a range of input and output options, the ASW608 can be paired with other speakers for a customized experience.
- This beast comes with Bass extension, Bass roll-off alignment and even can Auto Sense On/Standby for when you’re not around.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 200mm (8in) paper / Aramid fiber cone long-throw |
| Power Output | 200W |
| Input Options | Stereo line in (RCA Phono); Speaker in (Binding post); 12v trigger (3.5mm jack) |
| Input impedance | 33kΩ |
Bowers & Wilkins A5
The A5 is a wireless speaker that produces tons of detail and has a great design. This speaker was created for Apple’s AirPlay tech in mind but comes with a 3.5mm audio jack as well in case you’re looking to connect your laptop/TV or smartphone to it.
It’s an impressively powerful dock that can easily fill up a small room and is capable of churning out rich and detailed audio.
Though small in size, the A5 uses dual 1” tube tweeters and a set of 4” mid-bass drivers that are individually amplified making this wireless speaker perfect for those on the move.
Features
- The A5 comes with Wi-Fi capabilities to play music from any iOS device and a 3.5mm audio jack so you can plug in any other device for playback. Unfortunately, the device does not have Bluetooth so there’s no universal wireless feature.
- The speaker can be set up rather easily thanks to the Bowers & Wilkins Control App which can be downloaded from the Play Store / App Store.
- It features 2 powerful drivers for mid/bass and 2 Nautilus tube tweeters for the best high-quality sound.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 40W x 2; Nautilus Tube Tweeters x 2 |
| Power Output | 80W |
| Input Options | Wi-Fi; Ethernet (IEEE 802.3); 3.5mm audio jack |
| Frequency Response | 47 – 22000 Hz |
Bowers & Wilkins Series 800 D3
Bowers & Wilkins did a phenomenal job on the 800 series and when it comes to the best in the range, there’s nothing that comes close to the 800 D3. It’s a large floor-standing speaker that delivers pure and precise sounding audio thanks to the Continuum cone mid-range driver and Turbine head driver, the Aerofoil cone Bass driver and the Diamond dome tweeter that’s mounted at the top.
The speaker is designed to be sturdy and along with advanced Matrix bracing, the cabinet damps out superfluous vibrations for clear audio playback.
It even comes with an extremely stable base so that there are no unnecessary vibrations when music is played at a high volume.
Features
- It features a 3 way vented box system that houses a diamond tweeter, turbine head and continuum cone drivers for mids/highs and a Aerofoil cone bass unit for deep bass production.
- It’s a tall speaker that stands at 47.9”, but does not disrupt the look of your room as it looks great anywhere.
- The speaker comes with a mesh covering that improves the sound output, refining the audio quality each time music played on it.
Specifications
| Driver Units | 1x ø25mm (1 in) diamond dome high-frequency; 1x ø150mm (6 in) Continuum cone FST™ mid-range; 2x ø250mm (10 in) Aerofoil cone bass units |
| Recommended Amplifier Power Output | 50W – 1000W into 8Ω on un-clipped program |
| Harmonic distortion | 2nd and 3rd harmonics (90dB, 1m on axis) <1% 80Hz – 20kHz <0.3% 100Hz – 20kHz |
| Frequency Response | 13Hz to 35kHz |
Best Bowers & Wilkins Speakers – Buying Guide
Before you can go out and get yourself a pair of Bowers & Wilkins speakers, there are a few things you need to consider.
- Budget – Now, we all know that in order to buy a B&W speaker set, we’d have to sell our kidney. But not all of their products are extremely expensive. They do have a range of mid-priced speakers that can deliver impressive sound in your room such as the ASW608 or the A5. First decide on the budget you’re willing to spend and then pick one that doesn’t break your bank.
- Room Measurement – While not everyone looks into the dimensions of the room, this is actually a very important factor to consider before buying speakers. Speakers are built differently and some would be ideal for a small room, whereas others would need a larger room for you to experience the best sound possible. Measure the room and then cross-check with the manufacturer if the speaker will sound good in a room of xyz dimensions.
- Power Handling – Another thing to consider is the level of amplification your speakers can handle. If your amplifier is too powerful, it can blow the speakers. Make sure to check the power input specifications of the speakers and cross check to see if they’re compatible with the amplifier you have at home.
- Single-wired or Bi-wired – Speakers that offer a wired connection normally provide you with either a single wired slot or a bi-wired slot. Single wires don’t normally perform well and all the sound is pushed through a single driver. Bi-wired speakers on the other hand will channel your audio through two different drivers so you can hear the vocals and feel the bass separately.
Takeaway
Based on the specs and features these speakers have to offer, it’s pretty evident as to why they’re sought after by audiophiles around the world. Bowers & Wilkins have been able to consistently deliver top notch speakers every-time and they never fail to amaze us with their range.
Though most speakers such as the wireless A5 and ones such as the M-1 are priced in a reasonable range, there are some like the Series 700/800 which may not be affordable by all.
Still, owning any B&W speaker (irrespective of the price) will result in an enhanced music listening experience no matter where you are.
Also Read:
- Best Bang & Olufsen Speakers
- Compatible Soundbars To Get The Most Out of Spotify
- Best Dolby Atmos Receiver
Greetings! My name is Michael and this is my website.
I've been specializing in audio equipment and accessories for a while and have a little something in store for every kind of hi-fi enthusiast.
Based in California, I keep attending special launch events across the globe. This has helped me understand the products better, and with a unique hands-on experience I'm able to provide you with easy to understand reviews about the best in audio tech from around the world.
