Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Standmount Speaker Review

A trip through the space time Continuum

by Ed Selley
MSRP: £6,250.00
9
AVForumsSCORE
OUT OF
10

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Standmount Speaker Review

The 805 D4 is as technically accomplished as we'd hope an 800 Series speaker to be but it's also a genuinely joyous thing to listen at the same time. It balances accuracy and realism with levels of engagement its predecessors never matched and offers class leading build and finish into the bargain.

Pros

  • Sonically superb; a near perfect balance between technical accuracy and enjoyment
  • Beautifully made
  • Usefully forgiving in terms of partnering equipment

Cons

  • Need a little volume behind them to deliver their best
  • Not necessarily the most beautiful speaker going
  • Dedicated stand is quite pricey

Introduction - What Is the 805 D4?

The Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 is the smallest member of the 800 Series speakers. It’s a two way standmount that has been evolving in the same way as the rest of the 800 Series range. This means that the ‘D4’ you see here traces its origins back to the ‘Matrix 805’ which appeared thirty years ago in 1991. As you might imagine, not a single facet of the design of that original ‘805’ is replicated here save for the three number derivation and the two way configuration. Between it sits the N805, 805S, 805D, D2 and D3, each evolving, each adding new technology that, in time, makes its way into the more terrestrial ends of the Bowers product line up.

This is a key role of the 800 Series and has been since its earliest days. Like a Mercedes S Class, features that you saw first here, eventually work their way to more affordable levels. It’s a statement of intent and something that Bowers & Wilkins has an advantage over almost every other company in. This is because the 800 Series is - and not by a small margin either - the biggest selling high end speaker range there is. There are economies of scale at work in the 800 Series that are not present anywhere else in audio.

This means that the omens for the 805 D4 are good. It’s the product of thirty years of evolution, incorporating technology, materials and engineering processes not easily replicated by other companies, even at this fairly lofty price point. Good omens are one thing, genuine greatness is quite another though. Is this the standmount’s standmount, the benchmark, the One? It’s time to find out.

Specification and Design 

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
The Satin Walnut finish is new and arguably the nicest option available

The 805D4 is packed with engineering that we’ll pore over in due course but in an absolute configuration sense, it puts its trousers on one leg at a time like everyone else. It combines a 25mm tweeter with a 165mm mid bass driver; a combination that has underpinned a huge selection of speakers we’ve tested over the years. This is supported by a front mounted bass port which has a selection of foam bung options to moderate the flow of air from it.

While the basic description of what the 805D4 is reasonably prosaic, every aspect of what makes it is not. The biggest change for this particular model (a distinction made because this only applies to the 805 and 804) is that the cabinet is now made in the same way as the larger models. This is a process called ‘reverse wrap’ that takes layers of birch ply (there is no MDF, HDF or indeed board of any density in the 800 Series) and adhesive and uses a large press to form them into the arch shaped cabinet. The back of this cabinet is then trimmed back and the enclosure sealed acoustically, inboard of this. The crossover is then placed at the back, between the back ends of the cabinet.

This ply form is open at the top and bottom (which in the 805 is sealed with another section of birch ply machined to fit) as it comes out the press and all models now cap it with a metal section. This serves to seal the cabinet, control the - already fairly non resonant - cabinet and serve as a mounting point for the tweeter. This another example of the ‘Tweeter on Top’ design principle that we’ve seen in various members of the 700 Series but it’s far more advanced. For the D4 Series, the housing - machined from a single aluminium billet - is longer and mounted differently to the preceding version. It’s still decoupled but, by recessing it partially into the top plate and putting two decoupled mounting points in, it feels a huge amount more reassuring than both the previous D3 model and the 700 Signatures.


Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
The reverse wrap cabinet means that the 805 has a metal rear panel section for the first time

Of course, the device within this housing remains a fairly spectacular object in its own right. The tweeter is a 25mm dome made from synthetic diamond. It’s been fifteen years since this first appeared in the 800 Series but it remains a fairly rare thing to encounter in a speaker due to the cost and complexity involved in making them. Across the internet, you’ll find hundreds of pages arguing over whether this or Focal’s beryllium dome is the ultimate physical tweeter. The cop out answer is that both options play to the primary concern of its builder; Focal being more interested in mass (or a lack thereof), Bowers & Wilkins in stiffness. It is outside the scope of what I can do for AVForums but, for those of you concerned with measurement, the performance of the diamond dome, as tested by third parties, is pretty peerless.

This hands over to a 165mm midbass driver made from the proprietary Continuum material that is now used at all levels but - going back to the opening preamble - first appeared on the ‘D3’ 800 Series. The 805 is an outlier in the range because, as this Continuum driver isn’t handing over to a dedicated bass driver, it doesn’t have the revised ‘spider’ that the rest of the range has which is designed to help air build up behind the driver face while being stiffer and lighter into the bargain. The 805 does get a new anti resonance plug design and revised tuned mass damper that controls the relationship between the driver and the cabinet.

Internally, the cabinet is also revised to include new ‘Matrix’ bracing that is now also made of birch ply (replacing lighter ply sections in the previous models) and has further metal stiffening at key points. The crossover on all the 800 Series models has been revised with some of the same thinking evident in the 700 Signatures (but taken still further in the flagships thanks to more budget being available) being employed here. The 805 crossover is, compared to the larger models, possessed of a fairly simple signal path but everything in it is of very high quality. Biwiring and biamping are supported but, rather lovely, cable links are supplied for single wiring. The revised cabinet construction means that the 805 D4 now has a metal spine at the back.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
The longer tweeter housing is considerably more confidence inspiring than the older designs 

Aesthetically, the 805 D4 manages the neat trick of being instantly recognisable as a Bowers & Wilkins and - for the more ‘committed’ among us - a member of the 800 Series. It does this despite being very different to its predecessor which is a rather clever thing to do. I’m going to stick my head over the parapet and say that I don’t think this is a beautiful speaker. For similar money you can buy something like a Franco Serblin Accordo that is an exquisite object; something you look at and feel the sort of inner peace that I imagine Sister Wendy used to have looking at paintings. The 805 D4 by contrast exudes a sort of functional brutality.

This is, of course, at least partly deliberate. The shape of all the 800 Series is governed by science rather than artistic flair. Having determined the optimal shape, Bowers & Wilkins then works to make it as domestically acceptable as possible. This means that the materials involved are simply lovely. The tweeter housing has a new brushed finish that is wonderfully tactile. The metal upper cabinet section is leather topped and equally impressive. I have tested more expensive speakers than the 805 D4 but - again in part thanks to the economies of scale that are unique to the 800 Series - nothing is decisively better made than it. I’d also say that the new walnut finish, which makes use of the same light finish top and tweeter as the white option, goes a long way to helping the Bowers look a bit less brutal. One design refinement I do like too is the move to a small circular driver cover over a full front grille.

Something I’ve mentioned before but bears repeating with bells on here is that the feeling of pride of ownership these speakers instil is huge. Everything aspect of unboxing is straightforward and subliminally congratulatory. You will have parted with £6,250 to own these speakers. Bowers & Wilkins knows this and does a better job than any other company I know of helping you overcome the “Oh God, what have I done?” moment you get when staring at a pair of boxes that cost as much as a tidy used Ford Fiesta.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
Due to the extremely reflective nature of the black finish, I have not done a studio shoot of the review samples but here's proof I didn't simply stare at the boxes.

 

Aesthetically, the 805 D4 manages the neat trick of being instantly recognisable as a Bowers & Wilkins and - for the more ‘committed’ among us - a member of the 800 Series. It does this despite being very different to its predecessor which is a rather clever thing to do.

How was the 805 D4 tested?

This has been a fairly straightforward test process as befits the equipment involved. It has been used with both a Chord Electronics CPM2800 MkII and the Cambridge Audio Edge A (I will cover why both amps were employed) both being used with both a Chord Electronics Hugo Mscaler and Hugo TT2 taking a feed from an SOtM SMS-200 Neo again running as a Roon Endpoint, and an LG 55B7 OLED TV over optical with everything taking power from an IsoTek Evo 3 Sigmas and Aquarius mains conditioner. Some testing also took place with a Michell GyroDec, Vertere SG-1 arm and Mystic Cartridge being used with a Cyrus Phono Signature. Test material has been FLAC, AIFF, DSD, Qobuz and Tidal, broadcast and on demand TV as well as some vinyl.

More: Audio Formats

Performance

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
The bespoke stand is a £1,250 option

Before we get down to the nuts and bolts of what these speakers do and don’t do, after a period of time spent listening to them, for me, this is when the 800 Series had its ‘Chord Electronics moment.’ What do I mean by this? For many years Chord made DACs that were astonishingly sophisticated. They were (still are) one of a tiny number of companies that produce bespoke decoding for their devices. The catch was that, for many years, you could hear all the sophistication and cleverness. It was superficially impressive but not necessarily the solution to long term listening bliss. Then, a few years ago, everything clicked. Digital product from the original Hugo onwards is still incredibly sophisticated but the sophistication is secondary to the musicality.

The 800 Series never demonstrated this behaviour to quite the same extent but it has been a part of my listening experience when listening to a selection of the older models over the years. The 805 D4 is a line in the sand where, even when doing my level best to appraise it critically, I have found myself always viewing it as a music delivery system and not an engineering exercise. With the technical improvement has come something a little more intangible but rather more profound.

Back in the realms of the easier to describe though, the 805 D4 reflects some straightforward benefits. First of all, it’s a fairly simple device to partner up. Bowers & Wilkins claims a sensitivity of 88dB/w with an 8 ohm impedance, a minimum impedance of 4.6 Ohms and a frequency response of 42Hz-28kHz. If none of those figures scream shock and awe to you, it’s because they feel absolutely achievable by the review samples (in this room, it’s 36-37Hz before they leave the +/- 3dB margin). The long and short of it is that the 805 D4 will work happily with a wide selection of amplifiers.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
The diamond tweeter remains an 800 Series calling card

And, once you do partner it up, it uses the tremendous engineering work and material refinements to deliver on musical promise. Thanks to the bracing and tweeter housing, the cabinet colouration is sufficiently negligible as to be imperceptible but, rather than you noting its benefit in so dry a way, you will instead note that the 805 D4 is a masterclass in creating a truly magnificent soundstage that is always proportionate to the music being played and into which the speakers themselves simply vanish. As the starting point for not being the story themselves, this is a very good one.

Within this created space, the tonal realism and detail retrieval on offer is outstanding. A comment that I’ve seen levelled at Bowers & Wilkins designs up to and including models where I personally haven’t felt there to be an issue, like the 705 Signature, is that the overall balance is forward and that they can be bright when pushed. Now, given I don’t believe this applies to the 705 or 702 Signature, you may wish to take these comments with a pinch of salt but I genuinely don’t feel this is applicable here. You can provoke the 805 D4 but you need to be choosing truly dreadful material and birching them for this to be an issue - that is to say, they can be provoked by performing a process that will provoke just about anything.

If you can hold off doing this though, the Bowers & Wilkins is an imperious partner that has handled voices, instruments and effects with an effortless ability; the harnessing of technical excellence to be musically compelling rather than something you coolly admire. The majestic To Leave Something Behind by Sean Rowe (aka, ‘the song at the end of The Accountant’) in the hands of the 805 D4 is a ‘stop what you’re doing and listen to this’ moment. The sheer weight, presence and immediacy to Rowe’s vocals is utterly addictive. There is an unflappable capability to the 805 D4 that speaks to the enormous effort that has gone into their construction but the result - while borne of careful and meticulous work - is never dull or sterile.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
Beanbag; model's own 

These upper registers are complemented by a bass response that is, like Rolls Royce power outputs of old, ‘sufficient.’ More than its outright extension (although, make no mistake, it hits usefully hard for a standmount), it’s the integration speed and detail on offer as it works that is so likeable. There’s nothing I can identify as port noise or cabinet interference and this contributes to the gloriously unembellished feeling they generate. It also means that the scale that the 805 D4 can produce is superb. The gigantic Zimmer score for Dune, in the hands of the Bowers & Wilkins is an experience that is satisfyingly visceral without ever not being ‘Hi-Fi.’

Against this positivity, my biggest - in fact, really my only - gripe with the 805 D4 is niche, unquestionably specific… but, for me at least, something of an irritant. To a much greater extent than the resident Focal Kanta No1 and Kudos Titan 505 that straddle it in price terms, this is a speaker the comes alive above a certain volume level. I’ve tested this on both the Chord 2800 and Edge A and found that it is entirely consistent across both amps. As someone who lives in a fairly small house, frequently with a seven year old in bed above me, it means that at levels where the Titan 505 is still gloriously involving, the 805 D4 feels a little recessed and closed in. You might - perfectly reasonably - point out that I’m an anomaly, someone listening to a pretty high end speaker in non high end accommodation (to which, I’d point out that for certain areas - the entire South East UK for example - the balance between room size and speaker value is determinedly non linear) but it is repeatable enough to warrant mention. It’s not the equivalent of old Honda VTEC engines where everything needs to be teetering on the edge of detonation to really deliver but there is nevertheless a step point where the 805 D4 comes alive.

It would only be balanced of course to point out that, once you’re into this zone, the effortlessness with which the Bowers & Wilkins delivers a visceral and wholly satisfying music performance is an experience in itself. Running the ‘3D’ mix of Kraftwerk’s Elektro Kardiogram once the 805D4 is moving some air is more than you listening to technical and engineering excellence and that the measured results of what you are hearing would be very, very good indeed. It is FUN; proper unadulterated, ‘so that’s why I got into this hellish moneypit of hobby in the first place’ joy that I experienced in the 705 Signature and that has made its way completely intact to the 805D4. Looping around the start of this section, this latest 805 transcends the brilliance that has gone into it to simply be brilliant in itself.

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4
This is much (much) more fun than it looks 

 

The Bowers & Wilkins is an imperious partner that has handled voices, instruments and effects with an effortless ability; the harnessing of technical excellence to be musically compelling rather than something you coolly admire.

Conclusion

Bowers & Wilkins 805 D4 Standmount Speaker Review

Summing up the 805 D4 is both fairly straightforward and momentarily tricky and I’ll deal with the tricky bit first because it is subjective. The 805 D4 plus stand is £7,500; a full £1,000 cheaper than the Kudos Titan 505 in the same configuration. Cards on the table; were it me (and it isn’t I stress, this money is hypothetical), I’d be finding a way to scrape that grand together and buy the Kudos. It does things that appeal hugely to me, it’s happier at lower volume levels and I love the styling. It also has the potential to go active and hit another level of performance altogether. That’s a strictly personal take though and one that I would not imagine being repeated for everyone who sat down for a demo. Given how fond I am of the Titan 505 too, I am deeply impressed at how close the 805 D4 runs it. I imagine it will be asked in the comments and that is my answer.

With that brief moment of subjectivity out the way, judged on its own prodigious merits, the 805 D4 is a triumph. The unquestionable technical brilliance of what Bowers & Wilkins is able to do now locks step with user friendliness, easy compatibility and sheer unbridled entertainment in a way that some previous generations have promised and not quite delivered on. What you have here is a clever speaker using its cleverness to be brilliant rather than point out how clever it is. It’s accurate, effortlessly capable and immensely revealing but balances this with the ability to make you grin like an idiot when it suits. Bowers & Wilkins has delivered on everything it set out to do with this latest 800 Series and the 805D4 is an unquestionable Best Buy.

Best Buy

Scores

Build Quality

10

Connectivity

.
.
8

Sound Quality

.
9

Ease of Use

.
9

Features

.
9

Value for Money

.
9

Verdict

.
9
9
AVForumsSCORE
OUT OF
10

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