603s - Something Wrong

[chrisw]

I bought some B&W 603S2's at the weekend and am a little dissapointed with the results. I've done plenty of research on these and was expecting impessive bass to say the least.

I wired (QED single - not bi-wired) the speakers up to my Kenwood 5050 (soon to be replaced) and this is connected to my Panasonic DME55 via an optical cable. I've tried playing various CDs and DVDs through this set up and am just not hearing the bass I would've expected - my old DM560s seem to perfom better.

I tried running things through my playstation and there was a slight improvement - but am usure what the problem is.

Any ideas?

 

[Nobber22]

First, run them in for around 50-100 hours to get the best out of them.

Second, are you sure you're not just hearing "cleaner" bass - the 603's are probably not playing as much boomy bass as your old speakers.

Third, try re-positioning them - the 603's need lots of space, so move them away from walls.

Fourth, you could try bi-wiring them - some speakers respond better to this.

 

[Andrew K]

Put a CD on with decent bass on repeat on a decent volume. Go out for the day and leave it playing. Repeat this for a couple of days (about 20 hours in total) and you will hear a major diference.

Take off the front grill of the speaker and look at the bass driver as you are playing the track. Over time you will see more movement as the rubber material loosens up.

20 to 30 hours will give you the biggest diference but as per the reply above you will get the best over a longer period.

 

[cityonfire]

First off a better amp will give you a better bass. Also try buying a CD player for your CD's as DVD players do not cut the mustard at all. And this will improve things aswell as the new amp. If your budget is tight something like a Denon or Marantz can be picked up for about £100 If you heard the speakers at a dealer before buying he probably used much more modern equipment hence the reasin why you think things sound wrong

 

[SKA.face]

Agree with other comments,need to be run in for a long time 100 hours at least,need a much better amp,and a much better source,B&W 603s3 can take alot,your sources arn't doing them justice.

 

[Magnet & Steel]

if they are s2's they will be a few years old and should be well run in by now. or was it a typo?

seriously though, i have 603 s3's and the bass can be incredible if i dont use pure direct mode on my amp (if i do its lacking welly). can you borrow another amp to give them a try out? i would reccomend that as well as positioning them differently as others have said. away from the walls and corners if possible.