SimonTSM
Give me some examples then of what you state
You said they are £20 rebrands - example please
You said they fall apart - example please
You said they sound poor - ok personal preference that is ok
Why do you quote that well known site? For what purpose? If you actually believe the rubbish stated in that site then I really do feel sorry for you
The AM series that Bose make are typical of any other sub-sat system on the market, so any criticism levelled at them is a criticism of any sub-sat system on the market
One of the absurd comments made at that internet site, is that the bass made by the bass module is heard at the bass module itself, which is utter rubbish, because bass cannot be localised, and if you listen to an AM system you will find that the bass fills the room and is not localised at all
Just go down to SevenOaks and get a demonstration of the AM15, and you will see that its utter rubbish what you say
Other facts -
What Hi-Fi sound and Vision gave the AM15 4 out 5 stars when it auditioned it, and said it was good movie speaker system
Bose were the first to come up with the sound bouncing off walls idea to give a wider sound stage - the dual cube allows the soundstage to be spread, because it bounces the sound off walls - This is how the Yamaha sound projector works YSP1000 also - it bounces the sound off walls creating a surround effect from only the center speaker - Bose were here first with this technology and the AM15 has this incorporated into it
At a cinema you have loads of speakers, so Dr Bose tries to create this for you in your home, by bouncing the sound off walls, to create more sound dispersion
Dr Bose was the first to recognise that people want an easy to use, plug and play, home cinema speaker system, that you don't have to be a brain surgeon to set up. This is why the acoustimaster system was born. You plug all your speakers into the bass module, and it works out the rest for you. This means you can never stress any part of the speaker system, by say having the volume too high, because the acoustimaster module stops it
Also you don't have to worry about sub-woofer phase and crossovers, because the acoustimaster module does it all for you
Also they are extremely easy to fit into a space, been so small, and Bose were the first with this idea
Not everyone wants ugly speakers in their listening room, unless you have the benefit of a dedicated cinema room, in which case the small Bose cubes are probably not right for that type of environment, and the skies the limits as to which speaker package you choose in that circumstance
Agreed the acoustimaster module does lack what some dedicated sub-woofers produce, but these dedicated ones costs around about £500 - £600 alone, plus you will probably damage your hearing, if used alot, with that type of low frequency effects been made constantly at you, so again the acoustimaster module is more friendly to the average home cinema viewer in this respect too
It is not every ones cup of tea, and people are advised to audition before making a purchase, to see which they like the sound of the best, and sound is a very personal thing