Sydney Audio Club Meeting - March 2021
Bowers & Wilkins Visit
Sunday 14th March 2021 saw the first Sydney Audio Club event since March 2020 when the Covid 19 pandemic started, and it was great to finally see fellow club members in person.
This first meeting was an event which Bowers & Wilkins Australia graciously hosted, and rather than move a whole lot of equipment to Epping, we accepted their kind invitation to meet in their Sydney Headquarters in Chatswood where they also had their home theatre setup for demonstration.
The B&W showroom has an extensive range of all their current audio products and also examples of their older speakers which showcases the proud B&W heritage and the company’s technological achievements.
The meeting was in a word ‘superb’. The hospitality of the B&W team was matched by the enthusiasm of our members to see friends again after a one year hiatus. They even organised two lucky door prizes for both groups.
There were three main demonstrations, two in the main showroom and one in the dedicated home theatre room.
After a brief introduction from John Martin (B&W) and acknowledgement to Len Wallis for supplying the speakers from his store, we settled in to be bathed in glorious sound from the B&W 803D3 speakers, powered by amplification from Classe consisting of Delta Monoblocs and the corresponding Delta preamplifier.
The 803D3 speakers are part of the 800 diamond series which has the famous diamond dome tweeter. Music was streamed via a Bluesound VAULT 2i streamer.
A variety of tracks were played across several genres of music which demonstrated the capability of the 803D3 speakers and the Classe amplification combination. The synergy between the speakers and amplification was obvious and the silence from the audience while music was playing clearly indicated the enjoyment of the club members.
The popularity of this event and continuing Covid space restrictions meant that we had to divide into two groups, with half having their ears treated to a couple of Hans Zimmer Live Concert tracks and a scene from the war movie ’Unbroken’.
The home theatre demonstration was a 7.2.4 atmos setup based on the B&W home theatre 8 series reference speakers and twin B&W subwoofers. The concert tracks demonstrated the ability of the B&W home theater speakers to create a real life concert ambience. Finishing off the demonstration was a clip from the bomber aircraft scene and the thundering bass left the club members feeling like we were in the cockpit of the plane.
Meanwhile the others took photos of the ‘Nautilus’ and speaker cross-sections in Perspex boxes, auditioned the Formation Duo setup or the Formation Bar Wireless Soundbar with Formation Bass Wireless Subwoofer.
The Formation Wireless products have Bluetooth and AirPlay 2 compatibility, up to 96kHz and 24 bit.
After swapping over, we re-convened to hear the B&W 705 S2 Signature standmount speakers (Datuk gloss finish) which were integrated with a B&W DB3D subwoofer with in-built DSP crossover.
The DB3D is a twin 8” subwoofer with both Dynamic and Room EQ capability which can be programmed via an app. When this subwoofer is paired with B&W speakers the speaker model can be selected via the app which automatically programs the subwoofer to ensure seamless integration with the speakers. This was another impressive presentation and showcased the capabilities of quality standmount speakers when correctly integrated with a subwoofer.
The technical details of all the equipment are listed below:
Main Demo:
This first meeting was an event which Bowers & Wilkins Australia graciously hosted, and rather than move a whole lot of equipment to Epping, we accepted their kind invitation to meet in their Sydney Headquarters in Chatswood where they also had their home theatre setup for demonstration.
The B&W showroom has an extensive range of all their current audio products and also examples of their older speakers which showcases the proud B&W heritage and the company’s technological achievements.
The meeting was in a word ‘superb’. The hospitality of the B&W team was matched by the enthusiasm of our members to see friends again after a one year hiatus. They even organised two lucky door prizes for both groups.
There were three main demonstrations, two in the main showroom and one in the dedicated home theatre room.
After a brief introduction from John Martin (B&W) and acknowledgement to Len Wallis for supplying the speakers from his store, we settled in to be bathed in glorious sound from the B&W 803D3 speakers, powered by amplification from Classe consisting of Delta Monoblocs and the corresponding Delta preamplifier.
The 803D3 speakers are part of the 800 diamond series which has the famous diamond dome tweeter. Music was streamed via a Bluesound VAULT 2i streamer.
A variety of tracks were played across several genres of music which demonstrated the capability of the 803D3 speakers and the Classe amplification combination. The synergy between the speakers and amplification was obvious and the silence from the audience while music was playing clearly indicated the enjoyment of the club members.
The popularity of this event and continuing Covid space restrictions meant that we had to divide into two groups, with half having their ears treated to a couple of Hans Zimmer Live Concert tracks and a scene from the war movie ’Unbroken’.
The home theatre demonstration was a 7.2.4 atmos setup based on the B&W home theatre 8 series reference speakers and twin B&W subwoofers. The concert tracks demonstrated the ability of the B&W home theater speakers to create a real life concert ambience. Finishing off the demonstration was a clip from the bomber aircraft scene and the thundering bass left the club members feeling like we were in the cockpit of the plane.
Meanwhile the others took photos of the ‘Nautilus’ and speaker cross-sections in Perspex boxes, auditioned the Formation Duo setup or the Formation Bar Wireless Soundbar with Formation Bass Wireless Subwoofer.
The Formation Wireless products have Bluetooth and AirPlay 2 compatibility, up to 96kHz and 24 bit.
After swapping over, we re-convened to hear the B&W 705 S2 Signature standmount speakers (Datuk gloss finish) which were integrated with a B&W DB3D subwoofer with in-built DSP crossover.
The DB3D is a twin 8” subwoofer with both Dynamic and Room EQ capability which can be programmed via an app. When this subwoofer is paired with B&W speakers the speaker model can be selected via the app which automatically programs the subwoofer to ensure seamless integration with the speakers. This was another impressive presentation and showcased the capabilities of quality standmount speakers when correctly integrated with a subwoofer.
The technical details of all the equipment are listed below:
Main Demo:
Brand |
Model |
Description |
Retail $ inc GST |
Remarks |
Bowers & Wilkins |
803D3 (Gloss black) |
3 way floor standing |
$24,500 pr |
Kindly donated by Len Wallis |
Bowers & Wilkins |
705 Signature (Datuk gloss) |
2 way floor standing |
$4.999 pr |
|
Bowers & Wilkins |
FS-700S2 (Silver) |
Floor stands |
$899 pr |
|
Bowers & Wilkins |
DB3D (Rosenut) |
1000W active sub |
$3,999 |
|
Classe |
Delta Pre |
Preamplifier |
$16,900 |
|
Classe |
Delta Mono |
Amplifier x 2 |
$17,900 each |
|
Bluesound |
Vault 2i |
Streamer / ripper |
||
Audioquest |
Mackenzie |
Balanced interconnects |
||
Kimber |
8TC |
Speaker cable bi-wired |
Theatre System:
Brand |
Model |
Description |
Retail $ inc GST |
Remarks |
Bowers & Wilkins |
CWM8.3D |
3-way in-wall speaker x 3 |
$6,998 each |
Front LCR |
Bowers & Wilkins |
CWM8.5D |
2-way in-wall speaker x 2 |
$4,198 each |
Side surround |
Bowers & Wilkins |
CCM7.3S2 |
3-way in-ceiling speaker x 6 |
$1,999 each |
Rear surround + Atmos |
Bowers & Wilkins |
D81D |
2000W active subwoofer |
$7,500 |
|
Bowers & Wilkins |
D82D |
1000W Active subwoofer |
$5,700 |
|
Trinnov |
Altitude 32 |
Preamp / processor |
Kindly loaned by Trinnov |
|
NAD |
M27 |
Power amplifier |
Kindly loaned by Convoy |
|
NAD |
CI980 |
Power amplifier |
Kindly loaned by Convoy |
|
Panasonic |
UB9000 |
BluRay player |
||
Epson |
9400 |
4k projector |
||
AudioQuest |
Mackenzie |
Interconnects |
||
Monster |
MC-1x / XP |
Speaker cable |
Kindly supplied by Arisit |
Foyer:
Brand |
Model |
Description |
Retail $ inc GST |
Bowers & Wilkins |
Formation Duo (White) |
Active 250w/channel 2 way wireless loudspeakers |
$6,400 pr |
Bowers & Wilkins |
FS - DUO (Silver) |
Floor stands |
$1,199 pr |
Some tracks that sounded particularly well on the D3s were:
The introduction to ‘Also sprach Zarathustra’ by Richard Strauss with Rudolf Kempe conducting the Staatskapelle Dresden Orchestra on a remastered Warner (originally EMI) disc.
James Horner’s soundtrack to a movie entitled ‘Swing Kids’ with a film studio orchestra recreation in stereo of the Benny Goodman classic ‘Swing, Swing, Swing’ on the Hollywood Records label.
The ‘Pas de deux – Intrada’ from Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker’ recorded by Philips with Valery Gergiev and the Kirov Orchestra. One of my favourite test tracks with cellos, harps, cymbals, trombones and kettledrums to boot.
‘Fandango’ from the disc ‘Los Impossibles’ by Christina Pluhar on the Naïve label. A great test track for transients.
Gershwin’s ‘Fascinating Rhythm’ sung by Ella Fitzgerald backed by the Nelson Riddle Orchestra recorded by Norman Granz back in 1959 from the ‘Ella Sings the George Gershwin Songbook’.
‘Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565’ by J. S. Bach with Michael Murray playing the organ of the First Congregational Church, Los Angeles on a Telarc disc.
‘Welcome to the Machine’ by Pink Floyd from the re-mastered ‘Immersion Set’ from EMI.
The 705 + subwoofer combination sounded very musical as expected with Norah Jones. The real surprise track came when someone asked ‘How do they cope with rock?’. ‘Thunderstruck’ by AC/DC sounded awesome !
All three demonstrations received positive comments from the club members and demonstrated the consistent high quality of the B&W audio range from the more modestly priced 705 S2 signature standmount speakers to the flagship range with the 803D3 speakers, the smart subwoofers and the range of built-in home theatre speakers.
The day at the premises of Bowers & Wilkins Australia was a great success to rekindle the club events and re-connect with old friends. It is a great start to hopefully resume normal club activities at Dence Park for the year ahead.
The Sydney Audio Club and its members would like to thank the Bowers & Wilkins Australia team who went out of their way to make us welcome, for hosting this event, and for their generous donation of the lucky door prizes.
A very enjoyable demonstration of their wares.
The torrent of positive member feedback following the meeting augurs well for our restart going into 2021.
Edgar Kramer from Soundstage Australia attended this event and a link to his feature article on the event is:
https://soundstageaustralia.com/index.php/features/514-the-sydney-audio-club-meets-at-bowers-wilkins-australia
https://www.facebook.com/soundstageaus
https://www.facebook.com/BowersWilkinsAu/
https://lenwallisaudio.com/products/home-theatre/speakers-home-theatre/main/803-d3/
The introduction to ‘Also sprach Zarathustra’ by Richard Strauss with Rudolf Kempe conducting the Staatskapelle Dresden Orchestra on a remastered Warner (originally EMI) disc.
James Horner’s soundtrack to a movie entitled ‘Swing Kids’ with a film studio orchestra recreation in stereo of the Benny Goodman classic ‘Swing, Swing, Swing’ on the Hollywood Records label.
The ‘Pas de deux – Intrada’ from Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker’ recorded by Philips with Valery Gergiev and the Kirov Orchestra. One of my favourite test tracks with cellos, harps, cymbals, trombones and kettledrums to boot.
‘Fandango’ from the disc ‘Los Impossibles’ by Christina Pluhar on the Naïve label. A great test track for transients.
Gershwin’s ‘Fascinating Rhythm’ sung by Ella Fitzgerald backed by the Nelson Riddle Orchestra recorded by Norman Granz back in 1959 from the ‘Ella Sings the George Gershwin Songbook’.
‘Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565’ by J. S. Bach with Michael Murray playing the organ of the First Congregational Church, Los Angeles on a Telarc disc.
‘Welcome to the Machine’ by Pink Floyd from the re-mastered ‘Immersion Set’ from EMI.
The 705 + subwoofer combination sounded very musical as expected with Norah Jones. The real surprise track came when someone asked ‘How do they cope with rock?’. ‘Thunderstruck’ by AC/DC sounded awesome !
All three demonstrations received positive comments from the club members and demonstrated the consistent high quality of the B&W audio range from the more modestly priced 705 S2 signature standmount speakers to the flagship range with the 803D3 speakers, the smart subwoofers and the range of built-in home theatre speakers.
The day at the premises of Bowers & Wilkins Australia was a great success to rekindle the club events and re-connect with old friends. It is a great start to hopefully resume normal club activities at Dence Park for the year ahead.
The Sydney Audio Club and its members would like to thank the Bowers & Wilkins Australia team who went out of their way to make us welcome, for hosting this event, and for their generous donation of the lucky door prizes.
A very enjoyable demonstration of their wares.
The torrent of positive member feedback following the meeting augurs well for our restart going into 2021.
Edgar Kramer from Soundstage Australia attended this event and a link to his feature article on the event is:
https://soundstageaustralia.com/index.php/features/514-the-sydney-audio-club-meets-at-bowers-wilkins-australia
https://www.facebook.com/soundstageaus
https://www.facebook.com/BowersWilkinsAu/
https://lenwallisaudio.com/products/home-theatre/speakers-home-theatre/main/803-d3/