During its long history – approaching 100 years – B&O has moved from being an innovative electronics manufacturer to becoming a design company, which is evident in the latest loudspeakers they have launched. Beolab 8 is no exception. It comes in a classic and subtle industrial design in wood and aluminium, and even the most tasteless will find it difficult not to be impressed by the product’s aesthetics. Beolab 8 is designed to be used both in a surround system and as stereo speakers with its discreet base.
There are probably more cynical readers who think it is a waste of time to dwell so much on aesthetics, but Bang & Olufsen realized early on that even with a digital transition where the music is connected via Bluetooth from a smartphone, or via a simplified home theater solution without the same need for calibration and expertise, aesthetics and designing products that people would want to look at and own were essential. And everything indicates that they are right, and you notice that from the moment you unwrap the Beolab 8.
They come in sets of two and are meant to create rich stereo, but you can also easily buy one completely separately. The upside, however, is that even if you start with just one, it’s the beginning of what could be an excellent stereo system, whether it’s “just” for playing music around the home or as part of a home theater system, and the feet make it possible with a more versatile location. In practical terms, we find a 0.6″ tweeter behind the beautiful wooden strips, a 3″ midrange unit and a 5¼” woofer, and for the latter there is a 200 W dedicated amplifier. Together, these deliver 28 Hz at 90 dB in a 60 square meter room room – not bad.
1 x 50 W class D for tweeter, 1 x 50 W class D for midrange and 1 x 200 W class D for woofer.
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In terms of sound, it delivers a surprising amount of punch. When it comes to wireless design sound, midrange clarity and Mozart’s 24-bit resolution platform impress. Despite some criticism of the “bass”, it is nevertheless nuanced and does not drown out or interfere with the midrange in any way. The sound is generally quite direct and very clear and detailed. The treble is still clear and transparent, but unfortunately it drowns out at high volumes – something a DSP update should be able to fix. The stereo image is stable, with good timing and, not least, surprising dynamics in the midrange. Perhaps the most important thing is that the sound profile is coherent.
There’s room correction built in, and “a neodymium motor drives the sound home” – I assume they mean the bass and midrange units use neodymium magnets in the motor design, but I’m not entirely sure. What they can do with DSP, however, is switch between two quite different and useful modes. You can switch between a “narrow” and a “wide” soundstage, the former using B&O’s own “ultrawideband technology” via a smartphone to help the system find the exact focus point.
Everything is controlled via B&O’s own Mozart platform, which works via WIFI 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 – a good choice – and can be controlled via an app and via the glass plate on the speakers, which has always been a nice detail from B&O. The speaker cabinet is made from one piece of aluminium. The Beolab 8 also has the classic Powerlink built in, which goes back to my childhood, as well as the Wireless Powerlink, which makes it compatible with so many things, especially since it’s modular and therefore upgradeable, at least in theory – something B&O is working on hard to make an extremely integral part of its brand, and which we will return with more about shortly.
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We think it’s a little irrelevant to talk about price, since everyone knows that B&O is a luxury brand and has never claimed to sell consumer electronics marketed by price. We respect their stance, but let’s still get it out of the world. £4,400 with fabric front and £5,400 for our model with gold finish and wood trim. This is the price with the small table stand; if you want a floor stand or a wall mount, the price will also be slightly higher. It is a lot of money. Is Beolab 8 worth the money? Well, we won’t really comment on that, as the value is individual. Also, you can probably get a pair of audiophile speakers which on paper can provide a more dynamic soundstage, but to be honest? It is not quite the same target group, nor the same design philosophy, focus area or build quality.
Buy it if you love a direct but coherent sound, don’t play too loud, and if wireless functionality and design are very important to you. You probably already have B&O products if you’re considering the Beolab 8, and you’ve probably already made up your mind, regardless of price and options. We had a hard time not getting excited about the Beolab 8 and falling in love with the set, despite a few niggles.
2024-03-13 17:50:09
#Bang #Olufsen #Beolab
