HI-FI CHOICE www.hifichoice.co.uk awards 2002
The 600-series has been
B&W s bedrock budget range
for many years, the latest Series 3s
featuring a Light Oak Sorrento finish
option which is much closer to
current British tastes, combining a
light grey front baffle and main
driver surround with pale vinyl
woodprint. With a twenty year
heritage behind it, this £300 per pair
602 S3 is a bulky 20-litre two-way
standmount, based on a main driver
with a seven-inch cast frame and
140mm diameter Kevlar cone, used
alongside B&W s tube-loaded
25mm metal dome tweeter. Not
surprisingly, room measurements
indicate free space siting, on high
quality stands which should be a
little lower than usual (eg 450mm)
for maximum effect.
The effect of the relatively large
bass/mid driver is immediately
obvious in the listening experience.
This speaker simply brings superior
dynamic grip and authority to the
B&W 602 S3 STEREO SPEAKERS
party, creating the sort of dynamic
tension that grips and focuses the
attention and adds genuine magic to
the business of reproducing music.
There s a commendable lack of strain
here too, with better than average
headroom, and particularly impressive
bass which is capable of going deep
while remaining crisp and even,
providing a firm and propulsive
foundation. The top end might be a
shade obvious, though it s also notably
clean and clear.
The midband is essentially neutral, if
a tad ‘pinched through the presence
region, and maybe a little laid back for
some tastes. And although some
might prefer a punchier projection,
this speaker has the sort of restraint
that should suit budget electronics
rather well. One of the great
all-rounders of this or any other year,
the 602 continues to become
increasingly refined with each
successive generation.
Reviewed in issue 234
HI-FI CHOICE
AWARDS
Loudspeakers Stereo
p
All five speakers in B&W s
budget priced surround system
are nominal standmounts, and
deserve good quality stands. All use
the same tube-loaded 25mm metal
dome tweeter and all feature
Kevlar-coned, cast-frame main drivers,
so there ought to be plenty of sonic
commonality, even though the latter
vary slightly in size and
configurations. The 602 is a
two-way with 20-litre enclosure and
175mm main driver, while the 601
uses a 165mm unit in a 14-litre box,
and the LCR has two 165mm drivers
operating as a two-and-a-half-way in
a 28-litre enclosure. Finish is vinyl,
either in
traditional black
or the new
lighter sorrento.
The sound
quality with
stereo material is
described in the
separate entry for B&W s DM602 S3.
Perhaps predictably this high-class
behaviour carries through into the
multichannel performance, where the
combination of all three B&W models
creates a thoroughly convincing
all-round coherence. These deliver the
warm and cuddly envelopment of the
whole musical or cinematic event, and
the experience itself provides a strong
justification for the benefits of
surround sound music.
The good-size centre and surround
speakers clearly make a worthwhile
contribution towards building up the
complete wraparound soundfield,
while the meaty 602s at the front
deliver weight and drama with little
obvious contribution from additional
box colorations. Large standmount
speakers might not be the most
fashionable format, but this B&W
combo delivers the sonic goods in
both stereo and multichannel modes.
Reviewed in HFC 224
B&W 600 S3 MULTICHANNEL SPEAKER PACKAGE FRONT: 602/REAR: 601/CENTRE: LCR 600
£ 00 Bowers & Wilkins 01903 750750 qwww.bwspeakers.com
p
KEY FEATURES
175MM KEVLAR-CONE
MAIN DRIVERS (602)
23.5X49X29CM
ENCLOSURE (602)
CENTRE SPEAKER USES
TWO 165MM KEVLAR
DRIVERS
