Bose 901...really

I don't think I've read any ratings on those smallish woofer systems that claim much below 40-50hz. Nothing in what I consider the bottom octave. And you are absolutely right on two counts: they still beat their hearts out trying, and that's why subs have become so popular. The small woofers in large arrays are a different story. I've not suffered bass-envy since 1981. I built a pair of 8' (1/4 the wavelength of what I wanted),tapered, folded, damped, transmission lines and filled them with the 10" driver that Milo Nestorovic used in his bass system. I needed something that could blend with my Acoustat Model IIIs(had to be fast, and they still work great with my Maggies). The 16hz pedal notes(32ft stop) on the Crystal Clear direct to disk recording of Virgil Fox playing Toccata and Fugue in D minor on the Grand Ruffatti have cracked the ceilings of two of my listening rooms. Expensive, but- Ya gotta love it!

Rodman99999...A ten inch driver is large enough to be useful especially if you have a line array of them.

Rodman, I have exactly the same recording and experienced the same sensation with my 901-II and the HK citation 16 setup. 16 small speakers in array can move a fair amount of air without needing extensive excursions in the voice coils. Granted I played back at 93db peaks and my room wasn't the largest, but it was capable of bass to 20 Hz. The 901-VI that I have in my #2 system do not seem to have that same capability, however, which is probably due to the 'vent' design as opposed to the sealed or acoustic suspension of the 901-II design.

If carefully installed and under the right conditions, the Bose 901s are not as bad as audiophiles would have others believe.

Inpepinnovations..."If carefully installed and under the right conditions, the Bose 901s are not as bad as audiophiles would have others believe".

Exactly. That's why I took the trouble to begin this thread.

Eldartford,
While the Bose 901-VI fit the bill in my number 2 system (driven by Crown D-150 amp), my number 1 system has Totem Mani 2 speakers driven by (egads) a Nakamichi 600 power amp.
Talk about not being wed or influenced by 'only one way to get good sound' thinking! Ultimately, it is the sound that counts and not what 'audiophiles' think about 'too cheap to be good' solutions.

Bob P.