A tough choice indeed; I owned the N803's and heard the 804S's at a dealer and to me the newer design had a punchier bottom end; I have also owned the Signature 805's and I thought they had a "punchy" bass, which the 804S followed sonically.
There are a number of changes to the newer line. The N803's I had I sold to a friend and he didn't keep them real long. This friend also purchased 804S's, many years later, and he really enjoyed them. FWIW
I do not agree with Jeff above, especially on the 803D being a slight upgrade over the N803.
B&W is close to rolling out their new 800 series, where all will have the Diamond tweeter, amongst other changes. Here is the U.S. pricing...
800 Diamond: $24,000/pair
802 Diamond: $15,000/pair
803 Diamond: $10,000/ pair
804 Diamond: $7,500/pair
805 Diamond: $5,000/pair
There are a number of changes to the newer line. The N803's I had I sold to a friend and he didn't keep them real long. This friend also purchased 804S's, many years later, and he really enjoyed them. FWIW
I do not agree with Jeff above, especially on the 803D being a slight upgrade over the N803.
B&W is close to rolling out their new 800 series, where all will have the Diamond tweeter, amongst other changes. Here is the U.S. pricing...
800 Diamond: $24,000/pair
802 Diamond: $15,000/pair
803 Diamond: $10,000/ pair
804 Diamond: $7,500/pair
805 Diamond: $5,000/pair