Opinions on the Bose 901


A friend of mine just gave me an old pair of Bose 901 Series IV. All the foam surrounds have crumbled, but the cabinets and the EQ are in decent shape. A foam surround kit plus the dust caps is less than $90 USD at ( www.partsexpress.com ).

I am pretty much set with my Swans M1 near field system--it rocks, especially after adding a 3000W ONEAC 220V isolation transformer. I am looking at using the Bose as HT speakers or as a background music system--I like to have music all over while I cook...

I am seeking unbiased opinions as to how I could use these speakers in a 2 channel HT setup:

The Series IV has a third contact between the (+)and the (-)(is it a ground?) which was used with the Bose Receiver's "spatial control". It allowed changing how much energy was sent towards the inside or outside reflecting surfaces--it was like a fader control, but from inside to outside.

If I use them for HT, I could use a homemade preamp that would allow such control and the 901's could become a "virtual center channel" by shifting the energy balance towards the area between the speakers. I think this could offer a neat movie viewing effect in the absense of a Pro Logic, THX, DTS, 5.1, 7.1, 10.2 or a 15.3 decoder.

A false gypsum wall could be constructed for having my 27" Sony WEGA flush and provide a good reflective surface for the 901's.

I will appreciate any constructive input.

Thanks,

P/A
psychicanimal
OK, confession time for me and the Bose 901's.

When I was a kid and didn't know much about audio I traveled to a local high end dealer to purchase a stereo system consisting of a Thorens turntable with Ortofon cartridge, a Macintosh amp and preamp and Bose 901's.

In my youthful exuberance, I purchased the turntable and Mac gear and auditioned the Bose 901 for almost eight minutes before selecting another speaker!
Well Sean, I agree Bose *is* part of the learning curve. Although I never owned Bose, my high school had one hell of a Bose fever. There was this girl in my HS class whose father was the Bose factory manager (they were made in PR at the time). Needless to say, Bose speakers were prolific in my HS...

I had been thinking that using a compression horn on top would be the most efficient use of the speaker--biamped with a couple of $99 ASL monoblocks...you say that would offer excellent dialogue and soundstage (and I add SLAM!).

Most likely I'll go for the $150 refoaming.

Albertporter, you're not the only one--in my circle of HS audio guys, Yamaha's w/ beryllium drivers were the preferred loudspeakers, not Bose...
Are you really, really sure you should be describing the person who gave them to you as a FRIEND?
This is not a Bose bashing thread--I'm serious about what I've posted. What Sean proposes does make a lot of sense. I have read about it elsewhere. Bolting a JBL compression horn on top and adding a sub would yield both a very nice HT and background music system.
Psychicanimal, that's alot of work to go through for a piece of crap with crumbling foam...Hmmm, let's see, for a greater measure of marginal utility you could go out into a field with a shot gun and...