Do Any High End Speakers Boogie/Rock? BW 804 Blues

Thanks everyone for such a great response. I appreciate the diversity of opinions here and I'm getting some good ideas.

On the larger amp side, I'm not just after more bass, but a fuller, more coherent sound. I'm sure bass would help but I'm not sure it would do the trick. Audiobugged: thx for such an amazing offer. To make it easier, first, I will call some of the dealers in Denver to see if they will let me borrow and ship me a larger amp.

On the speaker front, I would like to see something in the same size range as my 804s and the recommendations along that vein seem to be the Von Schw 2s and the Aerial 9s, among others. Any thoughts on PSB Golds, Paradigm Studios, Kef? Keep it coming. Best Regards, Jeff

Jeffsel, this is my direct experience with the "more power" issue. I once owned Aerial 7B loudpeakers and drove them with a Bryston 4B SST amplifier. The Aerials didn't "pop" with that amp which was rated at 250 w/ch. So, it was recommended to me that I switch to a Bryston 14B SST, which is 600 w/ch. Now, of course I never used the 600 watts available, but even at low listening levels it was obvious that the extra power made a difference. More bass at lower levels, and just more musicality overall. I'm not a techie, so I can't explain why this was true, but I know first hand that it is true.

A good buddy of mine has a pair of 804's. He's powering them w/ a cheap Denon receiver until he decides on an amp and preamp combo. I brought my Krell KAV-400xi integrated over and we rocked the house down! Pissed off the wives something fierce. The B&W's sounded great w/ my Krell. Wide open, detailed and dynamic, and we were using a crappy old Sony CD changer.

Stereophile just did a review on this unit. It was mixed on the technical side of the review but very positve on the subjective listening side.

I agree w/ all the posters regarding B&W and power. They love it and so will you.

Jeff, I figured I might as well put my money where my mouth, or fingers where. Since I WAS the only one who continuely mentioned your amp being the culprit of your disappointment. I am not buying into Cinematic_systems posts as far as B&W being non-flexible, & thought my offer would make you feel less pressured to take the amp upgrade path. You are going to want to search out the pre-owned/demo route on an amp. As otherwise just like the N804's Kevlar Fst driver needs 200-500 hours of break-in. A new in the box amp, would also require 100-300 hours to Burn-in to show it's true sonic qualities. The additional power will not just add additional low-end, but will aid the mids, & highs. As for as Brightness, the 804's are somewhat forward sounding but can be tamed with the right amp.

This offer was only extended to Jeff, so thanx for all the e-mails from my Agon friends to buy everyone a new amp! Last I checked I was not the Six Million Dollar Man, however I have built many systems, each being stronger, faster, tighter, & able to reach new heights!

Are your Truth-Links Copper, or the Silver variety?

Get more power. And a sub.

(VS as a replacement might work too, I don't know.)

Art