To Mark below:

A friend of mine had exactly the same problem as you have - he even had the same equipment except for wires. Here is what he did - hope this helps:

Change your bass-feed speaker wire (got to biwire these speakers - otherwise you'll get poor bass anyway) to something BIG, hard-hitting but smooth - Cabel Talk's mid-level stuff is good and also reasonably affordable.

Keep your QED 79 for the treble leg and run it that way - if it sounds better you've saved on the price of an amplifer.

If it doesn't, well, you're going to have to start looking at more potent amplification - not talking monster monoblocks or anything like that - just an amp with a bit more welly.

Trade your NAD for something gutsy but inexpensive like the entry-level Rotel pre/power or the Rotel integrated 971 (you'll get good prices, cause all these pieces are now discontinued). The NAD 340 will also work very well as will the Marantz PM 7000 - all around the same price point.
Try the Rotel stuff first - my friend upgraded to the pre/power combo for something like 450 pounds (ZAR 4000) - and the difference is remarkable - more control (waaaaaaay more) more slam and far more lucid imaging.

The NAD is a nice little amp, but it certainly isn't the first choice I'd make for an amp to drive the 602's.

My advice then, in a nutshell, look for some more watts (not necessarily more expensive watts) and try changing the bass-leg of your speaker cable.

Hope this helps.

Oh, and my rating for the 602's is a solid four - they're certainly among the best in their price-range. I don't own my pair anymore - sold them about a month ago and upgraded to the CDM1NT - super speakers.

This is just some clarification on my previous review of these speakers.

This is what I wrote : "I was a bit disappointed to see that the screws and allen bolts were not tightened properly on the front panels. Please have this checked for you or get your handyman kit out, its worth it. This made a difference straight away."

To prevent any further questions and doupts, all parts were properly in place and bolts and screws were "factory tight".

I just noticed that even though all parts were "factory tight", it was still possible to tighten by at least one turn of the allen key and screwdriver.

So, no panic, this product is great and far better in quality and price than a lot of its competitors, hence my ratings.

Good bass response, detailed high, and afordable price.

None that I have noticed with sound quality. But would be better to get this model in wood veneer.

First of all, I am not an Audiophile. I have listened to many high-end speakers, but never paid close attention to all the details. And, frankly, this B&W’s is my first speaker I have bought brand new. I have been listening to my old friend, a pair of Kenwood 4-way speaker for last couple years. So, when I have hooked the DM602 with my NAD 314, it was completely a new world to me... with the joy of listening to music that I have already listened to thousand time before but never as musical as now. I have auditioned for several other top brands within $1000 price range for Bookshelf before making my decision for B&W's. One important thing I have noticed with B&W's is the bass output. I am amazed with the quality bass it produced for this bookshelf. I have compared with Klipsch Reference, Paradigm Reference, and Canton. But after several listening with different types of music, I decided to go with B&W. Especially, comparing the price, it's a good deal. I listen mostly ELECTRONICA, PROGRESIVE NEW ROCK, and NEW AGE music. So, to me, the speaker should very details, and since most of the music is composed by electronic synthesizers, the speaker should handle wide range of frequency. I listened with Patrick O’Hearn Private Music Collection, Sarah Brightman’s Time to Say Goodbye, and Dixie Chick’s Wide Open Spaces CD tracks. I am impressed with the vocal quality the B&W produce, just sounds like it’s real. Also, the bass reproduction is as good as full-range floor-standing speakers. After listening for three weeks now, it’s getting better and better since the break-in period is over. I highly recommend for somebody looking for entry-level /mid-priced bookshelf speaker that built with quality.

My systems are as follows:

- NAD 314 Integrated Amplifier (35 Watt)
- SONY CDP-311 CD player
- Yamaha Turntable.
- Monster 400MKII RCA interconnect
- Monster XP speaker cable

great sound.

Can be a dud out of the box, so check.

I had bad luck with these speakers.
First pair straght out of the box had dried glue all over them. Changed for another pair. Second pair had a bashed in tweeter. Shop took them back again and gave me a another pair. I opened them in the shop to see the top corner of one speaker damaged. I rang the company that brings them into Australia and they were sarcastic and dis believing.
I now have a good pair that sound great. So be warned that some bad ones get through from B&W. So check them before taking them home.

great sound.

Can be a dud out of the box, so check.

I had bad luck with these speakers.
First pair straght out of the box had dried glue all over them. Changed for another pair. Second pair had a bashed in tweeter. Shop took them back again and gave me a another pair. I opened them in the shop to see the top corner of one speaker damaged. I rang the company that brings them into Australia and they were sarcastic and dis believing.
I now have a good pair that sound great. So be warned that some bad ones get through from B&W. So check them before taking them home.

Detail, dynamics (considering the size) and price...

Looks

With a limited budget, a small apartment and a lot of great reviews from Audioreview users and hifi magazines these speakers seemed right for me. From my old designer speakers from Bang&Olufsen to these babies was a great step. After plugging them in I felt right away the dynamics, openess and clear sound of these speakers. Voices seems so real (instant hair-of-the-back-of-my-neck-erection).

I first used some 1$/meter crab speaker cable and upgraded a few days later to 12$/meter speaker cable (Tara Labs Prism Nexa). I used to think that quality of cable was all psychological but I actually heard the difference right away. So, don't be cheapish when it comes to cables...!

These speakers are great allround speakers to those with a smaller living room and not into deep shaky hate-your-neighbour Cerwin Vega bass.

Using my old speakers I had to crank the treble bud to the max before getting an appropriate treble but with the B&W speakers I can by-pass both the bass and treble buds on my NAD and get great results. Some amps might make the tweeter sound a tiny bit harsh.

My system:

NAD c-740
NAD c-540
Tara Labs Prims 22 Interconnect
Tara Labs Prism Nexa Speaker Cables

Value, balance, presence of sound

Check your bass requirements first to avoid disappointment.

Great speaker. The crispness and presence of these speakers is impressive especially for the $. They look great and I enjoy letting people listen to them. Im powering them with a 20+ year old Sony str-v4 (not bi-wired)and they are impressive. Auditioned with a Parasound preamp and amplifier alongside my old horse and they sounded so good on the Sony I decided not to upgrade my amp. The Parasound did have a bit more depth and clarity if you must have it all. Only word of caution, the speakers are little powerhouses but I would'nt want to fill a large room with them since the first thing you would notice is a lack of bass. For my room they are perfect. Just for kicks I auditioned the Nautilus version of these speakers next to the 602's. Well they were more balanced and crisper on the bass side but....$1,400 more?
Not for this cowboy.

Similar Products Used:

Snell, Canton, Boston Accoustics

Clarity, accuracy, dynamics

Not the most beautiful cabinet, although well made

This speaker is absolutely stunning. In my experience, there is often a trade-off between accuracy and dynamics in speaker design. Not so with the B&W 602. The level of detail in complex musical passages is just incredible. Whether you listen to classical, jazz or rock, every instrument is clear and distinct. To me, vocals and instruments sound very natural and these speakers deliver all of the dynamics, soundstaging and timing required to convey the emotion in music. I have had them for three weeks, and can't believe how much better they are than other speakers I have owned. By all means, audition these if you can - and expect to give them a break-in period of about two weeks before they reach their full potential. Bi-wiring improves the sound even more.

Similar Products Used:

KEF, Snell, NHT

Nautilus Tweeter and kevlar midtoner

nut much bass,

When I started to listen to the b&w dm 602 s2 I knew I had to buy them, so I did.
But now I 'm dissappointed about the weak bass. I'm affraid to overload the bass. And a few weeks ago I overloaded my tweeter (but that's the cause of my reveiver(SONY). Try to listen really carefully to the speakers you're trying to buy because you are spending a lot of money!

Similar Products Used:

grundig, sony, tannoy

Nautilus Tweeter and kevlar midtoner

nut much bass,

When I started to listen to the b&w dm 602 s2 I knew I had to buy them, so I did.
But now I 'm dissappointed about the weak bass. I'm affraid to overload the bass. And a few weeks ago I overloaded my tweeter (but that's the cause of my reveiver(SONY). Try to listen really carefully to the speakers you're trying to buy because you are spending a lot of money!

Similar Products Used:

grundig, sony, tannoy