The 602's are a great budget buy. They are more open than the 601's but retain the warm, detailed sound with a punchier bass. There are little other choices in this price range and I can't see why anyone wouldn't love this all-arounder! From classical to rap, it does it all--and very well.

I'm pretty new to high-end sound so I'll give honest impressions of these speakers as best I can. My old speakers were the Bose AM-7. Shopping for new ones, I considered the NHT 1.5, the Paradigm 5mk/III, some KEFs (I forget the model number) and of course the 602s.
I narrowed it down to the NHT 1.5s and the B&W 602. I didn't care for the Paradigm's base which could get boomy and they had a lack of excitement in the high range. The KEFs were good, but didn't have anything that struck me as outstanding. It's strange that I was choosing between these two speakers because they are remarkably different. The NHT had a crispness to it that I really liked. It almost bordered on harshness. When I listened to Tears in Heaven, the guitar sounded very cold and clear. The strings twanged sharply. A similar passage on the B&W didn't have the thinness and absolute crispness of the NHT. Instead it was a warmer sound, not less detailed, but with less edge than the NHT. The NHTs had a certain remoteness and if I had to give it a human personality, I would say cold and calculating. The B&Ws on the other hand put out a more "meaty" sound. I would describe it's personality as warm and gentle. The texture was thicker and richer. The 602s also had noticabley more low end punch. In the end, what won me over to the 602s was a violin concerto. The attacks and decays were much more exciting on the B&Ws and I didn't want to stop the track anymore to hear it on the NHTs. Note, when comparing the speakers, make sure the NHT is turned up slightly higher because the B&Ws are more efficient.

I was looking for a new front trio for my music/HT system. I listened to Polk RT12 & 16, DefTech BP10, and Phase Tech (don't remember model no.), in addition to the B&W 601/602. There was no comparison between the B&Ws and the rest. I've listened to them for about a month now, and still marvel at their imaging and fine detail. I've never heard speakers anywhere near this price range, sound so good. They need a sub to fill out the bass, but that's true of any speaker in this size range. If you can't afford the 602s, the 601 is only a small step down; I think I will buy a pair (601) for my other system. A must listen.

If you need to limit your speaker budget down below $1,000, do yourself a favor and check these out!
I owned a pair of Paradigm Titans and a Paradigm powered sub. In a new store to check out some other gear, I spotted these black-and-yellow beauties. As one other reviewer mentioned above, I too began to fall in love with the 602 the more I listened. The midrange is so clean one never feels the elements are clashing or cramped together. The bass shakes the floor. The top end is sweet and never harsh. Play it loud and it scares you with sheer volume (just try the Jurassic Park soundtrack at the store with a good amp). What more could you want for $550?

I was planning to trade my stuff in at about $675, 100% of what I paid for them a year ago, to buy the Paradigm Reference/ Studio 60s at $990. But after hearing the B&W DM602 on several visits, and trying in vain to "convince" myself to like the Paradigms, I finally decided to do the financially incorrect thing: try sell my Paradigms on commission and buy the B&W. That's about as close to "falling in love" with an inanimate object as I have ever come!

The larger, 3-way $990 Paradigm Reference tower speakers had not a prayer when compared to the B&W: the 602 is so much cleaner, more neutral, more composed. It just sounds more like music as I like to hear it.

I have heard the B&W CDM-1, the Matrix 801-4, the P6, Monitor Audio, Von Shweikert....and I do agree that they are better performers. But the 602 performs so well, my wait for the day I can upgrade to something else better is a very enjoyable one. As I've said about the Marantz CD63-SE elsewhere in a review, this speaker makes me totally content with what I have at the moment, and that is a rare feat in any price range.

So, do yourself a favor and check these out! Your wallet will thank you, your chic designer friends will be wowed by their looks, and your ears will thank you.

Well, I am here to talk about the B&W 600 series. Specifically the 602's.I was just entering the hi fi end of the audio market and looked at many
audiophile and home theater magazines for recommendations. The main source of information came from the web, the
rec.audio.opinion newsgroup and the many audio magazines, as mentioned before.
I narrowed my field of speakers to the NHT Supeones, the Energy C2's, the
Paradigm 5seMKIII's and the B&W 602's. I listened to all of these at least
three times on three different occasions, spending about 20 minutes with each
one. I brought along some reference CD's to compare the sound qualities.
Albeit not all stores had the same type of setup, I still figured that the speakers would show themselves for what they were in
each of the modestly run setups.
Since I am not here to do a full review of the other speakers, I will say what impressed me the most about the B&W's. The
B&W 602's were the speakers that were heard in the middle of my listening process. As I listened to the 602's I started to fall
in love with them. To tell you my listening preferences, I mainly listen to a lot of techno, modern rock and some classical on
occasion.
The imaging and soundstage of the speakers were incredible. The surprising fact of the speakers were that they didn't have a
real sweet spot. They maintained their good imaging from a variety of positions from the left and right of the center listening
area. The 1 inch aluminum, fluid cooled, tweeter was astounding. They reproduced the musical highs with great accuracy, and
the special effects on movie soundtracks were made precisely. If you can remember the scene in Jurrasic park where the
raptors start screaming at their hi pitched irration, I nearly had to cover my ears it was so loud, this is a good thing :).
Although I must admit that the 602's are probably on the large end of a bookshelf size speaker, more than 19 inches high and
12 inches deep, they did reproduce a deep rich bass which rival many moderately priced tower speakers. With the kevlar mid
range driver, the midrange frequencies were reproduced with good clarity. Although if the bass is turned too high the midrange
could become distorted, but you would have to be playing these speakers pretty damn loud for that to happen. Better yet,
mate these speakers with an active sub that has high pass filtering, which by the way is an option in the AS6(subwoofer in the
600 line), and you could find yourself with a high and midrange speaker that can be pushed even further.
The actual layout of the speaker is finished in a black veneer, that does well NOT to cover the wood grain finish that you can
see from the speaker in ambient light. Overall, the look is sexy yet simple. The sound is far from simple.
These speakers were one of the best ones I had heard among the group I had listened to, in fact they might have been the best.
At $550 they were a little chaper than the Energy C2's($600), but when the dealer was willing to part with them for $450 I
took them without hesitation. In addition, these are one of a few speakers in this price range that can be bi-wired, or bi
amplified, and have gold terminals to prevent corrosion. Also, as a side note, the B&W 600 series includes the 601's, the
602's, the 603's and the 604's. Each one increasing in size and bass strength as you go up. They also have a tonally matched
front channel speaker(CC6) and THX certified dipole surrounds(DS6). You also can have a choice of a matched sub(AS6) or
THX certified sub..
B&W's phrase is "B&W say listen, and you'll see." The phrase should actually be "B&W say listen, and you'll hear." I have
these speakers hooked up to a Denon AVR 2600, with a Marantz CD player. I was thoroughly thankful that I was able to
enter the hi fi audio market with such a good start. My final recommendation, is that if you are on a budget and need to listen to
a couple of good quality speakers, make sure you do yourself a favor and listen to a pair these.
By the way, I don't work for B&W. Even though this review seems to highly praise them, I definitely believe they deserve it.

I am happy that other people find the B&W 602 speaker an excellent one forits price. I first bought a pair on my trip to Wisconsin this April, and
had a chance to audition them in the store, I had heard NHT 1.3, Energy,
PSB,KEF and some other bookshelves in their class.

I was first shocked by their imaging, the speakers seem to disappear,
sometimes I had to get up and see if they were really playing. The 602's
also have great dynamics for a small speaker, perhaps the most impressive
quality of the speaker.

I drove the speakers in my setup with SONY 900ES receiver, even though not th
authority they should get.. they sounded damm good. Well I made the mistake and took my speakers to a friend who has a Krell KSA-100, let's but it this
way.. I wanted to steal his amp to drive the 602's.. I was even more
impressed. The soundstaging was unbelievable.. the bottom end was even smoother, only an idea of what these speakers are capable of.

I found that they are great for Jazz, Classical and Music that had little tampering. For those of you into the market for a pair of speakers under
$1000.00, make sure that you give these speakers a listen..they are worth
every minute of it..


Joyal Holder
Barbados, Caribbean

B&W 602
Nice all-round budget speakers. Everyone should audition this speaker for once at least.

First Impression

It looks quite nice. Nothing too fancy, nothing too weird or strange but stylish in a sense. The yellow Kevlar woofer with a metal tweeter in a black ash finish gives a little "Rich" look. Having a measure of 9.25x33.5x12 in weighing about 22lb, this is not a compact bookshelf. 602 belongs to somewhere in the middle of compact bookshelf and a compact floorstanding. Yet, 602 is definitely a bookshelf albeit somewhat a little large, and sounds much better when paired with a good pair of speaker stands.

Sound Quality

Nice dynamic. That's the overall impression I've got from the pair of 602 I've listened to. Throughout the listening sessions that went days, I was actually quite impressed with the quality of the sound that 602 reproduced. The midrange was natural, as many would expect from B&W speakers: especially matched with Audiolab 8000s, it reproduced very natural midrange. The part that really impressed me, though, was its dynamic and imaging. Its imaging was quite nice especially considering the price of $550 for pair. Certainly, its imaging was not like the imaging of CDM1, CDM2, or Silver Signature from the same company. Yet, readers should take note that a pair of 602 cost a fraction of those speakers mentioned above. In addition, the timing and the dynamic was what surprised me very pleasantly. It had a nice dynamic, making it a very strong contender for Jaz or Rock music speakers. Quite detailed sound, too. When matched with Krell KAV-300i, a pair of 602 actually sounded quite decent although I could feel that the pair of 602 was driven to its maximum showing its limit. Jaz fans should note that a pair of 602 would make a quite nice budget system along with either Audiolab 8000A, Arcam Alpha 7 or 8, or Creek 4240SE. Rock fans should note that 602 with Creek 4240SE or Alpha 7 may sound more suitable than with Audiolab 8000A. Someone told me that a pair of 602 would sound quite nice with Rotel RA-970BX. However, I do not/cannot verify this claim since I have not been able to audition such a setup. (I normally do not put these "someone told me" things in my review, but this case, he was very persistent, and I thought some people might be interested in trying such a setup since Rotel seems to be quite popular and easy to find.)

Another thing that people should take a speical note: 602 would make a very nice front speakers in a budget home theatre setup. A pair of 602 as front L/R, 601 as surround L/R, CC 6 as centre-channel, and AS 6 as a subwoofer, the setup was very price-efficient. I have not seen many home theatre speaker setups under $2,000 that will outperform this setup in their sound quality. I auditioned this setup with my reference receivers for budget home theatre, Denon AVR-2600 and Denon AVR-3600, and I was quite happy with the outcome. Adequate imaging and details with very nice dynamics and bass made A/V experience quite endurable.

Final Verdict

A pair of 602 was a good value, and therefore, should be listed somewhere around the tope of the list of anyone who is considering buying a budget speakers for any genré of music, and for people who is thinking of having a economically efficient home theatre setup.

Grade: B

Auditioned System Set 1:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000S
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 2:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000A
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 3:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 7
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 4:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 8
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 5:

Amplifier: Creek 4240SE
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 6:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000S
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 7:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000A
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 8:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 7
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 9:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 8
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 10:

Amplifier: Creek 4240SE
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 11:

Amplifier: Krell KAV-300i
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 12:

Amplifier: Krell KAV-300i
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 13:

Receiver: Denon AVR-2600
Front L/R: B&W 602
Surround L/R: B&W 601
Centre: B&W CC 6
Subwoofer: B&W AS6
LD Player: Pioneer Elite CLD-99
S-VHS VCR: JVC HR-S7300U
Screen: Sony KP-53XBR45
Speaker Cable: AudioQuest Indigo
Interconnects: AudioQuest Topaz
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 14:

Receiver: Denon AVR-3600
Front L/R: B&W 602
Surround L/R: B&W 601
Centre: B&W CC 6
Subwoofer: B&W AS6
LD Player: Pioneer Elite CLD-99
S-VHS VCR: JVC HR-S7300U
Screen: Sony KP-53XBR45
Speaker Cable: AudioQuest Indigo
Interconnects: AudioQuest Topaz
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

B&W 602
Nice all-round budget speakers. Everyone should audition this speaker for once at least.

First Impression

It looks quite nice. Nothing too fancy, nothing too weird or strange but stylish in a sense. The yellow Kevlar woofer with a metal tweeter in a black ash finish gives a little "Rich" look. Having a measure of 9.25x33.5x12 in weighing about 22lb, this is not a compact bookshelf. 602 belongs to somewhere in the middle of compact bookshelf and a compact floorstanding. Yet, 602 is definitely a bookshelf albeit somewhat a little large, and sounds much better when paired with a good pair of speaker stands.

Sound Quality

Nice dynamic. That's the overall impression I've got from the pair of 602 I've listened to. Throughout the listening sessions that went days, I was actually quite impressed with the quality of the sound that 602 reproduced. The midrange was natural, as many would expect from B&W speakers: especially matched with Audiolab 8000s, it reproduced very natural midrange. The part that really impressed me, though, was its dynamic and imaging. Its imaging was quite nice especially considering the price of $550 for pair. Certainly, its imaging was not like the imaging of CDM1, CDM2, or Silver Signature from the same company. Yet, readers should take note that a pair of 602 cost a fraction of those speakers mentioned above. In addition, the timing and the dynamic was what surprised me very pleasantly. It had a nice dynamic, making it a very strong contender for Jaz or Rock music speakers. Quite detailed sound, too. When matched with Krell KAV-300i, a pair of 602 actually sounded quite decent although I could feel that the pair of 602 was driven to its maximum showing its limit. Jaz fans should note that a pair of 602 would make a quite nice budget system along with either Audiolab 8000A, Arcam Alpha 7 or 8, or Creek 4240SE. Rock fans should note that 602 with Creek 4240SE or Alpha 7 may sound more suitable than with Audiolab 8000A. Someone told me that a pair of 602 would sound quite nice with Rotel RA-970BX. However, I do not/cannot verify this claim since I have not been able to audition such a setup. (I normally do not put these "someone told me" things in my review, but this case, he was very persistent, and I thought some people might be interested in trying such a setup since Rotel seems to be quite popular and easy to find.)

Another thing that people should take a speical note: 602 would make a very nice front speakers in a budget home theatre setup. A pair of 602 as front L/R, 601 as surround L/R, CC 6 as centre-channel, and AS 6 as a subwoofer, the setup was very price-efficient. I have not seen many home theatre speaker setups under $2,000 that will outperform this setup in their sound quality. I auditioned this setup with my reference receivers for budget home theatre, Denon AVR-2600 and Denon AVR-3600, and I was quite happy with the outcome. Adequate imaging and details with very nice dynamics and bass made A/V experience quite endurable.

Final Verdict

A pair of 602 was a good value, and therefore, should be listed somewhere around the tope of the list of anyone who is considering buying a budget speakers for any genré of music, and for people who is thinking of having a economically efficient home theatre setup.

Grade: B

Auditioned System Set 1:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000S
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 2:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000A
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 3:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 7
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 4:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 8
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 5:

Amplifier: Creek 4240SE
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 6:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000S
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 7:

Amplifier: Audiolab 8000A
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 8:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 7
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 9:

Amplifier: Arcam Alpha 8
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 10:

Amplifier: Creek 4240SE
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 11:

Amplifier: Krell KAV-300i
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-65
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 12:

Amplifier: Krell KAV-300i
Speakers: B&W 602
CD Player: Marantz CD-63 MK.II K.I.Signature
Speaker Cable: MITerminator 2
Interconnect: MITerminator 2
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 13:

Receiver: Denon AVR-2600
Front L/R: B&W 602
Surround L/R: B&W 601
Centre: B&W CC 6
Subwoofer: B&W AS6
LD Player: Pioneer Elite CLD-99
S-VHS VCR: JVC HR-S7300U
Screen: Sony KP-53XBR45
Speaker Cable: AudioQuest Indigo
Interconnects: AudioQuest Topaz
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

Auditioned System Set 14:

Receiver: Denon AVR-3600
Front L/R: B&W 602
Surround L/R: B&W 601
Centre: B&W CC 6
Subwoofer: B&W AS6
LD Player: Pioneer Elite CLD-99
S-VHS VCR: JVC HR-S7300U
Screen: Sony KP-53XBR45
Speaker Cable: AudioQuest Indigo
Interconnects: AudioQuest Topaz
Speaker Stands: Sanus Systems Reference Foundations

price and imaging

none

The best speakers I have ever heard. The imaging is unbelievable. I would never spend a penny more for more expensive speakers. I listened to all other brands and these definatly sound the sweetest. the clarity in unbelievable. Even after a year I listen to new stuff on them and they just impress the hell out of me. I have dm601's for the rear and the cc6 center channel. I am so happy with them.

Similar Products Used:

klipsch 15" sub and denon surround receiver avr 1500