I recently purchased these speakers, and have thoroughly enjoyed listening to all types of music through them. These speakers (and all B&W speakers I've heard) do an excellent job with the mid- and high ranges. The bass is a little lacking in overall oomph, but I think the quickness and detail of these speakers lets me hear some bass parts better than other speakers which have a deeper reach. The clarity of the instruments, especially anything non-electric, is amazing. Acoustic guitars, pianos, perscussion instruments, etc. all have a very "live" sound, with a very natural sustain. I am expecting these speakers to sound even better after a proper break in period ( which I found noticably helped a pair of B&W DM 600i's I own).
I had also listened to the Nautilus 805's, which also had a very detailed, open sound, but I didn't think is was worth the $800-$1,000 more (with proper stands) that the store wanted for them.

I also demoed the EPOS 22's, Theil 2.3's, Sonos Fabers (stand mounted model), NHT2.5's, PSB Stratus Bronze and Silver - none of them had the same impact on me as the CDM7SE. For me, not much else comes close to B&W speakers.

I have to admit, for the price range this is as good as it gets. I am sold on B&W speakers, I recently attended a seminar w/B&W's North America Sales Manager about the new Nautilus 800 series. You would be amazed what this company puts into research, their custom software has actually been borrowed and used by companies to help them design race cars, mainly simulating air flow in enclosed spaces. We all know the statistics on this company, with their speakers actaully being in Science Museums, all the recording studios, etc. Enough about that, to the speakers. The CDM7SE sounds great, its highs and mids are clear without any "boxyness" the cleanest sounding speaker I've heard below $3000, and its almost half that! The clear weakness of this speaker is the bass, the speaker is capable of going very low but doesnt have the muscle with its single 6.5 inch woofer. B&W would really have something if they added another woofer like many of their other speakers. However the sound is clear as crystal and really puts you in the music. A wonderful speaker for softer music, Classical, light jazz, light rock. My taste in music varies from Beethoven to Chicago, to Motley Crue and White Zombie. These speakers really bring to life the lighter end of my collection, however when I get into the hard rock the speaker tends to sound a little flat, in the since that the bass is overpowered in volume by the mids and highs. Compared to my previous speakers B&W 604's, the 604's didnt have nearly as clear and clean of a sound as the CDM7SE's do, but with 2 - 7 inch woofers tuned at different bass levels, they could produce life like deep bass that could rattle all the windows in the house. Without that nasty boomy rumble, they were wonderful speakers in that respect.
Luckly the place I bought my previous speakers, allows you to bring back (within a year) and upgrade your speakers @ full value. Example: (CDM7SE)$1800 -(604's)$1600 = $200 + tax, pretty sweet deal. If you buying speakers, try and work out something similar, its saves a lot of money even if you have to pay retail. Plus, I get another year to upgrade my CDM7SE's.
I should point out that my speakers are brand new and havent been broken in, there is always that possibility that the bass will come though a little more, but not enough to change my opinion. I am running an amazing Denon CD player that is unfortunatly no longer made, its the DCD-3000. It has the highest specs of all the single component cd players Ive seen. With its 20-bit Alpha DAC, the typical distortion in the highs that can make your ears tense and cringe when played at high volume is removed, this is very obvious with speakers like the CDM7SE. Last point, this review was done in a large dining room with a roof that angles upwards from where the speakers are placed, and has been known to steal bass from a speaker. I would recommend this speaker no matter what, just because of the price. However, for large rooms I would have to say go with 604's, they'll probably work out better for you. For smaller and med sized frooms, or music w/o massive bass demands in large rooms - the CDM7SE's are the way to go. 5/5 Stars, the price more than makes up for its bass shortcomings.

I have spent the last two months trying to put together a system that would give me a taste of the high end at a price that I could afford. Because this is more than just a casual purchace for me,I spent a considerable amount of time auditioning components both at the shops,and in my home. I had already spent more than I originally wanted to on electronics,(Bryston B60 & Rega Planet) so the speaker budget was to be no more than $1500 including wire. The first speakers I brought home were the NHT 2.5i's. I heard some beautiful sounds from these speakers,but in spite of all my efforts at propor placement,I couldn't get rid of the low frequency boom form the woofers; but I attribute this more to the size of my rather small listening room,than to any fault of the speaker. Next were the Meadowlark Kestrels. This was much better! They seemed to work well in my listening room,with great imaging and very good overall sound quality. I returned to the shop ready to purchace the Kestrels,and when I arrived,I noticed the B&W CDM 7 SE's sitting on the floor. I had not seen these on my previous visits,and was immediately struck by their good looks. The price was a little out of my budget,but I asked for an audition anyway. After five minutes of Will Downing & Gerald Allbright (Pleasures Of The Night) I knew I had to try these in my room. I was becomming the bane of my local audio specialist,because I had been coming in for three weeks,and still hadn't bought anything yet. Anyway,I got them home,wired them up,and fired up some tunes. I was stunned! I hadn't even fooled around with placement,and already they were blowing away anything I had yet heard! There was just music-effortless,untiring,and above all,clear. The mids and highs are very smooth,and the woofers reproduce a fair share of the low frequency stuff,while remaining tight and punchy; plenty of good definition on both ends of the spectrum. If you get a chance to demo these speakers,listen to a good jazz recording with some female vocals,saxophone,and acoustic bass,and you'll see what I mean by good definition; the sound of the CDM SE 7's is so clear and detailed when reproducing jazz that you'll practically be able to hear the spit dripping from the sax. Some folks have found these speakers to be a bit lacking in bass. Loud,low bass isn't what you expect from most 6 1/2 inch woofers,so there should be no surprises here. What you do get is bass that is accurate,musical,and tight. In my own system,I feel that any more would be too much. I have now pretty much wiped out my checking account,and am about $1000 in debt; but at least I know that I've got some true high end components,that should give me plenty of solid listening enjoyment for years to come. The B&W CDM 7 SE's are serious high fidelity. Check them out.

I auditioned quite a number of speakers in this price range (under $2000.00) and in the end I took these speakers home. I felt the highs were right on and crisp, the midrange was clear and accurate and the bass was solid and not over baring. When I turn up the volume, I am truly amazed on the overall tonal balance. Furthermore, The build quality is superb and the red ash finish is strikingly beauitful. These speakers list for $1800.00 and I got mine for $1530.00. Needless to say, these speakers anchor my HT system. Highly recommended!

The CDM7SE is one fine speaker! Having had these now for about a month, I continue to be thrilled by their sound - they simply do everything just right! High and midrange frequencies are extended and well-balanced, not too bright or forward, and bass is tight and accurate. These speakers particularly excel in their ability to project a convincing, almost "holographic" soundstage. Build quality and finish are superb, too! These are revealing speakers, though, and demand the use of high-quality electronics. Also bi-wiring is a must. Obviously these speakers may not be for everyone, but if you like the "B&W" sound, give them a try - you won't be sorry!

I auditioned these against the N-805s, Hales Rev. 2 and 3, and the Aerius i, and was very dissapointed in them. They sounded really colored, muddy and boxed in compared to the N-805s. The Rev. 2 has about the same dimentions as the cdm7 se, costs a little less, but sounds much cleaner and its tonal balance is much better. The Rev. 2 sounds better in every aspect, including sounstaging, where B&W is usually the top dog. I think that the cdm7 sound a lot like the aerius, but i also think the my dm 603s are better the either of them.
Try the Rev. 2 (or Rev. 3 if you have a larger room) and the N-805 before you lay out the cash for cdm7.

Recently, I have been in search for a speaker set. I was trying to look for the best overall speaker for both music listening and home theater and at the best possible value. I have read many reviews about many different speakers here in audioreview.com. And now that I have finally purchased a new set of speakers, I feel that I must contribute something to audioreview.com. Please keep in mind that these are strictly my opinion. Please trust your ear (and watch your pocket) before you buy.
There are many speakers (perhaps too many speakers) out there and all of them seem to claim that theirs are the best. My old pair of speakers are American made (Infinity). So this time, I want something different. This time, I looked at European speakers, primarily British made. This is not to say that the American made is not good. But for the same given set of speakers, I can get better value for British speakers, at least in the country where I live.

In the last four or five months that I have been in search of a speaker set, I have auditioned different speakers at different price levels. This includes B&W CDM 7SE, Mission 753F, KEF Reference Model 2, NHT 2.5I, Boston Acoustics VR760, Dynaudio Audience 80, Dynaudio Contour 1.8MkII, Vienna Acoustics Mozart, Vienna Acoustics Haydn

For B&W CDM 7SE, I must say that this is a great speaker. Its appearance is attractive and the finish is gorgeous. And I already like these speakers before I even listened to it. This B&W is typical of many B&W. The midrange is clean and detailed. The treble is vivid and lively. But the bass is a little shy.

I also auditioned these speakers in a H/T setup. Along with the CDM CSE center, I must say that the speakers give very clean and detailed speech, even at a low volume. The sound effect (surround) is very good although not as good as those specialized H/T speakers. But I'm quite happy with it as I don't really listen very loud most of the time.

The cabinet seems strong but the built is not as elegant or as meticulous as the more expensive Matrix Series. Compared to other speakers, the built and finishes are inferior only to Vienna Acoustics and KEF reference Model 2.

The plus side of these speakers is the sonic quality. But considering the price, the built and the finishes, I think these speakers came just a bit short of 5 star (overall). But if you don't mind the price, CDM 7SE is a very good choice to consider.

I've compared these speakers to Ruark Talisman II's and a pair of Linns.They are impressive in the low end, and are nicely laid back in the high's.

However, at least in my setup (see below), i found them slow and muddy in comparison to the Ruarks. Additionally, the Ruarks gave me a deep, wide and high soundstage (beyond the speakers) with defined stable imaging. The CDM's gave vague notions in a small muddy soundstage.

The B&W's excelled in the low end, even though it wasn't well defined, it carried well and was satisfying. However, it lacked so much in clarity and speed (when i say speed, i mean the ability to attach as quickly as the sound should. take clapping for example, not crowds clapping, but a couple of people clapping as in spanish music. With the ruarks, you'd swear there's some spanish gal clapping her hands in your room! the B&W's... they just sound like a stereo system, the clapping happens, but it's a carricature, a sort of muddy approximation) that the Talisman's had. Additionally, the B&W's sound wasn't natural or warm and inspiring. it was... distorted and muddy in comparison, perhaps it's that kevlar cone ? voices sounded artificial, and instruments weren't warm and inviting.

Now, don't get me wrong here, i really used to like the B&W's, but after listening to the Ruark's... i was completely blown away. It's sort of like seeing color TV and then seeing black and white (B&W?!?) tv again. Or looking through a clear window, and then looking through darkened/dirtied/warped glass.

What amazes me is that i didn't expect this level of detail, speed, clarity and natural sound in a $1700 speaker (the Ruark Talisman II), and if i hadn't listened to (and eventually bought) it, i would have thought the CDM was a great buy.

Cary SLI-30 integrated
Rega Planet
QED Qnect 2
QED silver or Audioquest Crystal (still deciding here...)
Ruark Talisman II's

I've got these speakers two months ago. I'm very glad that I made a pretty good decision. Also HOME THEATER RANKED these speakers with a 92% out of 100% (see HOME THEATER August 98' edition).
They are a very fine set of speakers, also got'em with DH LABS cables and at this point it's the best speakers I've heard in the $2,000 range, period.

The CDM7 are not the same as CDM7 SE. The Special Editions Series have incorporated a string of new features, thus improving on the CDM7 - especially in the midrange. So keep them apart.
Also, the CDM7 SE do need a break-in period, at least 50 hours, up to a week (168 hours), before the Kevlar units start to get going. Thus they do improve a lot over time.

Before I decided on the CDM7 SE's I auditioned a lot of different speakers (JPW, Canton, etc). But I just loved the sound of these ones. In this price segment it really boils down more to personal preferences than what this or that magazine review have stated. Some magazines say they're a dream and reference speakers, others think they should be auditioned, so it's really a matter of taste. To me they're simply beautiful.