I am a true purist. I love the B&w 603 S2. I upgraded from my 602's (now my surrounds). These are by the fare the CLEAREST speakers I have ever owned. The imaging is Spectacular the sound feild is accurate. The base is complete and the highs are well. Well they are as good as the Matix 800 series.
If you have the money buy these. I have heard nothing that came close. Form infinty to martin logans to paradigm, they are all left in the B&W 603 S2 dust.

Treble & Mid-range Clarity, Depth, Build Quality.

Look better with grills but sound better without, Boxy Looking.

My system: Sony STR-DB940QS Amplifier/Receiver
Sony CDP-XE330 CD Player
Sony DVP-S335 DVD Player
Sony KV-29FX201D TV

Interconnectors:IXOS & Profi Gold

Speakers: B&W DM603S2 Front Speakers
B&W DM601S2 Rear Speakers
B&W CC6S2 Centre Speaker

These speakers are very good with all types of music and movies, but are especially good with classical style music. The treble and mid-range are extremely impressive, but the bass while powerful and clean sounding is probably the least impressive frequency response of these speakers. B&W Speakers seem to take quite a long burn in period especially the Kevlar drive unit, but the wait is well worth it, once these speakers have been used for a while they sound fantastic. These speakers also sound better when Bi-Wired, positioning is also another critical issue and I think they sound clearer without the grills fitted.
In conclusion, I am extremely happy with my choice of front speakers and I would recommend them to anyone thinking of buying speakers in this price range.

Similar Products Used:

B&W DM601S2

needs a subwoofer for true pounding in movies

Having spent about 3 months and $9,000 Canadian ($6,000 US) building my home theatre, I auditioned just about everything I could find in Calgary. The final pieces are as follows:

Television: Toshiba 61" HD (61x81)
Receiver: Rotel 972
DVD/CD: Old Panasonic I've had for 2 years, next thing to upgrade!!!
Speakers:
Fronts B&W DM603 S2
Centre B&W LCR6 S2
Rears B&W DM601 S2

My wife and I listened to countless systems, the finalists are listed above in "similar products". I have many good things to say about JMLabs and Paradigm, they were close seconds. However, the B&W system had a much clearer and more "real" sound. We enjoy more acoustic and jazz recordings and we could easily hear the difference. WOW!

The bass is sufficient for my taste in music. I can see where more bass would be beneficial, especially in some movies. We auditioned the surround set with a 10" subwoofer which added the extra pounding for movies. If you like to feel the Tyranasaurus walking accross your living room, you will need a sub.

- Ross

Similar Products Used:

Polk, Devinitive Technology, JMLabs, Infinity, Mirage, Paradigm

Everything?

The bass isn't that deep

I've listen to AudioPro black diamond, dali5005, 6006 and 8008. But i've got these speakers instead, the dali8008 was ok to, but it was some strange "scratchy"noice with some music.

Similar Products Used:

none

great bass-mids and treble.nice cherry

none to mention.

Use mine for ht and music with a rel q200e sub(this is a great sub)and sounds great.

Similar Products Used:

b&w and mission kef and tannoy

Nice finish, Works good in stereo or theater setup. Nice highs.

Grills, and Hillary doesn't like them.

Excellent speakers if you can get them for less than a $1000.

Similar Products Used:

Paradigm, Infinity, Wharfedale

Excellent lows and highs, typical superior B&W accuracy and response, build quality, binding posts

Grills

I have been a big fan of B&W for about 10 years now. I have tried to like other speakers and just cannot find any I like better. The 603S2 offers superp accuracy while delivering amazing tonal quality. The highs are just right for my taste and the lows are very impressive. I knew I wanted the 603S2's before even going into the store, I did audition them anyway, they performed and sounded even better at home on my own system. I use my system for HT and music about equally, the B&W set up I have, for me, is the best speaker package I have ever auditioned. Sure, others are good too, but overall and all around, the B&W blows the competition away in this price range. I am using the following:

Denon AVR 3300
Sony DVP S 7700
Sony CDP 79ES
B&W 603S2 - Fronts
B&W LCR6S2 - Center
B&W 610i's - Rear
B&W ASW 2000 - Sub
TV - not worth mentioning but is a JVC 32"

Side note, not a big fan of Sony, but the DVP S7700 is wonderful. Got it for $700 down from $1200 a few months ago. The CDP 79ES is outstanding, old but great. The ES series by Sony is fantastic for the price range. Did post review on the Denon AVR 3300, no problems here, does everything I ask it to...except biwire my 603's :(

Good luck and enjoy, thanks for reading.

Similar Products Used:

B&W 610i's, 305's, 602S2, Auditioned many...Klipsch, Mission, Mirage, Paradigm, Boston Acoustics, DefTech and some higher end that I couldn't afford anyway

Bass extension and midrange definition are nice, trebble is nice and airy. Exceptional imaging.

The stock bus bars that connect the biwiring terminals muffle the upper ranges.

These speakers are an upgrade from my 4-5 year old B&W 620i speakers. They're nice and controlled, with a even-enough response to make me grin. Compared to the 800 Nautulus line, they're inferior for musical listening; probably better for many home theatres as they're more exciting to listen to.
Good for the price, definitely.

Similar Products Used:

B&W DM620i

Tight bass, clear midrange and deep soundstage. Excellent imaging.

A bit pricey ($1100), shrill highs at times.

The deep bass and the clear midrange makes listening to these speakers a pleasurable experience. The sound effects are stunning in HT mode. My setup includes a B&W CC6 S2 center, B&W DM 302 for rear. Haven't detected any major tonal imbalance between the 603 and 302. Bot are outstanding speakers.

PUNCHEST SPEAKER I VE EVER HEARD

NONE

I SPENT MONTHS LISTENING TO SPEAKERS THEY ALL SEEM TO HAVE SOMETHING I DID NOT LIKE .THE B&W HAD A COLORATION NOT PERFECT BUT IT MADE ME FELL GOOD ISNT THAT WHAT ITS ALL ABOUT.