Quality of bass is very high, sounds so smooth and nice. Midrange, gives the music a great edge and lot of details, makes electric guitars sound massive. Overall sound quality is very balanced with no part overtaking the other even when hard pressed. Drive the speakers with a good amp and they will deliver the goods.

In my setup, the treble is a bit flat. However, I shouldn't complain because the speakers aren't positioned optimally so it's easily solved. Bi-wiring should be interesting to try later.

My system: - NAD C350 Int. Amplifier - NAD C521i CD-player - B&W DM603 S3 Listens to: Metallica, Scorpions, Accept, Axel Rudi Pell, MSG, Joe Lynn Turner, etc. These are very nice sounding speakers. As written in earlier reviews, they have to be played for quite a long time before they start to loosen up and sound really good. In my specific setup the sound is clean and polished. I like bass that has depth and detail and these speakers delivers. Note that I use my tone controls to tune the sound. BASS: it's very hard to make the aluminum bass driver sound harsh, I've never been anywhere near these levels. The shop demonstrated this fact though. The bass is very smooth and full, not overblown or fat, but gives kickdrums and percussion a solid sound without sounding boomy. The bass driver can play soft and smooth and still react to sudden bursts of bass with great control. You think that the bass perhaps is a bit lean, but the deep bass is there when needed. Great bass for all music styles. MIDRANGE: One thing I noticed was that electric guitars sounded very good (I listen to hardrock,metal and rock), the midrange is strong but doesn't sound dry or overwhelming. It's very clean and nicely integrated into the overall sound. TREBLE: In my setup the treble is what I'm a bit puzzled by. It is a bit laid back, a bit dark. The treble tone control is at maximum. Note that I have a small room and my B&W's are not ideally placed, being quite high up in the air and close to the back wall (these are floor standing speakers!). The sound is dependent on placement, so experiment with that first before starting changing cables and other things. I haven't bi-wired the B&W's yet and I hope this will give the treble some power and air (although I should position the speakers better before changing cables). The overall quality of the speakers are that they're very balanced, from the bass all the way up to the treble. Some have noted that they sound a bit dull at lower volume levels and in my case I can agree to some extent, but this is only in regard to the treble since it's not really that prominent in my particular room. The bass and midrange however is very nice at all volume levels. The speakers will also reveal alot about the recording, if it's good you'll hear it and vice versa. After getting the B&W's I have listened to my entire CD collection (about 250 CD's) all over again. I have found details in the songs that I've never heard before and the sound is very controlled and expressive at the same time. I can't give the B&W's all fives because I haven't tried so many alternatives out there to compare with. I'm very satisfied with the purchase.

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JWS speakers, Sony amp and CD.

Outstanding Treble and Mid-range Sound staging/ separation Powerful controlled bass

May take the plaster off small rooms!! Bass can bocome slightly boomy if positioned incorrectly

After listening at the shop to several different speaker types (Monitor Audio, Mission) I decided to opt for the B&W's and it wasn't a difficult choice. The 603 S3's were the best by a long way. They stood out because they sounded so musical. Sweet clear treble, superb natural mid-range, and tight powerful bass, all balanced perfectly. They do need a big room and placement is important but with the right source and amp, these speakers are amazing for the price. My music collection ranges from Slipknot to Beethoven and the S3's cope with everything I throw at them!

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Monitor Audio Silver Missions

Fantastic Sound Great value for money

NONE

These are amazing speakers and just what i've come to expect from B&W over the years. Upgraded from 601's to 603 S2's and now upgraded to these. They have tight bass, clear and consise midrange and add a warmth to well recorded CD's. I originally bought the 604's but the bass was too much for the room (and it's a reasonably big room 23 feet by 18 feet)

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lack of bass? its no so bad, but its the worse thing about these, and this thing asked for weaknesses so i had to put it

I was looking for floorstanding stereo steakers in the 1000$ price range. I went to Aufio King in MN, and they had a switchboard with a console so you could switch between speakers without a pause. I could easily compare the Klipsch RF3 II, the Definitive BP2002TL, the Bose 901 (why?), Infinity IL 40 and of course the Boston VR 965. It was an easy decision, no way could any other speaker satisfy my taste more than boston. i like its clean, articulate highs, and for the low end it had 8 inch subwoofer on the side. so it couldnt get better right? i didnt hesitate to buy them. Later, doing a little more research, AFTER i bought my bostons, i went to a different place, selling B&W, KEF, and Energy. Again, i could easily compare the Q5, C-2 , and DM603 s3. It was close, they all match my taste. Id say the B&W were smoother, so i picked that one. I went to another place selling Paradigm and NHT, i chose the NHT Supertwos over the Monitor 7s because of the bass, and i thought it was better for music, which was what i was planning on doing. i couldnt have them all in the same room, so i had to compare them indirectly. They all sold Klipsch, so i listened for how much better they were compared to the Klipsch. Thats not so accurate, but worked, i guess. In the end, i eliminated my boston, so it was between the B&W and NHT. I decided to bring my own music, a CD from the Cirque du Soleil, Dralion. Listening the the B&W, i just love its mid and highs, exactly what i was looking for. The NHTs were actualy jsut a little bit better at sound staging, it was like i was back at the show. But i went with the B&W, because it had what i was looking for, and then looks. I brought them home, and compared them to my boston. Had i known anything about breaking speakers in, i woulda waited longer. Either way, reading so many reviews online, i knew i couldnt go wrong with B&W, so i kept them. i returned my Boston speakers and its all good now.

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read summary

Flawless craftsmanship Very good sound staging Very accurate bass reproduction Strong midrange when driven with proper equpiment Clear, crisp highs Depth

I've had these wonderful floorspeakers for almost 6 months now and have still not ceased to be amazed by them. At the $1000 price point, no similar speaker can match the 603S3. Correct placement and room acoustics do these speakers justice and result in a true to life sound. B&W has brought home high quality audiophile sound and has made it affordable. They come with height adjustable floor spikes which should be used. Further inspection results in a heavy steel basket for the mid and bass drivers, large heavy magnets, kevlar drivers, and a tapered tube for the tweeter. All the components are high quality. The cabinet is solid both structurally as well as acoustically. If you're putting togethor a theater system under $10,000 these speakers are prefect.

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My setup: Yamaha RXV-1 B&W 603 S3, CC6 S2, 602.5 S3 Paradigm PDR-12 Panasonic 47wx49 HDTV Pioneer Elite DV-09 Rotel RCD-02 MIT Terminator 3 cable StraightWire/MIT interconnects Pionee

Clarity and neutrality of sound, and the quality of cabinet construction and internal components.

None

After listening to a number of speakers that fell within the same class and price range, I decided to purchase the B&Ws, and so far have been very happy with them. The sound is neutral and very clean across the frequency range, and they match well with my amplification system (Rotel RC1070 preamp, Rotel RB1070 power amp). High frequencies are nice and crisp, the mids (vocals in particular) sound fantastic, and one can pick out the details of the lower frequencies, as opposed to being assaulted by a plethera of muddy and not-so-discernable bass notes. Best of all, no frequencies are favored above others (e.g. pounding bass at the expense of midrange). Being as clear sounding as they are, they do tend to reproduce music for what it is: a good quality recording sounds fantastic, but a not-so-good recording (old cassettes, worn records, producer not doing such a hot job in the studio, etc.) will sometimes sound awful. These speakers also tend to reveal weak links within a sound system: in time I will need to upgrade some of my peripheral components and connections to get the most out of the stereo (time to save up yet again). In other reviews of these speakers, some have commented on the vinyl finish and the lack of magnetic shielding. While real wood finishes are always nice, and one does have to take care not to place these speakers too close to the television and other devices affected by magnetic fields, these to me are minor inconveniences. Clearly B&W put their efforts into sound and durability over appearances and perks. These speakers have it where it counts: high-quality drivers, crossover and connector hardware, along with a well-built cabinet. They are biwire-capable, and naturally I have taken advantage of that feature. Having not had these speakers for very long, I sense that they are still in their break-in stage, and will continue to be for quite some time. Even so, they sound fantastic already, and the sound can only improve over the next few months. Looking forward to many hours of happy listening!

Similar Products Used:

Bose 301, Klipsch RF3II

everything, very dynamic, smooth highs, solid mid range, and very fast powerful bass.

non

This is an update from a previous review I gave a few months back. I have to say that i absolutely love these speakers. I have upgraded the rest of my system since then. Sold all my harman/kardon stuff and bought the Rotel RB985 amp and the new Rotel 1066 pre/pro amp. In music: very good match up. With the h/k these speakers sounded good but it wasn't doing them justice with the proper clean power the rotel's give. I now have much better resolution, way better dynamics, and smoother highs. I have to say the Rotel and B&W 603s3 is a very good match. in movies: It sounds AWESOME!!!!! Incredible dynamics and voices sound life like! Don't be fooled these speakers need clean solid power, I wouldn't settle for anything less. my advice if it doesn't sound good enough to you. 1: give them atleast 500hrs of break-in period. 2: use a better amp! Rotel, Nad, Bryston, carver. system: B&W 603s3, lcr s2, 601s2, def tech prosub 100tl(upgrading), Rotel RB985 amp, Rotel 1066 pre/pro amp, pioneer dv434, yamaha cdpl(upgrading), Tara labs RSC prime 1000s, anxiom interconnects.

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see previous review.

Build quality, sound, look, slimmer size..

I wish they could have veneer instead of this artificial coating.

These Bowers & Wilkins DM603 S3 speakers are impressive. Mostly I listen to wide range of music from Jazz, Blues to Rock, New Age. I must say that they are so satisfactory, I become addicted to their sound within couple of hours.. In the late night, in really low volumes, you can get soft bass as well as vocals and highs. Precise sound fills up the room smoothly. In the daytime, you can pump up the volume and enjoy the tight basses and everything that the music gives. Curiosity pushes one to increase the volume continuously to find out the limit of these speakers. Whole flat, floor and walls were shaking while I failed to determine their distorted sound. Their sound range is so wide, I am quite surprised. Thanks neighbors' patience during the test. So far I tried many systems with different speakers and I have never hear such clear responses. Give them a powerful, clear signal from amplifier and they shines like a crazy diamond. Never feed them with cheap devices. All they want is distortion free pulses and rich e-waves. Now, I have 5 speaker system; B&W 603 S3 in front with B&W LCR 3 Center and JBL LX44 oldies in the surround for movies. I use DENON AVR3802 receiver.. I very happy with this monster which is perfectly matches with these speakers. If you keen on company advised compatibility or if your room is large in size (>45 m2) (mine is around 30 m2) then you can consider B&W LCR600 S3 center. What I have done is widen the center channel a little bit to Left and Right fronts so that LCR 3 performs just enough in the center. Image is marvelous. Low frequencies are so nice that I think I do not need an additional subwoofer to enhance LFE. In DVD Dolby digital, even I decreased the low frequencies by half to keep the sound thundering in a reasonable level for an apartment flat. Shortly, these babies have tremendous capacity. All they want is a good quality source of signals. Keep in mind, if you have no doubt for the quality of your amplifier, connections and source devices, you will get from these speakers exactly what you put in the DVD or CD tray. If the recordings in the disc are low quality, you get flat sound. If you play high quality recordings, you get high quality sound for sure.

Clear sound, very precise Strong if needed Smooth and not aggressive

Maybe not enough Bass for those who like big bangs (can be corrected with a woofer).

I must say I hesitated a lot between the B&W dm603 s3 and Kef Q5's. I first heard the Q5's at a local dealer and was very enthusiast, they sounded sweet and powerfull the same time. The next week I auditionned the B&Ws at another local dealer. They sounded great too but I was not as much impressed as with the Kefs. Both times I hadn't brought any CD of my own which I realize was a mistake. The dealers use their own music sometimes not in an appropriate manner. By the next week, I took my own CD's, having selected songs I would like to listen to. I listened to the B&Ws first and then at Kefs and... at this moment I could here the difference. Every sound was well reproduced with the B&w, they sounded sweet and strong the time. Then the Kefs, and there I was disappointed ! The Kefs weren't so smooth as I first thought. The sound seemed to be too much softened. After all the Kefs weren't match the B&W's if you like well reproduced music. If you look for power and strong Bass, maybe the Kef will do it but you won't ever get the same details as with the B&W. After all, I bought the B&w dm603 s3 and I'm glad I listened to those models in a short time. I give them 4 stars because there's always something better somewhere else, but for now, certainly not at the same price.

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Kef Q5's

Clear sound, very precise Strong if needed Smooth and not aggressive

Maybe not enough Bass for those who like big bangs (can be corrected with a woofer).

I must say I hesitated a lot between the B&W dm603 s3 and Kef Q5's. I first heard the Q5's at a local dealer and was very enthusiast, they sounded sweet and powerfull the same time. The next week I auditionned the B&Ws at another local dealer. They sounded great too but I was not as much impressed as with the Kefs. Both times I hadn't brought any CD of my own which I realize was a mistake. The dealers use their own music sometimes not in an appropriate manner. By the next week, I took my own CD's, having selected songs I would like to listen to. I listened to the B&Ws first and then at Kefs and... at this moment I could here the difference. Every sound was well reproduced with the B&w, they sounded sweet and strong the time. Then the Kefs, and there I was disappointed ! The Kefs weren't so smooth as I first thought. The sound seemed to be too much softened. After all the Kefs weren't match the B&W's if you like well reproduced music. If you look for power and strong Bass, maybe the Kef will do it but you won't ever get the same details as with the B&W. After all, I bought the B&w dm603 s3 and I'm glad I listened to those models in a short time. I give them 4 stars because there's always something better somewhere else, but for now, certainly not at the same price.

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Kef Q5