My impressions, in order of observation:1)Appearance - These are the coolest looking speakers I have ever seen.
2)Build quality - Extemely high. Cabinet is beautiful.
3)Sound - excellent imaging, powerful bass. Very appealing sound. Not as open as my Dunlavy SCIV, but in the same league.
4)Extended listening - After listening for to a whole CD,(Pixies "Doolittle"), I wasn't jumping around in my seat the way I normally do.....something was missing.......
Aha - the dynamics are a little restrained....the N802 is somewhat "polite". Does not "kick" the way I like. The Thiel 2.3 and Dunlavy IV have more impact and drive.
5)Value. While build quality is high, and the sound, although not to my liking, is very-good-to-excellent, these are very expensive speakers. You can do better for less money.

Excellent product. It replaced my 801 matrix III, tranparency from another world, definition at maximum: loudspeakers for real audiophile. Beware of the amplifier: these are loudspeakers that reveal everything! Better wedding? Try valve (not bad Krell Ksa100, Chord 1200b so so... )

I am in the market for a pair of full range floor standing speakers. the 802N were definitely on my list. They were relatively cheap on my list (which includes the EggelstonWorks Andra, Revel, and the drop dead gorgeous Sonus Faber Amati)The 802 is about half the price as the speakers listed above, so in a way, you can say the 802 really shine.
But on an absolute level, the 802 was a little disappointing. Nothing was wrong. But then, nothing was really 'right' about them either. I prefer the Silver Signature 30 more. the SS30 was just more transparent (I had a a/b test). The 802 bass had more slam, but to me at least the SS30 had more depth (bass). The SS30 won in both the Mids and Highs imo. The SS30 sounded a little 'soft' perhaps, but then to me anyway, the 802 sounded too 'hifi' like. Perhaps you can call that the 'monitor' sound, but to me, they were too non-musical instrument like.
I am sure some people will like the sound, I do too, but I just prefer the SS30 over the 802. They are pretty much the SAME PRICE. If you want to listen to music, go for the SS30, if you want to listen to the recording, get the 802.

I have owned a pair of ADS 1230 monitors which I have had for almost 17 years. Over the last three months, I started my search for something new that would be a substantial improvement over what I currently had. I walked into Audio dealer who had the 802's on display and asked to listen to them. I was immediately impressed with the sound however I had my doubts how much better they would be than the ADS. The dealer allowed me to take my speakers to his store and listen to them side by side. To say the least I was completely blown away by the differences between the two, especially in the mid-range and high frequencies. The imaging was deep, wide and stable. I had my wife with me and she was equally impressed. We ordered a pair in the dark cherry wood which took just over 3 months to get. Once we got them home, I was even more impressed by the sound. These speakers are more effiecient than the ADS however they do like power. It seems that I will now have to go out and purchase an new high current amp. Currently I have an older Tandberg 3026 Power Amp which is rated at 150 watts and is a high current design. It sound fine at lower levels but when pushed takes more power than the amp is capable of. To sum it up, these are the most beautifully built speakers I have ever seen and for the money, hard to beat. I listened to Avalon Acoustics, Martin Logan, and Thiel but nothing had the dynamic range of the 802's

I have heard the new nautilus series for the first time driven by an array of Jeff Rowland amplifiers... they sounded in a way I haven't forgot for a long time. The second encounter was with a couple of 801 driven by a complete Mark Levinson reference system; I got quite disappointed!
Anyway, the first impression left such a deep mark in my soul that I decided to buy a couple of 802. I tested them driven by a Mark Levinson system (this time the amps where the 33). The N802 is absolutely the best speaker available on the market, if:

- you love monitors;
- you expect the speakers to reproduce only what is on the source;
- this means also defects and poor quality.

One thing is sure: people who love massive soundstages and a lot of effect won't fully appreciate these speakers. For instance, before diciding for the 802 I have been considering to buy the Martin Logan Request for a long time. Somehow, the 802 is an extension of the Request... a better result achieved through a different approach.

Thanks B&W.

It's hard to understand how so many people who claim to be audio enthusiasts or audiophiles can criticize this speaker. I'm seriously scratching my head over some of the reviews here. I first auditioned the 802's five weeks ago, wrung my hands over the price for a few days (certainly there are very respectable speakers that can be had for a lot less). But after searching for the right speaker for two years, it was clear to me I had the answer.
Before posting my review here, I've waited for adequate break-in, even though IMO these speakers sound great right off the bat. The bass is so deep and muscular, very tight, although the flaws of CDs are mercilessly revealed. The low range is incomparable to that of any speaker I've ever owned and it is taking a while to get used to (it's like growing accustomed to a powerful engine after driving around in a weak 4 cylinder car).

The midrange and highs were immediately appealing to me. And the accuracy and power of the midrange was ultimately the reason I chose this speaker. The drivers for the tweeter and mids are housed in a teardrop-shaped chamber atop the cabinet that eliminates resonance and distortion and has a piano gloss finish. The sound that eminates from this housing is incomparable to any other speaker I auditioned (except the 801's), including some that cost much more than the 802's. The range of shades provided by the tweeter, for example in high-hat work on some jazz recordings, is extraoardinary.

To achieve the best sound I went against the recommendation of the solid-state-happy B&W dealer and am using tube amplification, driven though Alpha-Core Goertz cables that biwire the 802's. The tubes and flat cable provide a sweetness I've yet to hear on any other system and I'm very happy with my decision to go with tubes. I also try to collect 20-bit or 24-bit CD remasters (often Japanese imports) of titles I want because many "normal" remasters now sound unsatisfactory to me. But to blame this on the 802's is moronic.

A transparent speaker that provides all the power in mids lows and highs that you will ever want. Flawlessly designed and constructed. Don't listen to the solid state guys--tube amplification is the way to go with the 802's. Pricey, but I don't see how it can deserve anything less than five stars as one of the best (if not the best) speakers ever made.

Never in my life have I heard such clarity and precision in sound production. This speaker is simply awesome. Not only is the sound amazing but the craftmanship equally compliments the esoteric design.
There is a slight disadvantage with regard to buying speakers like these, in the fact that you should not use just any mediocre poweramp to drive this speaker. Get something that's got the power and elegance to support these beasts.

The Nautilus by far can be regarded as one of the world's best.

After many years of owning and enjoying McIntosh equipment, I jumped ship and replaced my Mc speakers B&W Nautilus 802s. I was warned that there would be a 15-30 hour burnin period before the units would begin to limber up and perform. So, I did the logical thing and cranked the units up and played a LOT of pipe organ for many hours at near max power.
All I can say is that the 802's have exceeded all expectations. I was initially concerned with the lack of defined low end (most noticable on pipe organ). At about 15 hours, I realized that I was starting to experience the gut twisting sub-harmonics that only a large pipe organ produces. The low end has continued to develop. Not that distorted, boomy crap, but true, Godiva smooth, unstrained bass that is usually only experienced at a live performance. I have now disconnect my powered sub-woofer as it added such little, if anything to what the 802s were producing. After the breakin period, I started listening to a lot of varied music formats. When I reached into my jazz cds I was again amazed. The transparency, clarity and crispness of the 802's is best demonstrated with jazz. I have since listened to everything from circuit dance to Mozart and have been consistently surprised and delighted.

Best $8000 I ever spent on audio.

Looks, Sound, built quality

if one the weight ( more than 70 kg )

at first i was really surprised about a few reviews! Either people think there are no other speakers in the world and giving easy 5 * or others spending 8000 $ and finding out that they bought the world worst ( by the way very clever ).
The truth is some where in the middle.
There is no dought that the 802 are one of the 50 world best speakers and for the quality not to expensive. If you want perfect high end, go to your B&W-dealer and ask to set them up in your room. Only there you will find out if these are your speakers.

by the way they were my

Similar Products Used:

N 801, Avalon, Backes & Mueller, HPG Fuga, Audio Physic, Wilson Audio

/

/

I went to have a look at a new loudspeaker/amplifier combination. I started with the B&W Nautilus 803 with the new mission Cyrus7. The combination seemed to be OK for the price, but somethin was missing??? So I started a comparison between different speakers and amplifiers, starting with the speakers: HGP-Fuga (German product), Nautilus 803 and Dynaudio Contour 3.3. with a Tag McLaren Amplifier where I found the Nautilus 803 to be by far the best choice. I went then on to a Nautilus 802 in Combination with a McIntosh 6850 and whooow this was the best I ever heard for this price (14.000 $). I told myself then: Ok, this is a better system then the other ones I went for, but also much more expensive. Maybe the comparison with another system with the same price will give the answer: so I went for an ALR Take 7 (10.000$) in combination with an Accuphase 406 (5.000 $), but folks I can tell you: All the magic that the Nautilus 802 has spread was gone with the ALR speakers...a horn sounded like any metal instrument, but not as a horn. Anyone who doesn't hear the difference with this Nautilus series has a problem with the ears and should consult a doctor !!!! (see all the folks which rated less then 4 *)

Similar Products Used:

/