big sound from a small box.
style.
easy placement.

wire connect.
no spike.

I got the 401s brand new from a store when they first come out, these were made in Canada, later ones made in ?. I like them for the price and still have them. I placed them 6 feet apart and 2 feet from the wall and they sound good enought for $600.

Customer Service

never used one.

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maggie SMGa

nice size speakers
sound is good and clear at normal volumes
and they look ok too

very expensive to repair if needed
cant cope to good at high volumes
look crap with the covers off

i got these off a mate cheap they are the black 401s not teak
i heard they were rare
i thought ill have em to sell on and make a bit of extra cash
but i had to try em out first
i have a marantz sr5200
and my good old paradigm monitor 7s still like new may i add lol
and a pardigm ps1000 sub

i was impressed by the bose 401s and the mid volume was crystal clear and picked up everything thrown at them
lower volumes were pretty good aswell
but when i turned them up to a quite high volume they had a fit they couldnt cope with the power comin at them and started to distort alot ( i was playing heavy metal though )
so switched to a dvd and they coped no problem at the volume you would normally watch any film i used the matrix as its a good film to use as a sound test
over all i rate them very good especially for the age of them

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none ive never had anything bose before
ill stick to paradigm

Good mids and highs.

Good all day listenability.

I paid $15 for these at a yard sale, so I'd say they were a very, very good deal.

Not much bass.

Probably shouldn't drive these speakers too much.

Somebody said it right in an earlier review that these speakers are "schizophrenic". They are designed to sit in the corner of the room, but they don't seem to work in a way that maximizes the direction of the speakers.

They are defintely made for low level, middle of the road listening. They have pretty good mid range, pretty good high range, but little bass.

I plan to hook up a little sub-woofer (sony's) to get some bottom out of them.

If you take the time to position these speakers, their quality and all day listenablility will impress you over time.

Customer Service

n/a.

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Klipsch's, my favorites.

detailed sound stylish look (for a direct/reflecting Bose speaker) good imaging

not very big on "heavy" music (then again most speakers aren't if they aren't big like CV's) Depending on your view of the name BOSE

This is my first audio review. My dad has owned these floorstanders for the longest time since I was a kid (the year on this model says 1987). So a little over 15 years and we still have them, still sounds the same. From what I know this model is very rare and would be hard to part with anytime soon. I've heard the 301 model in a classroom and the sound is incredible (I honestly couldn't identify where the sound was coming from). The same can almost be said with these 401 speakers. I would very much agree with the other posters that placement of these are CRUCIAL for direct/reflecting sound. They wouldn't sound too good at all in a small crowded room. As a listener of heavy music (and anything good with bass) I'd rather prefer my Cerwin Vega E715's over these, but for something more soothing, melodic, or instrumental, these are very impressive. While they aren't meant to blast the house they sound perfectly fine on receiver power. A good subwoofer combined with these make a good trio.

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Cerwin Vega speakers Pioneer speakers Magnavox crappies SVS 25-31 PCi Subwoofer

monster sound for such a small speaker

do not use a receiver that delivers more then 60 watts per channel on them if your planning to blast loud music such as heavy metal

these speakers do sound good very good but recently i got a sherwood rx-4103 receiver with 105 watts per channel and it blew the speakers out after i turned the volume above 50

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im getting a pair of those big grafdale speakers for 70 dollars off of ebay new i heard all the scams of people paying 500 for them but most people said that there worth 200 each so i think im getting a good deal i just hope my sherwood reciever dosnt blow them out

Size is relatively small. Stylish. Decent soundstage.

Very little bass or impact. Distortion at high volume. Pricey for the results.

These speakers are simply OK. They do a great job of filling a room with sound. They can be played at moderate volume with no distortion. However, there are NO lower frequencies reproduced by this speaker. You will need a subwoofer if it is for your home theatre. Furthermore, the highs and mids are very distorted at higher volumes. (To be expected from such small drivers)

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Technics Adire Audio kit281 Infinity Altec Lansing

Sound quality, expansive stage, and build quality.

None yet.

I bought my 401s almost 12 years ago. They impress everyone who has listened to them (music and ht). They really opened up last year after I replaced my Kenwood receiver with a Marantz SR5200. Use a quality source and place them correctly and you will be very happy. I go to the store about once a year to just look for something new but I find myself even more pleased with my Bose after every trip. Ignore those with cube-envy. Bose is the real deal.

I bought these back in 1992 when I knew little to nothing about audio. I was a newbie and thought "Bose" was supposed to be good. I had them for years and didn't listen to them much, now I know why. They suck! 10 years later I'm heavily into audio and have a real system, I still have the Bose speakers but they are used for nothing more than rear channels in a surround sound set-up strictly for movies. Anyone that thinks this speaker is good for music reprodution has obviously never heard a good loudspeaker. I was there once, all I can is don't buy Bose, they really really suck.

None

Everthing they make

These Speakers Suck the big one ! Bose knows nothing about making good speakers !! All they do is spend money advertising Anyone ever listen to thier wave radio ? What a joke LOL , Save your money and by something else anything but Bose !

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Klipsch , Polks

excellent range of sound, treated cloth surrounds make for long lasting drivers and no foam rot

Most Bose products are overpriced but usually worth it. Paper cones, but not much choice in early 90's. Hard to find used 401's for sale!

These speakers are great, even without positioning them perfectly the sound amazing. But positioning them is critical to have the overall best sound. They are currently my fronts in a 5.1 surround sound setup, dvd's never sounded better. I would love to get another set for rear speaker placement as there design is great for movies.

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301