small and attractive(uh..cute)

lack of bass ...price to high

I have had my AM 5s for about 8 years now. When I first
purchase them they sounded pretty darn good for their size.
At times they sounded (dare I say it) good. I liked the small footprint they required and I could hide the large base module (I can't call it a true subwoofer) in my apartment. For those who don't know the in the original AM5 setup the cubes are much larger than the ones you get now and the base module was duel ported so the base was a little better. Proven by an audition between mine and a friend who had the later model...he admitted it also. As for sound quailty they were ok(originals)...until I heard what I was missing. I'm not going to bash them although that seems to be common practice when talking about Bose speakers. I have to admit they perform well in the right environment and with the right music and at times do a pretty good disappearing act. But alas, I have been re-born. I upgraded to Paradigms all around for HT when I bought my house and the difference in sound is oh so obvious. I migrated the Bose to my bedroom where they seem to be more at home. I still say they sound pretty good considering what their constructed of and I still like the small footprint in my bedroom.
If Bose cut the price by half and go weni back to the original size, I would say they would be worth buying or considering. But, at todays price you can get a better quality speaker for much less than what Bose would cost you.

Similar Products Used:

paradigm products

I have listened to the Bose in several settings.(home theater, in store open space, in store sealed sound room) The general feeling I get from these speakers is, cold, flat, and just enough richness to avoid sounding like a boombox. Yes,
they had bass, good low end punch and nothing else. Yes, they had highs tinty and everything. The Bose have a profound lack of mid-bass and mid-range sound.
If you plan to listen to rock or rap, they're perfect(i.e. Boom-tink Boom-tink...etc.) But, if you plan to listen to anything chalanging like,
Albinoni's Adagio or most anthing else that requires more than Boom-tink, my advice is to stay away from Bose.
P.S. Bose take a lesson, Take a hard look at Infinity, even their entry level
satelite-sub combo, while not as strong in the low-bass, more than makes up in the mid-bass all the way to the treble, and in thier richness.

Hi! Joe The Casual Listener from Austin!
Bose is a great speaker because it sells a lot...

Well, I am hesitating between a Timex watch and a Tag
Heur. Maybe I am going to buy the Timex because it
sells more than Tag Heur, and it is therefore
probably better...

Bose Sucks...

i used to own the am-7, same as the am-5 but with another double cube to be used as a centre speaker in a home theatre. i bought them while i was living in a small apartment, and i got them factory-renewed so they were about $700. if you are pressed for space, they may be an o.k. option. they were o.k. for me but i really wasn't completely happy with them. when i moved to a larger place i was very unhappy with them. i had to place the base module to one side of the room (away from the TV), and i could tell where the bass was coming from (4.5" drivers to produce "bass", i don't think so; 2" tweeters...where did the symbols go???)about 8 months ago i sold them for $650, and bought brand new Paradigm mini-mk3 and the cc-300 for $630. made $20 off the deal and the sound is so so much better. really people, if you work hard for your money you can do so much better for less.

I think it is time we put this tired issue to bed. It is obvious the overwhelming majority is not very fond of this system. Let me throw my hat into the ring and loudly agree with them. Anyone who thinks Bose is musically accurate has never heard a quality music playback system. Lets get on with some real reviews of some real equipment.

I don't understand the bias given by so many people that the AM-5 are a junk. Probably some kind of hype.They are simply one of the better sounding speakers available on the market. Cannot say they are the best but certainly not the worst as some people claim.Ofcourse u can hear the new speakers from India (Cadences). This comes from the company
Eclipse. I feel Bose are as good as these speakers. Cadences was reviewed by the Hi-Fi Magazine as one of the best speakers.
Hats off to BOSE...Better Sound Through Research

The Acoustimass 5 cost about 35000BEF here. The samemoney buys you incredibly better speakers from respected
companies, such as the large Castle Chester, Dali 350 or
Mission 752, or some exquisite stand/bookshelve speakers
such as B&W CDM-1, Dynaudio or Sonus Faber.

Even <10000BEF speakers like the Mission 731 or KEF Coda
7 sound much more natural and neutral than the Boses.

So what do we have here? A speaker system that is sorely
overpriced and that not even attains a basic level of
performance. I suggest that the few Acoustimass proponents
here do theirselves a favour and listen with a critical anmd
unbiased ear to some real speakers.

I just bought a pair of AM5's at a closeout sale for $300-- that allows me to be a bit more objective about the sound because they did not cost an arm and leg. The speakers were needed in a limited space where a sat/sub would be the best option. Although the sound reproduction is far less than perfect, one of the big reasons to buy little speakers is the amount of space that they don't take up. Of course they don't sound like big speakers, they aren't. But for good sound and great size, bose does a pretty good job. I've tried other sat/sub including BA and bose certainly can hang with them.

All I've heard about the AM-5's is bad,and they are pretty bad, and for $799I would not even think about getting them. My stepfather has had his for
as long as I can remember.I think there voice reproduction is fairly good
and if you were stupid enough to go out and get them you should pair them
with something that can produce the notes that you are missing.My favorites
are cerwin-vegas. For the cash they do a hell of a number on the bass notes.
Infiniti's SM series are also on the top, but I think bose are just
expensive and overated.

After a lot of searching, BOSE just does not cut it.I recommend EOSONE Satelite Speakers. EOSONE is a fairly new company directed
by the man who used to run the Infinity company.
For the sound, for the convenience, for the price, these speakers ROCK!
Each speaker has two tweeters and a woofer, and is sold with a POWERED
10 or 12 inch power sub that kicks!
Especially if the room you are placing the speakers in is not gigantic, EOSONE satelite speakers are, in my perception, a wonderful buy.