I just bought the BA950 after listening to Polk/Klipsh/B&W/DefTech in similar price range.

They sounded great in the store and bettter in my house. I would definately recomend these speakers if you are on a limited budget.

Paid $293 ea @ Audio King (local retailer) and thought I got a good deal.

I first listened to these speakers at a dealer that I frequently purchase from. He told me he just got them in, have a seat and listen. I listened for a while. I didn't get up and examine the speakers and I didn't know who the manufacturer was. He asked me what I thought of them and I told him I liked them. He asked what I thought they would cost. I told him I would expect them to run around $1500. He told me they were Bostons and cost about $700 per pair. I bought a pair and have been very pleased.As a matter of fact, I changed my remaining speakers to Bostons. Went from a Definitive center channel to a Boston VR10 and changed my rears from Rock Solids to Boston VRS.

Clear, detailed sound

none that I notice

I just recently aquired these speakers and they are great. The highs and mids are crystal clear and the bass is tight and well defined though not overly loud. The notes don't boom or hang in the air. The clarity of these speakers really suprised me. The sound just fills the room. They don't have really hard hitting bass unless you ajust it on the reciever, but i listen to Megadeth so i don's care about bass. These towers look and sound really great so if you don't want to spend a lot of money, these are the way to go.

Similar Products Used:

Polk, Bose

Good revealing highs and quick mid-bass

can have sloppy lower bass before doing a little tweaking - read on.

When I first bought these speakers it was to match the rest of my home theater speakers. I had a pair of Magnepan MG IIc's for 3 years and was ready for some good HT speakers. Over the 3 years I had put together the following:

Onkyo TX-DS656 DD receiver
RCA DD digital satellite system
Sony DVP-360
Boston Acoustics VR12 center channel
Boston Acoustics VRS side surround
Boston Acoustics VRS micro rear-surround
Definitive Technology PF15TL+ sub

I was wanting to get the speakers that match the rest of the Bostons in the system and so I decided on the VR950 since they are good pair of speakers with enough to handle HT at loud levels when crossed over.

As soon as I got the speakers setup I really trouble in the mid-bass section. The speakers tended to sound a bit boomy when reaching higher levels of volume (not ear piercing just high). So I figured it was time to try some tweaks with positioning. It didn't work. A few days of playing with them, I decided to try some spikes. Not your normals spikes though, but good lengthy ones. I figured since the port was coming from bottom, raising the speakers about the inch would give the port some breathing room and allow more pressure to leave while relieving the internal pressure on the drivers. I went to Home Depot and bought some of those furniture screws with one half being wood-screw type and the other being the fine-thread type. I screwed the fine-threaded side into the speakers' spike holes and began working with height and angle.

This is what I found to be best in my room - The back spikes left about 3/4 inch long and the front spikes about one inch long. This angles the speaker back about 10 degrees. I then moved the speakers 4 1/2 feet from the side wall and 4 feet from back wall while leaving about 8 feet in between the two. And now I have beautiful two channel music which has a very detailed and open soundstage while the speakers remain invisible. If I was to turn off all the lights and let someone listen to these, they would not be able to pinpoint the speakers' positions. Oh, and crossing them over with my sub makes for awesome home theater.

Basic 2 way floor speakers, with ultimate sound, no distortion. Best all around with music, movies, everthing. Everything you need to start your own home theater. Also look at the VR960, and VR970 if you want your subwoofer integrated with your main speakers, saves space, money, and gives great sound. Go with these, unless you only use it for movies, then I'd recomend the VR35s.

I just purchased a pair of these units and (for my taste) they sound the best of anything I have found in this price range (or at $100 more per speaker for that matter). The only slightly negative thing I have encountered is the need to be carefull with the base adjustment at higher volumes as this tends to promote some popping in the drivers. Other than that, I am thrilled with the overall fullness these speakers produce even at low volume. I am considering the use of spikes if they will enhance base response. This allow me to reduce the base setting and therefore avoid the condition previously mentioned.I also like the contemporary styling which helped settle the wife's fear of bulky cabinets consuming floor space. I fully intent to complete my home theater speaker system using Boston components.

Clean, accurate highs. Excellent stereo imaging. Plenty of bass. Sleek design (not terribly important in a speaker, but cool nonetheless).

None discovered yet

I was pretty much sold on these speakers after comparing them to B&W's, Klipsh's AR's, etc., all selling for hundreds more. Each of the competing brands had different strengths, but in side-by-side comparisons with the Boston's, they all failed in one way or another. Not wanting to make a hasty decision, I decided to sleep on it and do a little more research. After reading many glowing reviews at this and other sites, I laid down the cash and brought them home.
The Lynnfield Tweeters produce crystal clear sounds that I never heard in the songs that I've listened to hundreds of times. I also find the stereo imaging to be outstanding, which is particularly important for listening to live music and watching movies. The bass, while not thunderous, is very tight, without a hint of distortion, even when playing music at high volumes with my medium-powered receiver.
I know these speakers are going to give me hours of enjoyment for many years to come, and based on Boston's reputation for rock-solid construction, I'm confident that they will take whatever I push through them.
I recommend that anybody looking for main towers seek out a retailer and give the 950's a listen.

Great highs

Bass seems to be lacking

Sorry, I really am not aware of the product model year.

Being just a casual listener and not a pro at this, I can only say that the Boston Acoustics VR950s sounded great at the store. . I think they used a really high end Yamaha amp. I brought them home and hooked them up to my Kenwood receiver and found that the bass was really lacking. I then turned up the bass setting on the receiver to 100% and reduced the treble to 50% of max and now it sounds much better although not as good as at the store. I did listen to a pair of Klipschs. The bass was awesome. The reason I got the BA VR950 was that the highs stood out and it was going for a great discount price

My question to the gurus there...
1. Can the fact that I have a lower end receiver have an adverse effect on the music quality esp. bass?

2. My living room is 23ft long and about 15ft wide with high ceilings on onw side. Could that be a factor, too?

I give it a four star as it did sound good at the store and I don't wish to lower the overall rating unnecessarily.

Highs, Mids, Lows, elegant looks, size (small)

I would like to say none but...

I've been using Bose AM-7 II for about 5 years now and I've received many compliments from a lot of people for its sound quality and looks. Also I was very satisfy with it. Since I have been using AM-7 for a long time I am going to compare My new VR-950 to AM-7 although they are not the same type of speakers for many reasons.

When I hooked up VR950 to my receiver and played a CD, I was immediately surrounded by warm and delightful sound (Bose claims to do this but I never really noticed it) although I noticed that it was very bright and too high for my taste. I quickly adjusted the treble and the bass to 0 where it once was set to +10 for both. I needed to set them to +10 on my receiver to get the sound quality that I wanted (but still didn't get) from AM-7. After the adjustment, the sound quality got a lot better. The highs were extremely clear, the mids were warm and the lows were tight and pleasent.
I swear, I heard things from these speakers that I've never heard before from AM-7. Even at bass control set to 0 on my receiver, the bass was easily two to three times as loud as AM-7 with bass set at +10. I was very happy with how much and the quality of bass VR950s were producing, some people might want a sub.

Since I had a small room, having AM-7 was not just desired, it was a necessity. VR950 didn't take much more room than AM-7 with its speaker stands. Yet, VR950 sounded so much better in every way.

For those who are seeking to get Bose (for any reason), I recommend getting VR950s. They are small yet they produce so much more and better sound than AM-7 does. VR950s are also video shielded so if you have to place your speakers next to your TV, it's ok. Bose do produce a very decent sound from those tiny speakers but after listening to VR950, I don't know if I can purchase any more Bose from now on.

Conclusion, VR950 are great speakers for watching movies and excellent for listening to music.

Equipment used:
Receiver - Onkyo 525
DVD Player - Onkyo 525
CD Player - Onkyo 6CD changer
Center Speaker - BA VR-12
Front Speakers - BA VR-950
Rear Speakers - None (but will use AM-7 from now on!)

Similar Products Used:

Bose AM-7 II

Clarity, looks, compact size

None worth mentioning

These speakers are an extraordinary value. They sound as good as some speakers in the $1,000 range. I auditioned the 950 along with B & W and Klipsch and the Bostons were the clear winners. The highs are unbeleivably clear and the slender appearance fits well in my living room.

Some reviewers have harped on the bass response, but it is well-suited for my listening preference -- I don't need earth-shaking bass in my music. If you want ultra-deep boomy bass, this probably isn't the speaker for you unless you use a sub. I also auditioned the 950's powered cousins, the VR 965 and 975. While the bass certainly was deeper, the highs on the 950 sounded better. Overall, this a great speaker and a great value.

My system:

Sony STR-DA777ES receiver
Sony DVP-650D DVD/CD changer
Boston VR 950 mains
Boston VR 910 center
Boston 336pt ceiling speakers (surrounds)
Boston PV 600 sub

Similar Products Used:

None. First quality hi-fi system