Sound great! Adjust the bass any way you like it. Don't think I'll need a seperate sub

I keep thinking they are going to fall over

Thanks for the reviews, when I saw Good Guys selling a pair of these for $600 I couldn't drive fast enough. I have been looking for speakers for a couple of weeks and was thinking of getting the 950's for $500 a pair. I also liked the Klipsch ksf 8.5 and Mirage OM 10 in about the same price range. I hadn't even tried the 970's since it was a bit expensive and possibly to big for my small living room. I hooked them up, adjusted the bass and started cranking all different types of music then watched Diehard 2. I am very happy with the speakers! I can hear and feel the full range of music. I was never an audiophile and don't even know what alot of people at this site are talking about, but I know what makes me happy! Now I want the a matching center (VR12), the surrounds, new reciever, bigger TV... hey maybe I will become an audiophile yet ;)

Similar Products Used:

Cerwin Vegas, Infinitys

Smooth, flat response, natural sound, good bass extension and contoured volume control, good imaging, excellent engineering, slim footprint, and an exceptional value.

High center of gravity, limited finishes, no exact timbre match available, speakers are hard to find.

I researched for 2-3 years for a pair main speakers to upgrade and accomodate home theater. I was impressed with the Boston Acoustics Lynnfield VR series. I found that Consumer Reports Magazine rated the VR 950 #1 and Julian Hirsch rated the VR 960 as the flattest response over the major part of the audio spectrum that he has ever measured. I manage a large auditorium with many performers and sound system configurations and was impressed with the life-like and clarity of the VR 970s for musical instruments and voices. I had to drive about 70 miles to purchase the speakers because by the time I made up my mind they were out of stock in the local stores. However, I don't regret the trip because they are excellent performers and I couldn't be more satisfied.

Similar Products Used:

considered Def Tech 2-3000, Acoustic research p315, Polk rt3000, BIC pt12, Mission 705a, Mirage OM8, Paradigm 90p, Klipsh ksp 3-400, Infinity OVTR 1-3, and Energy ASP5+2

Excellent soundstage that does very well for music and home theater!
You even get great bass that won't make your mid range sound like there covered by mud thanks to the Active Bass Countour control feature

I didn't really find any yet and I have owned them for over 8 months now.
Very well made product.

I have been using the VR970's with the VR12 Center and Cambridge Soundworks Surrounds,(left over from my previous setup),and have been very pleased with there performance.
They are powered by a Yamaha RX-V795 and I am hearing detail I didn't before from CD's and Movies.
Though the VR970's have LFE inputs, I am using a Subwoofer and have the Receiver setup to use them as Large mains with the Sub. I highly recommend them for the price and quality.

Similar Products Used:

I auditioned the Polk RT2000's and the Infinity Overture 2's and found that I like the VR970's better.
I could talk about clearer sound or bass integration but it really comes down to personal listening tastes

Great highs

none yet

Well I to got a great deal on these 900.00 in closed boxes cant say to much about them yet because I have a 1995 peice of crap sony reciever 5 that only cost 250.00 bucks once I pay my 400.00 balence on these I am purchasing the DSP-A1 and then I will post another review. but compared to my JBLs I had these rock

Great overall sound. Excellent bass.

None.

Wow! I was blown away when I first heard these. I was able to get them for half-price, so I couldn't pass it up. I use them for home theater mostly but music sounds incredible also. They have excellent balance and overall sound. I wish I could afford four for Dolby Digital surround sound. If you are lucky enough to find a pair of these, buy them!!

Similar Products Used:

Polk, Klipsch

smooth,flat response, natural sound, good bass extension and contoured control, excellent engineering, good imaging, slim footprint, and exceptional value.

high center of gravity, limited finish, no exact timbre match available, hard to find in stores.

I researched 2-3 years to upgrade my main speakers to accomodate home theater. I was impressed with the BA Lynnfield series because the VR 950 came out on top of Consumer Reports tests, and Julian Hirsch indicated that the VR 960 had the flattest response over the major part fo the audio range of any speaker he has tested. (and he has tested a bunch). I manage a large auditorium with many performers and sound system configurations and was very impressed with the BA VR- 970's life-like sound and clarity for both musical instruments and vocals. I had to drive about 70 miles to purchase a pair because by the time I made the final decision to purchase all of the stores in our area were out of stock. I don't regret the trip- the BA VR-970s are excellent performers and I couldn't be more satisfied. I have been an audio enthusiast since the late 1950's

Similar Products Used:

considered def tech 2-3000, acoustic research p315, mirage OM8, polk rt3000, paradigm 90p, bic pt-12, mission 705a, klipsh ksp 3-400, infinity ovtr 1-3, and energy aps5+2

I PICKED UP MY PAIR OF VR970'S AND VR12 (CENTER) RIGHT BEFORE X-MAS, AND I STILL CAN'T BELIVE HOW WELL THEY SOUND !! THE 970'S ARE SLIM ENOUGH TO FIT JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE, AND LOOK VERY GOOD WITH MY DECOR!! THEY SOUNDED VERY GOOD IN THE STORE, BUT THEY SOUNDED 10 TIMES BETTER IN MY OWN HOME. THE HIGH END IS VERY CLEAR, THE MID'S ARE VERY CLEAR TOO!! THE BOTTOM END WILL KICK YOU AROUND A LITTLE TOO!! (IT DIDN'T GET MUDDY AT ALL) IF YOU HAVE A DOLBY DIGITAL AMP. AND USE THE L.F.E. CHANNEL, THESE SPEAKERS WILL NOT DISAPOINT YOU!! I'M CURRENTLY USING:AMP: ONKYO (838)
EQ: AUDIOSOURCE (EQ11)
VCR: SANYO (VHR-9413)
SURGE PROTECTOR: PANAMAX 1000
CD PLAYER: PHILIPS (BUNNER) (CDR765)
SURROUND SPEAKERS: YAMAHA (A636)
DVD PLAYER: PANASONIC (X410)
THESE SPEAKERS FIT INTO BOTH MY BUGGET AND INTO MY SYSTEM VERY WELL!! IF YOU ARE LOOKING INTO BUYING A NEW SET OF SPEAKERS, I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMEND THESE SPEAKERS(VR970)AND THE CENTER (VR12)!! THEN GO OUT AND BUY LOST IN SPACE AND BLADE ON DVD, AND HAVE A BLAST !!!!

5 rating, now the details. Selecting speakers is purely a matter of personal taste. Whatever the audiophiles say, if they sounds good to you, and the price doesn't turn you off, then buy them. I have been window-shopping speakers from time to time since I bought me first and second pair for my freshman year in college in 1973. Those two pairs (Ohm E's and Scott S52's) cost me a total of $300, and today, standing one on top of the other, they still do a reasonable job of filling in each others weaknesses, which are significant.
The BA VR970's have NO obvious weaknesses. They sound like music, not speakers. Before buying these, I did some casual listening at the local stores, burned a CD of cuts that I that tested the things I wanted the speakers to handle well, and then spent another month of two listening to various speakers and returning several times to make sure that me impressions were consistent. The are very few "audiophile" store within my reach, so I have not been able to compair the VR 970's with most of the lines that the audiophiles drool over. Most of my listening has been at The Good Guys, Circuit City, and Cambridge Soundworks. This included the Polk Audio series, Energy, Klipsch, Infinity, Bose (don't bother), the Cambridge line, and a pair of DCM's that, consistent with the reviews on this site, had nothing to offer but BASS. The Polk Audio RT2000's were became my reference speaker for comparing the lines the CC and GG did'nt have in common.

Of all the speakers I have listened to, the BA 970's are the most realistic. The Polk Audio over does both the bass and the brightness. All of the other speakers I listened to either over-emphasized or misses part of the spectrum. The BA 970's have a solid bass that is not too punchy (I have the the knob at about 11:00 -- make sure you adjust this to your liking at the store). Th high end is bright, but not overly so. The midrange produces voices that sound human, probably the hardest challenge for speakers. If you set these up in a good listening room and close your eyes, it will not be easy to hear were the speakers are. That's the way it should be.

I got lucky. Open box pair for $860.

These speakers sound better every day that I own them. Thought that they might of been a bit week in the lower midrange but it seems that after they have been broken in they just sound better and better every day!

In my case they just aren't as magnetically shielded as I would like them to be. Had a defective one and needed to replace it

I needed to replace my KEF 104/2's because of not being magnetically shielded and they affected my TV monitor. These 970's are better in that respect but still cause some minor problems. I actually like the 970's better than the KEF's. They have a cleaner sound and the bass isn't so overpowering unless you want to turn up the sub-woofer amps on the 970's. I'm glad I bought them!

Similar Products Used:

KEF 104/2, a really old pair of JBL Century 100's

Sound great, look cool, small footprint

Tall and skinny is not good for earthquake country

Update of my review from 9/22/99. These are excellent speakers. I have since added the VR-12 center and a pair of CR-6's for surrounds. These were purchased after I discovered that the Cambridge Centerstage and 5.1's sounded terrible with the VR970's, a complete mismatch. I had to drag them back to the store. The CR-6's are less expensive and sound better than most of the real "surround" speakers I listened to. The VR-12 beats the crap out of other centers, unless you like hissy horns in the face. Then you should buy the Klipsch to match your preference, but not for accurate sound. The Boston VR series are more accurate that any other speaker line that I listened to, including Polk, Cambridge Soundworks, Infinity, Energy, and Klipsch. Denon AVR-2700 seems to drive them all OK.

Similar Products Used:

Boston VR-12, CR-6