I have had the BP 30's for about two months now and they are incredible. the soundstage from the Bipolar array is huge. I set my receiver to stereo mode when listening to cd's and it sounds as if my center is still powered. The bass is also very impressive from the four 17mm drivers. Although it is not near as loud as a powered sub it is very clean and low. These sperakers are ideal for home theater or listening to music. The are a little bright though but I like the sound. They also need to be positioned correctly to get the best sound possible.
My rating: 5 stars for the exceptional sound from a speaker in this price range.

This speaker is perfect. True five star

I've had my Definitive Technology BP-30 speakers for Ten months now. The metal tweeter definitely requires alot of break in. I didn't feel like they sounded smooth until after about 4 months of heavy use. Out of the box they were particularly harsh. I have found that if you don't have a beefy amplifier behind these (and I suspect the other Definitive speakers) they will sound thin and lack warmth.
For the first nine months I drove them with the internal amplifiers of my Yamaha DSP-A1. I found the imaging good, the sound stage exellent, and the micro-dynamics outstanding. They just sounded cold and would make a brave but futile attempt at sustaining a deep bass note. Last month I bought a seperate amplifier and that was what these speakers really need.

My DSP-A1 has seven internal amplifiers for a total of 620 watts and sophisticated pre/pro circuitry added to that. If you look at the UL listing on the back of the DSP-A1 you'll notice it lists its rating at 120VAC 60Hz. 450 Watts. As you can see this integrated system doesn't have enough power supply to drive its internal systems and it showed in its ability to drive these Definitive speakers. Now with a beefy amplifier driving these speakers I can shake the walls and concrete floor.

I really question the need for a sub-woofer if these speakers are properly driven. In my system I have a built in sub in the center speaker. This gives things like closing car doors a whoosh sensation when they close. What it doesn't do is give any deeper sounding, or solid feeling, bass to the music track or effects. I must admit that proper speaker positioning is crucial for getting a strong bass without obnoxious room resonance. Also toe-in is critical to get the proper feeling of "space".

I've been to several showrooms and a Home Theater Expo that allowed me to listen to many types of speakers. I have to admit that Definitive speakers sound different than most any other. They make instuments and everyday items that are recorded sound real and right there.

My Setup:
Yamaha DSP-A1
Citation 7.1 Four channel Amplifier
Toshiba 2908 DVD Player
Definitive Technology BP-30 Main Speakers
Definitive Technology C/L/R 3000 Center Speaker
Old mis-matched rear speakers.
Goertz Tourmaline Interconnects
Tributary SP-2 Speaker Cables

Easy to move around, adjustable feet for leveling and balance stance for the rear bottom, price, performance

Not a weakness but more of a preference,,,I would prefer a grill over the sock, also I would prefer the 4 way binding posts in the bottom rear rather than on the bottom of the speaker.

I bought these towers brand new and have had them for 3 weeks. After unboxing them I noticed that as slim and tall as they are they could tilt over fairly easy....thanks to DT they included a set of wide stance that are mounted on the bottom rear to keep them from tilting over and the adjustable feet screw on to the stance for leveling,,there is also adjustable feet that screw on to the bottom front of the speakers...they look pretty cool with those balancing feet in the rear.....haven't seen any pics with those installed,,,,,,must be a new feature on new models...anyway back to the main topic.....the only thing I didn't like right off the bat was that the binding posts are installed on the bottom of the speaker,,,the bottom rear has a good sized notch to allow the wiring underneath the speaker, the speaker must be tilted forward to get to the binding posts...are all the BP30's like this?? anyway..
I biwired mine with Tara Labs RSC Prime 500 in a double run configuration, After all connections were made I fired them up and immediately noticed the incredible clarity. My girlfriend also commented on how clear they sounded...they made the Studio 100's sound flat....these are truly unsung hero's as another reviewer put it. The soundfield has amazing depth and width, the bass is low and tight and the mids and highs are very crisp! All this right out of the box....they are sounding better everyday I listen to 'em....I can't wait till the "break in" period is over....although I can't imagine the sound getting any better than what it is right now. These speakers are worth a lot more than what they sell for and present an incredible bargain in performance/ price ratio. Highly Recommended!

Sunfire Cinema Grand Amp
B&K Reference 20 pre/pro
Pioneer Elite source components and RPTV
Definitive Technology subs...PF1800...PF15TL
Tara Labs speaker cables and interconnects
Monster Cable Reference Power Center HTS3500

Similar Products Used:

This is my first bi-polar experience......this towers are replacing Paradigm Reference Studio 100's

Electrifying performance.

Midrange/Treble seam to break up at insane volumes. However it may be my ears that are breaking up.

I reviewed speakers for several months, searching to upgrade my 5 year old KG4.5's. The most promising were some
Magnepan 3.6's and 1.6's, but their bass performance was lacking (at least in the setup I heard them) and the 3.6's were too pricey. Another contender were some large Snell towers...spectacular speaker but again, a little to pricey. Mirage's were nice, a little to laid back for me and some KLF 20 Klipsch's were much harsher than my KG 4.5's (although they were incredibly dynamic). Finally, I ran into these Definitive BP-20's (in someone's house in Houston, TX). After 2 hours in front of these, I knew, and simply bought BP-30's here without auditioning them. I must say, I was initially very concerned as they performed less than adequately right out of the box. I drove them with reasonably loud pink noise for entire weekend (I was away). Upon returning, I felt I owned the finest speaker available for under $1500. Very close to the $2500 Snell's, if not better. Thanks to Sandy Gross and the other dedicated people at Definitive for producing such a fine line of affordable audio products.

Similar Products Used:

Klipsch KG4.5

Definitive has hit the mark with their BP30, the follow up to the BP20. I recently traded up from BP8's to these monsters and was blown away. The total soundstage is full, with no dead spots, and reproduction of any musical style is pleaseing to the ears at any level. One note to make is that this speaker is not the BP20 which had some bass problems. Definitive has got it right with this speaker. If you already know their products give these a try, if you don't you're missing it. They will shake your guts and make your ears bleed, and thats while listening to Bach.

When I first bought my main speakers, in December 1996, I purchased Definitve Techs BP10, and were very impressed with the sound. I had listened to several top brands, Paradigm, Polks, Bostons, and NHT, and felt that the Definitive's best fit what I expected from a speaker. I am not down talking any of these lines listed because I liked certain attirbutes from each of them, its just that the Definitves were what I wanted.
My retailer has a speaker upgrade program so I decided to check out the BP30s a couple of months ago. We placed the speakers, BP10s and BP30s, in the same room, with the same speaer wire, to the same amplifier. All we did was switch from speaker A to Speaker B, trying to keep everyting as identical as possible so that the sound difference would be attributed soley to the speaker. This was the first time the salesman had done this and I think both of us were equally amazed at the difference in the sound between the two. I had expected the bass to be better since there is two additional woofers and the box is bigger, and it clearly was. What really suprised me was that the sound quality on all parts of the spectrum was superior with the highs sounding much better on the BP30s than in the BP10s. Since the tweeters are the same I did not expect this.

Needless to say, I purchased the BP30s, and have not regretted the additional cost at all. If you read my review on the CLR 1000 center chanel, you will see that quality/price is a major issue for me and I am not one of those people that buy the top of the line just to do so. I am very critical about choosing the right speaker and I feel that the BP30s are all this.

Basically everything

getting strong bass requires specific placement

I upgraded to these from my ProTower 400s (they're in another room of my house now) because I was really interested in what the bipolar design would do for HT. Here's my thoughts.....

When I first hooked them up I found them to be harsh and bright like basically everyone else. BAss was non existent and I thought all the people who said they had good bass were on crack. However, I wasn't too upset because I knew they had to be broken in. I then proceeded to break them in for about 10 hours a day for 5 days. This helped A LOT. Not only did the speakers become less bright/harsh, they sort of gained in dB level and the bass became audbile. When I got them I had to have my receiver set at the -19 dB setting and now to get the same level of volume, I have the receiver set at about -24dB. I'm pleased about that.

Compared to the ProTower400s, the BP30s are better in almost every way. The only way I think the Tower400s are better is in the bass department. Yes the BP30s can kick out a lot of bass but in order to really get all that bass, you have to have them close to the front wall. My BP30s are about 26-28" from the front wall and although there is some good bass, it isn't the awesome bass that others talk about. I know it most likely would be if I could place them closer to the wall (see, the BP30s have big ports on the back where the bass comes from) but I can't do that, thus the BP30s need to be carefully placed for great bass output. Now with the Tower 400s, they aren't as placement specific to produce great bass and they go low no matter what. Also, the Def Tech rating of 18Hz for the BP30s is not one to be taken seriously in my opinion. Personally, I don't really care about how much abss the BP30s produce because I use a Def Tech PF15TL sub to handle the bass. I can tell you that this sub is a fantatic match with the BP30s.

Now onto what I think of bipolar....AWESOME. The Tower400s produced a large soundstage but the BP30s add like 3-6 feet in every soundstage dimension. As great as the Tower400s did with DVDs, watching DVDs is incredible with these BP30 bad boys. There is a great sense of depth and I can now hear sounds in specific locations that sound far away which I couldn't with the Tower400s. The bipolar design has to be the reason for this. I should mention too that I'm almost 100% sure that if I had the space to do so, I could place these speakers in a more optimal postion to further increase the soundstage (specifically in the depth department) and utilize the bipolar design even better. But as it stands now, they sound great and I was worried about the peopl who said they were very placement specific but luckily they weren't as specific as I thought they'd be.

I'm not really big into music but I think they sound pretty good with music. They don't produce the same imaging accuracy as my Tower400s do in 2 channl stero but that's no biggie to me.

Oh and I have these paired with BPX for my surrounds (haven't really had the chance to test them out) and with a CLR2000. They are perfect with the CLR2000 and produce seamless pans across the front soundstage, etc.

In conclusion, you can sign me up as a bipolar and BP30 fan!

Similar Products Used:

Def Tech ProTower 400

I have been living with these speakers for almost 1 year now and have to say that they have impressed me on a number of levels, but like all things in life they are not prefect.
First, the wife test. They pass. Yes they are large, but the simple black lines and gloss finish are nothing but class. Any speaker over 4 feet tall and over 40 pounds you can convience her to put in the living room can't be half bad. They also surevive the kiddie test. Most small kids can't yet figure out how to knock over a 40 to 50 pound tower twice the size they are in the few seconds they escape your attention. The cable going underneath to conect to the bottom of the unit keep little hands from tugging as well! I don't have kids, but have friends who do. As this unit passes the test.

Second, sound stage. They again make the grade. The sound stage is huge. We have an odd shaped open concept main floor and the reflections that bounce around alone sell the speaker from a lifestyle POV. My wife thinks this is the best feature. We looked at different makes and found the listening area very small (Paradigm Reference, B&W, Magnapan, Mission, Energy, PSB). The BP 30's allow you to move around room and have a life and not be tied to to the two foot circle on your couch so you can hear all the detail.

Thrid, sound. Here is where the choices we make come into play. The BP 30 has 12 individual drivers. The individual driver quality must be lower to fit the price point as compared to more traditional direct radiating speakers that have fewer drivers (of higher quality of course). The imaging is not as sharp as the B&W, Mission and PSB products, but still the best I have ever owned.

People say they are bright speakers, but i have not really noticed. That might be due to the large furniture we have and that we have carpet in the room. I really don't know. May have to due with the amp (see below).

The bass will rock your socks, with the right gear behind it (see below). Not a tight as a powered sub, but very good for unpowered bass. Match these speakers with a serious powered sub and you should be able to fill in the low end better. There is still enough bass to tickle your feet while having a conversation over 8 feet away and not have the volume so loud you can't hear the other person.

Third, rest of system. I first got these when I had a Yamaha 700 series 2 channel amp (I believe very simialr amp circutry to their HT recievers). My first amp. Hooked the BP 30's up and they sounded great. Better than my old speakers. After the breakin I still noticed they were really bright and the low end was not there. A few months after that the Yamaha gave up the ghost and went to amp heaven so the wife and I treked out and picked up a Rotel pre/power amp seperates system. WOW. The bp 30's really came alive. The power handling of the amp was able to drive the bass, reduce the brightness/harsness and really left the speakers go. Get the right gear for these monsters and you will be happy Made the yamaha look like a Sony Walkman trying to drive big speakers (way too little power).

Overall, we look at the BP 10, good in their own way, but went for the BP 30. No comparision. If I ever have the money in the future for an audio only system I would not pick these, but having to make trade offs and choices these were the winners after 4 months of research.

Wife test *****
Sound stage *****
Sound quality **** - imaging detail only concern

I just purchased my BP30s today. After months and months of shopping I decided to to a one day marathon speaker audition. I went to 8 different speaker retailers and listened to countless speakers (Energy Audissey, Polk RT2000p, PSB Stratus Bronze and Silver, Mirage OM8 and 1295is, NHT VT-1.2 and 2.5i, and AR 312HO).
The BP30 won me over for its incredible soundstage. The Mirage and Energy bipolars came close but neither could match the liveliness of the BP30. If you like a well-rounded speaker that images for everyone in the room, check out this speaker.

BTW, I've noticed lots of posts here refering to the BP10 as well. The BP10 is an anemic version of the BP30. It lacks the authority and presence of its bigger brother.