I just picked up a pair of Series 80 802's on a whim from Ebay, out of curiosity, and I am stunned at how good they sound. I am a speaker nut, and I have owned dozens of speakers including several ProAc, Audio Physic Virgo II, Merlin VSM Millenium, Dunlavy SC-IVa, Maggie 3.6, B&W Nautilus 803, Red Rose R3, and most recently Vienna Acoustics Mahlers. The Mahlers are fantastic and were my favorite, but I am shocked to find that this old pair of 802 is in the same league sonically. They sound very different from the Mahlers, but the 802's excel in a number of areas. Image specificity not only in left to right, but front to back is fantastic. Vocal recordings where the singer is center stage appear as a forward image ahead and above the speaker in a scary in the room way that I've never experienced before. The bass, which I have often heard criticism of with 802's is as good as I've heard in my room; very tight and deep. The series 802 is not ported like the newer versions so I don't know if this is the reason. They play very loudly without strain and or harshness.
My 802's came with sound anchors, but without a bottom cover over the crossovers. I don't know if this means the crossovers have been modified. I hope so, because it would help justify why I think they are so great and so many others seem to bad-mouth B&W. I have listened to them with my Audio Research VT200 tube amp and a pair of Odyssey Stratos monoblocks with the Plitron reference upgrade. This is the first time I have actually preferred the sound of the solid state. (Don't tell anyone) Very clean and transparent. It could be that there is special magic between the Odyssey and the 802. The bass is just amazing.
This viewpoint in no way changes how I feel about my recent audition of the GR Research Criterion. I still am enamoured with that speaker.
Am I losing my critical ear? Is someone willing to come over and discredit me?
