Bowers & Wilkins 801 D4 Floorstanding speaker
801 D4
Floor-standing speaker
The loudspeaker that sets the standard other high-end designs will be judged by for years to come. Endowed with every new technology the 800 Series Diamond™ has to offer, the reference-quality 801 D4 is an instant icon.
- Description
- Specification
Description
The 801 D4 Signature tower speaker features optimized technologies, including that all-important Diamond Dome tweeter and Solid Body Tweeter-on-Top, an all-new tweeter grille, and upgraded crossover.
Optimized for perfection
The 801 D4 Signature is an optimized version of our most advanced loudspeaker. It features meticulously evolved technology, carefully crafted design, and unique finishes that culminate in the pinnacle of performance. This is Bowers & Wilkins’ flagship loudspeaker perfected.
Solid Body Tweeter
Our Solid Body Tweeter-on-Top housing features an elongated form with a longer tube-loading system and an all-new design of tweeter grille, producing an even more free and open sound with high frequencies.
Tweeter and midrange
The Solid Body Tweeter-on-Top has been revised in every new 800 Series Diamond loudspeaker, including both models with and without the Turbine Head. The new design is longer – approaching 30cm (12-in) long – and its longer tube length has notable benefits for the resonant frequency (f/s) of the diamond dome tweeter, essentially meaning that the dome can now ‘breathe’ more easily than before. Alongside a revised two-point decoupling mechanism that ensures better-than-ever isolation of the sensitive assembly from its surrounding enclosure, the result is an even-more-believable sense of sounds floating in free space rather than being restricted to the confines of a loudspeaker cabinet.
We have aimed for the same benefits for our revised and upgraded Turbine Head midrange enclosures. As already mentioned, they enjoy that superior isolation from the top of the bass cabinet because of the aluminium top-plate that all stereo cabinets now use. In addition, we’ve revised the tuned-mass dampers that control resonance in each housing – with two dampers in 803 D4 and three in each of 802 and 801 D4 – and added in resonance-damping material to the metal fins at the rear of the housing. We’ve also completely redesigned the decoupling for the midrange assembly itself – but we’ll go into more detail on that in a later blog.
Upgraded crossover
Our 801 D4 Signature uses upgraded rear-mounted crossover designs mounted on stiff aluminum spines. This isolates the sensitive capacitors from the unwanted effects of air pressure within the enclosure and makes for a very effective heatsink to ensure optimum performance when in use
Aluminum top-plate
Every new 800 Series Signature model has a significantly upgraded cabinet design with an all-new, optimized aluminum top section for even greater stiffness. The same design also provides a perfect mounting point for Leather by Connolly cabinet detailing, with luxurious full-grain blue leather for our Midnight Blue Metallic models and full-grain black leather for our California Burl Gloss models.
Solid foundations
Finally (at least in regard of cabinets) we’ve revised and improved the way our speakers connect with the floor in your room. The 805 D4 now has an upgraded stand with additional steel inserts in its base and massively thicker M12 floor spikes (replacing the older M6 designs). The 804 D4, meanwhile, uses a downward-firing port exiting on to an all-new aluminium plinth with constrained layer damping – exactly as per the 800 D3 in the older range – with those same M12 spikes. And we’ve carried that constrained layer damping over to the 803 and 802 D4 as well, with both models adopting an all-aluminium plinth (replacing the zinc aluminium alloy used previously) controlled by a damping layer held in place by a thin steel sheet.
All of this work has gone into just acoustic and mechanical properties of each loudspeaker – we haven’t even scratched the surface of transducer design or crossover componentry. But even with ‘just’ this area covered, it should be clear that the results are radically transformed loudspeakers that sound even more believable – and even less like loudspeakers – than ever.
Reverse Wrap cabinet
Enhanced Matrix
The ultimate Matrix™
The all-aluminium Turbine Head houses our Continuum™ midrange cone in a stiff and critically damped enclosure to eliminate unwanted resonances. At the same time, it’s decoupled from both the bass enclosure and the tweeter body. The result? The most realistic midrange sound yet.
Technical specifications
Technical features
Diamond tweeter
Solid body Tweeter-on-Top
Continuum™ cone FST
Anti-Resonance plug
Biomimetic Suspension
Turbine™ Head
Matrix™
Aerofoil™ cone bass units
Flowport
Description
3-way vented-box system
Drive units
1x ø25mm (1in) diamond dome high-frequency
1x ø150mm (6in) Continuum cone FST midrange
2x ø250mm (10in) Aerofoil cone bass units
Frequency range
13Hz to 35kHz
Frequency response
15Hz to 28kHz (+/-3dB from reference axis)
Sensitivity
90dB (on axis at 2.83Vrms at 1m)
Harmonic distortion
2nd and 3rd harmonics (90dB,1m on axis)
<1% 30Hz – 20kHz
<0.3% 100Hz – 20kHz
Nominal impedance
8Ω (minimum 3.0Ω)
Recommended amplifier power
50W – 1000W into 8Ω on unclipped programme
Max. recommended cable impedance
0.1Ω
Dimensions
Height: 1221mm
Width: 451mm
Depth: 600mm
Net weight
100.60kg
Finishes
Cabinet:
Gloss Black
White
Satin Rosenut
Satin Walnut
Grille:
Black
Grey
Black
Grey
