Bose 901

[jyl]

Looking at getting an older pair of Bose 901 speakers. This will be for the kids' college apartment. Budget of $400 ish means they still be old, might need refoaming, and might not have the equalizer.

Qs:
How expensive and hard to refoam the speakers?
Does it matter to not have the equalizer?
How much power to run these?

[Scott Douglas]

Refoaming speakers isn't that pricey or hard. I've done my Infinity Column II mid's and woof's plus the same on my CS3008's.
From what I recall from back in the day, Bose took lots of power and needed the eq to sound good. Others here will know better I'm sure but that is what I recall. I bought my CII's new back in '78 or so. Got a good deal on them then and they've been my main speakers ever since. I like their sound and they can play LOUD when asked without a lot of power being pumped into them.

[serene911]

You have to use the equalizer or the are worthless. Had a pair in the late seventies
and early 80's.

[Scott Douglas]

Pics of the refoam job.





If I can do it, it must not be that hard.

[stevej37]

Room placement can be critical.
https://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/425/index.html

[KFC911]

Bose 901s were great frat house big party room speakers back in '78...hung from the ceiling, driven by a BIG AZZ amp weighing in at 70lbs....and other than LOUD, not great...horrible for an apt, and ya gotta have the equalizer too. MUCH better options out there imo...

[908/930]

There is also 8 drivers per speaker to re-foam,

[TimT]

In the early 1980's I bought a pair of 901's,

At some point in around 1995-7 I noticed the speaker foam was gone on both speakers, So I wrote Bose a nastygram complaining that my $1300 speakers were shot. They offered to refoam the speakers as they were aware of some speakers made from the era that mine were that had "inferior"materials..

Still have the the original boxes and packing (wtf after all those years)

I shipped my speakers back to Bose.. a few weeks later I received two boxes..

Inside were two brand new 901's... They just sent me new speakers..

I'd make you a deal on these, however I'm on the east coast... and I tossed the boxes and packing

[gchappel]

Wonderful speakers for a college room- given enough power they will go LOUD.
Not really high fidelity-"whatever that means"
Does not image well, kids will not care.
Worthless without the equalizer.
Unless already done, these almost all need refoamed. Easy to do, kits available all over the place.
Gary

[sc_rufctr]

These were the speakers to have in a nightclub or "Disco" back in the day and I'd bet they'd still sound good today.
Regardless of marketing hype, what sounded good back then would still sound good today.

The biggest issues with these speakers is the size and shape. Placing them in a room can be difficult.

If you don't want to re-foam you can buy replacement drivers from Parts Express. They're about $21.00 each (21 x 16 = $336)

https://www.parts-express.com/grs-rsb901-1-replacement-speaker-driver-for-bose-901-4-1-2-1-ohm--290-922

[WPOZZZ]

That'll take up a lot of space. What do the kids say? They'd probably be happy with a soundbar with satellites and a sub.

[LakeCleElum]

Back in my college days, this was not a good way to make friends with the neighbors as I recall.......

[jyl]

My kids (son and daughter) will be in a two bdrm apartment this year. Daughter's last year of college, her roommate backed out, son moved out of the freshman dorms to take the other bdrm. Next year son wants to live in a house with some other guys.

They have a turntable (old Dual), they want a stereo. I think 901s would be cool and interesting and loud enough for the whole house situation next year. Hoping to pick up a set that needs refoaming, and have my son do the work - any opportunity to fix stuff is good training!

So, 80-100 watts/ch enough power?

[Rtrorkt]

JBL 100’s. Just saying. Studio monitors for the rockers

[HardDrive]

I have to be honest, I think that is a bizarre choice for a college kid. Get him some nice bookshelf speakers. If you really want older Bose, some 201/301 would do the job nicely. I have a pair of 201s in my studio, and they still sound great after 30+ years. They will go plenty loud for an apartment as well.

[KFC911]

^^^^ back in the day....friends had 301/501/901s. I thought they were awesome back in the late 70s....but they were what they were . For an apt....they are gonna be placed "incorrectly".... (my vintage SDA Polks always have been) imo....probabably with the drivers facing the room....

No EQ....don't bother....

My Polks need gobs of power just like 901s....like 400w stereo or 1k for each ...but these are beasts

They would simply suck with a 100w amp....

Get some Cerwin Vegas, JBLs, Infinitys, etc for an apt....jmho

[jyl]

Has anyone modified older 901s with forward-firing tweeters and x-overs?

The full-range driver idea is interesting to me. As is a speaker set that my son can repair and tinker with.

They'd mostly be used for, dare I say it, rap and pop, movies, and setting drinks on. My kids do listen to "good" music on occasion but that means maybe 5% of the time.

If they need a 150 watt/ch amp, that's a problem . . . a little beyond the budget for the kid's college system.

[aschen]

200$ set of used klipsch kg series is just as interesting and a better fit i think. If the gosl is a fun project i think any of the kits from parts Express would be a better fit, sound better, and be chaeper.

For just simple good sound in a small form factor i think a pair of amplified monitors is the way to go like jbl lsr series

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

For a budget speaker, go with an Elac - designed by Pioneer's ex designer Andrew Jones, they sound terrific and you can't beat the price point.

For the turntable, grab an Ortofon 2M Red cartridge ($99) - it'll produce an incredible sound.

I have an integrated amp for sale with a built in phono stage - tube hybrid amp that I upgraded with Pearl cryogenic tubes (these are JAN NOS stubs that go through cryogenic treatment), Mundorf and Nichicon Capacitors, and a custom foamed Ceramic Heat Sinks.

PM me if you're interested or have any other audio related questions. I'm a big audiophile and love to chat equipment.

-d

[Scott Douglas]

I'd recommend looking at ShopGoodwill.com for some project speakers.
That's where I found my CS3008's.