Customer Ratings & Reviews

Meet my expectations. Crisp and clean sound. They look great.

System quality is great. Very easy to use. Geek squad did a great set up with explanation.

You get what you pay for, and these are worth the price

Always wanted great sounding speakers and I found them

i bought last year model opened or floor demo - no legs/stand. Bass is not so strong w/o subwoofer , however sound is not crystal as newer model. Again that is huge price differences.

I just bought these speakers this weekend, and am blown away. I can't stop listening to music, and playing movies. The sound is incredible, and they look great. My previous speakers were Bose Acoustamas 10, and I thought they were terrific, until I heard these. I hear so much more than before. I did not even get a sub-Woofer, because these had such great bass. I did, however, go out and get a BW sub-woofer today. Not that I really think it needed it, but I'm so excited about the sound, that I felt why not see if I can even improve it.

I wasn't really shopping for floor speakers but was in the store killing time while my wife was shopping. Show me what you got is what I told the man….now i have not heard anything that has caught my hear in quite some time, but as he flipped thru the selections and got to these my ears went Wow!!!! Go back to the last one. As he did I was I started falling in love. My wife showed up and I had her listen. She saw how impressed I was but also the kid waking up on Christmas day look on my face. Needless to say I now own that pair. I won't bore you with the spec's and techy stuff…Just go listen for yourself. If you want a solid speaker that will fill a room, and not just blaring in your face…surround you and creates an awesome environment …give them a listen. Awesome for music and movies…no disappointment, and coming from a man who loves his music. My wife and kids are amazed when they watch their movies. Prfer movies at the house over the theater. Simple review and feedback from a simple man who loves great sound.

I bought these for a 2 channel setup in a secondary room powered by an older Denon 3808 AVR. My main theater room has Klipsch reference speakers in a 5.1 setup. (RF-82 mains, RC-52 center, 8" in-ceiling speakers for surrounds, and a Denon X4000 AVR. I bought these B&W's for mostly music listening, but also for watching tv and movies when my wife is in the main room. I actually demoed several different pairs of speakers from different brands in my home before deciding to keep these amazing B&W's. With music listening as my main objective, they handily beat out the Martin Logan Motion 40's, and the Polk Audio TSX 330t's. I intentionally tested speakers from different price brackets, and listened to everything in the Magnolia room under $2000 a pair. The B&W's were the smoothest, most balanced, and most detailed of all that I tried, even better than my own Klipsch.

Excellent speakers! Hear things in movies you have never heard before! The only con to these speakers is they make you realize just how bad your car speakers really are. Bose? Forget about Bose. These blow them out of the water. No comparison. Bring your wife/husband in to listen to these and you will be sure to leave with a pair. They are that good! Crisp sound and great mids. A sub is a must to complete the package. Highly recommended.

I really had no clue to what good audio sounded like until now. Right out the box these speakers amazed me. Every single song sounds good on these.... Build quality is excellent. I can't find a single thing wrong with them. I had bought a cheaper pair before these and one had a dent and the other had dust all over it - brand new from the factory! I researched speakers considerably and these (in my price range) seemed to be the best for the money. Honestly they sounded mediocre at Best Buy - nothing impressive at all! The CM9's were a little better and came close to buying them but the price was too much for me. So I took a chance and bought these and am VERY glad I did.

I purchased these speakers a few months after they were released. I auditioned them along with the CM9 s1 (the S2 had not yet been released) and the Martin Logan Motion 40s. I had auditioned the 683 s1 a few years back. The speaker has been completely redesigned with respect to the S1 with the new double dome tweeter, aluminum composite woofers, and more compact cabinet. It retains the FST midrange driver but with some modifications similar to the fantastic PM1 standmount speaker. The S2 cabinets are very solid and the speaker weighs in at just under 60 lbs (which might reduce unwanted cabinet resonances). One of the things I enjoyed most about the S1 was the fantastic midrange performance provided by the incorporation of the FST driver. However, the S1 lacked some clarity regarding the higher frequencies and ultimately that's what kept me from purchasing a pair. When auditioning the S2 I immediately noticed the improvement in clarity largely due to the new tweeter. During auditioning I realized this improvement brought the performance very close to the CM9 s1. However, I felt that the CM9 s1 tweeter was still slightly better than the 683 s2. But, for about 50% of the cost the 683 S2 brings you to about 90-95% of the performance of the CM9 S1 (the CM9 S2 is of course a different matter altogether). Aesthetically, it's not as pleasing with the black ash veneer compared to the gloss black of the CM9 but this wasn't a major factor in my purchase decision. Next, I listened to the Martin Logan Motion 40s. The Motion 40s are a very nice looking speaker but more expensive at $2000 for the pair. They feature a folded motion tweeter (similar to ribbon tweeter technology) and are also 3-way. I immediately noticed the superior low end performance. However, this wasn't really a factor for me considering that I would be using a subwoofer in my setup at home. The higher frequency performance was great but I felt that it wasn't quite as neutral as the 683 S2. I "ABed" back and forth between both speakers and was torn between the two but ultimately I preferred the 683S2. To my ears, the 683 S2 was simply more neutral but not fatiguing. Sure, it's not as nice to look at with a slightly more utilitarian appearance (it looks like a speaker) but this was a secondary consideration (and much less important) for me anyway. Final thoughts: The redesigned 683 is a winner. After getting them home I realized that they performed best in a medium to large room and placement was important for bass response. They do like a little power (3 ohm dips) but this isn't a problem for a quality AVR or dedicated 2-channel preamp/amp setup (what I'm currently using). Pleased with the purchase. There are definitely some competitors in this price range especially with internet direct brands.

Bi-Amped Goodness! I have these speakers being powered by the NR1605 and the MM7025. I have the NR1605 powering the HF terminals and the MM7025 going to the LF ones. This setup just sounds amazing. I was on the fence about this setup (2.1 vs 3.1 or greater) but decided I wanted to have a clean looking entertainment center but didn't want to compromise on two things...sound and power. These speakers fit the bill. They are rated to take what I am sending them and sound great. Even though my setup is a 2.1 it sounds great...I wouldn't change a thing.

Apologies for the length of this review but it has been a journey. Let me start by saying I previously owned Def Tech speakers for my HT system. I've used them for 3 years now. Started out with a ProMonitor 1000 setup with a ProCenter 2000 sub. The system was very good but I upgraded the fronts to STS Super Towers 2 months ago and was initially satisfied until I could not get the right sound stage for movies. Two weeks ago I exchanged the Super Towers for BP8060STs and once again I was initially satisfied until I noticed distortion coming from both towers. I took the BP8060s back to Best Buy and had them tested and they were bad. My salesman, Ryan was very helpful in diagnosing the issue and he informed me that they had another unopened set at the store at the BayBrook Plaza. Instead of taking them home directly I asked that we test them and WOW they too had distortion coming from the tweeters. Ryan informed me that this was highly unusual. After going over some other options (Martin Logan Motion 40s, B&W 683s and other Def Techs) I decided to go with the B&W 683s. I am powering the system with a Marantz SR5010 which seems to have plenty of power. I had Def Tech SM55s in the rear and the CM1 Center S2. I returned to BB and purchased the 683 S2s for the rear this weekend and I am now enjoying my movies (Jurrasic World, The Cave, Transformers Age of Extinction etc) and music (Miles Davis, Tower of Power, Norah Jones etc) the way I wanted. Nice clear highs, full spatial surround on movies. BTW I am running a sub (AVS 2000) with the system and it all sounds great. I ran the Audessy set up which is about as far as I am able to go as far as tuning the system. After tuning the system my wife and I sat down and watched Beyonce's Lemonade and felt like we were at the movies. I have a Sony xbr 75w850c. It couldn't have been any better unless it had been in 4k. Still waiting on DirecTV to install the 4k receiver. I can't really explain it but the B&Ws seem more natural (to me) than the Def Techs which I still think are great speakers. Thanks a lot Ryan for helping me get to this point!

My entire system is in the new s2 series and all of them are fantastic. I use these for both music and home theater and they excel effortlessly with the right amplification. They were packaged very very well and are very enjoyable and will be around for quite a while.

These are amazing for their price. had them for years. pick them up if you can get them, i have 4

These speakers are excellent and have great great sound. These are for the audiophiles out there. Go for them and you will love you did.

Excellent sound quality. Superb construction and look.

The sound on the 683 are great for movies, music, or just general TV watching. One thing I will say is have a good amp for these speakers. They really don't come alive with a mid level amp.

These B&W 683 speakers are expensive, BUT once you set them up and let them break in for a few weeks, you will be impressed. They coupled with a Denon AVRX-2000. New music releases, which tend to be highly engineered, will fill up the room. Movies sound as good if not better than the theatre. Games--The EMP sound from C-of-D will shake the windows even at a low volume. If you can swing it--get them. Also, they look slick--two stark monoliths commanding respect. I plan to complete the set but that takes time and money. Talk to the team at the S Austin/Sunset Valley Best Buy. They are wizards.

Combined with a decent integrated amp of at least 100 watts and a decent media player, you get a good taste of B and W sound. I discovered that low to moderate listening levels will surprise you. Sure, you can turn them up and yes they make a great front end to above average surround sound systems. However, they can provide decent playback in serious listening sessions. Break in took about 2 months. You still are saddled with some mid-fi grunz (also dependent upon your electronics. I have several systems and the sound improves with better amplification and media sources). They go deeper than you would expect for the price. Clean and detailed bass also. A little finicky with the high frequencies but the mid-range is all B and W Kevlar clarity and smoothness. I was lucky as Best Buy allowed me to compare with the older model. The new tweeter configuration definitely improves the presentation. Remember though, these are Mid Fi speakers, so comparing them to the Big Boys is unfair. Just sit back and listen, you may save a few bucks...