B&W 606 S2 vs ELAC Debut DBR62

[thetrystero]

this is my first foray in to audio. i'm torn between these two speakers at the moment. there's are really good deal on the B&W, however i couldn't find any objective measurements on it here on ASR (or anywhere else for that matter). However, the DBR62 just got the stamp of approval from amir.
anyone else have direct experience with both of these? i'm planning to pair my speakers with a Yamaha R-N803

 

[nathan]

Going by measurements for OTHER B&W speakers I'd wager that the DBR62 will measure better assuming accurate is what you seek.

That does NOT mean they will sound better to your ears. The B&W sound is very popular for a reason.

 

[Ron Texas]

ELAC. B&W has a showroom sound which I tired of rather quickly. When a speaker measures better around here that means it follows speaker design principles which are a product of many years of research by Toole and Olive at Harmann. That's the science in ASR.

 

[JW001]

this is my first foray in to audio. i'm torn between these two speakers at the moment. there's are really good deal on the B&W, however i couldn't find any objective measurements on it here on ASR (or anywhere else for that matter). However, the DBR62 just got the stamp of approval from amir.
anyone else have direct experience with both of these? i'm planning to pair my speakers with a Yamaha R-N803

I find this review pretty interesting: http://noaudiophile.com/Bowers_and_Wilkins_686_S2/

 

[SynthesisCinema]

Here is measurements for the earlier 606 which is likely very similar to new refreshed S2. I have heard people commenting that they are bit on the bright side which was also the case with 603 towers. Audioholics measurements showed that they shouldn´t be angled toward listener.

Listening window
20Hz - 20kHz (measured @ 2m, plotted @ 1m)

Response curve is an average of five measurements: on-axis, 15 degrees left and right off-axis, 15 degrees up and down off-axis.

https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/i...&catid=77:loudspeaker-measurements&Itemid=153

 

[Helicopter]

Between these two, I would get DBR62. It is an excellent design. Personally I would not consider B&W without some new evidence of a positive change.

 

[damage]

I wasn't impressed with the 606S2 myself. To get anywhere near a decent sound seemed like you had to jump all the way to the 705.

 

[theyellowspecial]

DBR62 will be the 9-to-1 recommended choice on this forum. Even something like the very affordable JBL Stage 130 would be recommended over the 606.

 

[bandit]

I have not had the chance to audition the DBR62. I however, own a pair of 606S2 which I got for EUR600 and I use for casual listening when I'm browsing the web. Whenever I feel like cranking up the volume a bit they fill my whole bedroom effortlessly. To the ear, the bass is very full and warming and has nice detailed highs, the mids are not as detailed but remember we are talking about a relatively low price range speakers. For their price, I couldn't recommend them enough. Last but not least, I think they look better than the DBR62 and feel more high quality to me. What you could do is order them on amazon and audition them and return them if you're not satisfied.

 

[sts]

I got the 606S2's to demo recently, and can say that what they do they do well, but they also compromise in critical places. This is my (untreated) room decay. You can see the notches around 500 and 615hz. At 615 in particular, the speakers barely make a noise. I'm not using a great amp, the placement is terrible (small apartment), but this is a little ridiculous.

The effect is apparent on tracks like Get Lucky or You Should Be Dancing- in both cases the intro guitar lines nearly disappear. I really wanted to love these speakers- I spent years working on matrix 801's, and was hoping to get a taste of that sound in my home finally, but these just aren't doing it.

 

[weasels]

I feel your pain. the matrix 801s were the first speakers i really fell in love with. I had a pair of 603s hoping to get some of that magic and ended up selling them and getting a pair of DBR62s.

 

[Stereotuber]

this is my first foray in to audio. i'm torn between these two speakers at the moment. there's are really good deal on the B&W, however i couldn't find any objective measurements on it here on ASR (or anywhere else for that matter). However, the DBR62 just got the stamp of approval from amir.
anyone else have direct experience with both of these? i'm planning to pair my speakers with a Yamaha R-N803

I have Elac DBR62 Reference speakers driven by a Rockville original Bluetube 70 watt hybrid tube amp. Love the sound, plenty deep to 35 htz (by live sound tests). No sub needed for me. Music and movies sound great. Cost with cables, $770.00. $80.00 for two stands. I have not heard the 606, but I did have 2 B&W CM5's with stands, and a refurbished HH Scott 70 watt tube amp, with big cables all for $2,600.00 which is now gone. Was the B & W system THREE times better than the Elac system? No way. Maybe 5% better, maybe equal, really hard to say. The Elacs are very real, natural sounding. They sound like what ever you feed into them, good or bad (sounds bad with a bad recorded signal, awesome with great signal like Stravinski's Rite of Spring classical piece). Want boring synth music? Want a toy piano sound? Ratty muddy sound? Yes Elacs can do that. But Elac Reference can also sound like a live band or orchestra is in your room playing loudly. 30 watts tube signal sounds better than 700 watts solid state amp. Tubes drive all speakers MUCH harder, cleaner, no hiss, no distortion (O.K., 0.02% Total Harmonic Distortion!). So no distortion. Less speaker cone distortion also. Note on the Elac - - the grills had a dark layer of thin fabric on the inside of the grill. I removed it with ease, just rub gently. Was leaving this on a mistake at the factory? Now with the grill on the speakers sound fine. Before, the grill did affect the treble I admit. Do I miss the B & W's? No. Would you like the new Elac Reference 3-way speakers better at twice the price ($1,200)? Maybe. I'm not a big fan of 3-way speakers. My little DBR62 Reference speakers are very fine, without a sub woofer. I had two powered subs. Gave them both away. (FYI - I have been playing and listening to real live music and various stereos my whole life, all types of music). Enjoy.

 

[nickt1]

this is my first foray in to audio. i'm torn between these two speakers at the moment. there's are really good deal on the B&W, however i couldn't find any objective measurements on it here on ASR (or anywhere else for that matter). However, the DBR62 just got the stamp of approval from amir.
anyone else have direct experience with both of these? i'm planning to pair my speakers with a Yamaha R-N803

Both are great speakers it really depends on your room, other components and your hearing.
If you have a bright room or system and or are sensitive to too much treble then go for the Elacs. If you have a treated room ,a system that is not overly bright and love detailed and airy highs then go for the B&Ws metal dome tweeters.
ASR is really the wrong forum to ask as all you will get here are measurement geeks wet dreams and those diametrically opposed to what they can't appreciate or afford.

 

[RobL]

Both are great speakers it really depends on your room, other components and your hearing.
If you have a bright room or system and or are sensitive to too much treble then go for the Elacs. If you have a treated room ,a system that is not overly bright and love detailed and airy highs then go for the B&Ws metal dome tweeters.
ASR is really the wrong forum to ask as all you will get here are measurement geeks wet dreams and those diametrically opposed to what they can't appreciate or afford.

What makes a “system” overy bright? (Apart from the speakers)

 

[freemansteve]

I like my 606's. But there are loads of likeable speakers these days; until you have them set up in your room, playing your material, there's no way to decide if any are particularly "better".

I do have to use the (supplied) foam plugs in the rear ports though, as I just cannot put the things on stands a long way from the back wall. IMHO, the former setup sounds better anyway, as per my own tests in my room, and I also use a pair of subs. The 606's are basically big bookshelf speakers, so you miss the lower octave or two. And definitely 2 octaves with the port plugs in!
They are not bright to my ears, but have plenty of detail, if such terms are still allowed in audio-woke speak! Powered by nCores as it happens (they are a very easy load for good class D's ) and I never need to use EQ.

 

[nickt1]

What makes a “system” overy bright? (Apart from the speakers)

I can see where you are trying to go with this but if you can't appreciate that using different materials and designs can produce different sound signatures ,eg valve/solid state copper/silver cables then you are really more interested in measurements and semantic gotchas than music.

 

[RobL]

I can see where you are trying to go with this but you can't appreciate that using different materials and designs can produce different sound signatures ,eg valve/solid state copper/silver cables then you are really more interested in measurements and semantic gotchas than music.

If your amps etc. are introducing a “sound signature” then you actually no longer have an amplifier (or cable etc.), you have effects box(es).

 

[nickt1]

If your amps etc. are introducing a “sound signature” then you actually no longer have an amplifier (or cable etc.), you have effects box(es).

Using that logic would be like saying ASR is a white supremacists organisation because they oppose "wokespeak"-equally ridiculous.

 

[Chaconne]

Using that logic would be like saying ASR is a white supremacists organisation because they oppose "wokespeak"-equally ridiculous.

Well, this IS getting interesting!

 

[dfuller]

Using that logic would be like saying ASR is a white supremacists organisation because they oppose "wokespeak"-equally ridiculous.

Erm... What? @RobL has a point even if it's made in a strange way - if your amplifier, preamp, DAC, etc is introducing "character" it's no longer "hi-fi". That said, you may like that character.