I think Bose make decent consumer grade speakers. One has to understand what their goal is. They want to provide the best sound they can in the smallest enclosure possible. Think of it as range of sound verses the size of each speaker. Given this, they have done a good job.
For most folks, as long as the mid range sounds good, the highs and lows can be ignored. An example is: Bose uses vented woofers making the enclosure a lot smaller. A lot of sound can be produced in a small box with relatively little power. The draw back is the enclosure is resonate over a very narrow range of frequencies. Bose tunes this so they get a nice booming sound; but, this doesn't accurately reproduce someone playing a bass guitar. Sounds good when that car blows up during that movie though. Bose have developed ways of deflecting the sound from their speakers such that the sound will both flow directly from the speaker to our ears and indirectly by bouncing off objects in the room. This is how we hear naturally anyway. So, our brains can better relate to the artificially produced sound. So, I wouldn't pay for Bose technology in an open space. However, for spreading out the sound from a small enclosure, it is adequate. Personally, I very much enjoy listening to music. Late at night, I like to listen to some good blues, jazz or sometimes classical. A clear full rich sound is very important to me. I like to hear not the instrument; but, the instrument being played as will. In short, Bose sound quite good for every day listening, watching TV ... However, they can not accurately truly reproduce music with the depth and warmth they claim. As most things, it is a compromise. I do think they are overpriced because of the Bose brand though. Terry
