Product Description

The Wave music system reproduces one-half octave lower musical notes and delivers even greater clarity and definition than the original Wave radio/CD. With its deeper tones and even more lifelike sound, you might just feel like you're sitting in the front row. Inside, our new proprietary waveguide speaker technology combines with other Bose technologies to deliver enhanced performance at all listening levels. You'll hear the same clear musical nuances whether you turn the volume up or keep it soft. You'll also enjoy the full depth and range of every vocal or instrument on MP3s, CD-R/RWs, and conventional CDs. Listen to CDs created on your computer and take advantage of the digital MP3 format for hours of uninterrupted Wave music system quality sound. The Wave music system was engineered to be delightfully easy to use. There are no visible buttons. Instead, the entire system is completely and conveniently controlled by a credit card-sized remote control. And setup couldn't be easier. The CD player, digital AM/FM tuner, amplifiers and speakers are all built-in so you can enjoy quality sound right out of the box. The large, bright display panel is easy to read and understand, prominently displaying the artist, title and album names of your suitably encoded MP3 CDs. It's also easy to enjoy the system's full, rich sound with your TV, VCR, DVD player, or computer, thanks to an auxiliary input jack. And if you want to keep the music to yourself, you can simply plug your headphones into the headphone jack. The Wave music system may look familiar, but it takes the original award-winning design of the Wave radio/CD to new levels. With its absence of buttons and a convenient slot-loaded CD player, the slim, sleek profile shines through to complement just about any room.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7 in Home Theater
• Brand: Bose
• Dimensions: 4.20" h x 14.60" w x 8.60" l, 8.70 pounds

Features

• Ideal for home or office listening
• A bold new standard in audio performance. It may well become the primary music system in your home
• Easy to use: no buttons, credit card-sized infrared remote, and MP3 CD capability
• Distinctive and elegant design: streamlined styling with a thin, slot-loaded CD player

Customer Reviews

Five Stars from a Bose Basher
Yes, you read that right. But before I get to the review, a confession:

As a life-long audiophile, I have long felt that Bose represented the pinnacle of overpriced hype and underwhelming sound quality. The true genius of Amar Bose, in my opinion, is that he has created a distinctive "Bose sound" that appeals greatly to mass market consumers who don't know any better. Spend some time listening to truly good audio systems, and you'll quickly realize that Bose is a high-priced, superbly marketed joke. And unfortunately, I have to live with Bose mediocrity on a daily basis in the form of a Bose audio system "upgrade" in my Acura MDX. (Which I was forced to take as part of the touring package.) It cranks out 'okay' sound at best, and is no where near as good as "stock" audio systems in some of my previously owned vehicles. The most positive thing I can say is that my Acura Bose system sounds better than the Bose system in my friend's Mercedes.

By now you should be getting the idea that I'm the last person in the world inclined to give a Bose product a compliment, no less a five star review. What happened? Well, I was looking for a compact, one piece music system for my home office. And in the world of audio, I realize there is no such thing as a free lunch--designing such a system requires that sound quality be compromised to various degrees along the way. So I certainly wasn't expecting this unit to sound anything like the $10K Sonus Faber speakers in my main rig. What I wanted was good quality sound that, muscially speaking, got the important things right, with no obvious "wrongs."

With these parameters, I quickly realized that there are not many systems out there worth considering. The Cambridge Soundworks 740 soon became my top contender, but I wasn't really happy with it. Yes, it's got bass to spare, but it's bass that I find to be somewhat out of balance with the overall sound, and there's simply no way to tame it. And so, begrudgingly, I decided to give Bose's "New Wave Music System" a listen--after all, I could return it if I didnt like the sound, which I fully expected to be doing. And yet, nearly a month after it arrived in my home, I'm here to sing its praises.

Simply put, the New Wave Music System sounds better than I ever imagined possible with a unit of this size. It's extremely musical and just sounds "right," (whether it be rock, hip-hop, jazz or classical) with many sonic strengths and no obvious flaws. It will easily fill an average-sized room with music, and there's no sense of strain as you push it to higher volumes. For many if not most consumers, the New Wave may be as much "music system" as you'll ever need. One of the downsides to the audiophile pursuit is that you increasing tend to listen analytically, rather than for enjoyment. With the New Wave system, I've rediscovered the pleasure of just popping in a CD and letting it play. I"ve also found both the AM and FM receivers to be quite good, as well.

I really like the sleek, compact design, though I suspect I'll be cursing the "no buttons" approach the first time I (inevitably) lose the remote. And, being always suspicious of Bose's motives, I suspect this design may have been driven by bean counters who saw a way to reduce manufacturing costs by eliminating all on-case controls.

Is it overpriced? Well, if you're the type of person for whom "good enough" is usually good enough, you may want to look elsewhere. But for a product that I truly enjoy using on a daily basis, this was well worth the price. And compared to the insanity of high-end audio, where a 1 meter interconnect can run 3,000 bucks, $500 is downright reasonable.

Overall, I give the New Wave a "Bravo, Bose!" and I'd encourage any audiophiles looking for a small second system to give this a listen. You can always return it within 30 days, but I'd plan on it being a keeper.

Too Much for Too Little
I've had my Bose for about two years. I'm very glad to have received it as a present because, despite some of its fine features, it certainly does not merit the hefty, comparable-to-a-small-home-stereo price tag.

I like its design and its sound.

I don't like the following "features":

1) It is the most sensitive CD player I have. It will not properly play a number of CDs, especially CD-Rs. If a disc is slightly thin, the unit will either not accept it (you have to give it a push) or not eject it (you have to open up the unit, turn it on, hit "eject," and pull the disc out). This is especially annoying when my $70 boombox plays them without a problem. Refurbishing by Bose did nothing to change my unit's sensitivity.

2) It is not programmable! It doesn't program songs at all. The best it can do is "shuffle," "shuffle repeat," "repeat track," and "repeat disc." The cheapest boombox these days is programmable.

3) The lack of buttons is annoying: I found I had to order a second remote ($10) and keep it by the box. When I called Bose about this problem, the tech suggested getting the second remote and added that a lot of people had done that. My boombox is more user-friendly (it has buttons as well as a remote).

One can argue about the merits of elegance vs. user-friendliness. But the lack of programmability and the oversensitivity of this box make it a poor buy, in my opinion.

Your ears will be very pleased.
I bought one Bose Wave Music System to compare it with my Henry Kloss 88cd and Cambridge Soundworks radios. It is better, period. I bought the Bose for use at work at Eagle Laundry, Horn Lake, MS where I have a Cambridge Soundworks radio playing all day. When I did the first comparison at home I could no longer enjoy the Henry Kloss at my bedside so I had to order another Bose for work. I could not part with the new Bose. Yes it's that good. The clarity and definition of voices and music is open and undestorted. It's as if the radio itself dissappears and presents only the wonderful sound of the music. Great features like auto dimming display which is fully adjustable continue to entertain even when the unit is off. No battery needed 48 hour memory in event of power failure saves money. Those 9v duracells are getting pricy. I was afraid I would not like to use only the remote for snooze control, but it has not been a problem. The ramp up wake-up alarm volume is also pleasing. This is a very refined, high quality, compact (it was smaller than I expected) multifuntion radio/cd/mp3 player. Very intelligent. The radio reception was fine with some adjusting of the power cord to get the stongest FM signal. My old radio required an external antenna. AM reception was great. My biggest problem was that one Bose Wave System was not enough. Also, Bose is a top drawer, first rate company. Just look at www.bose.com and you can see for yourself. Forget about the price for once and treat yourself to something special.