Our friends at over at StereoNET UK were fortunate enough to be invited to an exclusive first showing of the 600 Series range of loudspeakers at B&W's London offices recently.

The 600 Series of speakers is Bowers & Wilkins' longest continuously serving speaker range behind its flagship 800 Series Diamond. For 20 years, over a million listeners have enjoyed the B&W sound thanks to the 600 Series.

Many will identify B&W speakers through their yellow Kevlar cones that appeared in the 600s after their first four years being on sale, in 1999. The new Kevlar technology also saw them receive many awards. As well as the addition of paper/Kevlar bass units, 1999 saw the 600 Series 2 receive an improved flat-ring suspension tweeter and Nautilus tube loading. The 600 Series has since undergone many improvements throughout its life, many trickling down from its flagship sibling.

The new B&W 600 Series

The new 600 Series receives the Continuum cone from the 700 Series, as well as many other technologies. Additionally, B&W has dispensed with the old, and sometimes confusing, 68-prefix and are reverting to the 60-prefix. This naming convention also aligns better with the 700 Series and 800 Series.

John Martin, Director of Sales at Bowers & Wilkins Australia told StereoNET:

The 600 Series is the perfect entry point into the Bowers & Wilkins high-fidelity audio experience. The new 600 Series embodies the original ethos of John Bowers’ mission to deliver the best sound quality and to set new standards for audio performance.

Starting from the top of the 600 you will notice that it has adopted the tweeter grille mesh design from the 700 Series as also featured on the 800 Series Diamond. Additionally, replacing the black ash vinyl wrap on the cabinet is a more modern lightly textured black finish. Don't worry, the white finish remains.

Behind that grille is the proven Decoupled Double Dome tweeter as used in the outgoing range. The dual-layer aluminium diaphragm has a first break-up of 38kHz. However, B&W has improved the tweeter's performance by using an upgraded Neodymium magnet from the 700 Series. There has also been a subtle, yet effective, repositioning of the dome within the diaphragm mounting plate that is said to improve time alignment.

The signature Kevlar cone makes way for the all-new in-house designed Continuum model. The Continuum is still a woven composite like the Kevlar cones and based on the concept of optimised and controlled flexibility, factors that help avoid abrupt transition from pistonic to "break-up mode behaviour that impairs openness and neutrality."

The grille pegs have been removed to give the fronts a sleeker look, employing magnets instead. The relocation of the ports further unclutters the frontage. The 600 Series now use the same ports and terminal-tray parts as the 700 Series. This augmentation also means that the loudspeaker has a reduced height so that the 607 (the replacement of the 686), for example, will now sit easier on a bookshelf.

The B&W 600 Series range

So, let's take a closer look at the new line-up in more detail.

B&W 607

The 607 is a 2-way vented box stand-mount loudspeaker. Fitted with a 130mm Continuum bass/midrange driver and a 25mm Decoupled Double Dome tweeter (DDD), it will be available in matte black and matte white finishes, replacing the 686 S2 model.

B&W 606

Next up is the 606, another stand-mount 2-way, this time loaded with a 165mm Continuum bass/midrange driver paired with the 25 DDD tweeter. Again, the speakers are available in matte black and matte white, replacing the 685 S2.

Matching stands for the 607 and 606 are also available in black finish.

B&W 603

The largest of the new 600 Series stable, the floor-standers are a 3-way vented-box loaded with a pair of 165mm paper-cone bass drivers. Additionally, they also feature a 150mm Continuum FST midrange driver and the ubiquitous 25mm DDD tweeter. Finishes are the standard matte black or white choices. The 603 replaces the 683 S2.

B&W HTM6

For home theatre lovers, the HTM6 replaces both the HTM62 S2 and HTM61 S2. Here you have a 2-way vented box loaded with two Continuum bass/midrange drivers and a 25mm DDD tweeter. The finishes match the rest of the range as you would expect.

B&W Subwoofers

There are no technical changes to Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series subs; the ASW608, ASW610 and ASW610XP.

Availability

The new Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series is expected to be available in New Zealand in Matte Black and Satin White finishes from October 2018. Local pricing has not yet been confirmed by the distributor.

For more information visit Bowers & Wilkins.

The article Bowers & Wilkins Announces New 600 Series Range & First Look first appeared on StereoNET UK.