What Hi-Fi? Verdict
Speaker package Product of the Year, Awards 2010. The MT-25 is top-notch in its own right, and remains top of its class
Pros
- +
Terrific punch, coherence and detail results in an effortlessly exciting performance
- +
brilliantly constructed, compact units
Cons
- -
The sub's dinky dimensions mean it's not the very deepest
- -
fiddly wiring arrangement
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Speaker package Product of the Year 2010
‘Integration’. That’s the word on most reviewers’ lips when it comes to critiquing sub/sat packages.
It’s all well and good throwing some speakers and a subwoofer together, but if the two don’t work in harmony, you might as well leave them on the shop floor. Nobody likes a disjointed, unbalanced system.
Thankfully, Bowers & Wilkins know a thing or two about speaker design and integration, so it comes as no major shock that the company’s M-1 satellites and ASW608 subwoofer gel perfectly.
Bass notes from the sub don’t delve quite as deep as some rivals, but there’s no bass lag to hinder music or movie soundtracks.
Spin Michael Jackson’s This Is It Blu-ray and each bass drum kick during They Don’t Care About Us sounds taut, punchy and superbly defined. Musically, it’s one of the most accomplished performers we've seen.
The M-1 satellites feel weighty and robust – the curved aluminium cabinets are machined to an exceptionally high standard.
The soundstage doesn’t quite have the reach or lavish span of some close rivals, but the upside is B&W’s focus on precision.
As Ben Affleck’s gang go toe-to-toe with the police in The Town, gunfire rattles around your seating position with breakneck speed and agility. This makes for an enthralling, highly captivating surround sound experience.
We haven’t changed our mind about the MT-25. It’s still outstanding, and delivers serious bangs for your buck
