Полочная акустика — B&W (Bowers & Wilkins) 707 S3

The 707 S3 is the smallest stand-mount speaker listed in the third series of the Bowers & Wilkins 700 range, a two-way vented-box model built around a single mid/bass driver. Bowers & Wilkins presents it as a speaker for smaller spaces, and it is one of eight models in the current 700 Series line-up. The American price is USD 2,000 per pair.

Key specs that matter

A 25 mm Decoupled Carbon Dome tweeter is paired with a 130 mm Continuum cone bass/midrange unit. The response is specified as 50 Hz to 28 kHz at plus or minus 3 dB, and the frequency range at -6 dB extends from 45 Hz to 33 kHz. Sensitivity is a modest 84 dB SPL for an input of 2.83 V measured at 1 m. The nominal 8 ohm load has a minimum of 4.0 ohm. With output held at 90 dB and the microphone 1 m on axis, second and third order harmonics measure under 1% across 100 Hz to 22 kHz and under 0.5% across 150 Hz to 20 kHz. Cabinet dimensions are 300 mm in height, 165 mm in width and 247 mm in depth, growing to 284 mm deep when the grille and terminals are included. One speaker weighs 6.16 kg.

Engineering and use context

In the tweeter, a 30 micron aluminium dome gains stiffness from a carbon layer on its surface and a carbon ring around its edge, and Bowers & Wilkins states the resulting breakup point lies at 47 kHz. The Continuum cone in front of it is made from a woven composite selected for rigidity, light weight and internal damping. A curved front baffle, inspired by the company's 800 Series Diamond, is credited by Bowers & Wilkins with greatly reducing the contribution of the cabinet itself to the output. Bass loading is through a Flowport vent with a dimpled finish like that of a golf ball, intended to cut down on air turbulence. Cabinets come in three colours - Mocha, Satin White or Gloss Black.

Pairing

Bowers & Wilkins suggests an amplifier of 30 W to 100 W on unclipped programme, and speaker cable impedance should not exceed 0.1 ohm. Two pairs of linked binding posts take bare wire up to 4 mm thick, 4 mm banana plugs or 6 mm and 8 mm spade lugs, and pulling the links out allows separate feeds for bi-wire or bi-amp operation. The FS-700 S3 stand is the dedicated floor stand, while shelf use is permitted with the foam port plugs and four rubber feet included in the box.

Alternatives

The Bowers & Wilkins 706 S3 steps up in size within the same stand-mount group, using a larger Continuum cone bass/midrange and rated at 88 dB sensitivity.