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B&O's colossal BeoLab 90 loudspeakers pump out 8,200 watts, cost $40K

B&O's colossal BeoLab 90 loudspeakers pump out 8,200 watts, cost $40K
Sledgehammer of sound - the 300 lb, 8,200 W BeoLab 90
Sledgehammer of sound - the 300 lb, 8,200 W BeoLab 90
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BeoLab 90 speaker controller app
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BeoLab 90 speaker controller app
Sledgehammer of sound - the 300 lb, 8,200 W BeoLab 90
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Sledgehammer of sound - the 300 lb, 8,200 W BeoLab 90
Buried within the beautiful 360-degree design are 18 speaker drivers, each with its own custom designed amplifier
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Buried within the beautiful 360-degree design ​are 18 speaker drivers, each with its own custom designed amplifier
Active Room Compensation technology adjusts the sound output according to factors like room composition, furniture location, and the placement of the loudspeaker relative to where you’re sitting
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Active Room Compensation technology adjusts the sound output according to factors like room composition, furniture location, and the placement of the loudspeaker relative to where you’re sitting
The loudspeaker driver positions and orientations are defined by the acoustical requirements
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The loudspeaker driver positions and orientations are defined by the acoustical requirements
The array of speakers are covered in acoustically transparent fabric
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The array of speakers are covered in acoustically transparent fabric
Beam Width Control allows you to select a different "sweet spot" to suit different listening locations and the number of people in the room
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Beam Width Control allows you to select a different "sweet spot" to suit different listening locations and the number of people in the room
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It's safe to say that Bang & Olufsen isn't about to trash its reputation for head-turning, high-end speaker design with the new BeoLab 90. Named in honor of the the Danish company's 90th anniversary, the gargantuan BeoLab 90 stands 4 feet (123.5 cm) tall, weighs in at over 300 pounds (137 kg) and delivers an earthshaking 8,200 watts through a complex array of drivers and amplifiers ... all for just under US$40,000.

This is a loudspeaker that breaks the traditional form. Buried within the beautiful 360-degree design are 18 speaker drivers (7 tweeters. 7 mid-range and 4 woofers), each with its own custom designed amplifier.

The BeoLab 90 isn't all about brute force though. Getting the best auditory experience in the home usually requires the careful placement of an assortment of amplifiers, drivers, soundbars and standalone bass units, but the BeoLab 90 is designed to turn that notion on its head. The key is a combination of technologies that take into account room acoustics and give the listener far more control over the actual direction and width of the sound that comes from the loudspeaker.

Beam Width Control allows you to select a different "sweet spot" to suit different listening locations and the number of people in the room
Beam Width Control allows you to select a different "sweet spot" to suit different listening locations and the number of people in the room

Active Room Compensation technology adjusts the sound output according to factors like room composition, furniture location, and the placement of the loudspeaker relative to where you’re sitting. In addition, Beam Width Control allows you to select a different "sweet spot" to suit different listening locations and the number of people in the room. These features, along with various presets, can be controlled using a smartphone app.

The BeoLab 90 sports an array of wired connections along with WiSA-compliant wireless connectivity, which uses the 5.2 - 5.8 GHz band for the transmission of uncompressed 24-bit wireless audio at sample rates of up to 96 kHz in.

All of this weighty performance doesn’t come cheap. Be prepared to shell out around US$78,000 for a pair of BeoLab 90's when they hit the market in mid-November. Yes, that’s almost 40 g’s each. Not the most expensive speaker we've seen by a long shot, but still, you could buy a decent car for that ... even though it probably wouldn’t sound as nice.
Source: Bang & Olufsen

BeoLab 90

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4 comments
4 comments
Rumata
It is really funny to talk about a 40,000 USD speaker without decent specifications, like frequency response, transient response, phase response, maximum sound pressure, harmonic & IM distorsion, and so.
Sounds like a thing just for decoration.
jjsmail
I HIGHLY doubt it puts OUT 8400 Acoustic Watts of power - that would shake down buildings. Perhaps it is driven by up to 8400 Watts of amplifier power. These two things are highly different.
It similar to saying that a car puts out 4 gallons per hour of power or has a top speed of 400 horsepower.
As mentioned above - the real specs are missing from the article - the power a speaker uses is meaningless to its performance.
BobbyRooney
nah. my money is on Bowers and Wilkins Nautilus.
pwndecaf
Nobody bothers to market to the middle-class anymore because there is none.
I wonder if these will fit in my Lambo...