Customer Reviews

Boston Acoustics CS226B Classic Series Single Floorstanding Speaker (Black)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

These speakers set me back about $325 for the pair including shipping. The high end store near my house wanted $250 a piece. Those people told me the reason theirs were higher was because of the warranty that only an actual retailer could offer. Yeah? Really? Is that warranty worth $226? I guess not!

So the price here is great! Boston is a solid brand for audio philes who don't wish to throw down thousands of dollars for nice speakers. The definition of sound is fair to good and the coloring is substantial although does not detract from the sound. With two woofers per speaker there is a nice low end response with phat bottoms and punchy tightness for more focused bass sounds such as kick drums. I have not pushed these to their limits so I can't say for sure what they can handle. I'm powering them with a 190 watt Pioneer amp from '97.

The amp may make all the difference with these speakers. I wanted something older to impart more warmth but I could not find anything readily available.

As far as I can tell these speakers are a spectacular bargain and provide substantial reproduction for their price range.

I've been using a pair of these for nearly a year, in combination with an Onkyo 805 receiver. Excellent sound -- decent lows and crisp highs. I kind of wish the cats wouldn't sleep on top of them, but what can you do.

Mass amount of research and an unfortunate foray into a Home Theater in a Box (returned it) led me to these beauties. This review is mostly about MUSIC listening. A 5.1 system for movies and TVs doesn't need as much in the way of full sound and IMHO a home theater in a box would be just fine for that. During my info-gathering phase I went to Fry's and they sounded as nice as the Bose at 2X the price. Very loud if need be. Lots of bass (separate sub woofer not really needed for music unless you're inclined to play the really heavy base stuff. Even then it does good. The addition of a sub just makes that genre pop more.) Highs are excellent. Mids are adequate but if that is really important to you you probably wouldn't be looking at $100 speakers.

Well built and made to last. Attractive, wood grain in black with a satin finish. I bought the complete set in the CS series, 225 Center, 26B satellites, powered sub and powered it with a cheapo Yamaha 5.1. We use the xbox for DVD's and CD's with a docking station for the iPod. Whole thing was under $800 including all the cables (monoprice is amazing for cables, great service, quality and value!).

These are essentially identical in specs to the CS 26B's. I wanted floors to replace the cheap Denon's that came with my old system. Theses speakers are weighty and feel solid. The reviews are correct that the nominal amount of increase in audio clarity as compared to the huge jump in price is not a value for everybody, including me. Sure there are other speakers that LOOK sharper but that's not too important to me. The cherry finish seems difficult to come by and I believe Boston Acoustic has discontinued the line expect for the black. Too bad.

Bottom Line: Outstanding value for the entry level music lover who needs loud, great sounding full music listening with plenty of bass, excellent highs and decent mids. Awesome for TV's and movies too.

I can't believe people are complaining about the sound quality of these speakers. For the price they can't be beat. I own a pair of polk audio rti8's and I acually like the sound of these speakers better. Not as harsh and the bass seems more accurate and not as punchy. People have to keep in mind what they are spending and what they are getting. For the money well worth it.

After spending almost 2 months on speaker research - scouring AVS Forum, driving to ht/audio shops and often dragging the wife along and listening to Paradigm, Atlantic Tech, some DefTech, PSB, B&W, Energy and few more I was quite confused. The more I knew, the less I liked the fact that my room acoustics would not get me the kind of sound I wanted after spending a whole lot. I finally lowered my price range. Finally I bought speakers I never got to listen to (nobody carried the CS series). I did get it for a 3.1 system (w/ a CS225C center and a ED sub). The speakers are great for the price - not too much bass - but a good sub helps. There were almost no reviews around the time I got them - Jan '09. Paid $316 for the LR pair. WAF factor is not too high.

Good quality speakers for the price. Not much midrange. Speakers were deilivered damaged by UPS (Vann's seller through Amazon). Double boxing would have helped.

The speakers sound very good. I had a JBL ES90BK which cost almost double and they didn't sound as good as the BA. I paired them with my Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver and the sound is amazing. It's a real bargain for this price.

I got a pair of this speakers at price of $99 each. It sounds very good, no matter for movies or music. Good base, and tremble. For those music/movie lovers but have tight budget, this is the best choice! Don't look at other brands.

I'm very happy with Boston Acoustics CS226B speakers. I've been a BA fan for years & amazon offered them at a great price. They have a neutral/warm tone & reproduce sound effortlessly & accurately.

Just an update (9/23/2011): the BAs are finally broken-in after about 25-30 hours listening. They serve as the fronts in my 5.0 HT. A very profound improvement in low bass response almost as though I added a subwoofer which I haven't yet. I still believe that although there are finer speakers on the market they offer a great bang for your buck. I wanted to add these remarks to remind others of the very real importance of allowing speakers to break-in. I find it sad when I read comments from speaker buyers who open the box, hook up their new speakers, don' t like what they hear, and return them. Be patient! Most, if not all, speakers need a break-in period. I'm currently waiting for my new Cambridge Audio S-30 speakers to settle in as part of my 2.1 music only system.

Bostons CS26 floorstanding speakers, what can I say,it's Boston, they rock out on a 2 channel system or work great for fronts in 5.1 system. These are a great set of speakers if you are on a mid-budget,I may sound a little crazy, but I had the chance to listen and compare them to some higher mid-budget speakers from Monitor Audio and Paradigm and the Bostons held there ground, I was impressed, if you get a chance to, give them a listen, you won't be disappointed. I purchased thru Amazon due to great pricing and free shipping, rock on !!!!!!!