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Engineering and Intuition Serving the Soul of Music Perkins Electro-Acoustic Research Lab, Inc.
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'Mus|c |s your exper|ence,
your thoughts, your w|sdom.
lf you don`t ||ve |t, |t won`t
come out of your horn.`
Ohar||e Parker
||v|ng mus|c
Mus|c |s the most powerfu| of a|| art forms |n
|ts ab|||ty to exc|te the emot|ons, qu|cken the
heartbeat and |nsp|re the senses. ||tt|e wonder,
then, that ||sten|ng to mus|c, and |n part|cu|ar
recorded mus|c, has become such an |mportant
part of our ||ves, whatever our mus|ca|
preferences.
At B&W, mus|c |s our very reason for be|ng
and our m|ss|on, as a company, |s to ach|eve
abso|ute perfect|on |n sound reproduct|on. We
be||eve that a h|gh f|de||ty |oudspeaker shou|d
be to the ear what a f|aw|ess pane of g|ass can
be to the eye: the sound |mage shou|d be ab|e
to pass through |t und|storted, fa|thfu| |n every
deta|| to the |ntegr|ty of the or|g|na|.
So we|come to the wor|d of B&W: a wor|d
where mus|c |s our |nsp|rat|on, where truthfu|
sound |s our pass|on, and where our purpose
|s to offer |overs of mus|c the chance to
exper|ence a|| the emot|ons and sensat|ons
|nsp|red by a ||ve performance, exact|y as
recorded, w|th noth|ng added and noth|ng
taken away.
Over the past 30 years, the name B&W has
become synonymous w|th h|gh-f|de||ty
|oudspeakers of the f|nest qua||ty, from affordab|e
compact speaker systems to the most
soph|st|cated, hand-crafted co||ectors` p|eces.
We are the wor|d`s |ead|ng manufacturer of
top qua||ty record|ng stud|o mon|tors and our
Matr|x

=801 mon|tor |s so h|gh|y regarded that

|t |s used |n more than e|ghty per cent of a||
record|ngs of c|ass|ca| mus|c - the most
demand|ng sound to reproduce because of
|ts natura|, unprocessed nature.
B&W sc|ent|sts and eng|neers work c|ose|y
w|th teams from record|ng |ndustry g|ants such
as EMl, Decca and Deutsche-Grammophon and
our |oudspeakers are |nsta||ed |n famous
record|ng stud|os throughout the wor|d, |nc|ud|ng
the prest|g|ous Abbey Road Stud|os |n |ondon,
Eng|and.
Benef|t|ng from th|s exper|ence B&W
eng|neers are cont|nu|ng the|r re|ent|ess quest
for the truthfu| reproduct|on of recorded mus|c,
that has been the |nsp|rat|on ever s|nce John
Bowers founded the company |n 1966.
|ead|ng the wor|d
Transparent mus|ca||ty:
B&W`s Naut||us

|oudspeaker,
p|ctured |eft}, dur|ng a
record|ng sess|on at Decca
K. The Naut||us

|s B&W`s
state of the art |oudspeaker
and features a huge three
d|mens|ona| soundstage,
a seam|ess u|tra-w|de
bandw|dth, very h|gh speed,
exce||ent dynam|cs and u|tra-
h|gh reso|ut|on. Rev|ewers
have descr|bed |t as 'the best
|oudspeaker that money
can buy`.
B&W`s f|rst |oudspeaker
was the P1 profess|ona|,
|aunched |n 1966. lt was
qu|ck|y fo||owed by the P2,
p|ctured here, wh|ch caused
w|despread d|scuss|on |n the
aud|o |ndustry. lts crossover
techno|ogy became a B&W
trademark and, a|most
overn|ght, rave rev|ews
ensued. Even at th|s ear|y
stage, every B&W mon|tor
was |nd|v|dua||y tested for
|ts frequency response and
was |ssued w|th a ca||brat|on
cert|f|cate - a revo|ut|onary
concept |n those days.
By the t|me the next mode|,
the P2H, was |aunched, the
B&W marque was a|ready
estab||shed as the s|gn of an
accomp||shed |oudspeaker
manufacturer.
The DM70 was B&W`s f|rst
|oudspeaker made ent|re|y
|n-house. Ha||ed as a break-
through |n speaker des|gn, |t
featured a mov|ng co|| un|t for
the bass dr|ver, cross|ng over
at 400Hz |nto an 11-modu|e,
e|ectrostat|c m|drange/h|gh
frequency un|t. Sound and
des|gn were rapturous|y
rece|ved:
`a masterwork |n the f|e|d of
modern e|ectro-acoust|cs
and a m||estone of deve|op-
ment for the next decade`,
dec|ared Germany`s Funk
Techn|k magaz|ne. The DM70
won a spec|a| ment|on from
the Br|t|sh Oounc|| of lndustr|a|
Des|gn and so|d to 25
countr|es wor|dw|de.
The future past
The DM70 was descr|bed at the t|me as `a
m||estone of deve|opment for the next decade.`
F|ve years |ater, B&W |aunched the DM6, the
K`s f|rst ||near phase |oudspeaker wh|ch a|so
featured the f|rst B&W Kev|ar

cone} and
|n 1979 came the start of the phenomena| =801
mon|tor, forerunner of B&W`s current range of
advanced |oudspeakers and an |mportant step
on the road to our state of the art |oudspeaker,
the B&W Naut||us

.
The DM6, Br|ta|n`s f|rst `||near
phase` |oudspeaker, was
|aunched by B&W |n 1975 and
soon became one of the most
emu|ated |oudspeaker des|gns
ever produced. lts un|que,
step-fronted baff|e evo|ved
from the ||near phase concept,
where the acoust|c centres of
the dr|ve un|ts were p|aced |n
the same vert|ca| p|ane.
The DM6 a|so featured a
revo|ut|onary crossover
network and an exc|t|ng new
mater|a| for the m|drange
dr|ver cone: woven Kev|ar

,
a man-made f|bre |nvented by
DuPont. H|-F| News ca||ed the
DM6 sound `sat|sfy|ng, unt|r|ng,
natura|...w|thout any f|aw.`
The Matr|x

Esoter|c ser|es,
|aunched |n 1986, was
the f|rst to |ncorporate
B&W`s ce|ebrated Matr|x

construct|on. The B&W =801,
|aunched |n 1979, adopted the
Matr|x

construct|on |n 1986
- a cruc|a| step |n |ts progress
towards becom|ng the aud|o
|ndustry`s stud|o reference
|oudspeaker.
The ear|y Matr|x

cab|nets
were bu||t round a s|mp|e
structure of |nter|ock|ng ce||s,
each des|gned as a perfect
anecho|c, or echo-free,
chamber. The same ser|es a|so
|ntroduced a|um|n|um-domed
tweeters and a homopo|ymer
bass dr|ver cone.
lnnovat|on has a|ways been the ha||mark of
B&W. The f|rst B&W des|gn, the P1 Profess|ona|,
featured a new type of crossover un|t created
by John Bowers |n 1966 and the P2, wh|ch
fo||owed |t |n 1967, rece|ved ecstat|c rev|ews.
`lt approaches the |dea| that everyone |s seek|ng
- perfect|on,` enthused the mus|c magaz|ne,
Gramophone. Two years |ater, |n 1969,
B&W |aunched the DM70 ser|es, made ent|re|y
|n-house and |ncorporat|ng B&W`s f|rst
e|ectrostat|c transducers.
One of the reasons why B&W has been ab|e
to set the pace for the wor|d`s h|gh f|de||ty
aud|o |ndustry ||es |n our be||ef that exce||ence
|n des|gn and eng|neer|ng |s poss|b|e on|y as
a resu|t of p|oneer|ng research. Some of our
|nvent|ons have been overtaken by t|me, but
many are st||| |n use today - most notab|y
the B&W Kev|ar

cone, the separate tweeter

hous|ng and the Matr|x

cab|net construct|on.
New |deas com|ng |nto p|ay |nc|ude ho||ow
po|e magnets, exponent|a| transm|ss|on-||ne
p|pes and comp||ant shock mounts - each a
soph|st|cated advance |n the search for pure,
und|storted sound.
The future present
The B&W Naut||us

uses
an externa| crossover, |eft,
to d|v|de the s|gna| from the
preamp||f|er |nto four separate
bandw|dths. Externa|, or
`act|ve`, crossover networks
are e|ectron|ca||y h|gh|y
accurate.
B&W has p|oneered the use
of ho||ow po|e magnets to
m|n|mse back ref|ect|ons
beh|nd the dome. The
magnets are made from
neodym|um, |ron and boron
and are extreme|y powerfu|
for the|r s|ze.
B&W`s patented method of
us|ng Kev|ar

for |oudspeaker
cones, |eft, has been a major
factor |n reduc|ng unwanted
stand|ng waves |n the
d|aphragm. Kev|ar

was
created by DuPont as a
mater|a| for bu||et-proof vests.
B&W has made |t one of the
best-sound|ng mater|a|s for
h|-f| speaker cones.
The homopo|ymer Oobex

bass dr|ver cone, above,
and the e|||pso|da| tweeter
hous|ng, |eft, are both B&W
|nnovat|ons. The bu||et-shaped
tweeter hous|ng made |ts f|rst
appearance on the acc|a|med
B&W S||ver S|gnature.
Two famous B&W names:
the patented Matr|x

system,
|eft, and the Matr|x

=801
Ser|es 3, above. The ce||s |n
the B&W Matr|x

are f|||ed w|th

acoust|c mater|a| to create a
ser|es of anecho|c, or echo-
free, chambers.
ln the search for aud|o exce||ence, B&W has
never sh|ed away from |nvest|gat|ng the unusua|
or the avant-garde. From the or|g|na| stepped
baff|e of the DM6 to the coo| modern|ty of the
Emphas|s, p|ctured oppos|te, B&W`s po||cy has
been to exp|ore every poss|b|e avenue |n the
pursu|t of accurate sound reproduct|on.
Over the years, the search for transparent,
`unco|oured` sound, has a||owed our eng|neers
to fo||ow numerous |eads, some end|ng |n
d|sappo|ntment, others open|ng up further areas
of research and a|| of them gradua||y add|ng to
our know|edge and expert|se.
At one po|nt, for examp|e, our energ|es were
concentrated on deve|op|ng d|po|e or back|ess
|oudspeakers, where rearward-trave|||ng sound
waves cou|d rad|ate free|y away from the dr|ve
un|ts. At h|gh and m|drange frequenc|es, sound
tends to trave| |n a beam, front and back, and
rearward-trave|||ng sound waves somet|mes
rebound off |nterna| cab|net surfaces}.
Break|ng the mou|d
An |nverted horn becomes a
cab|net for B&W`s |nvent|ve
Emphas|s |oudspeaker, shown
oppos|te. The meta|-domed
tweeter |s housed |n |ts own
pod, attached to the horn by a
short stem. The bass-m|drange
dr|ve un|t benef|ts from the use
of a Kev|ar

cone.
But the back|ess d|po|e soon proved
unsat|sfactory. Desp|te a var|ety of |nvent|ve
baff|es, wh|ch ranged from med|eva| sun shapes
to ls|am|c-sty|e screens, ||steners cou|d a|ways
|dent|fy the cone mater|a|s used |n the dr|ve
un|ts.
Then came the breakthrough - the resu|t of an
exemp|ary p|ece of |atera| th|nk|ng. Wh||e work|ng
on prototypes for the Naut||us

|oudspeaker,
the eng|neers dec|ded to exper|ment w|th a
trad|t|ona| shape, fam|||ar for centur|es: the p|a|n,
taper|ng horn. On|y |n th|s case, a horn wh|ch
|s used not to transm|t sound but to absorb |t.
A touch of gen|us: computer-
a|ded techn|ques are essent|a|
for des|gn|ng the exact spec|-
f|cat|ons of a modern h|-f|
|oudspeaker, but trad|t|ona|
mode|-mak|ng |s |mportant too
- espec|a||y |n the ear|y stages
of deve|op|ng new prototypes.
P|ctured here are some of the
components wh|ch were used,
d|scarded or adapted dur|ng
the three year process of
creat|ng the B&W Naut||us

.
Tak|ng shape: the outcome of
or|g|na| research |s beg|nn|ng
to show |n th|s ear|y, sma||-
sca|e mode| for the Naut||us

,
p|ctured |eft. The four dr|vers -
at th|s stage, a tweeter, two
treb|es and a bass - are
a|ready |n p|ace, though the
bass |s h|dden beh|nd the
fasc|a, and the pr|nc|p|e of a
softened pyram|d shape |s
emerg|ng |n the hous|ng for
the top three dr|ve un|ts. Ear|y
transm|ss|on-||ne p|pes f|ow
to the rear.
F|ower|ng br|ef|y: the parabo||c
peta| shapes and the massed,
screen-mounted dr|ver cones,
shown |n the top row, were
part of ear|y exper|ments |nto
d|po|e, or back|ess, |oudspeak-
ers. But d|po|es soon proved
to be on|y a part|a| so|ut|on
because ||steners cou|d |dent|fy
the spec|f|c mater|a|s used for
the dr|ver cones.
Hous|ng the dr|vers: p|ctured
|n the m|dd|e row are an ear|y
co||ed duct for the Naut||us

bass dr|ve un|t and a var|ety
of d|scarded speaker
components, |nc|ud|ng some
a|um|n|um upper-m|drange
domes. B&W`s a|um|n|um-
domed tweeter made |ts f|rst
appearance |n the =800 ser|es,
but exper|ments carr|ed out
dur|ng the deve|opment of the
Naut||us

showed that a|| four

dr|vers cou|d be made w|th
a|um|n|um cones and domes.
An unusua| shape:
|oudspeaker enc|osures
have a|ways tended to be
rectangu|ar |n shape, but
|n deve|op|ng the Naut||us

,
B&W eng|neers found that
curved ducts and rounded
surfaces make an |mportant
contr|but|on towards
e||m|nat|ng cab|net resonance.
A new prof||e
for the Naut||us:
a curv|ng she||
shape houses
the 300mm bass
dr|ver, whose
magnet we|ghs
9.5kg 21|bs}.
Pos|t|oned above
the bass, |n
a curvaceous
pyram|d, are the
top three dr|vers:
a 25mm
a|um|n|um-domed
tweeter, a 50mm
a|um|n|um-domed
treb|e or upper
m|drange dr|ver,
and a 100mm
f|at-fronted |ower
m|drange dr|ver.
The |atter |s un|que
to B&W: the f|at
front concea|s a
|ayer of acoust|c
foam wh|ch f|||s |n
the cav|ty of the
a|um|n|um cone
dr|ver. The add|t|on
of a f|at front he|ps
to prevent the
m|drange cone
from re-rad|at|ng
sound waves from
the upper
m|d-range dr|ver.
A|| three dr|vers
operate
as perfect p|stons
w|th|n the|r own
frequency band:
together, they
produce seam|ess,
accurate sound.
A new prof||e for the Naut||us

:
a curv|ng she|| shape houses
the 300mm bass dr|ver, whose
magnet we|ghs 9.5kg 21|bs}.
Pos|t|oned above the bass, |n
a curvaceous pyram|d, are the
top three dr|vers: a 25mm
a|um|n|um-domed tweeter, a
50mm a|um|n|um-domed treb|e
or upper m|drange dr|ver, and
a 100mm f|at-fronted |ower
m|drange dr|ver.
The |atter |s un|que to B&W:
the f|at front concea|s a |ayer
of acoust|c foam wh|ch f|||s
|n the cav|ty of the a|um|n|um
cone dr|ver. The add|t|on of
a f|at front he|ps to prevent
the m|drange cone from
re-rad|at|ng sound waves
from the upper m|d-range
dr|ver.
A|| three dr|vers operate as
perfect p|stons w|th|n the|r
own frequency band: together,
they produce seam|ess,
accurate sound.
At h|gh and m|drange
frequenc|es, sound tends to
trave| |n a beam, front and
back. ln the Naut||us

,
exponent|a||y taper|ng wave-
gu|de p|pes a|so known as
transm|ss|on-||ne p|pes} are
f|||ed w|th damp|ng woo| to
prevent a|| unwanted rear
rad|at|on of sound.
B&W eng|neers used
computer-a|ded des|gn
techn|ques to ensure the
mathemat|ca| accuracy
of the wave-gu|des.
The art of d|scovery
B&W`s reputat|on for or|g|na| research |s w|de|y
revered throughout the aud|o |ndustry. Our
teams of sc|ent|sts and aud|o eng|neers enjoy
the freedom to exp|ore new |deas as they ar|se,
often regard|ess of cost.
Th|s po||cy of open-ended research has |ed
to severa| of the advances now |ncorporated
|nto the B&W Naut||us

: |n part|cu|ar, the
comb|nat|on of ho||ow po|e, rare earth magnets
and the d|st|nct|ve, horn-shaped transm|ss|on-
||ne p|pes.
The two are |nextr|cab|y ||nked and arose
from a moment of d|scovery. ln an attempt to
get r|d of unwanted cab|net resonance around
the upper m|drange dr|ve un|t, B&W eng|neers
dec|ded to use a rare earth magnet whose po|e
p|ece cou|d be ho||owed out to create extra
space, free|ng the path for rearward-trave|||ng
sound waves.
But |n|t|a| tests showed that the dr|ve un|t`s
pear-shaped enc|osure wou|d then produce
an unacceptab|y sharp peak |n the response,
known as a h|gh `O` resonance. By rep|ac|ng the
pear-shape w|th an |nverted horn, the prob|em
d|sappeared.
The resu|ts have proved remarkab|e. The
comb|nat|on of an acoust|ca||y transparent
magnet and an exponent|a||y tapered horn
absorbs v|rtua||y a|| rearward rad|at|on of sound -
creat|ng the nearest th|ng yet to an |nf|n|te baff|e.
B&W eng|neers chose rare
earth magnets for the tweeter
and m|drange dr|vers on the
Naut||us

. The magnets are

made from neodym|um, |ron
and boron and the ho||owed-
out po|e p|ece |s un|que to our
top of the range |oudspeakers.
Ho||ow|ng out the po|e p|ece
creates space for rearward-
trave|||ng sound waves to
pass through the magnet.
Another Naut||us

|nnovat|on
has been to re|nforce the r|m
of the tweeter dome w|th
carbon f|bre: th|s s|mp|e step
ra|ses the f|rst break-up mode
by a stagger|ng 30 per cent,
push|ng |t up to tw|ce the ||m|t
of aud|b|||ty.
pred|ct|on of how the component parts of
a |oudspeaker w||| perform - separate|y or
together.
Measurement techn|ques |nc|ude co|our-
coded |mpu|se scans, wh|ch show how sound
waves behave when rad|at|ng outwards from
a cone or dome, we have deve|oped three-
d|mens|ona| `d|e-away` p|ots, wh|ch ana|yse
patterns of stored energy wh|ch cont|nues to
rad|ate after a sound wave has passed. We
can even measure sound patterns |n the a|r
around |oudspeakers, and we have p|oneered
d|g|ta| s|gna| process|ng to ana|yse crossover
performance and `on-ax|s` response.
F|na||y, we ca|| on subject|ve ||sten|ng tests.
Our team of experts ana|yse the performance of
B&W |oudspeakers |n a var|ety of domest|c and
stud|o sett|ngs, a||ow|ng us to f|ne-tune each new
mode| to create the un|que B&W exper|ence.
The sc|ence of sound
Oo|our-coded |aser scans
revea| the d|fference |n per-
formance between Naut||us

dr|ve un|ts, |||ustrated oppos|te,
and a typ|ca| bass/m|d-range
p|ast|c cone, above. Note the
perfect d|str|but|on of the
Naut||us

sound waves,
measured by unbroken bands
of co|our a|ong the s|de of the
p|ot, compared w|th the peaks
and troughs of the p|ast|c
cone.
v|s|tors to B&W`s Research Estab||shment |n
Steyn|ng, K, often compare |t to a un|vers|ty
department, set apart, as |t |s, from our day-
to-day manufactur|ng operat|ons. lndeed, our
`n|vers|ty of Sound` |s w|de|y regarded as one
of the most soph|st|cated aud|o |aborator|es |n
Europe, home to a research and deve|opment
team of 22 g|fted sc|ent|sts, eng|neers and
techn|c|ans. The|r work has enab|ed B&W to
deve|op some of the wor|d`s most advanced
measurement and forecast|ng techn|ques for
|oudspeaker des|gn.
Our system of |aser-dopp|er ve|oc|metry, for
examp|e, a||ows us to measure, down to 1/3000
of a m||||metre, the v|brat|on of a |oudspeaker
cone or dome B&W was the f|rst h|-f| company
|n the wor|d to adopt th|s techn|que}. We have
a|so deve|oped computer-a|ded `f|n|te e|ement
ana|ys|s` programs, wh|ch enab|e us to bu||d
dr|ve un|ts, step by step, based on an accurate
One of the prob|ems wh|ch emerged dur|ng the
|ong des|gn process for the Naut||us
TM
was how
to hand|e the bass enc|osure. B&W eng|neers
had a|ready d|scovered the transm|ss|on-||ne
pr|nc|p|e for the top three dr|vers but or|g|na||y
thought that a c|osed box wou|d be f|ne for
the bass.
But ||sten|ng tests showed a d|scont|nu|ty
between the bass and the other three dr|ve
un|ts. To match the son|c pur|ty of the tweeter,
the treb|e and the m|drange dr|ver, the bass a|so
needed a wave-gu|de p|pe - and th|s created
a d||emma. The |ow frequency requ|rement
d|ctated a non-taper|ng p|pe 300mm |n
d|ameter and three metres |ong g|v|ng a tota|
cub|c measurement of 200 ||tres} - c|ear|y an
|mpract|ca| so|ut|on.
|earn|ng from nature
So |t was back to the draw|ng board - and,
|n the|r re|ent|ess pursu|t of true sound, the B&W
research team came up w|th another of B&W`s
great techn|ca| advances. Exper|ments showed
that a cur|ed-up horn-shape wou|d perform
exact|y as requ|red but wou|d occupy a much
sma||er vo|ume than a stra|ghtforward p|pe.
The 200 ||tres cou|d be reduced to |ess than
120 ||tres, w|th no |oss of performance.
ln fact, |aboratory tests, |||ustrated |eft,
show an |nherent advantage |n a curved shape.
A v|brat|ng ba|| |mmersed |n water produces
outward-rad|at|ng waves, s|m||ar |n pattern
to sound waves, wh|ch vary |n ref|ect|on
accord|ng to the shape of an enc|osure. The
square-shaped enc|osure shows a h|gh |eve| of
|nterference, wh||e the curved edge produces
no d|scern|b|e |nterference at a||: the waves
propagate outwards a|ong the tube w|thout
ref|ect|on.
B&W`s search for the best poss|b|e qua||ty |n
product|on means that we devote a great dea|
of t|me and care to spec|fy|ng mater|a|s and
components - and then to f|nd|ng su|tab|e
spec|a||sts to make them.
For examp|e, we use on|y a part|cu|ar
grade of d|e-cast a|um|n|um for our chass|s
components whereas other compan|es w|||
somet|mes opt for m||d stee|, wh|ch |s cheaper},
we order a spec|a| grade of s||ver for encas|ng
the w|r|ng |n some of our cab|es, and we f|nd
the best spec|a||st manufacturers to make our
cab|nets and she||s.
For the Naut||us

body, for |nstance, we

have engaged the serv|ces of Raceprep, a
spec|a||st company wh|ch |s expert |n the
formu|at|on of f|bre-re|nforced compos|tes.
Raceprep |s we|| known |n the Formu|a One
rac|ng car |ndustry, where components and
mater|a|s are ||fe-cr|t|ca| and standards are
correspond|ng|y h|gh}.
Mater|a| perfect|on
Because of |ts comp|ex shape, Raceprep
eng|neers make the Naut||us

she|| a|most
ent|re|y by hand, us|ng a res|n wh|ch has been
|dent|f|ed by computer ana|ys|s as perfect for
|ts purpose - ensur|ng max|mum strength and
durab|||ty.
The same attent|on to deta|| has been
app||ed to the f|n|sh for the Naut||us

she||.
B&W`s pa|nt and |acquer system |s |mported
d|rect|y from Germany, where |t |s supp||ed on|y
to the |ead|ng names |n the |uxury car |ndustry,
such as Porsche and Mercedes Benz. To ensure
the best poss|b|e resu|t for B&W, adv|sers from
the pa|nt manufacturer formu|ated a spec|a|
bak|ng and cur|ng process, un|que to the
Naut||us

.
Need|ess to say, perfect|on|sm of th|s k|nd
means that mak|ng a Naut||us

cab|net |s a s|ow
and pa|nstak|ng process - |t takes n|ne days,
|nc|ud|ng cur|ng t|me, to make just
one she||.
The Naut||us

she|| |s a|| hand-

made, except for two parts:
the |nterna| sp|ra| wh|ch s|ts
|ns|de the she||`s g|eam|ng
exter|or and a dua|-purpose
bo|t, wh|ch anchors the she||
to |ts p||nth and prov|des a con-
du|t for w|r|ng from the power
amp||f|ers.
Fo||ow|ng pages: a sk|||ed pa|nt
f|n|sher app||es a f|na| coat of
|acquer to the Naut||us

she||.
Twe|ve d|fferent app||cat|ons
conta|n|ng a|um|n|um and m|ca
part|c|es g|ve the Naut||us

|ts
stunn|ng f|n|sh.
B&W`s |egendary reputat|on has been created
not on|y by techn|ca| exce||ence and ground-
break|ng research, but a|so by the ded|cat|on
of our workforce and the|r comm|tment to
ach|ev|ng the best poss|b|e manufactur|ng
standards.
Over the years, B&W has bu||t up a team
of h|gh|y sk|||ed peop|e, who use a m|x of hand-
assemb|y techn|ques and sem|-automat|c
product|on processes to make our dr|ve un|t
components - a comb|nat|on wh|ch g|ves us
speed and f|ex|b|||ty when |t comes to produc|ng
new prototypes or mak|ng comp||cated parts.
lt a|so means that we can ach|eve wor|d c|ass
|eve|s of qua||ty |n manufactur|ng.
For examp|e, a|| B&W vo|ce co||s are wet
wound w|th h|gh temperature res|n and then
baked |n a spec|a| oven to ensure enhanced
performance and durab|||ty. `Wet-w|nd|ng` |s a
t|me-consum|ng process and some manufac-
turers see |t as uncommerc|a| and unnecessary.
At B&W, we be||eve |t to be an essent|a| step |n
ach|ev|ng the k|nd of qua||ty and re||ab|||ty for
wh|ch our |oudspeakers are renowned.
Sound work
Oua||ty |n the mak|ng:
B&W product|on eng|neers,
p|ctured |eft, |nsert a bass
dr|ve un|t |nto the Naut||us

she||. Ohass|s for the heavy
bass dr|ver are |nd|v|dua||y
sand-cast to ach|eve the
requ|red aerodynam|c shape.
The 300mm dr|ver
|ncorporates a 9.5kg 21|b}
magnet and a 100mm four
|nch} vo|ce co|| and |s capab|e
of hand||ng 500w.
Our comm|tment to the best means that qua||ty
procedures are bu||t |n to a|| stages of product|on
of a B&W |oudspeaker, from |nd|v|dua| test|ng of
each bought-|n component to r|gorous checks
at every stage of our own product|on ||ne and a
f|na| test of every f|n|shed assemb|y.
ln the case of the Naut||us

, each |oudspeaker
|s then aud|t|oned before |t rece|ves |ts f|na| sea|
of approva|.
By the end of the process, everyone who has
contr|buted towards mak|ng, test|ng and check|ng
our |oudspeakers |s named on the B&W qua||ty
cert|f|cate - an |mportant e|ement |n recogn|s|ng
the ded|cat|on of our product|on teams.
We a|so be||eve |n pub||sh|ng our measurements.
B&W`s top of the range |oudspeakers are
de||vered w|th a comprehens|ve range of
documents, g|v|ng prec|se deta||s of each
speaker`s overa|| performance and the t|me
and date of test|ng.
Documents accompany|ng the Naut||us

|nc|ude performance p|ots for a|| four dr|ve un|ts,
show|ng the|r near-f|e|d response and the|r
dev|at|on |n sound pressure |eve|s from the
|aboratory standard. The overa|| acoust|c dev|at|on
for the Naut||us

|s |ess than ha|f a dec|be| and

th|s |s corrected by the e|ectron|c crossover.
A f|na| aud|t|on
Each Naut||us

|s aud|t|oned
before |ts qua||ty cert|f|cate |s
s|gned. ||sten|ng tests are
carr|ed out |n a w|de var|ty of
domest|c sett|ngs as part of
the B&W des|gn process.
A dr|ve un|t for the Naut||us

|s aud|t|oned m|d-way through
the manufactur|ng process.
Deta||s of the test are |nc|uded
|n the ||terature wh|ch
accompan|es each f|n|shed
B&W |oudspeaker.
The B&W Naut||us

has been greeted wor|dw|de

as an outstand|ng |oudspeaker wh|ch w||| shape
the d|rect|on of the aud|o |ndustry we|| |nto the
next m|||enn|um.
A|ready sought after by cognoscente, |t
has been been unashamed|y des|gned w|th
the ser|ous aud|oph||e |n m|nd, not on|y because
of |ts s|ze and shape but a|so because of |ts
`act|ve` des|gn - the crossover network |s
pos|t|oned between the pre and power
amp||f|ers.
Th|s means that a fu|| Naut||us

system
needs one stereo pre-amp||f|er and e|ght
monob|oc or four stereo} power amp||f|ers
per pa|r amp||f|ers of 100w upwards are
recommended, w|th 500w be|ng opt|mum for
the |ow frequency dr|ve un|t}.
W|th a|| four dr|vers act|ng as perfect p|stons
w|th|n the|r a||otted frequency bands, the
Naut||us

|s ab|e to create a tru|y seam|ess,

three-d|mens|ona| sound stage, accurate|y
reproduc|ng a|| the fundamenta| frequenc|es
and a fu|| spectrum of overtones r|ght across
the aud|o band, together w|th a|| the spat|a|
and t|me d|fferences p|cked up |n a ||ve
performance.
Redef|n|ng aud|o
The Naut||us

|s named after
the sea-creature and shares
|ts she||-shaped structure.
But un||ke |ts namesake, wh|ch
measures on|y 22cm or |ess,
the B&W Naut||us

stands
more than a metre h|gh and
we|ghs a m|ghty 110kg 242
|bs}, |nc|ud|ng the p||nth. The
curved, retro sty||ng of the
enc|osure was created by
des|gner A||son R|sby. The
p||nth |s made of terrazzo-sty|e
mater|a|, po||shed to a
g|eam|ng f|n|sh.
As an act|ve |oudspeaker, the Naut||us

re||es
on an externa| crossover network, |||ustrated
oppos|te, to f||ter the s|gna| from the pre-
amp||f|er to the power amp||f|ers and then to
the dr|ve un|ts. Th|s means that the Naut||us

network, because |t hand|es `|ow |eve|` s|gna|s,
can be eng|neered from components wh|ch are
capab|e of a h|gher degree of accuracy than
those used |n a pass|ve system.
lt a|so means that B&W |s ab|e to ach|eve
||near phase f||ter|ng at each of the three
crossover po|nts: the |ow-pass f||ter g|ves a
fourth-order Besse| acoust|c response wh|ch |s
then subtracted from the a||-pass f||ter to prov|de
the h|gh pass f||ter. Th|s a||ows the Naut||us

to ach|eve an a|most perfect t|me-a||gnment of
the var|ous dr|ver s|gna|s and a `max|ma||y f|at`
frequency response of p|us or m|nus ha|f
a dec|be| through the crossover.
Naut||us

crossover networks |nc|ude

components wh|ch have been hand-made.
The networks are |nd|v|dua||y
f|ne-tuned to mod|fy dr|ver performance to su|t
||sten|ng room requ|rements, and because B&W
crossovers are carefu||y matched to each dr|ve
un|t, both dr|ver and network can be updated to
keep pace w|th new ref|nements.
Act|ve performance
The four Naut||us

dr|ve un|ts
have been des|gned to operate
effort|ess|y w|th|n the|r own
frequency bands. The vo|ce
co||s are wound on po|ym|de
formers to e||m|nate eddy-
current |osses and a|| four
dr|ve un|ts are `decoup|ed`
from the cab|net wa||s by
comp||ant washers and
O-r|ngs. A un|que rear shock
mount ho|ds the mass|ve
bass dr|ver secure|y |n p|ace,
wh||st st||| a||ow|ng des|rab|e
movement of the chass|s.
As w|th a concept car, some of the deve|opments
featured |n the Naut||us

are a|ready beg|nn|ng to

f||ter down to other speakers |n the B&W product
range.
Yet there rema|n some |nterest|ng avenues
st||| to be exp|ored. Our sc|ent|sts are a|ready
work|ng on ways to deve|op the performance
of the Naut||us

dr|ve un|ts to reduce the|r

number from four to three or |ess. Our cab|net
des|gners are exam|n|ng how to deve|op the
transm|ss|on-||ne pr|nc|p|e |nto a more
convent|ona|, h|gh-f|de||ty furn|ture format -
Trad|t|ona|, rectangu|ar enc|osures w||| rema|n the
cho|ce of many, not on|y for ease of pos|t|on|ng
w|th|n the home but a|so because they cost |ess.
ln fact, research has a|ready shown that
Naut||us

wave-gu|de p|pes do not necessar||y

need to be stra|ght. A deve|opment wh|ch opens
up the poss|b|||ty of a|| four wavegu|de p|pes
be|ng cur|ed up to f|t w|th|n a box, w|thout |oss
of performance or |ncrease |n d|stort|on.
But for aff|c|onados, the Naut||us

w||| be
treasured for what |t |s - a remarkab|e p|ece of
aud|o scu|pture whose form, ||ke a|| great des|gns,
has been d|ctated by |ts funct|on. Hand-made
and produced |n a ||m|ted ed|t|on, the Naut||us

|s dest|ned to become a true co||ector`s |tem.
Shap|ng the future
The B&W Naut||us

|s ava||-
ab|e |n three d|fferent co|ours,
b|ue, s||ver and b|ack. The
pa|ntwork conta|ns a|um|n|um
and m|ca part|c|es, g|v|ng
the Naut||us

|ts d|st|nct|ve
pear|escent effect. Twe|ve
d|fferent app||cat|ons are
|nvo|ved and the f|na| f|n|sh
conta|ns an u|tra-v|o|et
||ght screen to protect the
Naut||us

co|our.
ln the search for transparency of sound, the
Naut||us

represents a true aud|o m|rac|e. lt

can on|y be ||m|ted or co|oured by the source,
amp||f|ers and cab|es, w|thout any co|ourat|on
of |ts own.
lt symbo||ses a|| the qua||t|es of |nnovat|on,
ded|cat|on and |ove of mus|c wh|ch have |nsp|red
B&W eng|neers, des|gners and product|on teams
ever s|nce our company was estab||shed over 30
years ago.
A|ready ha||ed as the most mus|ca|
transducer |n the wor|d, the Naut||us

enab|es
the ||stener to hear nuances and subt|e dynam|cs
h|therto unatta|nab|e, offer|ng a |eve| of son|c
accuracy unmatched by any other speaker.
Ava||ab|e, on order, from B&W-approved
dea|ers wor|dw|de, the Naut||us

offers a un|que
chance to hear mus|c exact|y as recorded -
deta||ed, v|brant|y a||ve, fu|| of power and
unh|ndered by speaker d|stort|on or cab|net
d|ffract|on.
||sten and you`|| see!
||sten and you`|| see
Nautilus

is our touchstone: the result of

a groundbreaking, five-year research and
development mission to achieve, as near as
possible, the perfect loudspeaker. The things
we learnt by developing something so new,
so different and so uncompromised have
become our own rules for speaker design,
and have informed every range weve created
since. Thats down to advances in materials,
crossover components and cabling, and to its
pioneering use of tapering tubes in place of
the conventional box cabinet.
Nautilus

What you hear from Nautilus

is as different from ordinary
speakers as what you see. Its
shape and sound were created
by straight and spiralling
tapered tubes filled with
absorbent wadding, designed
to soak up wayward sound
waves from the back of each
drive unit and allow the sound
from the front to reach you
in as pure a state as youre
ever likely to hear. In form and
performance, Nautilus

was
and still is revolutionary.
Midnight Blue Silver Black
Nautilus

Model
Features
Description
Drive units
Frequency range
Dispersion
Crossover frequency
Power amplifier
requirements
Dimensions
Net weight
Standard finishes
Nautilus

Nautilus

tube loading
Active crossover
4-way tube-loaded loudspeaker system
1x 300mm (12 in) aluminium cone bass
1x 100mm (4 in) aluminium/polymer sandwich cone
lower midrange
1x 50mm (2 in) aluminium dome upper midrange
1x 25mm (1 in) aluminium dome high-frequency
-6dB at 10Hz and 25kHz
Within 2dB of response on reference axis
Horizontal: over 60 arc
Vertical: over 10 arc
220Hz, 880Hz, 3.5kHz
4 channels per speaker, rated
100W-300W continous into
8 on unclipped programme
(each channel to have identical gain and phase)
Height: 1210mm (47.6 in)
Width: 430mm (16.9 in)
Depth: 1105mm (43.5 in)
Speaker: 44.5kg (98 lb)
Plinth: 42kg (92 lb)
Total: 86.5kg (190 lb)
Midnight Blue, Black, Silver
Specifications
Verso Filler Page z z
P

B
R

2
7
0
1
B&W Group |td
Da|e Road
Worth|ng West Sussex
BN11 2BH Eng|and
T +44 0} 1903 221800
F +44 0} 1903 221801
|nfo@bwgroup.com
www.bwspeakers.com
B&W Group K Sa|es}
T +44 0} 1903 221 500
E uksa|es@bwgroup.com
B&W Group North Amer|ca
T +1 978 664 2870
E market|ng@bwgroupusa.com
B&W Group As|a
T +852 2 790 8903
E |nfo@bwgroup.hk
Des|gn by Thomas Manss & Oompany, |ondon. Pr|nted by Wace
Oorporate Pr|nt, Poo|e. Pr|nted onto Pr|ncess S||k wh|ch |s TOF
Tota||y Oh|or|ne Free}. Matr|x |s a reg|stered trademark of B&W
Group |td. Kev|ar |s a reg|stered trademark of Dupont. Oobex |s
a reg|stered trademark of Ward|e Storeys |td. B&W Group |td
reserves the r|ght to amend deta||s of the spec|f|cat|on w|thout
not|ce |n ||ne w|th techn|ca| deve|opments.
Oopyr|ght B&W Group |td.