B&W 801 Series 80 protection circuit and spare parts

Plenty of Matrix series speakers around!

If you need to replace tweeters, find some speakers with other problems.

My last pair of 805Hs cost me £120 - so a spare set of tweeters and 805 drivers, tweetr housings etc for my other pair of 805.. for probably less than one NOS Matrix tweeter.

Seriously, there are enough 803,804,805, 802, 801s out there in the world to keep the relatively few people who actually want to listen to them, happy with spare parts availability for their life time..

Other than that, there are some folks selling generic replacement diaphragms on ebay.
 
Series 80 first had cloth domes. Then they were upgraded to a polymer dome material and called "Special" .

Lineage:

Series 80

801
801F (Fibrecrete head cabinet, no longer wood)
801FS (Fibercrete head + plus new polymer tweeter)

There was a hifi dealer newsletter archive available on the internet once, published in the late 80s to 90s and they often talked about the B&W range.

Then comes the Matrix series with the blue metal tweeters.

Matrix 801
801 Matrix Series 2
801 Matrix Series 3

(I point that out because often it seems people think the Series 2 refers to a mkII version of the Series 80.. but no, The Matrix series in all forms was a different range)

At some point there were some very light blue metal tweeters - not sure if these were made as replacements though (have one on a pair of bashed up 805s from a studio).

Hey, just found the news letter resource - the website is still going: https://avahifi.com/pages/audio-basics-newsletters

It was this newsletter that said they thought the polymer dome sounded much better - and despite being a dealer, were sometimes critical of the B&W range, supposed upgrades that weren't etc, advising customers to buy the oldere model etc.. so I guess they were being honest.

Outstanding, thank you! So it's possible I have the 801FS then and the dome is that polymer material. Interesting! They sure do sound nice, though have been through the wringer a bit by the looks.
 
Series 80 first had cloth domes. Then they were upgraded to a polymer dome material and called "Special" .

Lineage:

Series 80

801
801F (Fibrecrete head cabinet, no longer wood)
801FS (Fibercrete head + plus new polymer tweeter)

There was a hifi dealer newsletter archive available on the internet once, published in the late 80s to 90s and they often talked about the B&W range.

Then comes the Matrix series with the blue metal tweeters.

Matrix 801
801 Matrix Series 2
801 Matrix Series 3

(I point that out because often it seems people think the Series 2 refers to a mkII version of the Series 80.. but no, The Matrix series in all forms was a different range)

At some point there were some very light blue metal tweeters - not sure if these were made as replacements though (have one on a pair of bashed up 805s from a studio).

Hey, just found the news letter resource - the website is still going: https://avahifi.com/pages/audio-basics-newsletters

It was this newsletter that said they thought the polymer dome sounded much better - and despite being a dealer, were sometimes critical of the B&W range, supposed upgrades that weren't etc, advising customers to buy the oldere model etc.. so I guess they were being honest.

Indeed, just saw this reference in the 1984 issue:

"Now for some better news. As I previously
reported B&W of England sent me a pair of the
new TSX-80 tweeters for my evaluation in my
801F loudspeakers. I have them installed now
(and they are going to stay installed!). My evaluation,
in a word, WOW! Boy oh boy do I feel
sorry for anyone who sells a set of 801s before
they have heard them with this much improved
tweeter. They are going to be sick when they find
out their 801s could have outplayed anything else
they may have purchased. Our initial evaluation
was made by installing one new tweeter and
comparing the old and new (with a mono source,
of course). No comparison, the system with the
original tweeter sounded simply muddy and muted
(which is really strange as the original tweeter
was noted for its extension and clarity). This is no
small improvement, all attacks, ambiance, dynamics,
and instrumentation are simply clearer,
more intelligible, in a way much like opening a
window and letting fresh air in. Vocals, and the
top end of female voices are both smoother and
more transparent at the same time. Obviously, we
didn’t spend a lot of time agonizing before fitting
the new tweeter in the other 801 of the pair too."

Interesting! Wonder if they put these into the 1985 models?
 
Hello guys.
Stumbled upon this thread after a long search online.
I'm from India and our house was broken into. The woofers of our Series 80 (Model 801) were ripped out of the speakers and stolen. I'm attaching some pictures of the condition of the speakers now.
1. Is it possible to repair them?
2. How can I look for spares online? B&W parts (Encompass) have flatly refused to supply spares for these.

Bowers and Wilkins are super rare in my country. If any forum member could help me with spares and a manual on how to repair the speakers, I would be very grateful. It pains me to see them in this condition. The tweeters and midrange drivers seem OK though.
 

Attachments

  • 1.jpeg
    1.jpeg
    121.7 KB · Views: 29
  • 2.jpeg
    2.jpeg
    127 KB · Views: 30