Although other companies have made headway in starting to break into their space, I think everyone would still agree that Bose is still viewed by the general public as the King of Sound. They seemed to come out of virtually nowhere back in the 90’s, when they first hit the scene in a big, big way. They are one of many great speaker companies who hail from the Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, area, this being due to the fact of such great schools like MIT and Harvard being anchored there. In fact, I believe it is still true to this day that all MIT students get a generous discount on all their Bose speakers because the founder went to school there.
Anyway, I digress. Here we are going to take a look at Bose’ offering of ceiling speakers, and we will ask the question: is Bose still king? Are they still getting it right, even in the small space of in wall or in ceiling sound systems?
One can’t help but notice the perfectly named Virtually Invisible 191 series that this company has now put out there. It is everyone’s dream to have invisible speakers. I know because it is my dream, too. I love how the music and sound and movie sound effects can just surprise the heck out of you. Many times Bose has caused me to ask of a sound: where is that coming from!?
The Virtually Invisibles blend right into your ceiling. They don’t stick out at all; they are flush, as the saying goes. They are billed as delivering a very wide or dispersed sound. But this is a dispersion that is spacious, not watered down. Whatever you play through them will sort of seem to be everywhere all around you. Most people don’t realize that this is the much better way to enjoy entertainment. A simple, typical TV speaker, say, will only come to you from the direction of the television itself, cutting down on the reality factor of whatever program one might be watching. We have it so ingrained in us to discount this factor that we forget what the true purpose of entertainment is in the first place: to make us think it is real and to take us on a ride. So in this regard, Bose Virtually Invisible ceiling speakers have got things way right. They will surround you.
The 191’s will also allow easy play from both a surround system and the stereo, covering all bases. It is really important to make sure that your ceiling speakers are going to actually have the capability to handle whatever input you are planning on feeding through them. It is equally important that they handle that input with a real deftness; nothing less should be tolerated in this post expansion era in the industry. Believe me, these guys know how to manufacture an amazing speaker for a lot less than they ever could before. Make sure you feel you are getting a good value for your dollar and you will never regret your purchase. These are really great pieces of technology.