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Bose Wave Music System - Platinum White | 
 enlarge | Brand: Bose
Category: CE
List Price: $499.00
Buy New: $479.00
You Save: $20.00 (4%)
New (2) from $479.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  46 reviews
Media: Electronics
Shipping Weight (lbs): 8.7
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 14.6 x 4.2
nv: Dimensions: 4.2"H x 14.6"W x 8.6"D (10.6 x 36.8 x 21.9 cm) 8.7 lbs. (3.9 kg)
MPN: 033976
UPC: 017817341875
EAN: 0017817341875
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | A bold new standard in audio performance. It may well become the primary music system in your home | | • | Easy to use: no buttons, credit card-sized infrared remote, and MP3 CD capability | | • | Distinctive and elegant design: streamlined styling with a thin, slot-loaded CD player |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The Wave music system reproduces one-half octave lower musical notes and delivers even greater clarity and definition than the original Wave radio/CD. With its deeper tones and even more lifelike sound, you might just feel like you're sitting in the front row. Inside, our new proprietary waveguide speaker technology combines with other Bose technologies to deliver enhanced performance at all listening levels. You'll hear the same clear musical nuances whether you turn the volume up or keep it soft. You'll also enjoy the full depth and range of every vocal or instrument on MP3s, CD-R/RWs, and conventional CDs. Listen to CDs created on your computer and take advantage of the digital MP3 format for hours of uninterrupted Wave music system quality sound. The Wave music system was engineered to be delightfully easy to use. There are no visible buttons. Instead, the entire system is completely and conveniently controlled by a credit card-sized remote control. And setup couldn't be easier. The CD player, digital AM/FM tuner, amplifiers and speakers are all built-in so you can enjoy quality sound right out of the box. The large, bright display panel is easy to read and understand, prominently displaying the artist, title and album names of your suitably encoded MP3 CDs. It's also easy to enjoy the system's full, rich sound with your TV, VCR, DVD player, or computer, thanks to an auxiliary input jack. And if you want to keep the music to yourself, you can simply plug your headphones into the headphone jack. The Wave music system may look familiar, but it takes the original award-winning design of the Wave radio/CD to new levels. With its absence of buttons and a convenient slot-loaded CD player, the slim, sleek profile shines through to complement just about any room.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 41 more reviews...
 Five Stars from a Bose Basher November 28, 2004
235 out of 247 found this review helpful
Yes, you read that right. But before I get to the review, a confession:
As a life-long audiophile, I have long felt that Bose represented the pinnacle of overpriced hype and underwhelming sound quality. The true genius of Amar Bose, in my opinion, is that he has created a distinctive "Bose sound" that appeals greatly to mass market consumers who don't know any better. Spend some time listening to truly good audio systems, and you'll quickly realize that Bose is a high-priced, superbly marketed joke. And unfortunately, I have to live with Bose mediocrity on a daily basis in the form of a Bose audio system "upgrade" in my Acura MDX. (Which I was forced to take as part of the touring package.) It cranks out 'okay' sound at best, and is no where near as good as "stock" audio systems in some of my previously owned vehicles. The most positive thing I can say is that my Acura Bose system sounds better than the Bose system in my friend's Mercedes.
By now you should be getting the idea that I'm the last person in the world inclined to give a Bose product a compliment, no less a five star review. What happened? Well, I was looking for a compact, one piece music system for my home office. And in the world of audio, I realize there is no such thing as a free lunch--designing such a system requires that sound quality be compromised to various degrees along the way. So I certainly wasn't expecting this unit to sound anything like the $10K Sonus Faber speakers in my main rig. What I wanted was good quality sound that, muscially speaking, got the important things right, with no obvious "wrongs."
With these parameters, I quickly realized that there are not many systems out there worth considering. The Cambridge Soundworks 740 soon became my top contender, but I wasn't really happy with it. Yes, it's got bass to spare, but it's bass that I find to be somewhat out of balance with the overall sound, and there's simply no way to tame it. And so, begrudgingly, I decided to give Bose's "New Wave Music System" a listen--after all, I could return it if I didnt like the sound, which I fully expected to be doing. And yet, nearly a month after it arrived in my home, I'm here to sing its praises.
Simply put, the New Wave Music System sounds better than I ever imagined possible with a unit of this size. It's extremely musical and just sounds "right," (whether it be rock, hip-hop, jazz or classical) with many sonic strengths and no obvious flaws. It will easily fill an average-sized room with music, and there's no sense of strain as you push it to higher volumes. For many if not most consumers, the New Wave may be as much "music system" as you'll ever need. One of the downsides to the audiophile pursuit is that you increasing tend to listen analytically, rather than for enjoyment. With the New Wave system, I've rediscovered the pleasure of just popping in a CD and letting it play. I"ve also found both the AM and FM receivers to be quite good, as well.
I really like the sleek, compact design, though I suspect I'll be cursing the "no buttons" approach the first time I (inevitably) lose the remote. And, being always suspicious of Bose's motives, I suspect this design may have been driven by bean counters who saw a way to reduce manufacturing costs by eliminating all on-case controls.
Is it overpriced? Well, if you're the type of person for whom "good enough" is usually good enough, you may want to look elsewhere. But for a product that I truly enjoy using on a daily basis, this was well worth the price. And compared to the insanity of high-end audio, where a 1 meter interconnect can run 3,000 bucks, $500 is downright reasonable.
Overall, I give the New Wave a "Bravo, Bose!" and I'd encourage any audiophiles looking for a small second system to give this a listen. You can always return it within 30 days, but I'd plan on it being a keeper.
 Too Much for Too Little August 13, 2006
103 out of 112 found this review helpful
I've had my Bose for about two years. I'm very glad to have received it as a present because, despite some of its fine features, it certainly does not merit the hefty, comparable-to-a-small-home-stereo price tag.
I like its design and its sound.
I don't like the following "features":
1) It is the most sensitive CD player I have. It will not properly play a number of CDs, especially CD-Rs. If a disc is slightly thin, the unit will either not accept it (you have to give it a push) or not eject it (you have to open up the unit, turn it on, hit "eject," and pull the disc out). This is especially annoying when my $70 boombox plays them without a problem. Refurbishing by Bose did nothing to change my unit's sensitivity.
2) It is not programmable! It doesn't program songs at all. The best it can do is "shuffle," "shuffle repeat," "repeat track," and "repeat disc." The cheapest boombox these days is programmable.
3) The lack of buttons is annoying: I found I had to order a second remote ($10) and keep it by the box. When I called Bose about this problem, the tech suggested getting the second remote and added that a lot of people had done that. My boombox is more user-friendly (it has buttons as well as a remote).
One can argue about the merits of elegance vs. user-friendliness. But the lack of programmability and the oversensitivity of this box make it a poor buy, in my opinion.
Your ears will be very pleased. November 5, 2004
82 out of 89 found this review helpful
I bought one Bose Wave Music System to compare it with my Henry Kloss 88cd and Cambridge Soundworks radios. It is better, period. I bought the Bose for use at work at Eagle Laundry, Horn Lake, MS where I have a Cambridge Soundworks radio playing all day. When I did the first comparison at home I could no longer enjoy the Henry Kloss at my bedside so I had to order another Bose for work. I could not part with the new Bose. Yes it's that good. The clarity and definition of voices and music is open and undestorted. It's as if the radio itself dissappears and presents only the wonderful sound of the music. Great features like auto dimming display which is fully adjustable continue to entertain even when the unit is off. No battery needed 48 hour memory in event of power failure saves money. Those 9v duracells are getting pricy. I was afraid I would not like to use only the remote for snooze control, but it has not been a problem. The ramp up wake-up alarm volume is also pleasing. This is a very refined, high quality, compact (it was smaller than I expected) multifuntion radio/cd/mp3 player. Very intelligent. The radio reception was fine with some adjusting of the power cord to get the stongest FM signal. My old radio required an external antenna. AM reception was great. My biggest problem was that one Bose Wave System was not enough. Also, Bose is a top drawer, first rate company. Just look at www.bose.com and you can see for yourself. Forget about the price for once and treat yourself to something special.
 Much better choices out there! February 18, 2005
64 out of 90 found this review helpful
If you do some research, you will see reviewers that have reviewed radios such as the Bose Wave Radio and Boston Acoustics Recepter and Tivoli Model One, and as soon as they turn on the Bose Wave Radio, they just unplug it and forget about any side by side comparisons, because it is so obviously bad when compared to the other two!
So... why do so many give it such high reviews? Because most people are impressed with big names and have been TOLD that it is the best, so they go on beleiving it. Now to be fair, some people actually do think the Bose Wave Radio sounds great, because all they have ever had before, were cheap $10 clock radios, and next to them, this sounds awesome.
But folks, next to the Boston Acoustics Receptor, this sounds just as bad to those of us that have heard GOOD radios.
Here is the best part... The Boston Acoustics Receptor, and the Tivoli Audio Model One, are only about $100 each, and BLOW the Bose radios away!
How Bose can charge $400 or $500 for a radio that doesn't even come CLOSE to sounding as good as the other two $100 radios just shows you that the cost is just for the name brand of "BOSE".
The two speakers in this unit are not even the SAME! If you take this unit apart, you can see that. No good engineer would ever design something like this where the speakers are not matched.
And when the speakers are so close together like this, it is silly to make it stereo, you will never hear the seperation anyway, especially when lying in the bed with both speakers only on one side of your head at one ear, or if you have one ear in the pillow anyway.
If you are shopping for a radio like this, the hard decision should be between the Tivoli Model One, or the Boston Acoustics Recepter, NOT this one at all.
In fact, you can buy 4 of those radios for the price this one is, and have one for bedroom, office, kitchen, bathroom.
I own just about every great radio there is, including the Ccradio, and have compared them all to each other. I would never buy anything with the BOSE name on it.
If this BOSE radio sounds good to you, it is because you have never heard the other two I just mentioned.
If you own the others, and then have to listen to a BOSE, you will not be able to figure out how they can charge so much money for something that sounds so bad.
But considering how many raving reviews this BOSE seems to be getting, I can see how it would be hard to just take my word on it. PLEASE go to some stores and listen to ALL of them YOURSELF before making the decision to buy one. You will see that I am right.
Yes, I'm a Bose Basher but I love this Wave Music System December 21, 2006
48 out of 53 found this review helpful
Another life long bose basher here, and for good reason! Many years ago (1990) I bought a Bose acoustimas system. It was stereo and in the store it sounded AMAZING - I bought one and took it home and it sounded tinny, flat and cheap. I found out that Bose charges a ton to pay for their marketing. They still use PAPER speaker drivers! I returned that acoustimass system and years later tried the 1-2-3 system (2 years ago) I hooked up the new system and was underwhelmed. My Sony 60" XBR TV speakers sounded just as good. I returned it to the Bose store, sweraing to never buy another Bose product. (I did buy some Tri-Port headphones which were VERY muddy and bloated sounding)
Well, 2 weeks ago I was in a bose store and I saw the Wave Music System and the new Acoustic Wave System. The guy in the store told me the new (larger) acoustic wave system was their best stereo system. I bought one for $1079 and took it home. It sounded HORRIBLE. Harsh, flat and NOT spacious (this is the larger acoustic wave) at all! I felt ripped off. It was ugly, cheap looking and sounded horrible. My Tivoli Model 1 sounded better. Not as loud but better. Off to the Bose store I go to return it.
(Let me also say that 3 years ago I owned a $25,000 STEREO only system with super high end tube amps, pre amps, a $5k CD player, etc. It was my dream system that I had to sell last year as I was having some money issues. I REALLY missed my system.)
So I return to Bose and look at the little, smaller Wave Music System. It sounded spacious, big and had a depth to it that was very pleasing. It sounded MUCH better than their so called "BEST" system. I was shocked that Bose would make a $1079 product that sounded BAD and much worse than their $500 system. I decided to take on home in Graphite to give themn one last chance. Took it home, set it up and WOW! It looked great on my table. Very nice look and I LOVE that it has no buttons on it. PLugged it in....
This is what I have been looking for! Deep, BIG, spacious, room filling sound with just enough Bass. It sounded AMAZING on piano music, jazz, classical, vocals, big band...I then threw in some rock consisting of AC/DC, KISS and even metallica. It sounded VERY good. Not as good as with the other music but still had bass, and sounded very very good. I WAS FINALLY HAPPY WITH A BOSE PRODUCT!
Add to this the alarm function, the auto dimming display and small size and you will think that $500 is a deal. I bought the large backlit remote for $39 to go with it the next day. The Bose Wave Music System IS a GREAt sounding system. Those who bash this new version never heard it, period. Remember, I came from a $25,000 system and nothing made me happy until this system. NOT that this is in any way better or even comparable to my $25k system, but it kills the larger Acoustic Wave, the Tivoli model 1, the Boston Acoustics $500 set and the Cambride set. (yes, I tried them all)
If you wanted a Wave system but are afraid of the bad reviews, don't be. This new version is WONDERFUL and fills my house with rich, clear, deep sound. Throw on some Ricky Lee Jones, Diana Krall, Frank Sinatra and be amazed at the huge sound coming from this litle box!
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