I was looking at some specifications, and correct me if I am wrong....Beolab 9 had 5 inch midrange, Beolab 3 has 4 1/2 inch midrange,

both have acoustic lens for the uppers, beolab 9 has two 400 watt woofers and Beolab 2 is 850 Watts.

Wouldn't Beolab 2+3 give almost the same effect as Beolab 9?

Also, what is the wattage on Beolab 9 mid and upper?  Beolab 5 is 250, Beolab 3 is 125, but I can't find the figure for Beolab 9.

I think I found it, Beolab 9 is 100 watts, and not ICE. Why do the 3s and 5s use ICE power and the 9 does not, except for the400 watt  bass?

The Beolab 9 is based on the Beolab 1 chassis. Therefore the treble and midrange use AB amplifiers. To make it all ICE and digital would have impacted upon the Beolab 5 and made it more expensive.

I think the 9s sound better than 3s and a 2 as they sound more integrated. The bass, certainly for music, is better at higher volumes. However I do think £5000 is a lot. This sounds Irish, but I would actually get the 5s instead as the difference between the 3s+2 and 9s is relatively small but the 5s are streets ahead. Part of that is the superb set up technology of the 5s which adapt to your living space in a way the other speakers cannot.

I wouldn't make decisions based on technical specs - go to a dealer and here the speakers you are interested in for yourself - that way you can find out the differences!

 Personally I'd go for lab9s !
 

@Razlaw: Why do the 3s and 5s use ICE power and the 9 does not, except for the400 watt  bass?

 
According to an ultimate audiophile acquaintance: The Class AB amplifiers used on the midrange and top of the BL9s deliver a truer, more audiophile sound than would a 3xICEpower configuration. ICEpower amp's deliver amazing power at a minimum of heat produced, but trained ears can hear a faint audio artifact from Class D amplifiers in the mid and top that was gotten rid of with the AB amplifiers in the BL9s. This was also mentioned in an article reviewing the BL9s back in February of this year. (Fidelity; 2/2007).

ICEpower is perfect for the sudden power requirements of a hard working bass driver though - where you do not get this audio artifact.

You're asking a valid question, as it appears that B&O is adjusting its use of ICEpower with the BL9s. 

I found the lab 9 produce much more realistic in midrange and high frequency, especially in vocal, much more transparent and the bass is more precise compare to lab3+2. The bass is adequate for typical music listening, but i felt there is still need for a subwoofer to have a true cinema experience, this may change when they update the software on Beovisions, but when I demo them with lab1 setting, they don't go very low, with lab 5 setting, they started to have distortion.

 Like other members have suggested, go and have a listen at your dealer, only your ears know what is good.
 

 

If the AB amplifiers   sound better than the the ICE in the mid and uppers, why do the 5s use ICE for everything?

Razlaw:

If the AB amplifiers   sound better than the the ICE in the mid and uppers, why do the 5s use ICE for everything?

Well, the BL5s came first, and were the first to fully utilize the later revision ICEpower amp's.

Could be that the experiences with that took them to the decision they made with the 9s. I would think that the larger drivers and additional separation of the top (with two drivers covering that portion of the sound) maybe alleviates the "problem" through the 5s. (And it's only a problem if you have "young", trained ears ...)

Razlaw:

If the AB amplifiers   sound better than the the ICE in the mid and uppers, why do the 5s use ICE for everything?

Or maybe because they already had a very good chassis but one that would benefit from the larger bass driver and ALT lenses. Saved costs!