I must have missed the launch of the BC2 audio, because I first read about it today. I really like the design of the BC2, but as I own a BV7, it would not make much sense buying another DVD player. Untill now, the next item to buy was a BS4, but now, as I now of the BC2 audio, I could immagine getting one of those.

Question: Is the price the same as the standart BC2 or ...?

There is a thread ob B&O.com where Roger posted about 5000DKK, so around 900$/670 Euro cheaper

hi,

 

the price is not the same. In fact, the BC2 audio is 1000 USD less than the DVD version. The steel version is not really steel. Only the whell and the border are steel!!

 

 

hope it helps,

 

??????? Is at already at the deallers? Would love to see a picture of the new steel version.

jk1002:

??????? Is at already at the dealers? Would love to see a picture of the new steel version.

JK,....

 

 

 secret.....

 

I cannot say exactly the source , but is sure 100%.

 

so, this time JK I'm sure that you are gone getting one?

 by the way, the whell has the titanium color!!!

regards...

Go to the b&o mediacenter. Beside pics of bv8 and bl6k with the new wall brackets several pics labeled "bc2 audio" can be found. To me the new finish looks (at least in the pics) only slightly different to the classic version. A little darker, especially the polished volume wheel, and the brushed surface seems smoother without the usual small "scratches" in the anodized alu. There is another surprise: the folks at struer are now offering additional covers made of folded alu to hide a stb installed on the back of a bv7 or bv/bc6 positioned on a floor stand. Seems the dvb-t module is "delayed" again...

For one it is a bit hard to find. The search didnt bring up anything good but then when I looked at all pictures and zoomed in on the ones showing the BL9 I got it. 

How do I get to the B and O MediaCenter to find the pictures?

http://mediacenter.bang-olufsen.dk/MediaCenter/mc.nsf .. you need to register ..... they will email you a password automatically  ....

Hard to spot the difference - that's true... I can only tell that the "touch-circle" appears to have a diffent colour...

i do not think there is actually a difference.

wtlc2zpx:

i do not think there is actually a difference.

Yes there is. When visiting B&O in Struer we saw the two different colours side by side in the aluminium factory, there was a clearly visible difference. I'm not sure I like the steel version, though, but that's a different story.

Just saw the pictures now. I absolutely want one! It looks so very cool!!!!

But it is double the price of a BS4...

Maybe I'm wrong:

In my opinion it would make more sense to offer a BV 7 WITHOUT a DVD drive for combination with the normal BC2.

1) You can change/store DVDs and CDs on one location
2) it would be a more future proof system 'cause you don't need to update the expensive part, if you wish to view Blueray/HD-DVDs/whatever with your display.

Just my 2 cents...

Jens 

As mentioned above, it is double the price of a beosound 4 (i think it is a bit of a rip off) it is just a cd player for those who only want music on their BeoLabs. It is beautiful, and it has petty touch buttons - therefore they can charge double for it. tsk tsk B&O

Not sure why you say double the price of a BS4? In the US the BS4 is 2800$ or so, while BC2 Audio would be then around 3500$ or so. Giving the aluminium wings and the difficult production process I don't see anything wrong with that. When it comes to the materials used the BC2 is in my opinion clearly superior to BS4.

The pricing is not the same in US as it is in Europe and Aussie'land.

I can see the need, though at that price there are quite a few high-quality non-B&O offerings. These don't have that unique styling, though -- and CD-only will very likely mean that that the player accesses the discs faster.

Anyone know whether it plays SACD?

I doubt it. The head unit is identical. The socket unit is simply not fitted with the video connectors. I would pay the extra and get the fully specified model!

Peter:

I doubt it. The head unit is identical. The socket unit is simply not fitted with the video connectors. I would pay the extra and get the fully specified model!

If I did not have a BV7, the original BC2 sure would be the way to go, but as I have a DVD player in my BV7, it would be kind of waste of money. The more I think of it, the more I am sure that the BS4 is a better option for me, as I have BL8000 and BL6000, witch can't use the digital input of the BC2 audio. Or is the signal quality of the BC2 audio superior to that of the BS4, when connected to BL6000 and Bl8000?

I did not think of the SACD, but it sure would have been a good selling argument if the new BC2 audio had played them...

How amazingly good does the BC2 look on it's floorstand...   :)

I spoke to my dealer about the audio only BC2 as a possible upgrade for my Bs3000, on the basis that in the future I get a BV7 so won't need a DVD player.

My dealers view was that from an audio quality perspective, the CD drive in the BC2 was certainly no better than my Bs3000 - and in practice a BS3000 is better for audio only as it is faster to start playing, given the BC2 has to first check whether it is CD or DVD. As Peter notes, the actual BC2-audio player is completely the same as the normal BC2 player, so still has all the DVD transport inside it - just one less socket on the control box.

The question of whether it is worth upgrading from a design/looks point of view is a separate issue...

So my take is the BC2-audio is a bit half baked as it still isn't really a pure audio source in reality.
 

The one thing it does have is the digital out, so if I had Beolab 5s, and didn't want the DVD component, it could be a choice. However having an extra DVD player seems not a bad thing so I would still go for the fully specified model. This model has been requested by some in the past so we should look at it as B&O responding to requests. I don't know about access time - it may not need to check to see what type of dic it has in so could be quicker.

Peter:

it may not need to check to see what type of dic it has in so could be quicker.

Not according to my dealer