Yesterday was a wonderful morning, so I took my BeoLab 3s outside, connected them to an Airport Express and sat in the open air enjoying the music. Something I've done for years, though not with the BL3s - it was a first for them.

They were mounted on stands, behind me on the patio - and though I had my back to them as I looked across the water I got a nice, stereo soundstage as Gluck's Orphée et Eurydice "wafted" towards me. 

No room reflections, just the pure sound.

In fact, the word "wafted" above was probably a wrong choice, "thundered" would be more like it. These small speakers have power -- a power that became clear when my neighbour, who is quite far away from my house, showed up by the brook dividing our properties.

He said something, and I couldn't hear a word. And when I tried answering, I could barely hear my own voice, had to turn down the volume. 

"What on earth are you listening to? Do you have an orchestra there?" 

So he came over to have a look. I had been playing way too loud - though the recording must have been particularly good as I didn't get any of the distortion that usually kicks in at top volume on the BL3s. (It could also be a result of there not being any room reflections).

We turned up the music, and walked over to where my neighbour had been sitting, half a football field distance away from me.

Loud, clear music. Very loud. I should be ashamed. 

At any rate, my neighbour is getting a pair of BL3s, he loved the setup. 

VERY cool, you must be feeding those speakers steroids, because you always have wacky stories with your BL3's, and people vowing to buy a pair!

David:

VERY cool, you must be feeding those speakers steroids, because you always have wacky stories with your BL3's, and people vowing to buy a pair!

I guess that if I were to take the BL5s out on the patio the birds would drop out of the air ...

Yes, I think I'm becoming quite an advocate for BL3s.
Several of my friends have bought their own after experiencing them as headphones at my place.

I even mentioned the headphone use to the editor of a hifi magazine where I live. He had been in Struer for the BL9 launch and had come away with a very favourable impression of the BL3s. He asked me to write a brief description, which he printed on his letters page. That seems to have started a lot of curiosity in hifi circles here (Norway) about BL3 headphones.

(I should confess that I occasionally have professional contacts with B&O - but I am in no way just plugging the BL3s. They simply are marvellous speakers when used for what they do best.) 

soundproof:

David:

VERY cool, you must be feeding those speakers steroids, because you always have wacky stories with your BL3's, and people vowing to buy a pair!

I guess that if I were to take the BL5s out on the patio the birds would drop out of the air ...

More than likely - but probably vultures to feed on the broken body having lifted the 5s!

Peter:

soundproof:

David:

VERY cool, you must be feeding those speakers steroids, because you always have wacky stories with your BL3's, and people vowing to buy a pair!

I guess that if I were to take the BL5s out on the patio the birds would drop out of the air ...

More than likely - but probably vultures to feed on the broken body having lifted the 5s!

I got a very convincing impression of the build quality of the BL5s when I saw a B&O technician move them. I had always thought that the disks were frail objects.

They're not - he grabbed hold of the lower disk, tipped the BL5 on its side, and rolled it as if it was a beer keg towards the setup position.
I asked whether that was SOP. "Learned it in Struer," he said.

 

Nice BeoLab 3 story!

The speakers are great, and I´m so happy that I bought mine to replace my Bose setup. It amazes every visitor.

During the vacation I visited a trendy café in the town Helsingborg in south Sweden. They had a nicely installed BeoSound 9000 and a pair of red Beloab 3 in two of the corners of  the café. They did a terrific job filling this café with cool lounge music. 

/Claes 

 

 

That's the only way you are able to move a BL5! The (lower!) disk is constructed that way so it can be carried by 2 people.. or keg rolled by one person :-)

 

kuyttendaele:

That's the only way you are able to move a BL5! The (lower!) disk is constructed that way so it can be carried by 2 people.. or keg rolled by one person :-)

I was still amazed when I first saw it. Said something about the thinking behind the product! Of course, you don't want to ruin the cloth, and you really would break your back just holding it at the bottom (while the whole thing would be unstable) - but it still looked very smart. (Particularly if you've struggled with behemoth passive speakers that can't be rolled.)

 

Nice story and a great sales pitch!  

When I orderd my Lab5 I could not wait for two weeks for the first available installation slot so I picked them up myself and had to bring them up to stairs from the garage to the living room....I will never ever do this agian, (and I guess my friend who helped me will not show up again for that job  anyway :-)) )

I would love to hear them outside for a nice summer garden concert!

Karsten 

Great story Soundproof
Very poetic and paints a picture in  my head.
Any chance of some photo's?
BTW what does SOP stand for?

Andy T.

Standard Operating Procedure - (SOP)

Your wish is my command. Note how cleverly the BL3s have been matched to the dock's night-lantern! 

Apologies for the exposed wiring.  

(Usually I have them connected to a DAC's analogue out, but I didn't want to overload the cable down to the dock.) 

 

                                                                                                                            

 

WOW!! Not to bad!

soundproof:

Standard Operating Procedure - (SOP)

Your wish is my command. Note how cleverly the BL3s have been matched to the dock's night-lantern! 

wow! great story and wonderfull picture. I think I'll come and spend my holidays at yours. It keeps raining over here...

tom:

wow! great story and wonderfull picture. I think I'll come and spend my holidays at yours. It keeps raining over here...

You'll have to hurry. I've recently sold the place, after nine wonderful years here.
Closest neighbour is rarely home and a good distance away, which means I have been able to play music at a comfortable volume outdoors without bothering anyone. (Until I unleashed the BL3s, ahem).

Moving to be close to where my next place is being put up.

Brilliant! That looks like a really nice listening spot!

It certainly does! I could imagine being there with mist rising off the lake...

Alex:

It certainly does! I could imagine being there with mist rising off the lake...

It's actually quite nice to sit outside and listen, in a quiet spot. And it's very quiet here. You get absolutely no room reflections, of course, just the direct sound -- can be most revealing, and enjoyable. 

View from the dock:

 

And difficult for a speaker, it'll have to work as hard as it can to reproduce the correct amount of bass. I agree though, I've listened to my far-field monitors outdoors before, and they really sound far better!

Alex:

And difficult for a speaker, it'll have to work as hard as it can to reproduce the correct amount of bass. I agree though, I've listened to my far-field monitors outdoors before, and they really sound far better!

Yes, the bass has nothing to work off. But using the BL3s like this, close in (headphones!), gives a distinct foundation to the sound.

(I added a shot of the lake in mist for you.) 

Now that is beautiful! Any way you can get a higher res version up? I'd love that as a wallpaper (if you don't mind)...

That's actually a compliment. PM me a mail address, and I'll send you a copy.

You have a PM

Wow, and you're moving out???

I said your original post conjured up a picture in my head, and this is exactly what I had in mind!
I reckon you could win prizes with that second photo'.
Thank you for sharing that with us.

Andy T.

Maybe it's the ABR's being free that makes it possible to sounds so awesome outdoors, and keep a coherent level of bass. The sound muddles when you turn them up in a confined space.