For the longest time, I have had a Bose companion 2 hooked up to my TV setup. We all know that the built-in TV speakers are terrible. I’ve been very impressed by the experience being offered by the companion 2(which is a simple 2 speaker setup).
I wanted to upgrade to something better. I was torn between the companion 20 and Companion 5. Clearly - both offered a significant upgrade I’m an old-fashioned guy who loves the minimalistic design which consumes less space & yet packs a wallop.
I consider myself a total audiophile & I have owned a variety of bose products in the past. To address the elephant in the room - yes these are very pricey. I mean a 17k pricetag for a 2.0 system isn’t cheap by any measure. You can probably get an entry level soundbar from Samsung, Sony etc within 20k. But I hate the tangled wires & the mess of speakers all over the room.
The C20 offer a very compact footprint & consume little to no space. The soundstage is pure and wide. The earlier companion 2 had a somewhat better mid than these. But the overall experience is definitely an upgrade. I have these hooked up to my TV which I use as a media-centre. Works like a charm. The audio quality is unbeatable. Instruments are clear & the stereo separation offered by TrueSpace circuitry is something to be experience & cant be explained or narrated.
The question then stands - who is this product best suited for?
Audiophiles who care about the clarity in notes & not just overwhelmed up bass
Compact minimal hassle-free setup
If you appreciate built quality. These feel like they are built to last & stand the test of time.
If you like to hear music like the composers meant it to be reproduced
Other details:
The control pod is definitely useful though I rely on my TVs remote to control the output. I have the volume set at 75% on the knob & rest is digitally controlled. One touch mute is useful when if you get a call & can’t find the remote.
Loudness: the system is fairly loud. Not as loud as a 600 watts RMS soundbar. But the sound on these won’t distort even if you crank it full. The ones on the sony did distort at 70+%. volumes I’d say loudness is good enough to power & immersively fill up an average sized bedroom easily.
Soundstage: the truespace tech works - period! Wide clear natural notes which will fill up the room.
You will certainly hear notes you have probably never heard before on your favorite songs/movies.
Rock solid system. Definitely, amongst my favorite & I can’t recommend it enough. If you have the cash to spend - don’t think twice. So if you consider yourself an audio junkie & can spare the extra cash then go for it.
Let me clarify that I still have the old Companion 2. I simply love those. But the Companion 20 just takes it to a whole new level with pure music which fills the room and feels a lot wider in terms of sound stage. This is pure music - undistorted.
Its not an easy decision at this price point. I picked these up from US on discount at$199 - thats about 13.5k INR. I’d say wait for one of Amazon’s sale events to pick these up for around 15-17k on 0% EMI. These will last for many years without any worry. I’m definally going to hold on to my pair for a long time.