A versatile pair of compact, high quality speakers / Ideal for rear channel, second room or main speakers in small rooms

Versatile speakers for music and movies

Use in bookshelf or wall-mount applications

Articulated Array® speaker design

Average Customer Review: ( 77 customer reviews )
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Although we are longtime Bose fans, we decided to audition these in an audio store as we had been disappointed in a Bose center channel speaker we had purchased previously, (based on reputation, we didn't listen first!). We were favorbly impressed in the store and have been very pleased with them in our home. Regardless of room decor, the speakers produce clean, stereo sound. (Its possible to identify orchestral instruments and their location!)

These speakers are very linear above 80-90Hz, to the audible limits. They drop off rapidly below about 80Hz. Bass frequencies are adequately reproduced for orchestral music but will need to be augmented for heavy bass or special cinematic effects. (sub-woofer)

These speakers are intended to be wall mounted and are easily installed with the included brackets. They do not sit well on a shelf!

30 of 30 found the following review helpful:

Great surround speakers or stereo in a small roomJan 23, 2005
By J. Pickering
I'm not usually a huge Bose afficianado, but I use a pair of Bose 161 speakers as my rear surround speakers and they're great! I have much larger speakers for my L, R and center - and the 161s compliment them perfectly. I can hear very detailed sound coming from them - perfect for effects in movies.

I'm not sure I'd use these as my primary speakers in my living room, but for surround applications, or small stereo needs, they fit the bill perfectly. They're attractive, solidly built, and easily mount to walls using the included wall brackets.

32 of 36 found the following review helpful:

In line with expectationsMar 16, 2005
By Peter Saflund
The sport of Bose bashing aside, keep in mind these are relatively small enclosures with two 2.5 inch drivers that can crate a rear sound stage much larger than their size might suggest, and can do so without being overly fussy about placement. There always seems to be someone out there who sets their surround settings to "large", pumps up the bass, then complains that two 2.5 inch drivers in small vented plastic enclosures "have no lows", and that the sound is distorted. Neither the VCS 10 center channel or the 161s will play ear-busting levels -- the trade off of small drivers in small enclosures, and the theatre surround settings and bass management must be set accordingly. Doing this, the Bose 161s (especially when paired with the VCS 10) can produce clear focused dialog and convincing surround effects in smaller rooms. Can you do "better"? Sure, larger enclosures, with bigger drivers can play louder and lower but that doesn't mean the Bose don't deserve consideration on the basis of good performance given their style and size. If you can throw a little money at the issue and want really exceptional performance from relatively small speaker enclosures, consider the Legacy Audio Victoria speaker system with a very good multi channel theatre amp and separate processor like those offered by Adcom or Parasound.

35 of 42 found the following review helpful:

Incredible how people rate without testingDec 22, 2004
By James Bond "Israel"
DO NOT listen to the 2 reviews giving these speakers a 1 rating. As you can see they aren't directed to this product, meaning those 2 dudes who claim to know audio greatly, haven't even tested these out. They say Bose is based on 1960 technologies and use cheap materials, but then tell me why people who have owned Bose speakers for over 25 years still have them and work like new? Tell me also why my 3 year old Bose Mediamates, my over 1 year old Bose Quietcomfort headphones, my less than 3 months old Bose Wave Music System, my less than 8 months old Bose Freestyle and Bose Companion 3, all sound like new and perform like new, even after I've pushed them way further than what they are meant to do with my A/V receiver. Also tell me if they use "cheap untreated paper" for their drivers, why did I look inside my Bose Freestyle's speaker and found an almost plastic material on the drivers? And if their sound is sooo old from the 60s, why does it sound so rich, full, clear, crisp, lifelike and bassy?

Outside of that, these speakers are great and VERY cheap in price. Anyone who says these should be any cheaper is insane. They do a heck of a job, and Ive tested them a couple of times in many stores. The only reason I havent bought them yet is because I dont have enough money to also buy the Bose 601 Towers, and the Bose VCS-10 Center Channel Speaker. For now I'll keep my Bose Freestyle, which is really a 2.1 but sounds just as if it was a 5.1 speaker setup. Also for the bass, I understand youd like more bass, but that is a subwoofer's job. These have nice and enough bass for their purpose and size. Anyway, you can't expect much bass at all from the Rear Channels, the bass is mainly on the Center, Left and Right channels. Remember Bose CLEARLY says these aren't main/front speakers, they are surround/rear speakers. You can use them as main ones but make sure to have a sub if you want deep vibrating bass, or get other Bose speakers such as the 301s. Bose, the best in sound.

8 of 8 found the following review helpful:

Perfect for home theater!Sep 08, 2007
By K-Dogg
If you have plenty of bass these speakers will work on either the front or rear channels. I have them on both the front and rear channels and have a 10" JBL powered sub and a Klipsch center channel and I am very happy listening to music or watching a movie or t.v. My room has a tile floor and is 17ft.X20ft. and the receiver is the 5.1 channel Yamaha HTR-5440 with only 65W RMS and there is plenty of volume (I only turn it up 1/4 of the way) and bass (sub volume is 3/4 of the way up).

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