Bowers & Wilkins or B&W as it is popularly known needs no introduction, be it an experienced audiophile or a novice in the audio domain. For nearly 5 decades, B&W has churned out some of the most innovative speakers the world has ever witnessed and the iconic British brand is now synonymous with high-fidelity sound.
Countless music lovers, cinephiles, celebrated musicians, the iconic Abbey Road studios, and luxury car brands such a BMW, Jaguar, Maserati McLaren and Volvo have been graced by the presence of these immaculate speakers. Here, we look at the long and illustrious journey of this legendary British audio brand. Let’s unearth the legacy of B&W speakers in India & the world.
B&W Speakers - The Early Years
B&W was founded in 1966 by John Bowers at Worthing, West Sussex, England. It started life with John Bowers hand-assembling speaker systems for local clients in Worthing, West Sussex, in the back of the electrical store that he ran with his friend Roy Wilkins. In his early years, John Bowers joined the Royal Corps of Signals where he served as a special operations executive in clandestine radio contact division. It was during his time with the armed forces that he met Roy Wilkins, who would later lend his name to one half of Bowers & Wilkins.
After the war, he studied at Brighton Technical College and qualified in Telecommunications Engineering. When the shop began supplying public address equipment to schools and churches in Sussex, Bowers became increasingly involved in the design and assembly of loudspeakers, eventually setting up a small production line in workshops behind the shop.
Following a bequest from an elderly lady called Miss Knight who was so impressed with John Bowers' knowledge of classical music, and so pleased with the loudspeakers that he had made for her, she left him £10,000 in her will to develop a business. He took this knowledge and teamed up with former army colleague Wilkins and opened a retail shop in Worthing called Bowers & Wilkins Ltd. It specialised in radio and televisions. Currently, B&W, while still based in Worthing, is part of the B&W Group Ltd., which also includes audio equipment manufacturers Rotel and Classé.
B&W Speakers - Pioneering Technologies
For more than five decades, B&W has been forging new pathways in the audio engineering field. Over the years, the company has pioneered and patented a huge list of technologies and industry-firsts they deploy in their products. Below is a list of those.
- Aerofoil Cone
- Aluminium Dome Tweeters
- Aluminium Tweeters
- Anti-Resonance Plug
- Carbon Braced Tweeter
- Continuum Cone
- Decoupling
- Diamond Tweeters
- Flowport™
- FST™ Mid-range Drivers
- Kevlar®
- Mushrooms
- Matrix™
- Nautilus™
- Nautilus Tapering Tubes
- Quad Magnet Tweeter Motor System
- Rohacell®
- Sphere / Tube Enclosure
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Tweeter on Top
Bowers & Wilkins - Product Offerings
When it comes to great sound, Bower & Wilkins has its bases covered. Whether customers are looking for great audio for their homes, personal listening, cars or their boats, B&W has something for everyone. Below is a quick glance at the type of B&W speakers and the models.
| Home Audio | Personal Audio | Car Audio |
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Wireless Speakers
Wireless Headphones
Wired Headphones
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B&W Speakers - Looking Ahead
John Bowers passed away in 1987, but this vision remains at the heart of the company that he founded. The Steyning Research Establishment continues to innovate and the legacy of Bowers’ passion for technological experimentation can be seen in the likes of Nautilus, and other current Bowers & Wilkins products. In May 2016, California-based EVA Automation acquired Bowers & Wilkins and is the current parent company.At Ooberpad, we’re in awe of B&W and would recommend it to audiophiles and cinephiles who are looking for high fidelity audio. Our collection includes the bookshelf speakers, floorstanders, soundbars,surround sound packages, subwoofers, headphones and much more. To add to this, we constantly update our collection on a regular basis. Do check it out.
Note: We’re authorised dealers of Bowers & Wilkins speakers in India and only sell genuine products sourced from legitimate and official distributors. Thanks to this, Ooberpad offers unmatched and reliable warranty support, unlike many others vendors selling grey market products on e-commerce platforms. We request you to keep this in mind while buying B&W speakers online in India.
