Bowers & Wilkins 705 S3 Bookshelf Speakers - Pair

The Tweeter Sits on Top, and That Is the Whole Idea

The 705 S3 puts its 1-inch Carbon Dome tweeter in a Solid Body housing above the cabinet rather than inside it. B&W mills that housing from a single solid block of aluminum, then decouples it, so the tweeter is not sharing a box with the woofer.

Behind the dome runs a tube-loading system, longer in this generation than the last. Below it, a 6.5-inch Continuum cone sits in a pod of its own on a curved baffle. It is the 800 Series Diamond arrangement, at 700 Series scale.

Carbon Dome, and the 47 kHz Number

B&W built the Carbon Dome for the 700 Series specifically, and says it raises the breakup threshold to 47 kHz. That is well past anything you can hear, and the reason is that the dome stays stiff and predictable across the whole audible band.

The Numbers, and What They Ask of You

B&W quotes a frequency range of 45 Hz to 33 kHz, and a response of 50 Hz to 28 kHz within 3 dB. Sensitivity is 88 dB. Nominal impedance is 8 ohms, with a minimum of 3.7 ohms.

Harmonic distortion stays under 1 percent from 100 Hz to 22 kHz, and under 0.5 percent between 150 Hz and 20 kHz. The recommendation is 30 to 120 watts into 8 ohms on unclipped programme, with total cable impedance under 0.1 ohms.

How Much Room They Take

The cabinet is 13.6 inches tall, or 16.3 inches with the tweeter housing counted. It is 7.6 inches wide and 13.3 inches deep with the grille and terminals fitted, and weighs 21.1 pounds. Check what your shelf or stand can carry.

What Reviewers Are Saying

Douglas Schneider wrote up the 705 S3 for SoundStage! Hi-Fi on March 31, 2023: "Sonically, I was taken by the 705 S3s’ powerful and punchy bass, super-articulated midband, razor-sharp imaging, and ability to project sound freely from the enclosures."

He also noted they were not "demanding of amplification", and on build: "Without question, Bowers & Wilkins knows how to create a finished product worthy of the asking price."

Who Are These Bookshelf Speakers Best For?

• You want the 800 Series idea without the 800 Series cabinet — the decoupled Tweeter-on-Top, the curved baffle and the driver pod are all here, in a standmount you can put on a shelf
• Imaging is what you listen for — lifting the tweeter clear of the box is a placement decision, not a styling one, and it is the thing reviewers keep coming back to on this model
• You want to bi-wire, now or later — each cabinet carries two linked pairs of terminals, so you can run a single cable today and split the links whenever your amplifier can take it
• Your amplifier is capable rather than enormous — 88 dB sensitivity and a 30 to 120 watt window are undemanding, and one of our integrated amplifiers in that range is all these need
• You will notice the finish — at this level the veneer, the milled aluminum and the magnetic grille are part of what you are paying for, and they hold up to being looked at closely

How Do They Connect to Your System?

There are two linked pairs of terminals on the back of each cabinet. For a conventional hookup, leave the links in place and connect just one pair to your amplifier. Take the links out and you can bi-wire or bi-amplify instead, which B&W says can improve the resolution of low-level detail.

The posts accept 4 mm banana plugs, 6 mm and 8 mm spades, or bare wire up to 4 mm. Red ring to red, black ring to black, and screw the caps down fully so nothing rattles. Both runs should be the same length.

Pairs Well With

What finishes the setup. These are the categories most 705 S3 owners shop next.

• Speaker stands — what B&W designed these for, and sold separately
• Integrated amplifiers — 30 to 120 watts into 8 ohms is the window
• Speaker cables — under 0.1 ohms total, and low inductance
• Subwoofers — for the bottom octave below 45 Hz

Frequently Asked Questions

The tweeter housing feels loose. Is that a fault?

It is not. B&W says so in the manual: the tweeter assembly is mechanically isolated from the cabinet, so it may seem loose out of the box. That decoupling is the design working as intended.

Can I bi-wire them?

Yes. Each cabinet has two linked pairs of terminals. Remove the links and run separate cable to each pair, or to separate amplifier channels if you would rather bi-amplify.

What amplifier do they need?

B&W recommends 30 to 120 watts into 8 ohms on unclipped programme. Sensitivity is 88 dB and the load drops to 3.7 ohms, which is a comfortable ask for most decent amplifiers.

Do stands come with them?

Stands are separate. B&W designed these around its FS-700 S3 floor stand, and says a shelf works but leaves less room to optimize the sound.

How should I position them?

Start with the cabinets 1.5 to 3 meters apart, at least half a meter from the back and side walls, and with the tweeters roughly at ear height when you are seated.

What is above this in the B&W range?

The 805 D4 Signature moves you into the 800 Series Diamond proper. It is sold each rather than by the pair.

See It in Action

The Absolute Sound reviews the 705 S3:

Bowers & Wilkins introduces the range these belong to:

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