Bose 161 Speaker System (Black) - Ideal for Stereo or Home Theater use

I get a kick out of questions that think these speakers have bluetooth or an amp built in. But they are designed like old school bookshelf speakers. They need some form of amplification and your home theater receiver would work perfect. You could also use them with a bookshelf stereo receiver and whatever you drive them with, they are very flexible. They include buttons for the bottom or sides to place them on a shelf. The nicest thing about these is using the wall mount. Lots of adjustment when mounted vertically or horizontally and even include screws for the most common mounting substrates. I bought the white ones since my walls are white. Right now, I'm using on my computer that is being used as a home theater. Originally I was using a set of speakers that sounded just fine but wanted a different mounting configuration. They replaced a set of speakers that were Amazon Choice ones and a bit less expensive but when I hooked up the Bose 161's there was a real sound difference. The first difference was that voices were "muddy" on my old speakers in comparison to the Bose. So much so, that I found that I did not need the volume turned up as much on a typical movie or TV show. I know that some of the Bose TV sound systems/sound bars promote that as a feature. Even with these budget speakers, it's evident that it's part of the Bose sound and one I do like. Second of all, my older speakers had fine separation from right to left. Same a pretty much every bookshelf speaker out there. The Bose 161's seemed to give the same separation but sounds were more localised. Kind of hard to describe, but had a more 3D where you could point at the sound and my ears and eyes can follow the motion in an action movie. And even the depth to a show that I had never found with my old speakers or any other ones I have. It was a surprise which makes every show just a bit more enjoyable. Now, I know everybody wants a speaker with a lot of low end bass. And if that's what you want, you should have the equalization knobs on your receiver for that or in your device manager on your computer to get the sound you need. Out of the box, these Bose speakers are going to give you a natural sound. You can adjust frequencies as you need with the option of adding a subwoofer to your system. But on their own, they are not going to shake your room or get you tossed from your apartment. But I don't think they were ever designed to be a 901 or 602 replacement. Those are definite lease busters and need an amp to back them up. These are a quality speaker system for home and home theater use. Priced right with the flexibility to position them where you want. Also no need for speaker stands and mounting is included. All you need to buy is speaker wire. Most likely since Bose didn't know the length or color you need. I hope you get a chance to listen to these Bose speakers and add them to you home theater. I've been using them for about a month and a half and pleased with them. The only downside is that the other speakers I have are going to need to be replaced. Since I have 3 subwoofers kick'n around here, this could get pricey.

I just did my HT setup... Man i cant sing enough praises for all the components... I don't get the muted sounds on Bose claim.. i can hear everything loud n clear... each dialogue is as clear as it gets... don't have to strain to hear em anymore... The tonality of the mid range... to the sharpness of the highs... its just beautiful. 201's are a bit bigger than i thought they would be... but look amazing once set up... and sound real good too... They dont have enough base you say... n i'd raise my sub to you (albeit briefly... it's heavy you know ;) ) but what clarity of sound.... it really makes the sound pop... All the Bose's put together make a real good sound stage. Now on to the non bose components... Kudos to Polk audio for the woofer... it's a bit too loud for my taste... so its turned down to about 1/3'rd of its max o/p...but amazing difference the 12" sub makes. Setting up was a real breeze... plugged in the lfe n adjusted the volume to my taste... The Onkyo receiver is a real amazing piece o tech for its price... Audessy 2EQ (the auto sound setup) is really easy to do... sets up the speakers just right... i tried tweaking my setup... but outside the sub (set to put out a wee bit too much) it had everything nailed... Just an FYI... my living room is 15" x 15"

I was able to buy this pair of speaker for $142 from Amazon which was a good deal given that Bose never have any deals for its products. I'm not a Bose fan. I'm not a sound professional but I like music and I listen to all kinds of music. If I buy something to plug in my old Pioneer receiver to enjoy music, I would never buy this pair. Let me tell you my journey to the purchase of these speakers. On a nice sunny day, I came to Goodwill store on Berry Road and saw Bose sub from the Bose Acoustimass 5 (just the sub). I bought it for $4 (four dollars) and was pretty sure that it would not work. Surprisingly, the sub still works pretty well with my receiver. Then I looked for its satellite speakers on Ebay, and surprisingly (again), the used old tiny satellites never cost under $100! Why should I pay for those used things more than many new speakers? Then another day, I found this pair, which is new, and price is not so different from the used satellites. I was delivered to my home with another big surprise: Vanns packed it in a 10 times larger box with a lot of foam inside. I plugged them in the sub and they sound great, crisp and clear I guess. As my experience with Bose products, it will last for years. Bose Acoustimass 5 subwoofer + Bose 161 bookshelf, anyone heard that?

Bought a pair of these to upgrade an a tired old set of front speakers on my secondary system. It is used on a 5.1 system in our family room, both for TV/movies and stereo audio. I bought them after dragging out my old turntable and vinyl collection and found the old speakers inadequate. They sound great for this use, and I will probably buy another pair for the rears. They are running off of a fairly old Denon receiver, and are paired with a Yamaha Sub, center and rears. I was able to mount them easily on my old wall mounts, but they also come with mounting hardware. The highs are much crisper and clearer than the old Yamahas (the “Bose” sound). With my existing sub they sound great. The Denon Audyssey set the crossover at 150hz. The bass complimented by the sub is strong and tight but I would not want to run these without a sub and have any expectation of punch. In 5.1 mode they image great, and produce a consistent sound throughout an odd shaped room. If you like the sound of Bose products, you will very much like the sound of these. At this price they are a very worthy upgrade to a casual use home theater system or stereo. They won’t match up to audiophile large speakers, but they perform well in a small easy to place package.

When switching over from a standard stereo to a home theater configuration, it became apparent that the Bose stereo system satellite speakers and Acoustimass (Acoustimass V System) was being 'wasted' due to the fact that the added Sub-Woofer on the LFE Channel could and was handling all the bass. The Bose 161 speakers were substituted for the dual satellite speakers, thus freeing up the older Acoustimass V system (both the satellite and acoustimass combination - which are an integral system) for use as a great stereo speaker system in another room. We selected the WHITE colored system so it would 'blend in' with the white ceiling, as the older white satellite speakers did. This is strictly aesthetic, but does make the speakers a lot less noticeable. The sound is great, and they look good -not as physically over-powering as some of the other larger speakers would be. I realize there is a raging debate regarding the sound quality of Bose speakers Vs. their cost - for the size, i do not think you can get better sound - not without spending a lot more. There may be better sounding albeit much larger speakers available, but aesthetics and size being a consideration, these fit the requirements. And, it is doubtful that over 90% of listeners could tell a difference between these great sounding speakers and a larger, more expensive configuration.

I like Bose. While many of their products are overpriced and overrated, these speakers along with the 301 bookshelf speaker are some of the best speakers on the market for the money. While the 161 is a small speaker it's perfect for a home theater setup. Coupled with some 301's in the front a good subwoofer (Polk Audio) they do their job and do it well. On the other hand, if you've got small living quarters like a dorm room or an efficiency apartment, these speakers will sound fantastic. Remember that when you utilize Bluetooth, you do lose some fidelity so you will need a good receiver/amp to run them as the 161 is not Bluetooth compatible.

Total rip off from Peifinator's Treasures. They charged me 21 bucks just for removing the bubble wraps around the speakers. I put it back and returned it and they still charged 21 bucks. They didn't send me audio cables and I am not able to use the speakers. So be ware before you buy anything from Peifinator's Treasures

I purchased these speakers to use as surround speakers. In my opinion this function is what they were intended for. Used as surround speakers they are great. They reflect the background channels very well. They are also very easy to install them on a wall or ceiling. I have mine installed high on the back wall tilting down. In another room I have a second set installed on the ceiling tilting slightly downward. The ease in which they install is one of the reasons I purchased them. They also sound very good for surround purposes and they look good. I don't believe they would make a very good left and right front channel speaker. They just don't have the sound quality for main speakers in my opinion. That being said I am very happy with them as surround speakers. This is actually my second set because I have surround systems in two separate rooms. I was pleased with the first set. This is why I had no hesitation to purchase the second set for another room.