For more than forty years, the 800 Series has been the flagship of Bowers & Wilkins’ craftsmanship. Serving as a true technological laboratory for the British manufacturer, it has shaped the brand’s image among audiophiles worldwide and established itself as the gold standard in many of the world’s most prestigious recording studios. To mark the brand’s 60th anniversary, Bowers & Wilkins unveiled the fifth generation of this iconic line—the new B&W 800 Diamond D5 Series—exclusively at High End Vienna.
Diamonds are forever
The 800 Series holds a special place in the history of Bowers & Wilkins. Since the debut of the first generation in the early 1980s, it has embodied all of the brand’s innovations and symbolized the manufacturer’s ongoing commitment to pushing the boundaries of sound reproduction. This series has given rise to several innovations that have become iconic. These include the baffle-mounted tweeter housed in its famous Nautilus tube, the decoupled midrange driver housed in a separate enclosure, and the Continuum cone, which replaced the famous yellow Kevlar.
Over the generations, the 800 Series has also become a professional benchmark. Bowers & Wilkins speakers are now used in several of the world’s most renowned mastering studios. Sound engineers rely on them for their neutrality, precision, and ability to reveal even the finest details of a recording. With this new generation of the D5, Bowers & Wilkins aims to further strengthen its reputation for excellence.
A subtle aesthetic evolution
At first glance, this fifth generation follows in the aesthetic footsteps of its predecessors. The iconic lines that have defined the series’ identity remain intact, but numerous subtle refinements reveal the significant work carried out by the design teams. The main new feature is the cabinet, which is now reinforced with an internal Enhanced Matrix aluminum structure designed to increase overall rigidity and more effectively reduce unwanted vibrations. The rear panel, also made of aluminum, features a new design, while the base of the floorstanding speakers has been refined with more harmonious shapes that naturally extend the speaker’s curves while ensuring effective mechanical decoupling.
The engineers also thoroughly redesigned the passive crossover. Mounted on an aluminum plate, it is now fixed onto both the cabinet and the rear brace to further improve structural stability and minimize any resonance that could affect sound reproduction.
Diamond-dome tweeter
A hallmark of the 800 Series for several generations, the Diamond tweeter remains at the heart of Bowers & Wilkins’ acoustic identity. The brand retains its famous synthetic diamond dome, whose exceptional rigidity pushes the break-up frequency well beyond the audible range to minimize any coloration in the extreme high frequencies. This tweeter is housed in a Nautilus tube to eliminate all rear reflections and is completely decoupled from the rest of the cabinet to further reduce unwanted resonance. Bowers & Wilkins also notes that it has redesigned the tweeter’s protective grille; its more open structure limits acoustic reflections in front of the dome. This improvement helps enhance high-frequency dispersion and reinforce the feeling of openness.
Continuum midrange driver
Since the discontinuation of Kevlar, Continuum cones have become an integral part of Bowers & Wilkins’ acoustic philosophy. This woven cone offers particularly beneficial properties in terms of resonance control. Unlike a very rigid cone, which concentrates resonance splitting at certain frequencies, Continuum promotes a gradual dispersion of resonance to achieve a more natural response. In the new 800 Series Diamond D5 lineup, this cone is used exclusively in the midrange drivers. The 805 D5, however, is an exception due to its two-way design, featuring a single Continuum driver responsible for reproducing both midrange and bass frequencies.
The Aerofoil woofers remain a key feature of this fifth generation. Their variable-thickness cone retains a complex internal structure designed to offer an excellent balance between rigidity and lightness, thereby minimizing distortion under heavy loads. The reinforced structure provides a more stable environment for these drivers, resulting in a cleaner, faster, and better-controlled bass response capable of reaching very low frequencies while maintaining excellent clarity even during the most complex tracks.
A complete line for all configurations
The 800 Diamond D5 series consists of eight models designed to meet the needs of the most discerning audiophiles as well as those of high-end home theater systems. At the top of the lineup stands the majestic 801 D5. A true showcase of the brand’s technology, this 1,000-watt floorstanding speaker with dual 25 cm woofers represents the culmination of all the research conducted by Bowers & Wilkins. It is joined by the 802 D5, the 803 D5, and the new 804 D5, which form the core of the floorstanding speaker lineup.
Those who prefer more compact designs may want to consider the 805 D5, a premium bookshelf speaker that remains one of the British manufacturer’s most iconic models. For multichannel setups, Bowers & Wilkins also offers the HTM81 D5 and HTM82 D5 center speakers, as well as the DB1D subwoofer. Each model incorporates the same technological advancements to ensure perfect sonic consistency across the lineup.
However, excellence comes at a price. The 800 Diamond D5 series therefore represents a significant price increase compared with the previous D4 generation. The new prices announced are as follows:
- Bowers & Wilkins 801 D5: €50,000 per pair
- Bowers & Wilkins 802 D5: €37,000 per pair
- Bowers & Wilkins 803 D5: €30,000 per pair
- Bowers & Wilkins 804 D5: €18,000 per pair
- Bowers & Wilkins 805 D5: €12,000 per pair
- Bowers & Wilkins HTM81 D5: €12,000 each
- Bowers & Wilkins HTM82 D5: €10,000 each
| Type | Drivers | Recommended power | Frequency response | |
| 801 D5 | Floorstanding | 2x 25 cm woofers + 1x 15 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 15 Hz – 28 kHz |
| 802 D5 | Floorstanding | 2x 20 cm woofers + 1x 15 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 17 Hz – 28 kHz |
| 803 D5 | Floorstanding | 2x 18 cm woofers + 1x 13 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 19 Hz – 28 kHz |
| 804 D5 | Floorstanding | 2x 16.5 cm woofers + 1x 13 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 19 Hz – 28 kHz |
| 805 D5 | Bookshelf | 1x 16.5 cm midbass driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 42 Hz – 28 kHz |
| HTM81 D5 | Center | 2x 20 cm woofers + 1x 15 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 28 Hz – 28 kHz |
| HTM82 D5 | Center | 2x 16.5 cm woofers + 1x 15 cm midrange driver + 1x diamond tweeter | 50 W – 1,000 W | 45 Hz – 28 kHz |
With the 800 Diamond D5 series, Bowers & Wilkins isn’t shaking up the foundations that built its reputation. The British brand prefers to pursue a path of continuous improvement by refining every detail of its most prestigious speakers. More elegant, more sophisticated, and even more technologically ambitious, the new 800 Diamond D5 Series reaffirms Bowers & Wilkins’ long-standing status as an icon of high-fidelity audio. This is yet another demonstration of British craftsmanship that is poised to quickly establish itself as one of the definitive benchmarks in the ultra-high-end market for years to come.
