I'll be honest, I pretty much hate most Bose products. I was suckered into buying a pair of Model 100's and my grandmother had a WaveRadio CD and returned it within 1 week. By the way, I hated the Model 100's.

Anyway, the first day that I set the Acoustimass 5's up in my room I was enamored. However, the cheap stands that I vouched for weren't a smart idea, as the left cube speaker fell off and no longer swivels. All speakers are still operational. I purchased these speakers new on ebay.

The first receiver I had with them was a 15 year old Kenwood reciever (which was a piece of junk to begin with). They sounded Ok with this reciever, but the bass was always overpowering the treble. One day, I decided to purchase an Adcom pre-amp and an Adcom amplifier and they made all the difference.

As long as you have a good reciever or amp/pre-amp combo you should love these speakers.

The treble can not only give you sharp clicks and loud clashes of the tamborine, but also produce a suspiciously lifelike voice. At times I have cranked up opera music and closed my eyes, and found myself peeking to see if I am still in my room. It still amazes me how transcendant it sounds sometimes. The swivel-design makes a multi-dimensional feel if you get the sound to reflect correctly off of the walls and can make echoes resound around the room.

I also listen to rap, not for the lyrics but for the amazing subtle patterns of the bass. Listen to Aaliyah's Rock da Boat on any set of speakers then listen to it on these, you'd be surprised all the bass that you're missing. The bass isn't annoyingly boomy, it is natural yet concise. It hits every range I have ever heard on any set of speakers--it hits lower bass and cleaner trebles than nearly every stereo I've experienced.

To put it simply, I have had these speakers for a year and a half and I am still not sick of them. I always become jaded by some item I consider paramount to all others, but this one is different. I still eagerly listen to the same songs I have heard for years on it and never grow tired of the flawless performance.