Bowers & Wilkins 607 S3 Bookshelf Speakers

Bowers & Wilkins 607 S3 Bookshelf Speakers – Compact 600 Series Standmount Speakers

The Bowers & Wilkins 607 S3 is the smallest speaker in the 600 Series S3 range, a compact two-way standmount design for rooms where the larger 606 S3 simply will not fit. Do not mistake small for stripped down: the S3 generation brings the series a Decoupled Double Dome tweeter in titanium, a material change from the aluminium dome of the S2 models, together with a new, more acoustically transparent tweeter grille mesh developed from the company’s Signature models. The bass and midrange are handled by a 130mm Continuum cone driver.

With a cabinet just 300mm tall and 165mm wide, the 607 S3 suits desks, shelves, smaller living rooms and surround channels in a 600 Series home cinema. Sensitivity is 84dB and recommended amplifier power runs from 30 to 100 watts into 8 ohms, so modest integrated amplifiers drive it comfortably, while better electronics still have something to reveal. Frequency response is rated at 52Hz to 28kHz within 3dB, remarkable extension for a cabinet of this size.

Key features

• 25mm Decoupled Double Dome titanium tweeter, new for the S3 generation
• 130mm Continuum cone bass and midrange driver
• Two-way vented-box design with rear Flowport
• Frequency response of 52Hz to 28kHz within 3dB
• Compact 300 x 165mm cabinet for shelves, desks and stands
• Upgraded speaker terminals derived from the 700 Series

Titanium tweeter and Continuum cone

The S3’s titanium dome is built as two bonded sections, which stiffens the dome and pushes its breakup behaviour higher, and it is decoupled from the baffle so vibration from the bass driver does not reach it. Behind the new mesh grille, the result is treble with more resolution and realism than the outgoing model. The Continuum cone, Bowers & Wilkins’ woven composite material, avoids the abrupt changes in behaviour that a conventional cone shows as it moves through its range, which keeps vocals open and neutral. In the 607 S3 that driver is 130mm, smaller than the 606 S3’s 165mm unit, which is the main trade made for the compact cabinet.

Cabinet, port and terminals

The vented cabinet uses a rear Flowport with a dimpled surface to keep airflow smooth and quiet, and foam port plugs are supplied so the bass can be trimmed when the speakers must sit close to a wall or on a shelf. The upgraded terminals, adapted from the 700 Series design, offer a cleaner layout and signal path, and dual pairs allow bi-wiring or bi-amplification. Depth is 207mm for the cabinet alone and 235mm including grille and terminals, and each speaker weighs about 4.65kg, light enough for a shelf yet properly solid on a stand.

Placement and system building

On stands at ear height the 607 S3 images precisely; on a desk or shelf, keep the tweeters roughly level with your ears and use the port plugs if the boundary behind them thickens the bass. Harmonic distortion is specified below 1 percent from 100Hz to 22kHz, and nominal impedance is 8 ohms with a 3.0 ohm minimum, so amplifier matching is straightforward. Within a home cinema, the 607 S3 is the natural surround partner to 603 S3 or 606 S3 front speakers and the matching centre channel, sharing the same tweeter and cone technology across every channel.

Who should choose the 607 S3

Choose it when the room, the furniture or the channel role sets a hard size limit but you still want current 600 Series driver technology rather than an older or lesser speaker. Listeners in larger rooms who want more bass weight and scale should compare the 606 S3, which uses the bigger driver and cabinet; everyone else gets the same tweeter, the same cone material and the same voicing in the most placeable cabinet of the range.

Compact, current and genuinely engineered rather than cost-cut down, the 607 S3 is the entry point into the 600 Series S3 range that gives up the least.