Beosystem 72-23!

[pepps]

Forgive me if I’m last to board the train with this, but have you all seen the new Beosystem 72-23??!

It’s absolutely stunning and definitely puts B&O right back up there as the best creators of home audio theatre.

Here’s a link to the B&O site showing the new product.
https://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/gb/story/beosystems?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=launch-beosystem_nordic_dawn-0516-emea&sid=6e4d970f2e7e44cd92c57b35faae990d

Something I’m very keen to know more about is this: does the advent of this new product mean there is a new cartridge/stylus to use with existing compatible Beograms? In particular will the new cartridge designed for the BS72-23 work on my BG3500 and other such players?

 

[Steve at Sounds Heavenly]

Hi pepps,

I’m excited that this has finally launched, it has been an honour to provide a very small part of this project, namely the adapter cable that links the Beogram into the Core. A lot of work went into this one small aspect of the product ?

To answer your question, the Beogram 4000c used in this system has an MMC cartridge made by Sound Smith in the US, they make cartridges for just about any Beogram model and I use their SMMC4 on my Beogram 3500 at home with excellent results.

Kind regards Steve.

 

[matador]

Really ? Sorry to be bitter again but this is starting to look like the Omega brand that can’t stop to produce infinite different flavors of their “once in the past” bestseller Speedmaster watch.

Appart from the fact I don’t like the color scheme at all, I wonder how many iterations we’ll see in the future: pop colors Basquiat yellow/red/blue? All mat black version? Limited original colors version? Beoplay H4 tangerine like edition?

It just kill the hope I had in the “Recreation” trend when the first 4000c came out, that made me hope for some other comebacks that I understand will never be.

[Steve at Sounds Heavenly]

Hi Matador,

I like the colour choice – yes, the colours are bold and unusual but it is certainly striking.  I love the fact that B&O’s design is often bold and the way they can make a 51 year old turntable look completely at home with the new Beolab 28 speakers is quite an achivement.

I’m looking forward to seeing it in person, as sometimes material colours don’t show well in photographs.  The cabinet certainly looks interesting and has a true mid-century Danish style.

I’m pleased that B&O aren’t standing still with their design, but they are keeping their vintage products alive whilst pushing the boundaries of modern styling.

I would be interested to hear what other Beofans think?

Kind regards, Steve.

 

[pepps]

Hi Steve – thanks for your comments regarding the stylus. Makes sense to use a tried and tested marriage. How cool to have been involved with the functionality of the system!!

Hi Matador – I think personally I find this new product cool because it was only last summer that I visited the Struer museum and saw first hand so many examples of music centre cabinets. So when I saw this 72-23 I was taken straight back to some of those beautiful old designs.
It makes me feel happy that B&O have done this because I couldn’t help feel that after the demise in popularity of “hifi systems” in the early noughties, they didn’t have much to offer.
I hope those who are in a position to buy one of these do so and learn to love it for many years. It’s a brave move and won’t please everyone. But this firm we all love has never feared being a little controversial.

[trackbeo]

60,000 Euros. That’s what I think.  A hefty price increase of the 72-23 over the 72-22, not just from the 18s–>28s?

Steve, does your cable have ginger-colored cloth braided jacket?!?!

[Steve at Sounds Heavenly]

Hi trackbeo,

No, my cables aren’t braided as it doesn’t add anything to the sound quality.  They are hidden inside the top of the cabinet (where a hinged shelf conceals the Core and the Transmitter 1) so sound quality is the top priority here.  However, I do like the idea of ginger braided cables…. 😉

Kind regards, Steve.

[matador]

Hi everyone, Hi Steve again,

I don’t share Steve’s enthuthiasm (and he very well know why, right?).

Whoever Beoworlder coud make “almost” the same set for the fraction of the price; most of the money economy being in a forum-guided-beogram-4002-refurbishement-project, up to everyone to choose his own components. My choice was an original BG4002 because I like the color (loved the 4000c in his champaign color promo pictures but real life yellohish pictures proved to be too much “nicotine*” to me), Beolab 8000 over  Beolab 18 because its all I can afford and a 70€ Playmaker and some Powerlink wires instead of a Core, Emitter and whatever else.

The result may not be Hi-Fi or two-point-zero but I’m listening to records with the eye candy.

I remember Leo or maybe Moxx, ironically saying “new beoplay=new colors”. I feel the same here and it’s sad for me. Not that I dont understand people that will go for it, they surely will and its good for them and for the brand (moneywise). But sad in the idea that they sold us (the few of us) an idea that was “we’re going to recreate many of our iconic products, wait and see”. I remember a thread in BWII where people where guessing what would be the next “recreated” products, part of the new “recreation” program. In the end it’s just the Beoplay, new colors strategy. Nothing more. Up to anyone to like it or not.

But to be complete, the exercise, yes, would have to have ginger colored wired!       😉

[Leosgonewild]

I have a few Beogram 4002’s in the closet. Maybe I should make a 2SLHBTQA+ version? Just jam all the colors onto it.

[Leosgonewild]

The Beograms are literally in standing in the closet. I did not mean to make a joke.

[NQVHNWI]

I’m starting to despair a little with B&O and in particular, their marketing team which makes decisions like this (more one-off special editions “cr@p”)

Look, don’t get me wrong, the deck and cabinet are lovely. With the BL28, it looks vulgar and just wrong.  The price is stupid and made for stupid I suspect people.

Why don’t B&O just make a new, modern but retro-style Beogram? Latest designs in power correction, server control and pick-up (hell why not put a decent A2D converter in there?). This deck – if properly (read competitively spec’d) would make as much impact as the Theatre has done to their revenues recently.

[Millemissen]

I must admit that I totally fail to see the point of playing music from a vinyl disc nowadays – now that we can get superiour sound from a digital file or a cd.

None the less – I still have a few LP’s and also a turntable from yesteryears (which a friend of mine kindly serviced for me), a phono preeamp and a spare M3.

Hardly used, but fully functional and ready to show what is possible with Beolink Multiroom, when friends are here.

This said – I find it totally ok, when B&O can make a profit from things like the 72-23.
Let people, who have that kind of money, spend it….no problem there.

All die hard vinyl lovers surely can find a cheaper way to enjoy the popping and crackling of their vinyl discs whilst admiring the big coverart.
There are plenty of Beograms out there that can be restored to ones needs.

 

Here is my Beogram…..in the closet.

MM

[herrit]

Steve at Sounds Heavenly wrote:

I’m pleased that B&O aren’t standing still with their design [snip]

There is more than a whiff of irony there, with B&O rehashing a 50 year old design ?

[Steve at Sounds Heavenly]

Hi herrit,

I see your point, but I hadn’t intended any irony…

I was referring to the bold colour choices, the hand made wood cabinet and the matching of Beolab 28 to a 51 year old turntable. 😉

Kind regards, Steve.

[pepps]

Mr10Percent Why don’t B&O just make a new, modern but retro-style Beogram?

This. Now I agree that a new Beogram could certainly help top up the coffers and bring B&O right back out there into the new vinyl lovers homes with a modern record player.
But I fear the market is already busy with Rega and Project equipment, amongst others. The ‘affordable but good’ sector isn’t B&O, and I don’t want it to be so.
Personally I will never be able to afford a new B&O hifi, but I like the thought of these special products being designed and built to furnish the top end flats in our cities around the world. I love to spot them in tv shows and films.
I guess I admire the new products from afar, and at home I love my 90s B&O.

[NQVHNWI]

Millemissen wrote:

I must admit that I totally fail to see the point of playing music from a vinyl disc nowadays – now that we can get superior sound from a digital file or a cd.

I don’t disagree with you. I have a very nice BG8002, in what seems very good condition and plays surprisingly well via a cheap RIAA and A2D converter. However, its clear, digital will beat vinyl every which way to Sunday but…….1. There are people who want Vinyl (more Vinyl is currently pressed than there are digital CDs printed – so a market and 2. It makes great furniture or decoration to the living space.

On the 72-23, yes profitable. But the people who buy that have right-on interior decorators with too much money to redecorate someone’s 4th Tuscan Villa. What this does is play back to the old mantra of too much style and no substance – which then kills sales lower down the food-chain.

An absolute world class deck, cartridge and pre-amp (technically) can be had for £10,000 (and for considerably more and for considerably less) so this in my mind says B&O are starting to go back to form, wrapping a dog-turd in 24 carat gold wrapper. As before, silly people will always buy this type of gear but Im more concerned that it will stop people coming to the brand and buying-up as they go.

 

[matador]

I’d like to add that, to me, the most obvious problems just that it is… Ugly!
The 72-22 was very nice: mat silver, dark wood, always sexy Beolab 18, whatever ridiculous the price was, the system is beautiful.

There, it is just… Ugly. And as far as I can tell but I’d like to have your views on that, This color scheme do not make me think me to any Scandinavian dawn.

Beolab 28 with tweed like fabric? Really?

[Glitch]

Admittedly, I’m not in the target demographic for this product. However, I wonder how many potential customers are out there that would spend that kind of money for “orange and birch”. Is this combination a “latest trend”?

I fully understand the aesthetic appeal of the 72-22. Interesting wood veneers are timeless, as are natural metal finishes.

I could see B&O building this as a bespoke product, but wonder how profitable it will be even as a low volume special edition. Does B&O publish sales numbers on products like this (i.e. 72-22, 4000c, etc.)?

Glitch

[Mark]

Millemissen wrote:

I must admit that I totally fail to see the point of playing music from a vinyl disc nowadays – now that we can get superiour sound from a digital file or a cd.

The experience. The memories.

Long before you could listen to 100 million songs for $10 a month, you had radio stations with character, and if you wanted to play a song whenever you liked you had to buy the album or single.

I strongly remember my youth in the late 60’s and 70’s when I had to save up $4.15 so I could bike to Civic Music to buy an album.  It was a major event!  At home I would sit down and listen to the album while taking it all in.  The album meant something to you because you bought it.  If you found more than one song on it you liked then it became a treasured album.

If you grew up later than I did then it was probably CD’s instead of vinyl, but I am sure the experience would be similar.

I have a Beogram 8002 with a Sound Smith MMC1 and a MMP3 phono preamp. It really sounds nice when I play an album.  Even though the vinyl probably has the same master as the CD/digital it does sound a little different.  While they both sound excellent I haven’t found anyone that prefers the sound of the digital version over the analog. Listening to an album now does remind me of my early days.

While I would love for B&O to make a modern classic turntable that is affordable, I know that probably won’t happen.

[henrik_]

Millemissen wrote:

I must admit that I totally fail to see the point of playing music from a vinyl disc nowadays – now that we can get superiour sound from a digital file or a cd.

A lot of the music that I have in my record collection is not available digitally, that’s why I still use a record player. Not because of sound quality, good digital formats is of course better than vinyl. I should take the time to do good transfers to digital, but it’s a big project…

My current way of playing vinyl is a bit complicated, my record player is connected (via a pre-amp) to the analogue input of one of my beovision V1s 😀 Not the ideal setup, but it at least makes it possible to “stream” its sound to the various b&o setups in my home.

[Author]

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