Bowers & Wilkins has a new loudspeaker out, and it’s not designed to sit in your living room next to an expensive amplifier and turntable — it’s better suited to your balcony, patio or your swimming pool.
The Bowers & Wilkins AM-1 Architectural Monitor is an entirely sealed, bookshelf-sized speaker housing a 1-inch tweeter and 5-inch woofer. This gives it just as much power as any indoor speaker; you don’t have to sacrifice sound quality or volume just to have speakers outside.
The AM-1 has a thick fibreglass body and an aluminium rust-proof grille, and is integrated with a wall-mount that lets it rotate over a wide range of motion. You can install the AM-1 vertically or horizontally depending on your requirements; B&W has used an inverted configuration for the speakers to ensure good sound quality even when the speaker is mounted high up.
Despite being an outdoor speaker, and a sealed speaker, B&W has some tricks up its sleeve to make sure that the AM-1 doesn’t want for floor-shaking bass. Instead of using a bass port — which would open up the inside of the speaker to dust and water — the rear of the speaker has a flexible passive radiator that boosts bass while keeping everything watertight.
If you’re looking for a set of speakers for your outdoor entertaining area, the B&W AM-1 goes on sale in April for the white finish, and in May for the black. They’ll cost $799 for a pair, and you’ll be able to find where to buy them at Convoy International’s website.
