In 1966, John Bowers and his best friend Peter Hayward founded a manufacturing business later known as B&W Electronics in Worthing on the south coast of England. They adhere to a pragmatic and low-key style and invest all profits in corporate research and development in order to create perfect speakers.
1965: Entry Level
Although Bowers & Wilkins is now a large company with a distribution chain and customers around the world, John Bowers originally started working with his friend Ray Wilkins The loudspeaker systems are assembled by hand in the jointly run audio shop for local customers in Worthing, West Sussex.
1966: P1
In 1966, Bowers & Wilkins’ first loudspeaker, the P1, was born. The cabinets and filters are Bowers & Wilkin's own products, while the drivers are sourced elsewhere. John Bowers invested the profits he earned from these speakers into calibration equipment.
1966: B&W Electronics Ltd
Among the customers was an older woman, Miss Knight, who was impressed by John Bowers' knowledge of classical music and expressed interest in Bowers assembling it for herself. She was so satisfied with the speakers that she gave Bowers ￡10,000 in her will to fund business development, and Bowers later founded B&W Electronics Ltd.
1968: Room Monitor Speakers
Bowers & Wilkins has always aimed to produce the finest loudspeakers at all price points. Room monitor speakers DM1 and DM3 are launched on the market, providing potential customers with a more affordable option. The idea of ??room monitor speakers has existed through generations of high-performance and affordable speakers, right up to the current award-winning Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series. The 1970s were an extraordinary decade with important milestones in the history of Bowers & Wilkins. This decade saw the company's first use of Kevlar as a cone material. The culmination of this decade's work was the introduction of the 801, which quickly became the reference standard loudspeaker in renowned recording studios around the world, including EMI Abbey Road, Decca and Deutsche Grammophon.
1970: DM70
Without the DM70, Bowers' dream of the perfect loudspeaker might have remained a fantasy. Reviewers agree with Bowers & Wilkins engineers that the sound from its 11-module electrostatic midrange/tweeter is a revelation. DM70 adopts a cool and streamlined cabinet, which improves the appearance design of the speaker.
1974: Kevlar
Driver cone material tests show that Kevlar? fibers used in bulletproof vests are as effective at breaking standing waves as they are at stopping bullets. The ocher-yellow Kevlar? midrange cone became a Bowers & Wilkins patent and became a hallmark of the speaker's natural sound quality.
1975: Kenneth Grange
Bowers & Wilkins commissioned Pentagram co-founder and famous British designer Kenneth Grange to design speaker cabinets. Working together they produced some outstanding loudspeakers until 2005 when the Signature Diamond was born.
1976: DM6
In the legendary DM6, the Kevlar? cone was used for the first time. The DM6 was designed by Kenneth Grange and is affectionately known as the "Pregnant Penguin".
1977: DM7
The DM7 marked an important step in freeing the tweeter from the main cabinet, which meant that high frequencies were unleashed, creating the Bowers & Wilkins The most realistic sound quality available at the time. The vastly improved "top tweeter" technology continues in the current range of Bowers & Wilkins loudspeakers.
1979: 801
The groundbreaking 801 heralded the modern era of high-end speaker design. Its extraordinary drivers in independent cabinets delivered unprecedented lifelike sound and made the 801 a must-have for top studios and hi-fi enthusiasts, a legacy that would later be adopted by the 801 series of loudspeakers. In the 1980s, following the huge success of the 801 loudspeaker, Bowers & Wilkins continued to invest heavily in additional research and development. During these ten years, Bowers & Wilkins established a specialized research facility in Steyning, and John Bowers also passed away.
1981: Steyning R&D Center
The Steyning R&D Center founded by John Bowers is still world-renowned and is often referred to as the "Audio University" by visiting journalists. The center has a dedicated team of electroacoustic engineers and is equipped with a range of advanced modeling, testing and design tools.
1986: Matrix 1, 2 and 3
After a series of miracles in loudspeaker components, Bowers & Wilkins turned its attention to the connection structure of these components. The cabinet relies on a fixed frame. The Matrix (matrix skeleton) structure and its interlocking panels take the speaker's bass performance a big step forward.
1987: John Bowers
John Bowers dies.
1988: Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios uses Bowers & Wilkins Matrix 801 in its recording studio. This relationship continues today, with Abbey Road engineers becoming regular visitors to the Steyning R&D centre. Today the Bowers & Wilkins 800D remains Abbey Road's standard monitor loudspeaker.
1989: Morten Warren
Bowers & Wilkins hired Morten Warren to complete his important "graduation project" - loudspeaker design. Warren later founded the UK's most successful design agency and was responsible for product design for Bowers & Wilkins, including the iconic Zeppelin and P5 headphones.
The 1990s saw many significant developments for Bowers & Wilkins, as well as the introduction of significant new products at various price points. It also saw Steyning’s research and development center develop a dream come true for pioneering loudspeakers.
1991: 600 Series
Bowers & Wilkins introduced the concept of room monitor loudspeakers in 1968. With this concept in mind, the 600 Series writes a new chapter in delivering premium sound to new listeners. The affordable entry into Bowers & Wilkins audiophile-grade sound, the 600 Series is now in its fourth generation and has received numerous five-star reviews and awards to date.
1991: Silver Signature
In Bowers & Wilkins’ 25th anniversary, innovation and opportunity come together again. We started with silver, a better electrical conductor than copper, as the best speaker wiring connection material. Perhaps too extravagant, but the superb highs and pure bass make listening to the Silver Signature a real treat.
1993: Nautilus
After five years of research, Bowers & Wilkins engineers creatively developed Nautilus. The cabinet no longer has straight edges, which also eliminates almost all sound distortion caused by the cabinet. Simulate natural sound field, realistic sound is within reach. Years later, Bowers & Wilkins still produces the Nautilus for truly discerning customers around the world, and its superior sound quality is still known as "the best sound money can buy."
1998: Nautilus 800 Series
Nautilus changes everything. Also includes the appearance or sound quality of Bowers & Wilkins speakers. While it will be some time before Nautilus' no-holds-barred approach can be translated into commercial loudspeakers, some of its technology is already being used in the highly regarded Nautilus 800 series. The first decade of the new century saw many significant events at Bowers & Wilkins. Huge advances in subwoofer and tweeter technology, as well as the acquisition of entirely new customers, are all due to the introduction of the iPod?.
2001: Signature 800
To celebrate Bowers & Wilkins' 35th anniversary, the company launches the exclusive Signature 800 loudspeaker. The Signature 800 embodies the best of the existing Nautilus 800 series and also showcases the company's ever-evolving cabinetmaking expertise in beautiful 'Tiger Eye' veneer.
2004: PV1
Bowers & Once again, be inspired by nature. This time it’s the quotidian bubbles that provide design direction. Since its introduction into production, the award-winning PV1 has set new standards in bass performance.
2005: Diamond Tweeter
Diamonds are not just for a distinguished life: they also mean high-quality tweeters. Bowers & Wilkins' journey to improve their aluminum dome tweeters was rocky, but experiments with artificial diamonds revealed a startling discovery. Unless humans evolve to have bat hearing, this will be the sweetest tweeter ever.
2006: Signature Diamond
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Bowers & Wilkins, the Signature Diamond was born, a perfect blend of old and new. The old product was built by designer Kenneth Grange for this special project at Bowers & Wilkins. The new product is a newly developed diamond dome tweeter, adding luster to this limited release series.
2007: Zeppelin
The iPod? has changed the way many people listen to music. The ability to distribute music across thousands of tracks has certainly transformed music in the mobile market. But the iconic, award-winning Zeppelin? allows people to enjoy the best of digital music at home, without ever turning on their computer.
2007: Jaguar Car Audio
Dream sound for dream cars. This is also the requirement for the Jaguar C-XF concept car. This was the beginning of a partnership between Jaguar and Bowers & Wilkins engineers, which resulted in the development of groundbreaking sound systems for dream cars such as the XK, XF and XJ.
2007: Society of Sound
Society of Sound is a gathering place for audiophiles. It includes members such as Peter Gabriel, a blog-based community, and offers high-quality downloadable music, proving that digital music can also sound exceptional. This is a testament to Bowers & Wilkins' consistent pursuit of the highest quality audio, no matter what form it takes.
During the second decade of the 21st century, Bowers & Wilkins pushed its Signature technology to new heights and entered new markets. Diamond tweeter technology evolved and was adopted by more speakers. Meanwhile, the first headphones from Bowers & Wilkins proved popular with mobile music fans.
2010: 800 Series Diamond
The sixth pinnacle of the Bowers & Wilkins loudspeaker series was launched in early 2010. The inclusion of diamond tweeters in every model of the series for the first time made headlines at the time, but a thorough review of all audio sensitive components revealed that the 800 Series Diamond is by far the most premium product in the 800 Series.
2010: P5
Bowers & Wilkins debuts a pair of headphones that speak volumes about Bowers & Wilkins. With the luxurious P5 mobile hi-fi headphones crafted from genuine leather, iPod? and iPhone? owners can enjoy the extraordinary sound of Bowers & Wilkins for the first time.
2010: MM-1
Bowers & Wilkins also launches its first computer-specific speakers. The MM-1 brings music saved on a customer's computer to life, thanks to USB streaming using its built-in high-quality DAC. It has been incredibly popular since its launch, with overwhelming praise from audiophile publications and gadget and technology enthusiasts alike.