This was the first Bose product I worked on (UI). I still had one of these until the CD mech stopped working.. This thing gets SUPER loud. Perfect for large rooms or small venues. Sounded incredible in addition to being loud. Internally it was called Frank (for Frankenstein). It's a majestic beast. There was even a nice carrying bag made available for it. Answer from eric-dolecki on reddit.com
CNET
cnet.com › reviews › bose-wave-music-system-review
Bose Wave Music System review: Bose Wave Music System - CNET
Bose Wave Music System
Bose's Wave Music System improves upon the original in both design and performance. Editor's note: We have changed the rating in this review to reflect recent changes in our rating scale. Bose Wave Music System Editor's note: We have changed the rating in this review to reflect recent changes in our rating scale. Click here to find out more. In creating the follow-up to its original Wave radio/CD player, Bose was on a mission to keep the unit the same size while improving its sound quality, which can present a serious challenge when it comes to a compact piece of equipment that includes speak
Tom's Tek Stop
tomstek.us › home › bose wave music system first generation review
Bose Wave Music System First Generation Review - Tom's Tek Stop
March 20, 2025 - Finally, the first generation of the Bose Wave Music System is a decent product. People know it for its great sound quality, and on the whole, we’d agree. Indeed we like its pushy bass, projecting midrange, and non harsh treble.
Videos
Steve Hoffman Music Forums
forums.stevehoffman.tv › threads › bose-wave-music-system-review-from-a-non-audiophile.204042
Bose Wave Music System review from a non-audiophile. | Steve Hoffman Music Forums
I'm not really an audiophile in the sense that a lot of you are, but I always appreciate a wel-mastered album. I just bought a Bose Wave Music...
Reddit
reddit.com › r/budgetaudiophile › bose wave music system
r/BudgetAudiophile on Reddit: BOSE wave music system
February 1, 2025 -
Which version is this ? and does it work for CDs? its going for 70$ is it good enough?
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I have one of these that I got from Goodwill for $10. It's surprisingly good. The sound quality, while not hifi, sounds better than most Bluetooth speakers you can get today. The stereo separation is not bad if you are right in front of it. I use mine as a desktop speaker. If you are going to put it in a small room, it will be fine for playing CDs and radio. When these were new, they were over $300. If you want it, offer $50 and make sure the CD works. I don't think it's worth much more.
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Do you know what Bose stands for? Buy Other Stereo Equipment 😂
Reddit
reddit.com › r/bose › what was the point of the bose wave music system?
r/bose on Reddit: What was the point of the Bose Wave Music System?
July 16, 2025 -
I recently finished fixing the CD drive and lid on a wave system I got off of the side of the road.
For free, I love this thing. It’s neat, it sounds plenty nice. I love the detachable base just because it has an air of opulence to it, like driving a car with a CD changer. It reads CDs a little slow but that’s mostly because WD-40 isn’t a great replacement for the original track grease.
But I’m curious about it from a 2006 perspective. Who was this product even made for?
As far as I can tell, given the detachable base with multiple audio inputs and a built in power strip, this was meant to be a speaker system, not just a really nice CD Player.
At its original $1,000 dollar price point, is it not demonstrably worse quality/$ than a more standard home audio system? Hell, even if you wanted to stick with Bose, I think it still would have been cheaper to get one of the smaller Waves and then wire that into a Bose speaker system.
The only real benefits I see to it is that it’s mildly more compact, and marginally less complicated than a bespoke stereo system (you don’t have to run any wires but the power cable, I suppose), but I just feel like that is not a large enough benefit to justify this product existing or purchasing it.
Does anyone else have some other perspective that I might be overlooking, or is this just a relic to the fact that people have been buying expensive things that have brand recognition for decades now?
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This was the first Bose product I worked on (UI). I still had one of these until the CD mech stopped working.. This thing gets SUPER loud. Perfect for large rooms or small venues. Sounded incredible in addition to being loud. Internally it was called Frank (for Frankenstein). It's a majestic beast. There was even a nice carrying bag made available for it.
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I think it was for the customer who wanted the Bose Brand (and sound) and wanted an everything all in one audio system. My grandparents bought that model (the CD-3000) in 1996 and bought every single accessory, the pedestal as shown, the powered microphone, the carrying case, and the battery pack. They used this for everything. Of course 99% of the time it was used to listen to their CDs in their living room (and it definitely was loud enough to hear throughout the house) but for events such as the family Christmas party they'd put it in the case, load up the microphone and turn it into the PA system for the Christmas party. For the 4th of July they'd put it in the carrying case with the battery and take it to be the radio to listen to that were synchronized with the fireworks. It was a beast for sure. Theirs had to have the CD mechanism replaced once in the early 2000s by a service center and the CD mech died again in roughly 2010 so at that time we just got them a new AWMSII. Unfortunately that unit no longer supported the power mic, but it did support MP3 CD which was nice. My grandparents are sadly gone but I did keep their AWMSII and it still is in my game room to this day.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/bose › acoustic wave vs wave system?
r/bose on Reddit: Acoustic Wave vs Wave System?
October 23, 2023 -
Hello,
I am looking for a nice CD player for the kitchen, and I am nostalgia as hell for the Wave sets I always saw in catalogues and my parents never could afford.
Does anyone have an opinion on the tall Acoustic Waves II vs the regular Wave systems(I or II)? Does one sound better than the other, or have some killer feature I am missing out on? Is there a reason the acoustic is three times the size?
Thank you!
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Hi I’m a Bose fan and repair them I been dealing with them for 14 years. The acoustic wave ii at higher volumes will have more clarity and more bass are per the smaller wave music system ii and iii will not be as clear at higher volumes I’m talking about 80 and up it still performs well though. I’d recommend the acoustic wave ii system or acoustic wave CD-3000. Both have same looks. Top is lightly different. Acoustic wave ii last year model has MP3 on CD platform and slightly better bass response. If you want smaller then the wave music system ii and iii smaller model will be good. I still love these units I don’t think Bose should have discounted them. But now I see it as I have a unique system not everyone will be able to have so it will be consider vintage and unique
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The acoustic wave definately has better sound. However they are both old systems. I don't think the acoustic wave has been sold for at least 5 years and hadn't been updated for a while before that (maybe 10-15 years ago). The normal wave was last updated around 6 years ago. While they were built to last a while, the first thing to go tended to be the cd player part. I'd think they are old enough that Bose probably don't fix them anymore, so you'd have to go through a third party repairer.
Sound On Sound
soundonsound.com › forum
Bose Wave Music System - SOS FORUM
Sign Up TO SOS Newsletters · All contents copyright © SOS Publications Group and/or its licensors, 1985-2025. All rights reserved. The contents of this article are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, whether mechanical or electronic, is expressly forbidden ...
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › List_of_Bose_shelf_stereos
List of Bose shelf stereos - Wikipedia
July 21, 2025 - Reviewers praised the sound quality and build quality, but commented that competing systems may offer a better experience, and criticised the price of the optional battery and the bulkiness of the wall-plug adaptor. Sales of the SoundLink Air ended in 2014. In 2018, Bose introduced its Home ...
Encyclopedia MDPI
encyclopedia.pub › entry › 30272
Bose Wave System | Encyclopedia MDPI
October 20, 2022 - The system was reviewed to have good sound quality, however it was difficult to transfer commonly used files such as WMA. Furthermore, its high purchase price was a contributing factor to its limited success.[11] On October 22, 2009, Bose released ...
Reddit
reddit.com › r/budgetaudiophile › bose wave radio for garage. more budget than audiophile 😉
r/BudgetAudiophile on Reddit: Bose wave radio for garage. More budget than audiophile 😉
April 13, 2024 -
So I got this thrift store find a while ago for $4.99. Cleaned it off and broke into the CDs for the first time in a long time.
Pretty good deal for something I don't mind getting dusty and dirty outside under the carport while we're doing yard work!
Bose
assets.bose.com › content › dam › Bose_DAM › Web › consumer_electronics › global › products › speakers › wave_music_system › pdf › AM280301_OG_EN.pdf pdf
WAVE ® MUSIC SYSTEM Owner’s Guide | Guía de usuario | Notice d’utilisation ®
Unwind and straighten the power cord to ensure the best FM reception. Your Wave® · music system uses the power cord as an FM antenna.
Tapeheads.net
tapeheads.net › forums › general audio discussions › all-in-ones, midi-sized and console units
Bose Wave Audio Systems - any good? | Tapeheads.net
March 20, 2021 - I think the Bose Waves are great for what they are. They are intended for the crowd that wants to set it and forget it. They do have good bass when positioned properly, just put one in close proximity to a wall or even better a corner.
Bose Wikia
bose.fandom.com › wiki › Wave_systems
Wave systems | Bose Wikia - Fandom
JavaScript is disabled in your browser · Please enable JavaScript to proceed · A required part of this site couldn’t load. This may be due to a browser extension, network issues, or browser settings. Please check your connection, disable any ad blockers, or try using a different browser
Overclock.net
overclock.net › home › forums › consumer electronics › home audio
Bose Wave Music System -- Mini Rant/Review | Overclock.net
For the Bose brand - I would NEVER spend $2000 on a HTIB Bose surround sound system, most of what Bose sells is very overpriced but if you know what you're looking for and want to piece together a nice surround sound system, they do make good products. I know my uncle only bought all Bose speakers because he gets it all at a discounted price through his supplier. ... I've noticed there seems to be a lot of hate on the Bose Wave Music System.
Bose
assets.bose.com › content › dam › Bose_DAM › Web › consumer_electronics › global › products › speakers › wave_music_system › pdf › AM324804_OG_EN.pdf pdf
WAVE ® MUSIC SYSTEM
Your Wave® · music system is easily operated using the remote control.
Quora
quora.com › I-own-a-Bose-Wave-music-system-Although-the-internet-is-full-of-people-giving-bad-reviews-I-find-it-to-be-a-great-system-So-why-is-it-hated-then
I own a Bose Wave music system. Although the internet is full of people giving bad reviews, I find it to be a great system. So why is it hated then? - Quora
Answer (1 of 5): See, the entire music equipment industry is divided in two major sectors, one is enthusiast community( pro grade products, but generally are less marketed), and second one is consumer focused which is more marketing oriented and you pay for the beautiful advertisements and beauti...
Audio Review
audioreview.com › product › other › mini-systems › bose › acousticwave-system.html
Bose AcousticWave system Mini Systems user reviews : 3.5 out of 5 - 55 reviews - audioreview.com
May 1, 2007 - Bose AcousticWave system Mini Systems user reviews : 3.5 out of 5 - 55 reviews - audioreview.com
ProductReview.com.au
productreview.com.au › electronics › home audio products › best speakers
Bose Wave Music System reviews | ProductReview.com.au
January 16, 2024 - The unit comes well packaged, and is very easy to set up, only taking a few minutes until you have music pumping out. The clarity and volume of the sound produced is outstanding, similar to what you'd expect from a much larger system.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/bose › is the wave music system iv being discontinued?
r/bose on Reddit: Is the Wave Music System iv Being Discontinued?
June 4, 2023 -
I noticed the Wave Music System iv is now $599 instead of $499 as a result of limited inventory, available while supplies last. Is this the end of an iconic product?
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I hope so. They're not even worth it at $499 let alone $599. 2000's technology, no physical buttons, so you're a slave to the remote. You have to buy an FM antenna separately as well as a bluetooth adapter. Even then, the audio quality from the bluetooth adapter will sound mediocre on the system. I prefer the sound of the Home Speaker 500 better and that speaker is cheaper than the Wave at $379.
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Its the last product attached to Amar Bose. Yeah, its on way out. Its a dinosaur in today's audio. I have had one since 2001 and still kicking.................AM sports. The AARP set keep it selling though.
AVForums
avforums.com › home › hi-fi › hi-fi systems & separates
Bose Wave vs Bose Wave II?? Differences? | AVForums
September 3, 2010 - While the series 2 has twin waveguides, I have never heard it, so cannot say whether it sounds as beautiful and detailed as the series 1. Overall, I'm mighty happy with it, and see no reason to upgrade to the series 2 · B&W 805S - Marantz KI Pearl Lite - Naim NAP160 - Naim NAC32.5 ... This has been a really helpful thread for me - looking for a decent sounding desktop DAB radio/CD with Sleep function and minimal brightness from the display. Bose Wave has mixed reviews and expensive Vita R4 beautiful but awkward remote and bright display Boston Trio good sound but awkward sleep/alarm controls Roberts no control over display brightness Yamaha MCR-140 seems to be the answer only for the fact that none of the manuals available via the uk yamaha site mention DAB - no DAB symbol on any pictures of the product - no references to DAB tuning in the manual.