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 Answer from Bosewaverocks on reddit.com
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Bose
bose.com › wave-music-system-iv
Bose Wave Music System IV | Bose
Finding the best audio experience. ... This Bose radio CD player was one of the most recent iterations of the Bose Wave Music Systems. While the Wave Music System IV was released in 2015 to replace its predecessor, its rich history dates back to 1984, when the Acoustic Wave Music System (AWMS-1) ...
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Amazon
amazon.com › Bose-Wave-Music-System-IV › dp › B011IH6MBO
Amazon.com: Bose Wave Music System IV - Espresso Black : Electronics
Enjoy high-performance, room-filling sound from a music system that fits nearly anywhere, and now has a fresh design. The Wave music system features award-winning Bose waveguide speaker technology for clear, high-performance sound. There's a ...
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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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CNET
cnet.com › reviews › bose-wave-music-system-review
Bose Wave Music System review: Bose Wave Music System - CNET
Bose Wave Music System
Maggie Award for Best Regularly Featured Web Column/Consumer ... David Carnoy Nov. 8, 2004 4:05 a.m. PT ... Simple to set up and use; attractive design; improved sound; plays MP3 CDs; line-in support for other devices; 30-day trial period. Expensive; no bass or treble control. Bose's Wave Music System ... 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
Rating: 7.3/10 ​
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Amazon
amazon.com › Bose-Wave-Music-System-IV › dp › B011IH6N0Y
Amazon.com: Bose Wave Music System IV - Platinum Silver : Electronics
Exclusive waveguide speaker technology delivers high-performance sound · CD/MP3 CD player; advanced AM/FM tuner with onscreen text display of song and artist information ... Optional Bluetooth music adapter to wirelessly connect your smartphone, tablet or other Bluetooth device · The classic Bose tabletop system for CDs and AM/FM radio has the same acclaimed performance, now updated with a contemporary design.
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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 - Specifically I would like to know: - Is the sound quality as good as Bose make out? - Do the CD players die on these after a few years, and can they be replaced without taking out a second mortgage? - Is there an alternative which kicks their ass? Bearing in mind I'm not really looking for a component system. Cheers! ... I have a Wave Radio with my Nakamichi CR2 at my work and for what it is, it's brilliant.
Find elsewhere
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AVForums
avforums.com › home › hi-fi › hi-fi systems & separates
Bose Wave vs Bose Wave II?? Differences? | AVForums
September 3, 2010 - I am chuffed to bits with it, and it does sound better than the Teac. With the Teac, it always sounded like it was forcing the little speakers to pump out bass using EQ, but the Bose puts out bass very naturally... it sounds effortless...
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CNET
cnet.com › reviews › bose-acoustic-wave-music-system-2-review
Bose Acoustic Wave Music System II review: Bose Acoustic Wave Music System II - CNET
Bose Acoustic Wave Music System II
Although some people will love ... the Bose Acoustic Wave Music System II doesn't offer the sound quality or features of its competitors--and it's way more expensive. Matthew Moskovciak Senior Associate Editor / Reviews - Home theater · Covering home audio and video, Matthew Moskovciak helps CNET readers find the best sights and ... Bose used to have a virtual lock on the high-end tabletop radio market, but in recent years competition has stormed onto the scene from companies such as Cambridge SoundWorks, Polk Audio, Boston Acoustics, and Tivoli Audio. Bose's new top-of-the-line system, the Ac
Rating: 6.5/10 ​
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AVS Forum
avsforum.com › home › forums › audio › cd players & dedicated music transports
what's better than a BOSE WAVE MUSIC SYSTEM ??? | AVS Forum
I was very impressed with the sound of the Bose Wave Music System, It sounds superb for my little dorm room, it fills it completely, that's why I got it, but I never imagined it had such a fabric problem, specially for that amount of money (you can tell I'm so angry right now).
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Amazon
amazon.com › Bose-Wave-Music-System-III › dp › B007ZC99Q2
Amazon.com: Bose Wave® Music System III - Titanium Silver : Electronics
This system adapts to all your musical needs, and endures because of its unmatched sound. This sound, from prominent lows to crystal-clear highs, is the result of unique Bose innovations working together. Proprietary waveguide speaker technology combines with other Bose technologies to deliver performance well beyond the speakers' size. With custom accessories, the system can play your iPod, smartphone or any Bluetooth device · One of the best ...
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Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › List_of_Bose_shelf_stereos
List of Bose shelf stereos - Wikipedia
July 21, 2025 - Shelf stereo products sold by Bose Corporation are listed below. The Wave systems use a folded waveguide (a series of passages from the speaker driver to the speaker grill). The waveguide is claimed to improve low-frequency sound "from a small enclosure by guiding air through two 26” folded wave guides". The first "Wave" product was the "Acoustic Wave Music ...
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Amazon
amazon.com › Bose-Wave-Music-System-III › dp › B007ZCE4OO
Amazon.com: Bose Wave® Music System III - Graphite Gray : Electronics
This system adapts to all your musical needs, and endures because of its unmatched sound. This sound, from prominent lows to crystal-clear highs, is the result of unique Bose innovations working together. Proprietary waveguide speaker technology combines with other Bose technologies to deliver performance well beyond the speakers' size. With custom accessories, the system can play your iPod, smartphone or any Bluetooth device · One of the best ...
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Best Buy
bestbuy.com › best buy › home audio & speakers › home audio › stereo shelf systems › bose - wave soundtouch music system iv - black
Customer Reviews: Bose Wave SoundTouch Music System IV Black 738031-1710 - Best Buy
Bose - Wave SoundTouch Music System IV - Black
Listen to your favorite tunes with this Bose; Wave; SoundTouch; Music System IV, which features built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for easy connection to your network and devices. Bose; waveguide speaker technology ensures room-filling audio. ·
(4.7)
Price   $449.99
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Singersroom
singersroom.com › home › 8 best bose radios
8 Best Bose Radios | 2023 Singers Room
October 16, 2023 - Are you in search of a top-quality music system that combines excellent sound performance with sleek design? Look no further than the Bose Wave range!…
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Best Buy
bestbuy.com › product › bose-wave-soundtouch-music-system-iv-black › J7C5V6GFPQ
Bose Wave SoundTouch Music System IV Black 738031-1710 - Best Buy
It fits perfectly in a smaller space but is just as loud and clear as any large system. It's great for people of the older generation--my husband and I are in our 50's--because it's very easy to use, and it has AM/FM radio and CD options in addition to Bluetooth capability. It honestly fits every one of our listening needs. It fills every inch of our home with beautiful music--we love it! ... This is our 4th piece of Bose equipment. It's our first wave radio.
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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.
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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...