B&W teases new speaker, promises “most exciting launch in a decade”

It may be little more than a shadowy hint of the edge of a speaker, but anyone with an interest in Bowers & Wilkins speakers will instantly recognise several trademark B&W design features - and the similarity to the 800 Diamond range. New B&W Diamond speakers, anyone?

UPDATE: Yes, it was a new B&W 800 Series Diamond range.

B&W posted the image on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter - and we couldn't help but notice the previous post on B&W’s Facebook page was, "The 800 Series - A History of Innovation".

The speaker revealed in the picture appears to incorporate a number of familiar B&W technologies.

There's the “tweeter on top” design used by B&W on the Nautilus, 800 Diamond and CM Series speakers, plus the use of a sphere enclosure closely coupled to a short tube - again, a design feature seen on the company's high-end speakers. On top of the speaker appears to be a Nautilus tapering tube, as used on the Nautilus and 800 Diamond speakers.

We asked B&W for more details and were told… to get excited. "What we are launching tomorrow is the most exciting launch from Bowers & Wilkins in a decade," said a B&W spokesman. "We are incredibly excited about it, and feel that it is the next step in our journey towards delivering true sound."

The picture was greeted by plenty of guesses from B&W fans, with @hifiklubbenaaboulevard on Instagram suggesting , "Uhhhh new 800 Dia mk3”, while Ian Haas on Facebook predicted it would be a “60th Anniversary 800 Diamond Line Series Baby!”.

We won’t have to wait long to find out.

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Joe is the Content Director for What Hi-Fi? and Future’s Product Testing, having previously been the Global Editor-in-Chief of What Hi-Fi?. He has worked on What Hi-Fi? across the print magazine and website for almost 20 years, writing news, reviews and features on everything from turntables to TVs, headphones to hi-fi separates. He has covered product launch events across the world, from Apple to Technics, Sony and Samsung; reported from CES, the Bristol Show, and Munich High End for many years; and written for sites such as the BBC, Stuff and The Guardian. In his spare time, he enjoys expanding his vinyl collection and cycling (not at the same time).