Bowers & Wilkins Floorstanding Speaker 800 Series 801 D5 in Light Walnut (Each) - FP44784
Bowers & Wilkins FP44784 Floorstanding Speaker 800 Series 801 D5 in Light Walnut (Each)
The 801 D5 is an icon refined, the pinnacle of our performance. Engineered for recording studios and discerning listeners alike, it uses our most advanced technologies to deliver reference-quality sound. From its Diamond dome tweeter and optimised drive units to Space Frame Bracing and an upgraded plinth, its purposeful mix of evolution and innovation is housed in an elegantly crafted and beautifully finished cabinet, shaped by the science of sound. Available in Stealth Black, Warm White, Light Walnut, or Dark Walnut, with matching Leather by Connolly trim, it’s an icon of both performance and design. Born of our 60-year obsession with creating the perfect loudspeaker, 801 D5 delivers our most realistic and accurate listening experience yet.
Features
- Diamond Dome Tweeter
Diamond dome tweeter technology remains at the heart of 800 Series Diamond. Exceptionally stiff yet incredibly light, diamond pushes the break-up frequency to an extraordinary 70kHz – far beyond human hearing – delivering outstanding clarity, precision and openness. Grown using advanced chemical vapour deposition, each dome ensures unrivalled detail and natural sound reproduction. - Turbine Head
Hear the sound, not the cabinet. Our all-aluminium Turbine Head is a phenomenally stiff and inert housing for the crucial midrange cone, carefully damped to avoid unwanted resonances and decoupled from both the bass enclosure and the tweeter body. The result? The most realistic midrange sound yet. - Solid Body Tweeter
The latest incarnation of our iconic Solid Body Tweeter-on-Top housing features an elongated form with a longer tube-loading system and an all-new design of tweeter grille that has been optimised to produce an even more free and open sound with high frequencies. As before, the carefully decoupled housing is milled from a single solid block of aluminium to better resist resonance. - Enhanced Matrix™
Matrix™ bracing uses interlocking panels to reinforce the internal walls of loudspeaker cabinets in all directions, reducing resonance and creating a more believable soundstage. Every model in the new 800 Series Diamond benefits from an upgraded Matrix design that combines solid plywood construction with aluminium bracing to reinforce key stress points. - Reverse Wrap Cabinet
Instead of a flat-fronted speaker with a curved back, 800 Series Diamond cabinets are formed from a single continuous curve, locked in place by a solid aluminium spine. Fewer joins make for a stiffer, more inert structure, and a curved front means less baffling around the drive units. So sound dispersion is improved, and cabinet reflection is reduced. - Biomimetic Suspension
Sometimes, making a big difference takes unconventional thinking. For decades, we thought nothing could improve on the sound of our famous yellow Aramid Fibre midrange cones, but eventually our Continuum cone technology changed our minds. Now, we’ve turned our attention to another crucial element in a loudspeaker cone: the fabric spider. Our Biomimetic Suspension revolutionises midrange cone performance by greatly reducing the unwanted air pressure and coloration that a conventional fabric spider can generate. The result? Midrange transparency you wouldn’t believe possible. - Decoupled Midrange Assembly
Every 800 Series Diamond loudspeaker, aside from the standmount 805 D5, has a dedicated midrange cone using four key Bowers & Wilkins technologies: the Continuum cone, FST™, Biomimetic Suspension and midrange decoupling, the latter ensuring minimal interference from the operation of the loudspeaker’s bass drivers. - New Aluminium Top Plate with Damping Collar
Every stereo model in the new 800 Series Diamond range has a significantly upgraded cabinet design with an all-new aluminium top section for even greater stiffness. The same design also provides a perfect mounting point for all-new Leather by Connolly cabinet detailing, with luxurious black leather for dark cabinets and light grey for lighter finishes. - Upgraded Rear-Mounted Crossover
800 Series Diamond use upgraded rear-mounted crossover designs mounted on stiff aluminium spines. This isolates the sensitive capacitors from the unwanted effects of air pressure within the enclosure and makes for a very effective heatsink to ensure optimum performance when in use. - Continuum™ Cone
Thanks to its composite construction, the Continuum™ cone avoids the abrupt transitions in behaviour that can impair the performance of a conventional drive unit. The result is a more open, neutral performance that delivers voices and instruments with precision and transparency. - Leather by Connolly
The top section of every stereo model features an aluminium top-plate, covered in all-new Leather by Connolly trim. We use luxurious, full-grain black leather for the Stealth Black and Dark Walnut finishes, and light grey leather for Warm White and Light Walnut. - Optimised Midrange / Bass Drive Units
Featuring upgraded motor systems derived from the acclaimed Signature range of loudspeakers, the new bass/mid, midrange and bass drive units in all of the new 800 Series Diamond D5 models deliver a cleaner, lowerdistortion sound for a more accurate and revealing presentation. - Upgraded Plinth with Tuned-Mass Damping
The aluminium plinths on all 800 Series Diamond floorstanding models include constrained-layer damping, plus tuned-mass dampers that are individually optimised to the mechanical resonances of each individual speaker. The result is lower unwanted cabinet-borne coloration and cleaner low-frequency output. - Space Frame Bracing
In a further improvement to the massively stiff enclosure in the 800 Series Diamond range, the new D5 models introduce aluminium Space Frame Bracing rails to the rear of each cabinet. These highly stiff constructions further fortify the cabinet against unwanted mechanical vibration, contributing to an even more spacious and immersive soundstage.
General
Warranty Information
Approximate Weight
Approximate Dimensions
Frequently Asked Questions
-
The recommended amplifier power range for optimal performance is between 50W and 1000W into 8 ohms on unclipped program. This wide range allows compatibility with various high-quality amplifiers to drive the speaker effectively while maintaining clarity and avoiding distortion.
-
The tweeter features a Diamond dome made using advanced chemical vapour deposition, providing exceptional stiffness and lightness for crystal-clear and precise high-frequency sound. The midrange uses a Continuum cone with biomimetic suspension, designed to reduce unwanted air pressure and coloration, resulting in highly transparent and natural sound reproduction.
-
Yes, the speaker incorporates aluminium Space Frame Bracing and an enhanced Matrix bracing system with interlocking panels combined with plywood and aluminium reinforcement. These technologies significantly reduce cabinet resonance and mechanical vibrations, producing a more accurate and immersive soundstage.
-
No, the speaker is a passive, wired floorstanding model without wireless features such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Additionally, it is not water-resistant or waterproof, and is designed primarily for indoor use.
-
The cabinet is elegantly crafted with a single continuous curved design featuring a solid aluminium spine, reducing reflections and improving sound dispersion. It comes in multiple premium finishes including Light Walnut, with luxurious Leather by Connolly trim on the aluminium top plate for a sophisticated and durable aesthetic.

