Short answer: the ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63. It ranks #41 of 125 bookshelf speakers by sound quality at $499; the B&W 805S ranks #106 and costs $2500, so there is not much of a tradeoff to weigh.
What the ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 offers: 1” aluminum dome tweeter with a distinctive partial-lens waveguide design paired with a 6.5” third-generation aramid fiber cone woofer, in a robustly built cabinet for the price. Shallow bass rolloff (F3 76Hz, F10 40Hz) allows placement close to a wall without excessive boominess, useful for smaller living rooms. Solid measured performance for the price: on-axis linearity within about 2.5dB, impedance dipping only to about 4.4 ohms (easily AVR-driven), and roughly 20-26dB of usable dynamic range. A clear improvement over its sibling ELAC DB62, which has a sibilance issue tied to the crossover that can’t be fixed with EQ. Wide horizontal radiation of about ±60°, giving a spacious soundstage. Distortion looks good at a moderate 86dB and still reasonable at 96dB. Takes well to EQ correction - the reviewer provides a specific filter set (a low-shelf boost at 650Hz plus peaking cuts/boosts at 550Hz, 660Hz, and 3kHz) that meaningfully smooths out its known deviations. Watch for: A dip in the lower midrange (300-600Hz, about 1.5dB) reduces vocal warmth and can make voices sound slightly hollow. A high-Q resonance around 650-750Hz shows up clearly in measurements, though the reviewer couldn’t reliably hear it in his own A/B testing. A dip around 2-3kHz (roughly 1-2dB) slightly reduces speech intelligibility and attack in the upper midrange. Directivity droops above about 2kHz as the midwoofer narrows toward its beaming frequency while the tweeter’s pattern behaves differently - an inherent trade-off of physically separated drivers that can’t be fully corrected without introducing other issues. Multitone distortion crosses the reviewer’s 3% threshold in the 200Hz-1kHz range, and adding a subwoofer at an 80Hz crossover only modestly reduces it. Toeing the speaker away from the listener loses noticeable top-end air and cymbal energy, giving a softer upper register. Practical loudness ceiling is around 90dB at typical listening distance before midrange distortion and bass attack begin to degrade. Still needs a subwoofer for extension below about 40Hz.
What the B&W 805S offers: Bass and dynamic performance are strong for the cabinet size, playing very loud with well-controlled bass distortion. Horizontal beamwidth stays reasonably smooth through -6dB. Build quality has enough of a “quality feel” that the reviewer said it kept the speaker from the lowest possible rating. Watch for: CEA2034 spinorama shows directivity breaking down badly starting around 1kHz and staying poor to 3kHz - a wide crossover-region flaw the reviewer called “clearly flawed execution” that leaves vocals sounding recessed and masked without EQ correction. A high 4kHz crossover point appears to leave the tweeter’s small sub-enclosure resonating audibly during playback. Discontinued, superseded by the 805 Diamond/805 D4 series.
Buy the ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63. It ranks higher for sound quality than the B&W 805S and costs less, so there is no real case for the other one.
If sound quality matters at all to you, skip the B&W 805S. It ranks near the bottom of the 125 bookshelf speakers, so look higher up the list instead.
Specifications Side By Side
| ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 | B&W 805S | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $499.00 | $2500 Discontinued |
| Ranked | #41 of 125 in Large Size Bookshelf Speakers | #106 of 125 in Large Size Bookshelf Speakers |
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 40Hz (measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 62Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 76Hz (measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 80Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Dimensions | 13.3"H x 7.7"W x 11.7"D (337.8 x 195.6 x 297.2 mm) | 16.5H x 9.4W x 13.8D in |
| Impedance | 6 ohms nominal (4.4 ohms minimum, measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 8 ohms nominal (3.7 ohms minimum) |
| Sensitivity | 86.2dB (measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 86.5dB (2.83V/1m, measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Drivers | 6.5" Aramid Fiber woofer, 1" soft dome tweeter | 1" aluminum dome tweeter, 6.5" woven Kevlar cone mid/bass |
| Weight | 17.2 lbs / 7.8 kg each | 25.4 lbs / 11.5 kg each |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear | ported, rear |
| Discontinued | - | Yes |
| Frequency Response | - | 49Hz - 22kHz +/-3dB (-6dB at 42Hz and 50kHz) (Manufacturer specified) |
| Power Handling | - | 50-120W |
Related Speaker Comparisons
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- Arendal 1723 Bookshelf S THX vs Power Sound Audio MT-110-M
- ELAC VELA BS 403 vs Emotiva Airmotiv XB2
- Arendal 1723 Bookshelf S THX vs JBL HDI-1600
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs KEF R3 Meta
- Polk Reserve R100 vs B&W 805S
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The Two Speakers In Full
ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63: $499.00 Amazon Crutchfield eBay
Pros: 1” aluminum dome tweeter with a distinctive partial-lens waveguide design paired with a 6.5” third-generation aramid fiber cone woofer, in a robustly built cabinet for the price. Shallow bass rolloff (F3 76Hz, F10 40Hz) allows placement close to a wall without excessive boominess, useful for smaller living rooms. Solid measured performance for the price: on-axis linearity within about 2.5dB, impedance dipping only to about 4.4 ohms (easily AVR-driven), and roughly 20-26dB of usable dynamic range. A clear improvement over its sibling ELAC DB62, which has a sibilance issue tied to the crossover that can’t be fixed with EQ. Wide horizontal radiation of about ±60°, giving a spacious soundstage. Distortion looks good at a moderate 86dB and still reasonable at 96dB. Takes well to EQ correction - the reviewer provides a specific filter set (a low-shelf boost at 650Hz plus peaking cuts/boosts at 550Hz, 660Hz, and 3kHz) that meaningfully smooths out its known deviations.
Cons: A dip in the lower midrange (300-600Hz, about 1.5dB) reduces vocal warmth and can make voices sound slightly hollow. A high-Q resonance around 650-750Hz shows up clearly in measurements, though the reviewer couldn’t reliably hear it in his own A/B testing. A dip around 2-3kHz (roughly 1-2dB) slightly reduces speech intelligibility and attack in the upper midrange. Directivity droops above about 2kHz as the midwoofer narrows toward its beaming frequency while the tweeter’s pattern behaves differently - an inherent trade-off of physically separated drivers that can’t be fully corrected without introducing other issues. Multitone distortion crosses the reviewer’s 3% threshold in the 200Hz-1kHz range, and adding a subwoofer at an 80Hz crossover only modestly reduces it. Toeing the speaker away from the listener loses noticeable top-end air and cymbal energy, giving a softer upper register. Practical loudness ceiling is around 90dB at typical listening distance before midrange distortion and bass attack begin to degrade. Still needs a subwoofer for extension below about 40Hz.
Full ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 40Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 76Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Dimensions | 13.3"H x 7.7"W x 11.7"D (337.8 x 195.6 x 297.2 mm) |
| Drivers | 6.5" Aramid Fiber woofer, 1" soft dome tweeter |
| Impedance | 6 ohms nominal (4.4 ohms minimum, measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Sensitivity | 86.2dB (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Weight | 17.2 lbs / 7.8 kg each |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs Emotiva Airmotiv XB2
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs JBL HDI-1600
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs Revel Concerta2 M16
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs ELAC VELA BS 403
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs Revel M126Be
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs Wharfedale Linton 85
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs ELAC Uni-Fi Reference UBR62
- ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63 vs Dynaudio Heritage Special
- See all 52 comparisons
B&W 805S: $2500 Discontinued eBay
Pros: Bass and dynamic performance are strong for the cabinet size, playing very loud with well-controlled bass distortion. Horizontal beamwidth stays reasonably smooth through -6dB. Build quality has enough of a “quality feel” that the reviewer said it kept the speaker from the lowest possible rating.
Cons: CEA2034 spinorama shows directivity breaking down badly starting around 1kHz and staying poor to 3kHz - a wide crossover-region flaw the reviewer called “clearly flawed execution” that leaves vocals sounding recessed and masked without EQ correction. A high 4kHz crossover point appears to leave the tweeter’s small sub-enclosure resonating audibly during playback. Discontinued, superseded by the 805 Diamond/805 D4 series. Discontinued.
Full B&W 805S review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 62Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 80Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Dimensions | 16.5H x 9.4W x 13.8D in |
| Discontinued | Yes |
| Drivers | 1" aluminum dome tweeter, 6.5" woven Kevlar cone mid/bass |
| Frequency Response | 49Hz - 22kHz +/-3dB (-6dB at 42Hz and 50kHz) (Manufacturer specified) |
| Impedance | 8 ohms nominal (3.7 ohms minimum) |
| Power Handling | 50-120W |
| Sensitivity | 86.5dB (2.83V/1m, measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Weight | 25.4 lbs / 11.5 kg each |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons