Reality Pro and Bowers & Wilkins 704 S3: Look Beyond the Badge
Esséncia Journal · Buying guide · From the workshop
A premium speaker should fit your priorities. Construction, room fit and the relationship with its maker can matter as much as the name on the front.
Different designs, different priorities
Bowers & Wilkins describes the 704 S3 as a three-way vented-box design with a 25 mm Carbon Dome tweeter, a 130 mm midrange and two 130 mm bass drivers. Reality Pro uses our folded transmission-line approach, two 165 mm Peerless drivers and a horn AMT tweeter.
These differences explain how the products are built. They do not establish which one you will prefer. Published sensitivity and frequency-response numbers also need matching measurement conditions before they can support a direct comparison.
Why consider a small workshop?
Our advantage is personal involvement: you can discuss the room, finish and build with the people making the pair. We focus on a small range and can discuss bespoke work. That can be more relevant to a particular buyer than the breadth of a large catalogue.
The trade-offs are part of the choice
Reality Pro weighs 48 kg per pair and needs planning when moved. Hand-applied finishes can have small variations, particularly around rear edges. Agree the finish and inspect delivery photographs; handwork should never be an excuse for loose joints, damage or a fault.
Use the same recordings, a compatible amplifier and matched playback levels. Listen for clear bass notes, natural voices and fatigue over time. We have not carried out a documented listening comparison with the 704 S3, so no winner or star rating is claimed here.
Source: Bowers & Wilkins 704 S3 specification sheet. Explore Reality Pro →
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