Bowers & Wilkins 805 D5 Stand-mount Speaker

Description

Overview

The 805 D5 is the stand-mount loudspeaker of the Bowers & Wilkins 800 Series Diamond D5, the newest generation of the range, and its most compact model. Bowers & Wilkins says it is best suited to smaller listening spaces.

Design & build

The Diamond dome tweeter sits in a solid-body Tweeter-on-Top above a Continuum cone bass/midrange, in a reverse-wrap cabinet. Bowers & Wilkins makes the FS-805 D5 stand for it, sold separately; the pictures show the speaker on that stand. It stands 439 mm tall including the tweeter and weighs 16.4 kg. Finishes are Stealth Black, Warm White, Light Walnut and Dark Walnut, each with matching Leather by Connolly trim.

Key features

A 25 mm Diamond dome tweeter, which Bowers & Wilkins says pushes its break-up frequency to 70 kHz, and a 165 mm Continuum cone bass/midrange in a vented cabinet with Flowport. Bowers & Wilkins also lists the Anti-Resonance plug and Matrix bracing.

Specifications

Type: two-way vented-box stand-mount loudspeaker. Drive units: 25 mm Diamond dome tweeter; 165 mm Continuum cone bass/midrange. Frequency range: 34 Hz to 35 kHz (-6 dB). Frequency response: 42 Hz to 28 kHz (±3 dB). Sensitivity: 88 dB. Harmonic distortion (2nd and 3rd harmonics, 90 dB, 1 m on axis): below 1% from 90 Hz to 20 kHz, below 0.3% from 100 Hz to 8 kHz. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms (minimum 4.6 ohms). Recommended amplifier power: 50 to 120 W into 8 ohms on unclipped programme. Maximum recommended cable impedance: 0.1 ohm. Dimensions: height 439 mm including tweeter; width 241 mm cabinet only; depth 322 mm cabinet only, 363 mm including grille and terminals. Weight: 16.4 kg each. Finishes: Stealth Black, Warm White, Light Walnut, Dark Walnut; grilles black (Stealth Black, Dark Walnut) or grey (Warm White, Light Walnut). Priced per pair; stands sold separately.

Who it’s for

The 805 D5 is for a smaller room, or for the listener who wants the Diamond tweeter of the 800 Series without a floorstander. We hear Bowers & Wilkins as insightful and transparent, and undeniably capable.

What we would pair it with

Bowers & Wilkins recommends 50 to 120 watts into 8 ohms. We would look first at the McIntosh MA5300, or a Lyngdorf TDAI-3400 where the room needs correcting.

Room and setup notes

A stand-mount speaker of this quality needs a rigid stand; the FS-805 D5 is made for it. We set the height and the toe-in in the room the speakers will live in.

Also worth considering

The 804 D5 is the slimmest floorstander of the series. Bowers & Wilkins still lists the 805 D4 beside the D5. See the full range on our Bowers & Wilkins page.

Why buy from Hidden Home Technology

The 805 D5 is available to order through us. We can advise on amplification and the room, and handle delivery, installation and set-up across the South. Speak to our team to talk it through.

The wider view: Bowers & Wilkins 805 D5 reviews in brief

The 805 D5 is the stand-mount of the 800 Series Diamond and its most compact model, a two-way design with the Diamond dome tweeter on top and a Continuum mid-bass cone below. Bowers & Wilkins made it for smaller rooms, and it performs best on its own stands, which are sold separately.

Reviewers in Sweden, Germany and the Czech Republic have tested it so far. Lasse Svendsen of the Swedish magazine Ljud & Bild called it the best stand-mount Bowers & Wilkins has ever made, ahead of both the 805 D4 and the D4 Signature. He heard a more open sound with better focus and dynamics, and he had never heard such well-resolved treble from the company. Tim Hundenborn of the German site HIFI.DE lived with a pair for two months. He found that it plays big and hides nothing, with more air and space than before and faultless build. Daniel Březina of the Czech magazine Hi-Fi Voice heard tighter and faster bass and a far more open and three-dimensional sound than from the D4 Signature, analytical in the good sense.

It is worth knowing that its fairly bright character remains. HIFI.DE found the treble a little bright depending on taste and needed at least a metre of space behind it, while Ljud & Bild found the bass does not go especially deep.

HIFI.DE drove it with McIntosh’s MA9500 among others and found it likes power in reserve. So it suits a smaller room and a listener who wants the 800 Series clarity without a floorstander. We would set it on its matching stands and plan the placement with you.

What the reviewers say, in a nutshell

• Ljud & Bild, Lasse Svendsen, October 2026. The best stand-mount Bowers & Wilkins has made, open and dynamic with superbly resolved treble, though not especially deep. The review is in Swedish.
• HIFI.DE, Tim Hundenborn, October 2026. Plays big and hides nothing, with more air than before, its character still a little bright. The review is in German.
• Hi-Fi Voice, Daniel Březina, September 2026. Tighter, faster and far more open than the 805 D4 Signature, with a little less body. The review is in Czech.