Release Date: 1972

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BeoMaster 5000 (1967)

Bang & Olufsen BeoMaster 5000 1967

Highly selective and sensitive FM stereo tuner with low-distortion multiplex adaptor featuring a high degree of channel separation. It has a 4-section gang-tuned radio-frequency amplifier with separate oscillator, five-stage intermediate-frequency amplifier, automatic frequency control, and automatic stereo/mono switching.

Large tuning meter facilitates pin-point tuning and provides relative signal-strength indication. An automatic data-processing centre switches from mono to stereo when the signal-to-noise ratio permits stereo reception (and if the set is tuned to a stereo broadcast). Moreover, it automatically cuts out the signal if the field strength drops below the critical level – and between channels, during tuning. The automatic frequency control circuit also ensures that the set stays accurately tuned at all times. The remarkable sensitivity of the Beomaster 5000 is due to the use of multi-stage radio-frequency and intermediate-frequency amplifiers, and the large number of intermediate-frequency circuits provide knife-edge selectivity. An amply-dimensioned true slide-rule dial with station markers ensures easy and rapid tuning.” – taken from the 1967 – 1968 Bang & Olufsen product catalogue

Bang & Olufsen’s Beomaster 5000 FM tuner, Beolab 5000 amplifier and Beovox 2500 Cube loudspeakers were among the first product series designed by Jacob Jensen in 1967. The first was Beomaster 1000 in 1964.

The traditional style for tuning knobs was replaced by an exact measuring instrument akin to the slide rule which was considered an innovation in changing the future of radios and amplifiers. The interface, in its precision and simplicity, proved to give the user optimal functionality. This solution had never been seen before and laid the foundation for the future form language of B&O. Beomaster 5000 was an FM tuner, with elimination of static between stations and a built in ‘data base’ which automatically tuned in on stereo broadcasts.

Partner to Beomaster 5000 was Beolab 5000, an amplifier with a similarly-designed slide rule interface.

At the 1967 spring fair in Hanover, B&O received the IF award for Beomaster 5000, BeoLab 5000 and Beovox 2500 Cube for outstanding and user-friendly design.

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BeoMaster 901

Bang & Olufsen BeoMaster 901

Beomaster 901, by 1977/78 was Bang & Olufsen’s simplest receiver. However, no compromises were made on quality. The tuner section covered Long, Medium and FM wavebands with a very high standard of reception quality.

Tuning was by ways of a slider which moved smoothly along a clearly marked scale. An illuminated indicator and AFC (Automatic Frequency Control) circuit helped to make tuning easy and accurate. The MONO control button disconnected the built-in stereo decoder when correct stereo reception was impaired by bad weather conditions or other interference.

Beomaster 901’s large tuning scale had tuning facilities for FM, Long and Medium wave stations. The tuning slider had small thumbwheels to aid fine tuning. AFC locked the receiver to the desired station

The stereo amplifier had a powerful output of 2 x 20 watts RMS and special Darlington-coupled transistors in the output stages kept distortion to a minimum – less than 0,3% at full power. There were connections for two pairs of loudspeakers and a pair of headphones. Sockets were also provided for the connection of a tape recorder, a record-player and AM and FM aerials. Easy-to-use sliders controlled volume, balance, bass and treble and there were slim push-buttons for selecting waveband or tape or record input.

FM room aerial
In order to receive FM programmes, an FM aerial must be connected to the Beomaster 1001. Within a certain radius of the transmitter you could use the Bang & Olufsen FM room aerial, type 8902010. This aerial was easily fitted and the telescopic elements could be pulled out and positioned favourably.

Beomaster 901 could be made up as part of the Beosystem 901 including the the Beogram 1102 record player, Beocord 1101 cassette deck and 2 Beovox Uni-Phase S25 or P30 loudspeakers.

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BeoGram 1800 (1968)

Bang & Olufsen BeoGram 1800 1968

This was a rare and interesting model. It boasted a new arm and motor compared to the Beogram 1000 but retained quite a lot of the design and the uninspired rubber mat.

It also had a most unusual dust cover with a metal surround with only the top panel being transparent. This design was to be seen also in the prototype Beogram 6000 but not in any production model.

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BeoVox 2700

Bang & Olufsen BeoVox 2700

In 1972 the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) chose seven Bang & Olufsen products designed by Jacob Jensen to be included in their Design Collection as representing excellent examples of the Museum’s criteria for quality and historical importance; design, in fact, which had influenced the twentieth century. Beovox 2700 were one of those seven products. That same year Beovox 2700 won the iF Design Award.

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BeoVox 2600

Bang & Olufsen BeoVox 2600

Rated at 30W, the Beovox 2600 was powerful enough to be used with the Beomaster 3000, though it was also recomended for use with the Beomaster 1000, 1200 and 1600.

Slightly larger than the Beovox 1200 of the same year, it was fitted with an 8” woofer with a rubber roll edge and a 1.5” dome tweeter. Befitting a loudspeaker to be used with the excellent Beomaster 3000, the Beovox 2600 met all the conditions of the DIN 45 500 “hi-fi” standard.

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BeoVox 2500

Bang & Olufsen BeoVox 2500

Beovox 2500 Type 6211 were ‘cube tweeter’ speakers, launched at the same time as the innovative BeoLab 5000. The Beovox 2500 Cube loudspeakers were developed to complement both the Beomaster 5000 and BeoLab 5000 in order to spread the high tones. For decades, controlling the directivity and dispersion of particularly the higher frequencies has been a key concern for loudspeaker designers worldwide.

The ability to control the higher frequencies is crucial, as they carry the majority of sonic information about what you are listening to, and where the sound is coming from. During the 1960s, Bang & Olufsen’s Acoustic Engineers were just as concerned with creating a “quality stereo” experience. Whereas it did not matter just how bass frequencies were distributed (as the human ear cannot differentiate the direction of low frequencies) the problem of ensuring good dispersion of midrange and treble frequencies has always persisted.

The problem back then was the same as today; whereas there is no directional problem with the bass, how to ensure dispersion of the midrange and treble? The focus was on the treble, as the higher the frequency range, the narrower the field of dispersion. Beovox 2500 Cube, released in 1967, was an attempt at an omni-directional treble loudspeaker, where the six driver units in the cube-shaped cabinet overlapped to cover all fields. The six driver units, one on each face of the cube, presented a rather special placement problem, which was solved by balancing the loudspeaker on one of the corners. It could therefore rest on a stand or hang from the ceiling.

Of course, with the overlapping fields and reflections from walls, floor and ceiling, the solution wasn’t perfect, but the Beovox 2500 Cube received universal acclaim from audiophile circles at the time for its ability to provide omnipresent sound. Its compact proportions and design, as well as the idea behind it have all contributed Beovox 2500 Cube’s current status as a cult product.

With its six high-frequency tweeters radiating in all directions, Beovox 2500 could be base- or wall-mounted, or even mounted from the ceiling. The compact speakers ensured complete spatial distribution of the highest notes, and its maximum power handling capacity in the range above 2000 Hz was 60W. The speaker was the ideal tweeter for a Beolab system. It could be connected to Beovox 5000 and Beovox 3000.

At the 1967 spring fair in Hanover, B&O and Jacob Jensen – the designer of the speakers – received the IF award for the Beomaster 5000, BeoLab 5000 and Beovox 2500 Cube loudspeakers for outstanding and user-friendly design.