Beomaster 901 was added to the range of Bang & Olufsen’s audio products to enable a cheaper option to that of the better quality and more expensive higher end of the market signified by such products as the Beolab 5000 System together with its audiophile speakers and matching components.
With a change of the leading designer, Jacob Jensen was able to bring to the company something else that was needed at this period of its history. A fresher outlook meant that the whole product range could be revived and established within the world of good quality audio and video products.
Beomaster 901 was modern looking and looked the part, despite its more modest purchasing price. It competed against other manufacturers’ products who too were producing separates and with the company’s pedigree, Bang & Olufsen did well with it. It was always a favorite product, and many thousands of examples were manufactured, many of which survive right up to this day.
Delivering 2 x 20W power, the receiver also covered the FM, LW and MW wavebands and had connections for a separate record deck and tape recorder. The FM tuner was able to receive stereo broadcasts, and there was even a pre-amplifier built into the cabinet, so Beomaster 901 was designed to be a good all-rounder right from the outset. Tuning of the radio was by way of a ’slide-rule’ which slid smoothly along its marked scale. AFC and a stereo indicator assisted in tuning to remote radio stations. There was even a ‘mono’ button to cut out the stereo decoder when the signal became weak. The customer could connect two sets of loudspeakers if desired and there was a headphone socket for personal listening.
A choice of cabinets was offered, and the machine was easy to operate and functioned very well, despite its moderate power output.
The Beomaster 901 could be connected to the Beogram 1202 turntable, Beocord 900 reel-to-reel tape recorder and used with Beovox 1702 loudspeakers, or any of the products from the lower range products by Bang & Olufsen at that time thus making up Beosystem 901.
After its five-year life, this successful receiver was replaced by the Beomaster 1500.
Type: 2602 ( 1972 - Dec 1977)
Power output: 2 x 20 watts/ 8 ohms, 2 x 19 watts/ 4 ohms
2 x 40 watts/ 8 ohms, 2 x 25 watts/ 4 ohms
Speaker Impedance: 4 ohms
Harmonic Distortion: < 0.1 %
Intermodulation: < 1.0 %
Frequency Response: 20 - 30,000 Hz
Signal-to-noise ratio: > 50 dB
Channel separation: > 50 dB
Bass control: +/- 17 dB
Treble control: +/- 14 dB
FM tuner range: 87.5 - 104 MHz
AM tuner range: 147 - 350 kHz, 520 - 1610 kHz
Power supply: 110 - 130 - 220 - 240 V, 50 - 60 Hz
Power consumption: 15 - 120 W
Dimensions W x H x D 7.5 x 50 x 22.8 cm
Weight 5.5 kg
Connections: Tape DIN
Phono DIN
Speakers 1 set
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