In 1995, designer David Lewis happened to be walking by a record shop and noticed half-a-dozen CDs arranged in a row vertically in the window. This ultimately inspired Lewis to eventually design the six-disc Beosound 9000 CD player for bang & Olufsen. Now, 28-years-later, the Danish audio brand has tasked its Recreated Classics Programme with delivering a modernized take on the iconic CD changer, leading to the debut of the new and improved Bang & Olufsen Beosound 9000c Recreated Classic Edition.
Managing to build on Lewis’ design from 1996, this modernized iconic vertical CD player began with B&O tracking down some 200 examples of the original model. Each specimen was sent back to the brand’s factory in Struer, Denmark where the original Beosound 9000 was produced. From there, each example was broken down and disassembled on the original workshop tables before being cleaned, repaired, and fine-tuned to modern spec. This process also saw each model hairline-brushed, etched and pearl-blasted. What’s more, all aluminum elements have been re-machined and re-anodized. Because of the finite nature of the existing samples and the handworked nature of the new Beosound 9000c, each unit comes at a very lofty price.
Celebrating the resurgence in the popularity of physical media, the new Beosound 9000c has also been modernized in terms of performance and capabilities. In addition to Active Room Compensation, Adaptive Bass Linearization, Beam Width Control, Thermal Protection, and several other contemporary cutting-eedge features, this new CD player also gains Blueooth 5.0 connectivity. This allows it to have its EQ customized via a smartphone app, plus said app can be used to control the device, allowing its user to select which CD is being played, along with which track. The Beosound 9000c is also sold with a set of equally premium Beolab 28 speakers that boast a single 1” tweeter, a trio of 3” full-range drivers, a lone 6.5” woofer — all backed by 100 and 225-watt class D amps. In total the system boast a collective 625 watts.
The Bang & Olufsen Beosystem 9000c is available now in limited numbers, with pricing set at $55,000.
