The 686 is the baby of the 600 Series bunch, but doesn’t lack for the technologies and features to deliver outrageously good sound in smaller room settings. Mount a pair on a wall or stand, or simply sit them on a shelf or table for a compact stereo system or as surround speakers in a home theatre set-up.

The 130mm diameter Kevlar® cone bass/midrange is based on a tried-and-trusted B&W design, but its new fixed centre bullet helps to smooth the response in upper frequencies.

Also, by setting the bass/midrange closer to the tweeter than in equivalent earlier speakers, we have improved the integration and vertical dispersion of sound from the two units. The Nautilus tube-loaded, aluminium dome tweeter, featuring a new surround material to improve spaciousness and imaging, adds needle-sharp top end all the way to 50kHz and beyond.

The improvements to the drive units in the new 600 Series make it possible, for the first time, to introduce a minimalist crossover to the range. The use of components that are fewer in number but higher in quality - hand-picked in exhaustive listening tests - reduces the degradation of the signal significantly. So, whether you are enjoying hi-fi or home cinema, what you hear is that much closer to what was recorded.

Visually, a refreshed, contemporary design language and a widened choice of wood finishes allows the 686 to fit in effortlessly with any interior.