a single tweeter on each side; Definitive
downsized the BP-2002 in part by laying
off one of the mid/woofs. Thus, each side of
a BP-2002 has one 5.25-inch poly-cone
mid/woof and one 1-inch aluminum dome
tweeter. The crossovers, which keep the
high frequencies out of the woofer and the
lows out of the tweeter, are set at slightly
different frequencies for each half of the
speaker to help even out the frequency
response.
Another place Definitive chose to cut is
the subwoofer—in each BP-2002,
Definitive uses a 12-inch driver powered by
a 125-watt amp, as compared to the BP-
2000’s 15-inch driver and 300-watt amp.
You can hook up the subs in a variety of
ways. The back panel of each speaker has
three sets of binding posts: one for the
tweeters, one for the mid/woofs, and one for
the sub. Nearby are two line-level inputs on
RCA jacks, one for a conventional line-
level input, and one designed for use with
the subwoofer output on Dolby Digital
processors. Even though using the line-
level inputs can give you a sonic advan-
tage, I found that simply running one set of
speaker cables to the speaker and installing
the provided jumpers between the three
sets of binding posts was by far the easiest
way to use the BP-2002s. Given that the
speakers sounded fantastic this way, I
didn’t sweat the hookup any further.
With such a significantly different
design—and a cabinet that measures 7
inches shorter, 1.7 inches slimmer, and 2.2
inches shallower—you wouldn’t expect the
BP-2002 to sound quite the same as the
BP-2000. It doesn’t, although the two
resemble each other sonically far more than
they differ. We found that the BP-2002
actually sounds more open and spacious
than the BP-2000, probably because the
2000’s twin mid/woofs produce a very tight
vertical dispersion pattern. The BP-2000’s
a bit more dynamic, with somewhat lower
bass response and more ease at extremely
high volumes, so I prefer it for movie
soundtracks. But I think I actually like the
BP-2002 a little better for music.
Associate editor Brian Clark and I com-
pared the BP-2002 with four other speakers
we had on hand, including our reference
NHT VT-2s, the Radias reviewed in this
issue, and a pair of DCM TimeFrame 8.0s
we just got in. The BP-2002s definitely
sounded the most to my liking—although
they produced a slight lower-treble empha-
sis that made voices sound a little less
smooth in the midrange than with the NHT
and DCM models, the dynamics and spa-
ciousness of the BP-2002’s sound were just
staggering. And I’m not just saying that. It
was literally staggering! When we played
“Once I Wished a Tree Upside Down” from
the Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu’s
Living Magic CD, a tune that offers perhaps
the best sonic imaging I’ve ever heard, I
was surprised enough that I bounced back
against my seat. I’ve heard this tune on
hundreds of speakers, but never to better
effect than on the BP-2002s. And the bass
is really, really outstanding, better than you
get with most stand-alone subwoofers. It’s
very tight, very well-defined, and very deep.
Brian basically agreed with me, finding no
problems worth complaining about, and
raving about the big sweet spot.
To round the BP-2002s into a complete
home theater system, Definitive offers the
C/L/R-2002 center speaker (which they
also sell as a main left/right speaker), and
the BP-2X surround speaker.
The C/L/R’s designed to match the BP-
2002 as closely as possible; it uses two of
the BP-2002’s mid/woof drivers and one of
its tweeters. This way, you get an exception-
ally smooth sonic blend, so that sounds
change very little in timbre as they move
from left to center to right. As you’d expect
of a center speaker, it’s shielded so you can
place it atop your TV without distorting the
picture.
Like the BP-2002, the BP-2X is bipolar,
so it has a woofer and tweeter on each of its
two angled sides. The tweeters and woofers
mirror those used in the BP-2002 and
C/L/R-2002. A bracket on the rear makes
the BP-2X easy to hang on the wall, and it’s
available in white or black. The bipolar
design makes for a nice compromise
between the super-spacious surround sound
effect you get with THX-type dipolar sur-
round speakers, and the precise sonic
placement you get with direct-radiating sur-
round speakers. Audio critics have begun
to argue heatedly about whether dipoles or
direct-radiators are better for Dolby Digital;
in fact, senior editor Al Griffin and I com-
pletely disagree (I love dipoles, while Al
prefers to go direct). The BP-2X lets you
play it safe with sound that’s more direc-
tional than a dipole, but more spacious
than a direct-radiator.
In our testing, we encounter a lot of dif-
ferent-sounding speakers, and hear a lot of
differing opinions from our writers and edi-
tors. This makes it impossible to say that
you’re sure to love (or hate) a certain speak-
er. But we’re at least as sure as we can ever
remember being in saying this: We think
you’ll be blown away by the BP-2002s, and
demand that you go hear ’em!
—Brent Butterworth
“...the dynamics and spa-
ciousness of the BP2002’s
sound are just staggering.”
“...music and movies
sound more spacious...”
“The BP2002s
definitely sounded
the most to my liking….”
“…you do get a much
bigger sweet spot.”
-“...the bass is really,
really outstanding, better
than you get with most
stand-alone subwoofers.”
“...I’ve eked more long-
term pleasure out of
bipolars than from any
other speaker I’ve used.”
11105 Valley Heights Dr., Baltimore, MD 21117
(410) 363-7148
Reprinted with permission from the November 1996
issue of CurtCo’s HOME THEATER.
Copyright © 1996 by CurtCo Freedom Group.
All Rights Reserved.
“I’ve heard this tune on
hundreds of speakers,
but never to better effect
than on the BP2002s.”
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