BeoVision 8 - 26 LCD Televison

Manufactured: 2007 - present
Designer: David Lewis
Colours: Black/Silver only

One of the casual set

B&O's long awaited answer to replacing the long running Beovision MX range of stand alone televisions which dated back to 1985, the Beovision 8 was released first as a 26" model and was followed by the 32" model later in the same year.

Sharply styled

The set was a marked change in direction in styling with the trademark contrast screen no longer fitted. Instead a radical new look with a prominent speaker box was seen and the same Sharp LCD screen as seen in the Beocenter 6 26" was fitted. Resolution was set at 768p - completely acceptable for a screen of this size. Particular care had been taken with the speaker which had been optimised for speech reproduction. It utilised three drive units - a 50mm treble/midrange unit mounted at the two opposite ends and a central 100mm woofer. This was separately enclosed and unlike the midrange/tweeter was in a bass reflex box to enhance the output. In some ways this set up resembled that of the Beosound 1 thought that unit had separate midrange and tweeters rather than relying on a full range unit.

Connected to the future

Unlike the other LCD sets in the B&O range, an HDMI socket was fitted which allowed the connection of a digital source. The set also came as standard with two SCART sockets though one extra cost option was the so called System Module which provided a Masterlink socket, an RF modulator and a third SCART socket.

Dark smoothie

Soft touch plastics predominated with an aluminium grille for the speaker with the brand name prominently displayed. Only black with a silver grille was available at the launch.

A range of stands were provided with options for storage of other source boxes or a minimalist black metal single leg.

Digitally challenged

However what attracted a fair bit of attention was not only the daring styling but also some omissions to the specification. With some countries actually starting to turn off the analogue transmitters, the absence of a DVB-T module for the Beovision 8 was a surprise. B&O's argument that this was a set designed for use in a kitchen or small bedroom and would be likely to be attached to the main room digital tuner was reasonable if possibly a little mean. Full STB-C connections were fitted and, to be fair, offered considerable scope for upgrading, something that would be far more expensive should an internal tuner have been fitted.

Not easily surrounded

Of rather more concern to some was the absence of a surround sound option. A single Powerlink socket was fitted to allow the use of stereo Beolab speakers with the option of Centre Balance control, a feature seen on Beovision sets in the early nineties. However there was no Dolby or DTS surround, implying that this set was not designed to be part of a main room set up.

Remotely attractive?

And there was one more surprise! In the UK the set was supplied with no remote control - although it was not able to be operated without one. The rationale behind this was two fold. Firstly, much like the Beovision 3 28",which was another of the models it replaced, the Beovision 8 offered a very low headline price to attract customers more used to buying other brands into the showroom. And secondly, the customer was then offered the choice between the Beo4 remote and the brand new and much more expensive Beo5.

Mounting Options & Stands

This model was supplied with adjustable tilt feet designed to allow the screen angle to decline when placed on furniture. The original Bang & Olufsen Floor Stand did not allow rotation or screen adjustment and was soon replaced by a three position, open front cabinet, supplied with wheels. The wall bracket allowed limited rotation to the left or right and screen tilt adjustment.

BeoVision 8 - 26 LCD Televison Product Specifications

DIMENSIONS/WEIGHT: 72cm x 44cm x 23cm + stand/16kg
CABINET FINISH: Black soft touch/silver
POWER CONSUMPTION: Typical: 88W; standby: 0.8W
HD READY: Yes
SCREEN TYPE: 16:9 TFT LCD with glare surface and low reflection coating (26”)
Contrast ratio: Typ. 1200:1 (typicallly)
RESOLUTION: 1366 x 768
Display colours: 16.7 mill.
Luminance of white: typ. 500 cd/m2
Response time: typ. 6 msec.
Viewing angle: typ. +/-88 degrees both vertical and horizontal
FORMATS: Format 1: 16:9 B&O panorama + soft scroll
Format 1: 15:9 B&O optimum + soft scroll Format 1: 4:3
Format 2: 16:9 letterbox + soft scroll Format 3: 16:9
Picture quality improvements: Automatic picture control (Auto Contrast)
Source dependent picture settings (sharpness)
Dynamic Vertical and horizontal peaking
Noise reduction
De-interlacer with:
Motion adaptive
Low angle interpolation
Film mode
COMB filter
Video AGC
Teletext: Level 1.5 - 2000 memory pages
Operation conditions: 10 - 40 degrees centigrade
Tuning: Auto tune, program move and automatic naming
Tuner range: 45 - 860 MHz, VHF, S, Hyper, UHF
Tv programs: 99
Stereo decoders: A2 + Nicam
Menu languages: English, Danish, Dutch, Spanish,
Italian, German, French, Swedish

Loudspeakers
Frequency range: 85 Hz- 20 kHz
Cabinet principle/ net volume: Midrange/Tweeter: Closed box. Woofer: Bass reflex
Woofer: 100 mm bass/midrange
Tweeter: 2 x 50 mm full range
System modulator: Only when System module mounted (Optional extra)
Set-top Box Controller : Built in. Able to control 2 boxes (2 x STB)

CONNECTIONS
TV Input: 1 x 75 ohms aerial female
Output Modulator: 1 x 75 ohms aerial male
AV-connectors
AV1: 21-pin Scart socket 1-way AVL data, CVBS in/out,
Audio in/out, RGB, Pin 8 sense.
Main usage is: DVD, Decoder, STB and Recorder.

AV2: 21-pin Scart socket + 3 x phono (Y-Pb-Pr)
1-way AVL data, CVBS in/out, Auto Y/C detect, Y-Pb-Pr,
Audio in/out, RGB, Pin 8 sense. Main usage is: High
quality video signals (Y/C or Y-Pb-Pr) from
STB or DVD Recorder.

AV3: 15 pin D-Sub (VGA) + 3 x phono (CVBS in and
Audio L/R in) This is an input only connection. Main
usage is BeoMedia/PC connection either using the
CVBS or VGA, but it ca also be used for other input only
sources e.g. DVD-player or STB

HDMI input: HDMI input socket with audio and video sense.
Main usage is high quality video.
Camcorder/Auxiliary: 3 x Phono sockets (video in/audio L-R in), auto detection (video)
Headphone socket: Mini Jack
STB-Controler output: 2 x Mini Jack
Beolink: ML connector
External Beolab speakers: 1 x Powerlink
Accessories: Floor stand, Wall Bracket, Video Stand

REMOTE CONTROL: Beo4 recommended