Beosystem 9000c: Bang & Olufsen revives the CD Player

Bang & Olufsen announces the revival of an iconic product with the launch of the Beosystem 9000c music system. The new system includes a fully restored and reimagined 1990s Beosound 9000 CD player, paired with Bang & Olufsen’s modern Beolab 28 speakers for a powerful listening experience.

Bang & Olufsen Beosystem 9000: music system with vertical CD changer

Following the success of the 2020 recreated record player Beogram 4000c , the Beosystem 9000c is the second project in the recreated classics series that, according to the manufacturer, illustrates how Bang & Olufsen is committed to the promise of brand sustainability.

The Beosound 9000 was first introduced in 1996 as a differentiated music system featuring a six-way CD changer with built-in AM/FM radio that provided visual representation at the height of the music format’s popularity.

The Beosound 9000 was originally designed by acclaimed industrial designer David Lewis, who believed in slow evolution. Lewis’s ideology was that every product should have a long life, both in desirability and durability, and that new products were produced only when the customer really needed them. His long and successful partnership with Bang & Olufsen was due to their shared philosophy of sustainability by simplifying technology to promote original ideas and designs.

The key to the Beosound 9000 is the idea of ​​’audio visuality’, where basic functionality is visible so that music can be displayed and the user is ‘in contact’ with the music. Legend has it that the idea came to Lewis when he walked past a record store in London where six CDs were lined up in the window. This inspired his concept of linear representation of album art instead of hiding it away in a black box. The six visible CDs, the rapid movement of the CD clamp and the glass lid speak to the user, showcasing Bang & Olufsen’s tradition of mastering technology in an innovative way with highly differentiated visual design and aesthetic expression.

“With our recreated classics, we demonstrate how Bang & Olufsen’s unique capabilities in sound, design and craftsmanship create long-lasting circular products. We want to demonstrate that a product can have a second life and be just as attractive as a new product, and that a high-quality item like the Beosound 9000 does not have to have an end date,” explains Mads Kogsgaard Hansen, Head of Product Circularity & Portfolio Planning at Bang & Olufsen. “More than just demonstrating our commitment to product sustainability, we wanted to celebrate the resurgence of physical media that has taken place in recent years. Vinyls and CDs have become something special again, where people invest time and energy to connect with the music and artists they love. Sustainability in design and the passion for listening to music are in fact what we celebrate with the launch of Beosystem 9000c. It’s all about keeping listening choices alive.”

Bang & Olufsen has found 200 copies of the original Beosound 9000 CD player and returned them to the factory in Struer, Denmark. That’s the same place where they were first made in 1996. The CD players are disassembled and thoroughly checked by a team of skilled service technicians, including many of the same colleagues who worked on the Beosound 9000 in the 1990s, using the original workbenches. Every part is carefully cleaned and repaired, and once inspected, each Beosound 9000 is individually tested and adjusted to meet Bang & Olufsen’s exact specifications.

Bang & Olufsen Beosystem 9000: reimagined for contemporary living

Building on the CD player’s original design, Bang & Olufsen’s design team has reversed the deep black and natural aluminum finishes of Beosound 9000’s original color scheme. The perfectly matched Beolab 28s are a global first with natural aluminum fins on the speakers with a Cosmic Black aluminum base that has surfaces of deep black, creating infinite depth and layers.

“We wanted to enhance the graphical edge of the Beosound 9000 while maintaining the integrity of the original design. To this end, we have introduced a Cosmic Black finish on the aluminum back plate of Beosound 9000, so that the CDs stand out even more as works of art, which was Lewis’ original design intent. This creates a strong contrast with the Natural Aluminum on the control panel, resulting in a bold and modern finish with a nod to the 90s aesthetic of the original CD player,” says Tiina Kierysch, Head of Design at Bang & Olufsen. “The result is timeless and shows that although the two products were designed in different decades, they are closely related through the use of colours, materials and finishes,” she continues.

The Beosystem 9000c shows Bang & Olufsen’s craftsmanship in aluminum processing. To achieve the various finishes, the aluminum is brushed, etched and bead blasted at Bang & Olufsen’s Factory 5 in Struer, Denmark. All aluminum elements of the Beosound 9000 are the original parts that have been re-machined and re-anodized to create unity between products, despite being decades apart.

Bang & Olufsen is known for creating magical moments, where the Beosound 9000 contains different mechanical movements that surprise and delight in multiple ways. The linear movement of the CD clamp is a complex construction that allows fast and silent movement between the discs. It goes from the first to the sixth CD, holds it, records the information and starts playback in a few seconds. With the Beosound 9000, the idea of ​​automatic positioning was not essential to using the product, but it added an element of magic so that users could always read the text on the CD.

The Beosound 9000’s motorized glass lid opens and closes in the same uniform motion, whether lying down, standing or hanging on the wall. Two optical sensors and a digital time control continuously monitor the door, which opens and closes within the set time limit of 3.5 – 4.0 seconds.

When the Beosystem 9000c music system is switched on, the curtains on the Beolab 28 speakers magically slide aside and the speakers are ready to deliver powerful sound. The position of the curtains indicates whether the beam width is in narrow or wide mode, staging the listening experience with narrow mode minimizing wall reflections and wide mode widening the listening area by spreading the sound throughout the room.

The music system comes with a Beoremote One that allows users to easily operate their entire installation, and the installation can also be operated via the Beolab 28 speakers and the Bang & Olufsen app on a smartphone and tablet. As you approach the Beolab 28, the physical interface on top of the speakers lights up, making it possible to play, skip songs and control the volume. Four favorite buttons encourage users to add their favorite radio stations via B&O Radio or a playlist from their favorite music streaming service. Wireless connectivity includes a choice of Airplay 2, Chromecast and Bluetooth 5.0.