Klipsch's nifty ProMedia 2.1 does bona fide stereo, and its subwoofer belts out more and better bass than single-box iPod speaker systems.
(Credit: Klipsch)I don't know why, but it seems like almost every iPod speaker I hear here at CNET is a wretched-sounding thing. Most have screechy treble, lumpy bass, and vocals never sound remotely human.
As always, you get what you pay for, and the cheapest ones tend to be the worst offenders, but hey, they're cheap.
Some, going for upward of $300 are somewhat less horrible, but for three hundred bucks, you could actually buy a nice set of hi-fi speakers.
The A2 speakers
(Credit: Audioengine)And since most iPod speakers are one-piece systems, they don't do stereo all that well. Sure, many incorporate some sort of processing to simulate stereo separation, but that usually messes up their already pitiful sound quality even more. With separate speakers, you can place them far enough apart to make stereo sound like stereo. Which stereo speakers, you ask?
I like Klipsch's little 2.1-channel iPod solution, the ProMedia 2.1 iPod/Computer Speaker system that goes for $150. It features a pair of two-way satellite speakers and a 6.5-inch powered subwoofer. Separate speakers means it does bona fide stereo, and the sub is big enough to generate real bass.
The larger A5 speakers
(Credit: Audioengine)For $199 you could buy a pair of Audioengine A2 speakers and hook them up directly to your iPod. In my opinion, the A2 sounds at least as good as any single-box $400 iPod speaker I've heard. Granted, the $600 high-end iPod speakers make a lot more bass, but it's still on the thick, boomy, and bloated side of natural. And they're $600! For that kind of dough, you could buy a small stereo receiver and actual hi-fi speakers.
You can read my complete A2 review here.
... Read moreYeah, I get it, big displays garner oohs and aahs; but why are big speakers always portrayed as hideous things only an audiophile could love?
Thing is, tiny speakers cheat you out of more than half the experience. On a return-on-investment basis, home audio is more accurate than video. A 50-inch display may be sharp and clear, but it can't approach the majestic scale of a movie theater screen. A decent home theater sound system will blow away most movie theater systems.
The KEF iQ50, a $900-per-pair tower that'll eat your micro speakers for breakfast.
(Credit: KEF)How large is a large speaker? For the purpose of this blog, 20-inch high bookshelf speakers with 6-inch (or larger) woofers would be a good place to start. Of course, floor standing speakers that are 36 inches high or more are even better. Wee satellite speakers with 3-inch "woofers" never come remotely close to belting out a sound that could be mistaken for a large speaker (even the best of the wee ones never hold up in direct comparisons with larger speakers). The little ones sound like the puny, anemic things they really are. Subwoofers can only do so much.
Sound, schmound--most speaker manufacturers go with the flow and give the people what they want. And they want to believe little speakers sound just as good as big speakers. The manufacturers know most folks buy with their eyes, not their ears, so they don't know what they're missing. It's way more important to look good than sound good.
I covered some of this same ground in my very first Audiophiliac blog, "My speakers can beat up your TV." Point being, money spent on quality speakers, compared to video, is a better investment. With display prices reaching record lows you'd be wise to spend more for quality speakers. Pick up a nice big display for $1,000 ($1,200 to 1,500 less than what you would have paid a couple of years ago); invest the video savings on audio and you'll wind up with a way more satisfying home theater.
It's the classic conundrum: everybody wants the smallest possible speakers and subwoofer, but nobody wants to give up sound quality. Then reality sets in and you hear the size constraints taking their toll on the sound.
Namely, little speakers don't make bass, and even bolstered by a subwoofer, the bass and oomph limitations become painfully obvious with action packed films like Master & Commander.
Two Canadian speaker companies, Energy and Mirage, believe they have devised effective engineering solutions to the size problem. They were in Manhattan last week to show-off their itsy-bitsy creations, and I have to say I was impressed (full CNET reviews by yours truly are in the works).
The Audiophiliac and the Mirage minis
(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)First up, Energy's RC-Micro home theater, "designed to combine high style and immense sound in a remarkably compact 5.1 speaker package." Standing just 4.7 inches high and weighing slightly over a pound, each RC-Micro SAT speaker has a .5-inch hyperbolic chambered aluminum dome tweeter and a 2.5-inch high excursion aluminum cone micro-driver.
Bass for the system is supplied by the 240-watt ESW-CS8 compact subwoofer with an 8-inch injection-molded woofer. The sats and sub played well together, so well it was hard to believe all that great sound was coming from this tiny $1,000 system, but it was.
Mirage's new ultra teensy MX home theater sat/system was, in some ways, even more impressive. Each two-way, 4.3-inch tall MX speaker can handle 100 watts. The polycarbon cabinets feel nice and solid, they're finished in high-gloss black.
Where conventional speakers only project sound forward, Mirage speakers have 360 degree dispersion. The MX sats' .63-inch pure titanium hybrid tweeter and 2.5-inch aluminum woofer fire up into "Omniguide" diffusers that create the speaker's omni-directional dispersion.
The gambit works wonders and the wee speakers really did create a room filling sound. Oh, and the subwoofer? It's an 8-inch cube constructed of medium-density fiberboard, with an 800-watt amplifier, dual 6.5-inch black anodized aluminum passive radiators and a 6.5-inch black anodized woofer.
The MX home theater is slated to launch in October with a MSRP of $1,200. The Energy system should be available this month.
Energy's new tiny sat/sub system.
(Credit: Energy)On Sale Now: $1,199.94
View the latest prices for Mirage MX 5.1
- prev
- 1
- next
