Open Mike: A Splendid Little Speaker

OT Review: The Audioengine 5+ (a.k.a. the A5+)

A year and a half ago I realized I was going to have to replace my only TV. The 26" Sony CRT we'd been using for 16 years was getting wonky. So I went shopping, and bought...nothing. Couldn't pull the trigger.

I was completely unfamiliar with the current state of the TV market, and it took me a while to understand my objection to today's TVs: they look great, but they sound bad. And, it turns out, there's a sensible reason for that: most people who buy flatscreen TVs hook them up to multi-channel receivers to create "home theater" systems. Since nobody uses the built-in speakers, naturally they're a perfect place for the manufacturers to cut costs.

So when the old TV appeared to die a number of weeks ago, off I went to the local Best Buy, where I chose a 36" LED Samsung. But there was still that problem of the sound. Sound quality is always important to me—a baseline need. Living with the harsh, bass-less sound of the built-in speakers was not making me happy, so I had to do something.

But what?

I'm not a big video guy—I like stills—and I tend to do things modestly anyway. The idea of adorning my small living room with five—sorry, "five point one"—speakers didn't appeal.

Other, simpler solutions that I fantasized would be common in that market didn't seem to be forthcoming. I could buy the store's solution—a "soundbar," which is an extra bank of tiny speakers in a bar-shaped enclosure meant to sit in front of the TV—but they all seemed overpriced to me and most of them sounded just wretched, like a clock radio on steroids or the car stereo in an '80s Toyota. You can buy various amplified computer speakers, but most of them don't have the crucial accessory for use with a television—a remote. I have a pair of old wood-veneered Dynaco A25's in the basement, and I could have used those, but to connect them to my TV I'd still need an integrated amplifier or a receiver. I have an old receiver, too, but not one with remote control—meaning I'd have to get up and go over to the television every time I wanted to change the volume, or else buy a whole new integrated amp with a remote. Not ideal.

This picture of the Audioengine A5+ shows the two features that make it really useful—the volume control on the speaker, which means that all you need for desktop use is a DAC, and the remote, which is the crucial feature if you want to use the speakers with a TV.

Then I remembered that two and a half years ago I reviewed a small set of computer speakers I'd heard and loved—the Audioengine A2's. I wondered if Audioengine had a solution to my dilemma. So I called them.

And they did—the Audioengine 5+. It's the version of their top-of-the-line powered A5 that has remote control. My next call was to B&H Photo, which carries them. B&H has gradually been getting more and more into the audio and pro audio fields, as they're eager to expand their business in those areas, so they made me a nice offer—I could keep the review pair if I'd write about them.

Nice as that sounds, it actually isn't always an inducement to me. I don't want to feel beholden to write about anything in particular, for one thing, and, for another, I don't actually even want to keep things I don't really like. For ethical reasons I've kept almost nothing in the way of freebies over the years, with the exception of some Pentax stuff I've had on "extended loan" (a pre-production K-7 I don't use, for instance, and a few lenses I do use). If I don't like the product, whatever it is, I then have an obligation to get rid of it ethically—which I commonly do by donating it to a college or high school. (For obvious reasons, I've never sold anything I've gotten from a manufacturer that didn't want it back. One of the problems of reviewing—worse in audio than in photography, but certainly not unknown in photography—is that some unethical reviewers choose what to review based on what they can get the best deal on. They write the [usually glowing] review, then sell the equipment for a profit. Can it please go without saying that I don't approve?) Disposing of review equipment without being able to sell it is another logistical hassle I'd usually rather not have.

Bottom line, though, I accepted the offer, and I'm glad I did.  

Physical description
The A5+ is a two-way (that is, two drivers per box) stereo (two boxes total) speaker with a 5" kevlar "woofer" and a 0.8" silk dome tweeter. At roughly 11 inches high by 7" wide by 8" deep, the Audioengine 5+ is very big as desktop computer speakers go and very small as full-sized, other-side-of-the-room hi-fi speakers go. They contain a 50-watt-per-channel power amplifier inside the left speaker, which accounts for an extra 5.8lbs. of weight in the left box.  They are clearly meant to offer the widest range of hookup/application choices as possible. You can read about those on the manufacturer's excellent website, so I won't regurgitate all of it here. The only one that might be confusing is that the USB port is for powering a device only—it doesn't mean there's a DAC in the speakers.

Click to enlarge

The reason I put "woofer" in quotation marks above is that the woofer is really a mid-woofer, with response spec'd at 50Hz at 1.5 decibels down. But it's the big driver and handles the lowest frequencies, so we'll go ahead and call it a woofer. The A5+ has a bypass that enables you to use a subwoofer if you want to, and Audioengine makes a nice matching powered subwoofer, roughly a cube foot in size, called the S8. Like the speakers, it's available in black or white. (You can also get the speakers in a light wood bamboo finish.) Note that specifying the bass to –1.5dB is unusually tight—most hi-fi manufacturers use –3dB or even –6. More about the bass quality below.

So, like some other computer speakers, the way you hook them up is to route the signal to the left speaker, then run speaker wires from the left speaker to the right one. The left speaker has to be plugged into an outlet, the right one doesn't.

The basic inputs are RCA jacks and a mini-jack. Since most TVs have mini-jack outputs, that's the one I used.

Build quality and value
The A5+'s cost $399, which is not expensive but also, for some folks, not exactly cheap, certainly not compared to run-of-the-mill computer speakers. Any reservation about value evaporates quickly, however, on opening the box. In fact, you feel almost guilty for being able to buy such an obviously premium product for so little scratch—you just know that skilled Chinese people somewhere are working very hard for 60¢ a month (disclaimer: that's an exaggeration) to make such a deluxe product that costs you so ridiculously little. And I hope they're happy with whatever they get.

The speakers come beautifully double-boxed, with a well-written manual, with the speakers and all the bits contained tidily in velour bags with drawstrings. Not only do they include speaker wire and RCA interconnects in the box, you also get a mini-jack to mini-jack connector (that's it in the middle)—just what I needed to connect the speakers to my new TV.

The speakers appear to be very well built, with solid cabinets finished to a high standard. I didn't dismantle mine to inspect the drivers, but there's nothing about them that suggests the drivers are any less than good quality.

I don't know any of the people behind Audioengine, but they seem to sweat the details and do everything right.

Oh, I almost forgot—the speakers have a very nice rubbery isolation pad built into the base of each cabinet. As you know if you've ever experimented with points or Blu-Tak or Vibrapods for your speakers, coupling to whatever the speaker rests on is important for the sound—not to mention that the pads protect your furniture too. A nice touch, one which seems typical of the company's attention to detail.

Sound quality
Different speaker designers "voice" speakers differently, and different listeners listen for different things. Without getting into this too deeply here, many audiophiles conventionally listen for "accuracy," by which they mean frequency-response accuracy (a flat response curve); but there are many other types of accuracy (for example, Klipsch speakers, which are often inaccurate in terms of frequency response and cabinet coloration and thus haven't been in favor in audiophiledom since forever, are much more accurate dynamically than something like a Dynaudio floorstander, which sounds flat in more ways than one by comparison). There are lots more examples which I could get in to but won't.

For whatever reason, I very much like the way Audioengine products are voiced. The designer, whoever he may be, clearly has good taste in my opinion. One of the channels I have activated on the TV is the jazz music channel, which I seldom listen to at any length but find useful like the radio used to be, for exploring new music I don't already know. I think it's telling that each time I flip past the jazz channel, even briefly, the sound from the A5+'s pleases me.

And what is that sound? Well, writing about sound is like dancing about architecture, but they remind me a little of the so-called "West Coast Sound" that was a meme years ago, exemplified in my younger years by the then-popular JBL! speakers—rich, full, sonorous, mellow and musical, and unapologetic about it. The sound might not hit all the marks for a pasty-faced audiophile sitting there anxiously with his clipboard and beads of sweat on his forehead, but it's going to make most people smile.

A word about the bass. The typical trick of very small speakers is the so-called "mid-bass hump," whereby the mid-bass region is boosted to mask the absence of bass lower in the frequency range. I won't swear that these don't do that, but if they do they don't do it much.

Most people who use subwoofers use way too much bass, I guess under the theory that if they're going to pay for all that extra bass, they're dang sure gonna get their money's worth. To those people, the extension of the A5+'s might not seem adequate. I've always liked small 2-ways, though, and I've always thought 50Hz extension is fine even for music—especially considering the tight spec; these speakers might not be 6 dB down until the mid or even low 40s. Part of the reason for that is that I'm particularly sensitive to bass—I can hear and identify standing waves in room setups, and most audiophiles can't—and I'd rather have a little less bass done well than a little more done badly. If you watch a lot of movies and/or if you're inured to excessive bass, you might want to go with the matching subwoofers. Otherwise I really don't think you'll need them. In any event, my recommendation would be, use the A5+'s for a month without the subwoofer, and then decide.

Conclusion
So what do we have here? Basically, the ideal second speaker. I doubt these are going to be any dedicated music listener's best speaker system, unless you're severely cash constrained (in which case they'll do—remember, for that laughably low $399 you get a power amp too). But they are very well suited for a whole range of other uses. I'm extremely happy with them with my TV—they seem ideal, given that I like good-quality but modestly scaled setups—and they'd be great as computer speakers—and perfect in every way as dorm room speakers (including cost, and down to the robust shipping box), at least for kids who don't mind less than eardrum-damaging volumes. They'd work well as bedroom, office, or workshop speakers, and they're small enough to throw in the car if you have a summer cottage or hunting cabin.

Here are a few links to them at B&H Photo:

White
Black
Bamboo

Free shipping, even!

Seldom is any product such a safe recommendation. Sure is nice when that happens.

Mike

'Open Mike' is a series of off-topic posts by Yr. Hmbl. Ed. that appears only, but not always, on Sundays.

ADDENDUM: This post is already too long, but if you want to use these as your computer speakers, you should budget for a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) as well. You can spend up to many thousands on a DAC, but Audioengine makes one to match their speakers that doesn't cost much. See also Chris Lucianu's comments below. —MJ.

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Featured Comment by Dean Johnston [no relation to Mike]: "Drat! When I saw the 'upcoming Open Mike' warning post, I wondered if I might get lucky, in that you might be about to introduce something that sounds really good, but doesn't cost as much as the Audioengine 5+ that I really want but can't afford. I'm looking forward to the sound quality post. While I'm no audiophile, I have heard a pair, which is why I want a pair."

Mike replies: Don't forget the A2's, which are great as nearfield computer desktop speakers. They cost half as much. I wrote about them at the first link in this article.

Featured Comment by Michael Elenko: "We've had the A2's as the output for my son's Yamaha digital piano for a couple of years now. They are simply excellent. What's also sweet is the iPod/iPhone jack at the back. We just plug in the iDevice of the moment and enjoy."

Featured Comment by fred: "For an extra 70 clams these speakers come wrapped in bamboo which looks better than the black or white MDF. Not sure if the bamboo is acoustically as good as MDF but it looks terrific."

A5+ in bamboo finish

Mike replies: It does look terrific. I really like bamboo. It's very hard wearing, quite pretty (IMO) and very sustainable.

Featured Comment by Chris Lucianu: "Endorsed. The Audioengines are, for the price, outstanding. I'm lucky to work with studio audio hardware, but the A5+ are my first recommendation for compact stereo or nearfield computer-based music systems. Small caveat, and I'm sure Mike will weigh in on this: A DAC will greatly enhance the sound quality of a system based around a computer plus the A5+ speakers. Fortunately, Audioengine has just introduced two budget DACs which fit the bill perfectly: the D1, and the wireless D2 (great for remote or distributed listening).

"Michael Lavorgna at Audiostream.com has just reviewed them. Again, for the price, recommended.

"And now the usual disclaimer: I don't know anybody at Audioengine from Adam*. I'm not even a customer (as I said, I get my fix via studio monitors), just a satisfied endorser. After many lengthy comparative listening sessions, these are the speakers I recommend to friends and colleagues—and I still get invited for drinks and dinner. (*Pun intended, even if it takes gearslutz and audioholics to get it.)"

Featured Comment by Lawrence Plummer: "Mike, I will back you up on the choice of the A5+. I picked up a white pair from B&H a month ago for use on my computer. These are a pair of the best sounding (and looking) speakers I have run across in a long time."

Comments

[dale]

Mike,
faced with a similar and equally vexing problem three years ago when I moved into this house, I simply didn't have the real estate for my CRT TV. I had a built in book case 8" deep and 34" wide, perfect for a 26" flat panel. but not deep enough for electronics and speakers! So I built a pull down door with the cable box and DVD when necessary (IR Repeater)and put the amplifier in basement below. Bought a pair of B&W speakers on Craigslist for $100. and handled the remote problem by using the variable audio out on the TV with a audio taper pot to match levels.

[Christer]

Thanks for the interesting review! I have one question though: when purchasing computer speakers recently I tried out a few different options and found that some are highly dependent on positioning (I know they all are to some extent, obviously), to the point where you have to sit in just the perfect spot for them to sound good. But when you are there, they sound absolutely amazing. Are these speakers a little more "forgiving" in that manner?

For what it is worth, the "computer speakers" I ended up with was a pair of M-Audio AV40s. Cost around 1300SEK here (so probably 150 dollars or so in the US I would suspect) and the sound--as long as you are careful with positioning both the speakers and yourself--is excellent.

[Sal Santamaura]

No grills????

[Zeeman]

(OT) Congratulations for successfully taking a Saturday off, Mike! Hope you had a good rest.

[Dan]

Hey Mike, I take it you don't need the speaker remote if you can hook the speakers directly to the TV and use the TV remote. One less remote would be great.

[John Nollendorfs]

Mike:
If you are an audience of one watching the new TV, consider getting a good wireless earphone set instead! I've been using a set of HDR 100 Sennheisers for several years and have been very happy. But of course your ears are probably more discriminating than my nearly 65 year old pair. But it's amazing what you can hear from earphones compared to built in TV speakers!

[Mike Johnston]

"Hey Mike, I take it you don't need the speaker remote if you can hook the speakers directly to the TV and use the TV remote. One less remote would be great."

Dan,
As I say, I'm not familiar with TVs and how they all work, and it very well may be that some TVs have variable mini-jack outs for which that would be true. With a fixed audio out like my TV has, however, you need to use the remote that comes with the speakers, so there are two remotes by my chair and couch.

Mike

[Mike Johnston]

"No grills????"

Sal,
No, no grills. Not even as an option.

Mike

[David]

As a matter of interest, what did you connect the audio lead to, on the TV? On my Samsung there is only a "head-phone" output for audio. Pleanty of inputs but not much in the way of outputs.

[Mike Johnston]

Christer,
That's called off-axis [frequency] response, usually illustrated with a waterfall plot. I haven't noticed much problem with that. I plan to try the speakers later with my big system, for music listening, and I'll report on what I find if I find anything worth reporting.

Mike

[Mike Johnston]

"As a matter of interest, what did you connect the audio lead to, on the TV? On my Samsung there is only a "head-phone" output for audio. Pleanty of inputs but not much in the way of outputs."

David,
Various TVs had different kinds of outputs--some have optical, some have RCA. I made sure when I bought it that mine had a mini-jack "Audio Out"--a mini-jack is a 3.5mm TRS connector, the smaller of the two most common "headphone jack" sizes. That was when I was planning to use my old receiver and Dynaco speakers, so I also bought a mini-jack-to-RCA adapter, which I found to my surprise when I got the speakers that I don't need, because the speakers have a mini-jack input on the back and even come with a 3.5mm TRS cable for just this application. If you have an existing TV, best to check the manufacturer's specs to see what if any Audio Outs it provides. Chances are good the headphone out on your TV would work, but it might be wise to check first.

Mike

[Dana Thomas]

.....Mike, I have these speakers in my kitchen and am running them from my main amps preamp out with a Burson DAC between the computer(iTunes) and the amp (Plinius). The sound is lush and blooms. I have the Bamboo finish and they look great as well.

[David]

Just as an aside, I recently acquired a 2.1 system for my p.c. Having been through various 2.1 up to 5.1 p.c. speaker systems and always been dissapointed by the lack of mid-range, I came across a system from Corsair, their SP-2500. You get a bass cabinet and two 2-way speakers for the desk-top, plus a hand-controller, into which you can plug a headphone. The desk-top units are very smart and feel well made and the sound is just terrific,(for my ears anyway). You can see them here
http://www.corsair.com/pc-computer-audio/pc-computer-speakers/gaming-audio-series-sp2500-high-power-2-1-pc-speaker-system.html
I do use a PCI audio card as well, i.e. not just the motherboard audio. One thing to watch is the bass cabinet is on the larg-ish side.

[Nico Burns]

Damn, I've been eyeing these speakers, and their predecessors (The A5s, sans +) for about 2 years now, since seeing a review on AnythingButIpod.com. Perhaps now I shall finally have to plonk down the cash (the problem being I don't actually have any).

[Gary Wilson]

Your article came at the critical point in time where recognized need meets opportune information. I rarely have enough confidence in non-photographic related purchases to pull the trigger without thorough and plodding research. I read your recommendation and immediately clicked on the link and did the deal. Its testimony to your credibility and persuasion. Thanks Mike.

[Malcolm]

I have heard systems with Klipsch speakers and I always thought they sounded pretty good. Somewhat mystified by their shirking by the audiosnob crowd which seems to place price above performance. However I have a very nice pair of Wharfedales that fit me like a glove. I recently did buy a Klipsch subwoofer and I have to keep the volume control under 30% or rattle the dishes off the counter! Also some cuts really get the bass tuned up while others not so much - and I really don't like having to get up and adjust that subwoofer volume control. Maybe I'll just stick with cans.

[Khoa Khuong]

Thanks, Mike, for the informative review that manages to also introduce the reader to some audio basics. I've heard a few reports of moderately heavy bass from the A5 and found your comment a bit surprising, especially considering the placement of the speakers in the photo. I would have expected perceptible bass reinforcement (and early reflections) from close proximity to the TV stand. The right speaker also looks close to a corner, though I can't be sure.

The example you gave of "frequency-response accuracy", a result of low linear distortion, is actually an example of non-linear (harmonic) distortion. I would amend it to say: "A 2-kHz signal of a certain amplitude is reproduced at the same loudness as a 3-kHz signal of that amplitude."

P.S. Strictly speaking, a two-way speaker can have more than two drivers. They just have to be arranged to receive either of two distinct signals (e.g., a D'Appolito array with a tweeter and two woofers in parallel). A "2.5-way" design usually has a midrange driver that shares part of the woofer's spectrum.

[MarkB]

Wait - isn't this a "Photography..?"
(Kidding!)

Thanks for being so forthright and transparent about both the product, and how you obtained it for review. Glad they work for you, but due to hearing loss (heavy metal and explosives in the 80's) and a house with varied musical tastes, I'm a headphone kind of guy. Let me know if you ever go "head-fi" and find something to replace my Sennheisers.

[Toomas Must]

My AudioEngine A5 speakers are connected to the stereo out terminals of a McIntosh Laboratories C 26 Solid State Stereo Preamplifier.Could not be happier.Inputs are my Panasonic HDTV,XM satellite dock,and my music collection on my 2.3Ghz dual core G5 PowerMac.The AudioEngine A5 speakers are perfect for us who have downsized living rooms (19'X9').

[Derek Lyons]

Why would you need a remote to set the volume?

For our soundbar, we set the TV to it's "normal" volume and then tuned the volume on the soundbar. Now we just need to turn the soundbar on and tweak the TV volume using the TV remote.

[Peter Barnes]

Whoa! the world is changing - I can get these for $369 from a couple of Australian on-line retailers. Such a pleasant change from the norm (e.g. Epson ink cartridges, made just north of here in Indonesia, cost twice as much in Australia as the identical product retails for in the U.S.)

[t. Thomas Hardie]

Hi Mike, I was excited to hear your thoughts on speakers since I really appreciate your opinion on photography, music and coffee. I was also excited that the speaker was something I already own - almost. The AudioEngine A5 is the progenitor to the A5+. It's the model I own. They have been an absolutely great speaker for over three years now. I haven't regretted or gotten bored of them in that time. And that is saying a lot for a self confessed gear-updater/junky. One thing about the A5 vs A5+, the former has a standard North American outlet on the back. I use this to plug in an Aiport Express to stream audio from all my iDevices. The A5 lacks a remote, but I set macro volume on the speaker and fine tune volume on the source. By the way mine are white and they look quite nice in person.

[Sal Santamaura]

"No, no grills. Not even as an option."

I haven't been in the market for speakers since buying a pair of Allison CD 9s at least 25 years ago. They currently sit on either side of a 42" flat screen, still sound good as new and satisfy me greatly. Thus my surprise at the lack of grills on your new Audioengine A5+s.

I guess it's fortunate those "woofers" are made of something indestructible like kevlar. :-)

[Richard]

I looked at these when I was trying to decide on a solution for streaming music. (I intended to power them from an Airport express) They certainly get very good reviews and sounded pretty damn impressive when I had a listen in a demo room, so I feel I can endorse Mike's recommendation.

(I eventually decided to go with a wireless Airplay solution in the end for its portability and discreetness. If you want an in-situ, more traditional hi-fi solution, these look pretty good.)

[Mike Johnston]

Sal,
I've owned Allisons. Roy Allison is a genius. I think he's still alive and living in New Hampshire.

I had a pair of AR3a's once too.

Mike

[TonyA]

Yep - I endorse the high ratings given above. I have the A5s connected to my PC via a separate sound card and they are definitely the best bang for your buck, quality desktops I've encountered.

There is one caveat however. I do like listening to my music (and concert movies etc.)LOUD!I generally only get 45 minutes before the thermal cut out kicks in and I lose sound. I'm not complaining - I did notice this mentioned in some of the online reviews and blogs I researched and bought them anyway.
If I set up a standard household fan and have it trained on the back of the left speaker I will get hours of continuous, LOUD music.
It might also be the case that the next generation (A5+)has improved cooling.
Regardless, the quality of the sound is sensational.

[Sam]

Too bad Mizzu couldn't finish off KU ;-)
Thanks for the review... added to the shopping list.

[Dennis Ng]

I went to my LG TV (42") which I got two (one 3d and the latest is non-3d as 3d is useless). The sound not that good especially for dialogues. Never think about upgrade it but after reading your blog, I put my head into the back of both TVs and found that the only sound output is via optical ...

Never touch that before ... still a guy knew only RCA, hifi cable, pre-amp/power-amp ... any advice?

[JTW]

Mike, you can write about audio any time you want. As an audio DIY'er (funny how what started the industry in the late 1940s and 1950s - DIY - is now the 'core' that keeps it alive) I'm always interested in reading about the subject. However, I read your blog as much for your perspective on any subject as I do for the photographic insight.

[ILTim]

The built in speakers on my TV are so bad you cant even make out the mere presence of background music most of the time, and dialog is massively hard to understand. With my old budget Sony surround system, things were tolerable, but still pretty lousy.

So I bought a pair of small Polk T150 bookshelf speakers ($75 on deep discount) and a Lepai TA2020 T-amp ($23) for my TV setup a few months ago (both from Amazon). Its sounds outstanding now, much more open and natural with background noises and music nicely separated from the foreground sounds. For a hundred bucks! I did keep the powered sub from my old setup, but its not strictly necessary, and decent ones are available for a hundred bucks. The little Polk's will shake the couch, slightly, on their own when turned up loud. But the extra punch makes movie helicopter sounds more fun. I just leave the amp on 24/7 and adjust volume on the source.

But yeah, you need good sound to go with the picture. A lot of people overlook that.

[Ed]

I used to own two Genelec monitors.....these look sort of the same configuration. Great for everything but dance (no nice base). How about the base with these.

[dale]

Mike,
A quick suggestion, get a couple concrete blocks, (Not the building size "8x8x16", just the flat 2" thick variety)and place them under the speakers to isolate them from the resonant and reflective surface they're sitting on. If it doesn't make a dramatic improvement with the upper bass, let me know and I will pay for them.

[Hugh Look]

Seems appropriate that a mike should review speakers.

(Sorry)

[David]

Many TVs today lack analog outputs, and if you get much of your content OTA, most DACs won't save you, because most won't decode Dolby Digital, which every major broadcaster uses. The result would be no sound for that station. The TOSlink digital out TVs do have won't pass a Dolby Digital signal, either. That leaves HDMI. And so for what initially seems impractical, a surround sound receiver makes sense, even with only 2 speakers.

I've been exactly where you were, Mike, wanting only decent "2.0" sound, but couldn't do it that way and don't regret being pushed into a receiver and satellite/sub setup. In my case, the alternative was to choose a TV that cost more and delivered a worse picture, just to get analog outputs. Would have left me with (ironically) worse sound, as that decoded center channel with a dedicated speaker is like gold.

Readers may want to know that the original A5 model has been heavily discounted in several places online to make room for the updated model you got. Thanks for the review, AudioEngine's praises should be sung, and they are good folks as well.

[Sean]

I've always been a fan of B&W (Bowers Wilkins)speakers. I've downsized from a five B&W speaker set up to just one, a B&W Zeppelin, which is actually a docking station. I run my TV through it and while it's no match for what I had, it's a massive improvement over my TV

[JohnMFlores]

Years ago I purchased a 5.1 set of flat panel NXT speakers from Mission. They've proven to be good home theater speakers as the NXT technology isn't as sensitive to placement and directionality as traditional cone drivers. In other words, they fill the room with sound and the sweet spot isn't restricted to a single seat or small couch.

Alas, the audio market seems as conservative as the photography market and NXT never really took off. Cones and magnets continue to be refined and will be hard to supplant.

[David Dyer-Bennet]

The lack of grills may be fatal; which is too bad, since I'm kind of looking for some better speakers than what's built into the TV currently. I worry about dust and cat hair, and a little bit about the cats directly killing the cones (I've lost several speakers that way in the past).

I'm not clear on the need for the remote control. Normally that's a pre-amp function, and that's in the TV.

[Jona]

I'll have to keep these in mind if I ever have the money for nice speakers for my kitchen (I like to listen to classical music while I cook). I love old things so I've always thought I'd get some 70s stuff like a Sansui or whatever. But my knowledge of stereo equipment is limited to knowing that I like warm sounds but I've never even seen or heard something with tubes in person. I have no idea why you'd need a preamp and an amp or what exactly they do for you. And don't speaker cones where out or dry rot after many years? I'd ask for Mike's opinion on vintage equipment but that would just elevate prices for a long time. I'm not even sure why I'm rambling on here other than my work is boring right now.

[psu]

I hoped you were going to write these up.

I just got a pair myself and they are excellent.

[psu]

FWIW, I wanted the remote control on the volume because the remote on my TV does not affect the levels of the analog stereo out. So the only way to adjust the speaker levels is on the speaker or with the remote.

[Sal Santamaura]

"And don't speaker cones where out or dry rot after many years?"

The foam edge suspensions, not cones, in many older woofers (including the AR3as Mike once owned) disintegrate after many years. Among other things Roy Allison improved after leaving AR to form Allison Acoustics and developing his own products was exactly that. Woofer suspensions on my Allison CD 9s are butyl rubber. After 25+ years, they're in perfect shape.

[Jerry Stachowski]

Mike---
Good choice. I've been using a set of A5s on my computer for the last few years. I spoke to the folks at Audioengine and they said that what you have should sound identical.

[Goff]

Which is why I bought a Bang & Olufsen Television. Seriously good sound. And engineered so well that it lasts and lasts. Looks good too. I don't want to see an ugly Asian clutter every day in my house. Photographers are pained by ugliness; at least my kind of photographer. The price tag seems high but if you take the long view it is worth it. Goff

[Gary Fitzgerald]

Hi Mike,

Always enjoy your "off topic" columns on audio gear. I am a long time (too long!) audiophile - back to the days of Heathkits and Dynakits, although lately it's more time with music and less with equipment. I have an external DAC in my main system, and wanted to plug a Canadian company that makes DACs of various prices and features. It's called Hot Audio, in Winnipeg, and I have a "WOW" DAC (not necessarily the most confidence-inspiring product naming convention). Here is their site - actually it's one guy (Dave Smith) who makes all the DACs himself by hand. Here is their link "http://www.hotaudio.com". I play uncompressed digital files (FLAC or M4a format) through the DAC (via USB) to a NAD 355BEE amp/JMLab Focal 706s satellites/Martin Logan Dynamo sub system. Small room system but sounds very good. The player on the PC is foobar2000/WASAPI combo that bypasses any digital manipulation that Window 7 would normally do - so the digital signal is untouched from source to DAC. The only cursory sound comparison I've done is to RIP a good quality CD to FLAC and then compare the CD (played on a Marantz CD-63SE) to the FLAC version - no obvious differences (I didn't agonize any further ...).
Your column is a daily read, Mike - keep up the interesting stuff, regardless of the topic.

Gary

[Eric Ford]

Fun to see this here; I went through a similar quest for TV speakers a few months ago, that was partly due to insane apartment neighbors complaining about noise from my old speakers (a shelf system), and ended up with A5s. The neighbors weren't pacified, sadly (A5 speakers are very powerful for a small room/apartment). I spent weeks researching sound before reading audiophile arguments almost drove me mad, and there were a lot of "anti-A5" people around. Oh well, I bought them, they're awesome. My only gripe is that they don't "like" being used at low volume, so I often have to lower the volume from the source/TV to keep the volume civilized.

It's hard to imagine a system I'd enjoy more than these puppies for cramped apartment life. A week ago I watched "Jurassic Park" on blu-ray with the A5s fired up, and WOW, even without a subwoofer the sound was phenomenal. Felt like the T-Rex was standing right in front of me.

[Marc Gibeault]

As t. Thomas Hardie did and now that you have Wi-Fi, you should try hook up an Airport Express to these speakers. You'll enjoy one-button streaming from your iPhones. Extremelly convenient if you have some music in your phone.

[Ed]

Malcolm, the reason most people diss classic Klipsch is they sounded like crap, generally. They were efficient but horrendously colored sonically. The idea of horns is excellent and a well done horn system can equal or beat any other technology in my opinion (particularly in dynamics) however a well done horn system is probably the hardest type of speaker to get right. Klipsch, with their 10-15" woofer mated to a honky compression driver (and maybe edgy supertweet) was not the right way to do a horn.

Mike, tell us about your "big" system as it may give additional perspectives into your tastes as far as music reproduction. That would help flesh out the A5+ review, in my opinion, which is otherwise in a bit of a vacuum.

Speaking of AR, the ARs to have were the AR-1, which used a (war-surplus?, presumably) Western Electric fullrange driver, 728B I think, a superb driver even by today's standards, and which still fetch insane amounts of $.

[John]

I believe in a post long ago you recommended upgrading the power supply of a Firestone DAC. Do you recommend that for any DAC?