First thing's first--I'm not a speaker guy. I picked these up because my cruddy $10.00 speakers were, well, cruddy, and I needed something that would sound at least a little bit better for those rare occasions when I'm not using headphones. So, this may not be much of a review, as my experience with decent speakers is, well, zilch. I don't doubt that there are far better speakers out there for the price of these, or even for cheaper. I'm not going to lie--I went with these because they are dead sexy. Seriously. That's how much of a speaker guy I am--I take sexiness over sound. Still, that said, these speakers have some pretty positive things going for them I think, so let's get this review rolling....
The Great:
-Let's get the obvious out of the way first--I really, really think these things look amazing. I'm not the only one--everyone who sees mine practically fawns over them. They look great in pictures, sure, but having them sit on your desk is really special--Joey Roth, the designer, really deserves some serious credit for the aesthetics of these things. Oh yeah, and the amp sort of looks like a toaster, which is basically awesome.
-This is a complete speaker system. It comes with everything you'll need to get them hooked up.
-The packaging these came in is great, as is the 'manual.' Roth put a lot of thought into making a strong first impression--unboxing these and setting them up is almost as exciting as unboxing anything Apple.
-Not only do the speakers and the accompanying amp look great, but they *feel* great. The two do not always go in hand--for example, I think the AKG K701 is an absolutely gorgeous looking headphone, but I find that they feel very cheap in the hands. These though--I spent some quality time petting them after getting them out of the box, and I never found a flaw. And that's just the speakers--the amp is easily the most solid and pleasant to use piece of gear on my desk. (Edit: was the most pleasant to use piece of gear on my desk. It has been supplanted by the SPL Phonitor.)
-Roth seems like a great guy--I've had a couple of email exchanges with him regarding this and that, and I've found him to be very helpful, knowledgeable, friendly, and eager to please. This guy does not slack on his customer service, and he's very personable, to boot.
The Good:
-I may not be a speaker guy, but I'd like to think that I know what good sound sounds like. And these certainly passed my test: the closing track of Sunn 0)))'s Monoliths and Dimensions, Alice. These speakers were able to send shivers down my spine, and, you know what? That's more than good enough for me. I'm not great at describing sound, but I found them to be nicely balanced and detailed--would really recommend you Google them to get more and better writing on their sonic qualities.
The Nitpicks:
-Pink interconnects. I mean, I keep them tucked away, but really?
-I'm a little bit iffy on the wood bases--they are considerably more solid than they look, no worries on that account, but they do seem a bit rough around the edges, and feel fairly cheap when compared to the rest of the system.
-Why is the power switch for the amp on the back? I mean, it's not terrible or anything.... but I would have liked it on the front. Maybe that's just personal preference, though.
-The volume control on the amp is a real pleasure to use... except for the fact that it's just a little wiggly. Not very wiggly, mind you--but enough to be a slight bummer when compared with how substantial and solid the amp itself feels.
-Bass heads should steer clear, unless they plan on adding a fairly good subwoofer to the mix. For what it is, I find the bass to be fairly impactful, and to suit most of my music collection just fine--but there's no denying the fact that there is a *lot* of bass information missing when listening to these speakers. I'd highly recommend factoring a subwoofer into your budget if you plan on getting these. I've confirmed with Roth that he is currently working on designing a subwoofer to match the speakers--but really, any decent sub should probably do just fine.
-These are fairly pricey. And, as I've said earlier, I'm certain that you can obtain better sound quality for less money out of other speakers. Which leads me to my next point...
In Sum:
I really think the main thing you're paying for here is the quality/sexiness of the materials used. To my ears, the speakers do sound quite nice, and while they are fairly directional, I've found that they do a pretty good job of filling a small room with good sound. If getting the most bang for your buck, or getting the best sound quality you can is your main concern, however, then you could do worse than to look elsewhere. Me--I'd take these little beauties over even the prettiest sounding chunk of curvy black plastic any day. If you prefer speakers over headphones though, you're not likely to agree with me.
