[deniall83]

Got my Audioengine 2's yesterday, set them up and had a listen. I had read that the mids were crystal clear and the bass was noticeable but not overpowering, just what I like. So I created a playlist of my favourite tracks from mixed genres and fired them up.
 
First impressions were not what I was expecting at all. While the mids sounded great and clear, the bass was over powering, slightly muddy and took away from the other instruments tremendously. Another thing I noticed was vocals seemed distant and being such a big of fan of female vocalists this was dissapointing. I had to turn them up pretty loud to enjoy the mids and vocals but once I did this the bass just got worse.
 
I'm running them from my computer soundcard (no idea what it is) but i'm planning on getting a DAC soon. Also, I should note that I have absolutely nothing to compare them too, these are just my initial impressions.
 
Has anyone had a similar experience? Does a DAC make a big difference?

 

[estreeter]

OK, even the harshest critics of burn-in for headphones seem to accept that a 'break in phase'  needs to happen with the larger drivers in loudspeakers - why don't you give it another week or two and come back to us with your thoughts ?

 

[deniall83]

Oops, forgot to mention the burn-in thing in my op. I thought this may be a reason for the unexpected bass. I'm definitely sticking with them for now so I will definitely post again in a couple of weeks.

 

[Sweeney]

You might need to isolate the speakers from your desk, I bought the audioengine stands and they seemed to improve the sound from my a2s

 

[JRG1990]

No it's just the way the a2's sound, burn-in only loosens the woofers surround giving louder deeper bass.
 
Here's the a2's frequency graph
 

 
What it shows is a roughly a +10db increase in the 200hz-100hz area mid bass and it plays +15db louder than the midrange, thats exactly what you are hearing.

 

[Roseval]

I heard them once and the graph above confirms my listening experience.
A bass heavy speaker.
That’s probably why it is so popular but makes it unsuited for classical.
You might try the EQ of you media player to roll of the bass
 

 

[rory88uk]

I got the chance to hear a set of Audioengine A2's myself and was left disappointed especially considering all the praise they get on here.
 
They are very loud for their size but I found them too bassy and I found that the bass is a bit muddy as well. I much prefer my Aego M which is a 2.1 system.
 
 

 

[jenneth]

Quote:

Does a DAC make a big difference?

That would depend on what you're using at the moment. What's the model of your motherboard?

 

[olor1n]

Positioning makes or breaks these speakers. Get them off your desk or try to angle them up with isolation pads. I was immensely disappointed with the muddy sound when I first hooked them up. I now have them at ear level, about a metre apart, and an arms length from my chair.
 
There's no denying the sound is coloured but you can tame the mid bass dominance considerably. Also they do respond quite well and portray the signature of the dac they're hooked up to.

 

[steven_1026]

I just got my A2 yesterday and I must say positioning certainly makes a huge difference. I had them on my desk initially and the bass was very muddy, now they're on some stands about a foot tall and the sound is much cleaner. Overall I'm very happy with the purchase. BUT I noticed when listening to this song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eQBF9smOHg at around 1:20 mark when the low bass kicks in, my left speaker produces a buzzing sound. I have the volume a little high but certainly not LOUD.
 
Now before anyone blames the youtube quality, I was listening to the song in flac and I've tried different sources as well.
 
Does anyone else experience this? I just want to know if I got a defective pair or is it simply too low for the A2 to handle.

 

[satkinsn]

Just want to add my .02 to everyone who has said placement is critical.
 
I have two pairs of Audioengine 2s, and height is very important. They really, really need to be at ear level, or at least tilted up.
 
Scott A.

 

[Remonster]

The A5s really deserve the praise they get, but the A2s need that exaggerated bass otherwise 90% of customers would find them lacking in bass (consider the music most people listen to these days) since they have such small drivers.

 

[wind016]

If you're not mixing, is there really a point to going the studio monitor route? I don't think cheap sub-$600 monitors are really that much better than a high-end gaming speaker system.

 

[dyl1dyl]

Similar impressions but still find them great for the price

 

[alv4426]

They are if you listen to anything other than bassy music and dont want a 5.1 system for your computer
 
Quote:

If you're not mixing, is there really a point to going the studio monitor route? I don't think cheap sub-$600 monitors are really that much better than a high-end gaming speaker system.