[Swansboy]

Hi Guys,
 
Here is my two pence on two highly acclaimed 2,1 system PC audio system. I own both of them. Music is subjective but I would be very happy if this review helps anyone who wants to buy a great entry level 2.1 system.
 
Swans M50W: 
 
Primarily for people who love listening to music. 
 
3" Mid-bass drivers
20mm aluminum dome tweeter
6.5" subwoofer driver
 
Logitech Z623
 
Primarily aimed at gamers and movie lovers. 
 
7" subwoofer driver
Satellite speakers without any tweeter
THX certified
 
Sound signature:
 
Swans M50W
 
The default sound signature of Swans is neutral / flat. However, if you do not like a flat frequency response, you can simply tune the equalizer to your taste. Swans respond brilliantly to slightest change in settings. I have boosted the bass and the treble a bit for a more fun sound signature. With this setting, the lows are deep and punchy (they indeed go pretty low), the mids are very decent, and the highs are very good.The subwoofer is really powerful and the low end does not bleed into other frequencies. The bass is well defined. Clarity is good and the sound is basically warm / smooth. These babies do benefit from a decent sound card. Overall, a very musical 2.1 system.
 
Logitech Z623
 
 
Almighty bass. Yes, that's the way to describe it. It's incredible how the 7'' subwoofer out does itself. The bass strikes like a hammer and you can feel it 20 feet away. But that is basically the only brilliant thing about Z623. The mids are acceptable. The sound is bright and clarity is decent, Highs are rolled off. The sound signature is so much twisted that the composer would hardly recognise his own creation. Does it sound fun? It's pretty much a hit or miss. If you listen to just bass heavy genre's, this set up would be fine. If you listen to all kinds of music or genres where vocals matter, Z623 would have serious limitations. Movies will sound good, games will sound fantastic. Z623 has a headphone jack too (an awful one). I have no idea how THX sets their benchmark, but to me this one is a tricky deal: you may find this the very best (depending on you preference) at this price point, or very unrefined.  
 
The Logitech one looks slick. Swans has a more classy look with a wooden finish.
 
If you own any of the above, please do share your opinion on them.     

 

[Bobpaule]

I had Swans powered monitors with great looking cabinets and average sound, QC atrocious with the line-in female sleeves coming off in the RCA connectors I plugged into them. 
 
IMHO you should look at a small amplifier and bookshelves, as amplifier induction coils never fare well with low current nearby, and much worse with the EMI from speaker magnets.
 
As for Logitech, I am typing on a Smart Keyboard now, it controls the HD-DAC1 and the 4k Seiki TV I call my 42" monitor. USB peripherals and Harmony remotes is where they excel, the rest is for the Best Buy teens.
 
IMHO if you really need bass get a pair of Paradigm Signature S2 with 52Hz LFE, should do great on a decent 20W/channel amp at the desktop, and yes, Audiogon and Ebay will offer surprising deals to the persistent.

 

[Swansboy]

I am sorry to learn you had issues with Swans monitors. Usually, they are a pretty solid deal and highly regarded even at head fi. I regularly listen to  Audioengine A5 at my friend's place. They are twice as costly as the M50W and at least in the realm of PC audio, they are considered as high end audio. To me, the Swans sound as good as the A5 (audio is relative, of course) particularly the A5 seems to have no answer to the powerful Swans subwoofer (the mids are a bit better on the A5 though).
 
It is true that the Swans cannot compete with a pair of high end bookshelf speakers, but then, they cost a lot less. I bought the Swans for $280.00 Paradigm will cost many times more. Also, the cost of the amp and the sub will have to be added. I have heard 8" studio monitors that cannot compete with a dedicated 6.5" subwoofer (didn't have an opportunity to listen to Paradigm Signature S2 though). So the point is M50W is a decent option at a very reasonable price for a budding audiophile.  
 
I completely agree that logitechs are crap though. Nonetheless, I always find Z623 on the Amazon bestseller list. It is essentially due to the fact that they are great for gaming particularly if coupled with something like sound blaster Z. 

 

[Bobpaule]

I agree, the tone of my post was a bit harsh, for the money brand new they are hard to beat. I have to admit they were the gateway into desktop mid-fi for me and I could even sell them for a decent price.

 

[carewser]

I'm bringing this thread back from the grave because both systems are still for sale and I own the Logitech Z623 so i'm at least qualified to speak about it. In the original post "Swansboy" described the Logitech's highs as "rolled off". I don't know what "rolled off" means but I know that their highs aren't very bright which I never knew until I started buying other speakers to compare them to the Z623 's but it's hardly surprising that their highs are dull given they only have a single driver to cover both the mids and highs whereas the Swan speakers have a separate tweeter. Logitech speakers consistently get very high ratings but that's probably because most people that buy them are gamers coming from $30 speakers so yes, compared to cheap 2.0 speakers, the Logitech's will blow them away both with their bass and volume. Also, the Logitech sub isn't 7 inches as advertised, it's only 6 inches for some reason every manufacturer of subwoofers for 2.1 speaker systems all give themselves an extra inch so I expect the Swan sub is actually 5.5 inches instead of the 6.5 inches advertised.

This is hardly a fair comparison though because the Swan's are 3X the price of the Logitech's and if the Logitech's produce deeper bass and play louder than the Swan's, I think it's pretty apparent they're a better deal even if they don't sound as good as the Swan's.