The information on the Cambridge Soundworks Model Seventeen is SCREWY everywhere I look! On Epinions, they are listed as floorstanding speakers, which they are not. And in Cambridge Soundworks mailer I got today, the hype says: "Among the most famous bookshelf speakers of all time, Model Seventeen is a Henry Kloss classic that provides the kind of power handling found in bigger, more expensive speakers."

Wrong again!

The world-famous Model 17, designed by Henry Kloss, was the KLH 17, from the early 1970s, not this little speaker. The KLH 17s were about 22" tall, 11" wide, and 9" deep, and competed with other excellent small speakers of the time, including Dynaco A-25s and Acoustic Research AR4axs.

The Cambridge Soundworks Model Seventeen apparently WAS designed by audio hall-of-famer Henry Kloss, and its name (Model Seventeen) is in honor of the KLH classic, but it is NOT the same speaker.

The current Model Seventeen is a small bookshelf-type speaker measuring 11 1/2 inches tall, 7 1/8 inches wide, and 6 3/8 inches deep. It uses a 5 1/4" long-throw acoustic suspension woofer and a 5/8" polycarbonate dome tweeter in a simple vinyl cabinet available in white, black, simulated teak or simulated oak finishes. The grill cloth is black for all but the white version, which comes with a white grill cloth. I find the simulated oak and teak finishes to be attractive.

What you get for your money is a surprisingly musical little speaker, suitable for your desk or a small den or dorm room. It has no deep or lower mid-bass to speak of, but I was surprised to feel a little thump from the strings of a bass guitar on jazz and rock music. I would guess the useful lower limit of this speaker to be around 65 hz or so (55 hz is the claimed lower limit, no tolerance given). The bass I heard was tight and punchy, rather than boomy or bloated. It was perfectly good for listening to most music at moderate volume levels

I wouldn't drive these speakers to the threshold of pain, due to their small size, but they played louder without strain than I thought they would be able to.

Where they really excel is in their smooth midrange and clean highs. I was surprised by how good cymbals and plucked guitar strings sounded through these speakers. And the imaging, due to the small baffle, was pretty good as well.

These are not minimonitors in the sense that you can pair them with a subwoofer, put them on expensive stands, and expect them to generate a huge soundfield at realistic listening levels. Rather, they are speakers to hook up to an inexpensive receiver and CD player, plop down on your desk or shelf, and forget about. They would be perfect as a Christmas or Hanukkah present for your college freshman son or daughter who currently has nothing but a boom box. Take your old Pioneer receiver out of the garage, toss in a $100 CD player, and make somebody happy. Or better yet, snap up an NAD receiver and CD player on ebay, and go from there.

One thing I did notice about these speakers is that they are not very efficient. They played LESS loud than the larger Cambridge Soundworks Model Sixes for a given amount of power (I would guess them to be about 2 db less efficient than the Sixes). But most inexpensive receivers should be able to power them to adequate levels.

The retail price of these speakers is $150/pair, but they are currently on sale for only $89/pair, which is a good buy. They also come with a 10-year warranty and a 45-day satisfaction guarantee.

Are the Cambridge Model Seventeens giant-killers for under $100? No. But they are cute little speakers that are very musical.

Note: My four star overall rating is in relation to the price of these speakers. They do NOT compete with the Paradigm Studio/20s at $600/pair or Cambridge's own Towers at $1500/pair. But at their price, they are worth a listen.


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 89/pair