Wall-shaking bass for under $50!
Written: Dec 08 '01 (Updated Dec 24 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Clear mid-range and powerful bass for less than $50!
Cons: Hardwired speaker connections, no tone controls, bass can be overwhelming without adjustment
The Bottom Line: If you don't mind hard-wired speaker connections, the Pulse 424 packs lots of power, excellent sound reproduction for movies, games, and music, and a headphone jack, for under $50!
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| scooterbos's Full Review: Labtec Pulse 424 |
The Labtec Pulse 424 computer speaker set is one of those all-too-rare cases where you actually get more than you paid for. For less than $50, it features a powerful, wood-enclosed subwoofer, two compact satellites with great mid-range and high-end sound reproduction, and a headphone jack - and to top it off, the Pulse 424 sounds absolutely incredible. Of course, it doesn't rival home-theater and audiophile products like the Klipsch Promedia series, but considering that you could buy four of these babies for the cost of the cheapest Klipsch set, it's an amazing value.
The Pulse 424 is a 2.1 speaker kit, meaning that it has two small "satellite" speakers and one subwoofer for bass. Audio purists who insist on true surround sound from 4.1 or 5.1 speakers (4 or 5 satellites plus a subwoofer) will not be satisfied with this unit. For the rest of us who don't want to mess with stringing wires for the rear speakers or don't use a computer as the center of a home entertainment system, it doesn't matter.
I don't put too much stock in speaker manufacturers' power ratings, but for gearheads who have to have this information, the listed specs for the Pulse 424 are 6 watts for each satellite and 20 for the subwoofer, for a total RMS of 32 watts. The listed frequency range is 35-20KHz. I will say that with this modest apparent power rating, the Pulse 424 puts out an incredible volume of sound, and you have to go very near maximum power before clipping or distortion become evident.
The floor-mounted subwoofer pumps out powerful bass (in some cases, a little too powerful), and the satellites do an excellent job with mid-range and high notes from music, games, and DVD movies. For example, in games like Thief II or the recent Return to Castle Wolfenstein, detailed minor sound effects like enemy footsteps come through clearly, even over loud ambient background noise. For music and movies, you'll probably want to adjust your equalizer settings since the boomy subwoofer tends to overwhelm everything else. Even at medium power, it literally shakes the walls. I suppose it's even a primitive force-feedback effect, because you will feel rumbling in the room if there's an explosion on screen! This points out one of the Labtec Pulse 424's few shortcomings - there's no tone adjustment feature, so you have to change these settings in your computer's sound software. The subwoofer does have a power adjustment dial, but it's hard to reach on the floor.
Setup is really simple, and the included instruction sheet is superfluous. The right satellite has one wire which connects to a sound card analog output jack, a thick shielded cable that plugs into the subwoofer, and a third wire to the left satellite. The electric plug runs from the subwoofer, and in a nice touch, the power supply is internal. There's no annoying power "brick" to get in the way of all your other electric plugs. Apparently to cut down manufacturing costs, the satellites are hard-wired to each other with about six feet of play between them. Again, the Pulse 424 is not intended for serious hardware tweakers who want to do a customized wall-mounted audio rig.
The satellites are about five inches high, and the subwoofer is a nine-inch cube. Fit and finish overall is excellent, with no rough edges, and the subwoofer is even housed in a wood enclosure. The satellites are magnetically shielded so they can be placed on either side of a computer monitor without interference. The right satellite contains all the controls: power button, green "power on" indicator, volume knob, and even a headphone jack. The headphone jack is a great feature, especially considering that many much more expensive speakers don't have one. I still can't figure out how Labtec can sell these at a profit.
If you want inexpensive computer speakers without compromising on sound quality, run - don't walk, and buy the Labtec Pulse 424. You'll be amazed at what you get for the money.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
scooterbos
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Member: Scott
Location: Boston, MA
Reviews written: 20
Trusted by: 5 members
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