Superb Value for the Price!
Written: Feb 24 '03 (Updated Feb 24 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent BASS sound for price. For the most part well designed....
Cons: Satellite grill is not removable. (or is it?) Wiring is not removable.
The Bottom Line: One of the best, if not the best 2.1 speakers you can get in this price range.
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| yumaru's Full Review: Logitech Z-340 2 Speakers |
Up until I had purchased these, I had only been using the cheap multimedia desktop speakers that were included with the computer as a package deal. I figured I need an upgrade from these, but I did not want to spend a whole lot. The local Staples store had a display with these and other competition speakers. I was impressed at how much better these sounded then the rest in this price range. I particularly was impressed with the bass sound, which I will get onto later. Now onto the setup.
Setup:
This set comes with:
2 Satellites each rated 6.5 Watts RMS
1 8" Subwoofer rated 20 Watts RMS
All necessary cords and cables.
User's guide
Two-year limited warranty from Logitech
Bonus Game Adaptor
Setting up these speakers is quite easy and simple. The power supply is inside the sub instead of having the bulky adaptor plugin, which is nice. Also worth mentioning is that mine came with a bonus game adaptor. This allows the speakers to be plugged into the standard composite connectors that all the current game systems come with. This can also be used to hook up the speakers to a TV or DVD/VHS player.
More information then you need to know on the setup..
The satellites:
Intensely bright blue LED power indicator.
Adjustable stands that can be changed to hang on a wall.
Volume and Power control.
Headphone jack.
Speaker grill (I'm almost certain it is irremovable.)
Irremovable wiring.
Cable that leads from right control satellite to left (a little more then 4 ft)
L-shaped mini jack audio input connector. (approximately 6 1/2 ft long)
I/O cable that leads to subwoofer (7 ft long)
Rubber pads on stands.
The subwoofer:
Subwoofer volume control.
Sturdy wood casing for tight bass. Strong enough to rest your feet on.
Has no port, which seems strange considering how much bass it produces.
Front grill for protection.
I/O cable that leads to the satellites. (7 ft long, is removable from the subwoofer only)
Interior power supply as opposed to wall adaptor. Power cord is about 7 ft long.
4 rubber pads on bottom.
Notes:
Satellites were designed to be very space efficient. Not only are they fairly small, they have adjustable stands that allows them to be placed on the wall. The subwoofer is big enough that they became an obstacle for my feet however it can be placed further away if this becomes a problem. Not to mention that risk of damage due to kicking is low thanks to a metal guard over the speaker and a strong design.
Sound:
MP3 Music -
Software used: Winamp
192 kbps or higher mp3's are recommended. The difference in quality between 128 kbps and 192 kbps mp3s becomes noticeable. With tweaking of equalizer settings and the subwoofer setting, a good balance between the satellites and the subwoofer is achieved. I am using a DSP plugin called Enhancer v0.17 on Normal preset settings, Power and Boost enabled. This helps boost treble which without it, to me, seems to be lacking. My subwoofer along with this DSP being on, is set at half. Otherwise the BASS sounds too boomy to me. Placement of the subwoofer is also critical in achieving a "full" sound instead of a "thin" sound.
Games:
If you play a lot of FPS games like I do, you won't be disappointed at all. Large explosions will vibrate your walls and desk. Gunfire can be heard from each side of you.
They will blow you away in games.
Bass is impressive for a system this price, especially for
not having a port. Logitech has come up with a patented design for their Z series subwoofers called Dual Chamber, which is supposed to "deliver twice the bass energy then normal subs". I think most audiophiles would agree the subwoofer sounds like a lot more then what it is rated at which is 20 W.
I have read some complaints about muddy satellite highs however using the previously mentioned settings with Winamp and the sub I have achieved a boost in treble and less "boominess" from the sub. For their size, satellites perform admirably. There is hardly any tinny sound from them which seems to be commonplace with most cheap speaker setups.
Mids are clear sounding, however as with the highs they can be drowned out by the subwoofer if there is improper balance.
I was again, impressed with the subwoofer in how it handled loud volumes and did not distort at all. Satellites also handled it well and they did not noticeably distort until it got way louder then normal listening levels.
The rated frequency response is 35 - 20,000 Hz. After testing the subwoofer's low frequency handling with NCH Tone Generator, I found that it starts losing volume around 50 Hz which is really quite good for this price range. Not only does it reach this frequency but it holds it. If you've had experience with some other cheaper subs you would know that alot of them just can't sustain those low notes but these ones can.
Some minor quibbles about the system I must mention.
The wiring is fixed. The length of the wire that connects the 2 satellites together is only around 4 feet. There is sufficient length for setting them up on each side of my monitor however when hooking them up to the TV I would have liked to have more length between them.
The blue LED power indicator is really, really bright. So bright, that I put 2 small pieces of masking tape over it!
Some are annoyed by it, others don't mind. But again personally I found it too bright and took the necessary steps to fix it.
The satellite grill is pretty much un-removable. By removing the front grill, treble is supposed to be improved. I do not recommend trying to remove the grill as you will most likely damage your speakers.
Conclusion:
For $50 USD, you can't go wrong with this. If you're looking for a modest upgrade from your cheap desktop 2-speaker system, these are it.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
yumaru
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Reviews written: 1
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