Klipsch ProMedia GMX A-2.1 Speakers
- Max. Power Output: 14 Watt
- Number of Speakers: 2 Speakers + Subwoofer
- Connection Type: Cable
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Pure Value 5.1
Pros
Powerful For Its Size. Durable. High Quality. Attractive. Decent Cord Lengths. Easy To Setup. Mountable.
Cons
Subwoofer Not Powerful Enough Compared To Satellites. Could Have More Controls. Cheap Center Satellite Stand.
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
If you're looking for a decent 5.1 system without burning a hole into your wallet, this is the route to go. You won't be making a mistake!
Are you looking for the 5.1 surround sound experience but don't quite have loads of cash? Well, I once answered yes to that question and now I have used this set of speakers for a good few months and thought it would be appropriate to share with you my experiences.
The Purchase
Before buying, I compared many other speaker sets and nothing quite matched the price and power of the little, but extraordinarily surprising Logitech X-530 system. My best friend was quite embarrassed as I pulled out all of the boxes that were displayed to look at the specifications and when I discovered that I didn't have enough money to buy them. He spotted me a few dollars, and I was off to calm my craving for 5.1!
The Setup
I walk into my room with the massive package, cradling it as if it were my child. Second thing I do of course is get it open and unwrap every piece individually. Although this was a hassle at the time I was very impressed at the packaging. My Sony VAIO laptop computer wasn't as safe in its box as my X-530s!
Setup was a breeze from then on with each speaker plug color-coded to be placed in the back of the subwoofer. In a total of about 20 minutes I was up and ready to go! Thing is, my soundcard only supported a 4.1 system… doh!
The Soundcard
The next day I purchased the cheapest 5.1 soundcard available to my knowledge – the Creative SoundBlaster Live! 24-Bit for a whopping $30.00. I get it slapped in as fast as I can, and finally I'm able to experience the sound of the entire system. A word of warning for everyone, make sure you have the proper hardware installed before buying a set of speakers. Why? Because if they don't work to their maximum potential it drives you crazy!
The Sound
My first impression to the system was complete shock at the raw power of the sharp-sounding satellites and the skid mark in my underpants at the fact that the subwoofers range was outstanding. From trance, to rock, to heavy metal, to rap, to even opera… everything sounded extremely decent for what I had paid.
The only thing I noticed negative was the satellites overpowered the subwoofer at high volumes. Now of course this is expected in a value system, but as a bit of an audiophile it gets annoying every now and then. My word of advice for this one is to set the subwoofer to a low volume of about ? its capacity so it will not phase-out and sound like a dead cow while the satellites are keeping up with the pace.
Another thing is the volume levels of each satellite. Of course, it's impossible to get the levels perfect, but with proper software that comes with all 5.1 soundcards you can get darned-near close. I recommend if you plan to surround yourself with the speakers at a close range, set the levels of all the satellites to maximum, but if you set them far apart, give a little more juice to the rear satellites than to the front and center satellites.
Otherwise, from the overwhelmingly filled aura of music, the crisp and realistic gaming experience, and the home theater effect of movies, I can say I'm thoroughly satisfied even if I do exaggerate a bit. I love this system!
The Subwoofer
Because, who really cares about what the treble sounds like? Needless to say, the subwoofer won't give you the biggest boom, but it sure does perform exceedingly well at its price range and size.
At maxed volume on the subwoofer, you can get the most out of it when your audio is played at low volumes… but turn it up just a little and it'll sound like you're destroying the poor thing. I personally keep mine at what I have stated before, only at ? believe it or not, and it keeps up decently with everything.
Placement is a major factor as always with a subwoofer. The best place to put this bad boy is below your waist level but still somewhere on a desk. Even better, if the area where the subwoofer is enclosed around it, it's going to create even more of a boom.
The most unique thing about this part of the system is that the port shoots out an incredible amount of air (approximately two foot shots at maximum volume). Cold air too, so if it's a hot summer day you can use the subwoofer as an air conditioner!
The Satellites
Alright, so you guys do care about treble as well as bass. If I had to describe the sound that the satellites emit in one word, that word would be sharp. Not just crisp, but sharp. Not muffled, muddy, or distant… we're talking extremely clean sound.
Each satellite is equipped with dual drivers – something that is becoming a trend in compact multimedia systems. These allow more sound built into a slender, more compact speaker… and heck, it looks cool too. If you don't know what I mean by drivers, I mean the two round cone shaped things, yeah.
They say for placement you want to spread each speaker out its maximum chord distance for the best 5.1 experience. I, however, do not really agree with this. One, who has the room space for this, and two, I want the speakers close to me… I want to feel their power as close to my body as possible. And with that being said, I say place them as close as possible to you instead. Finally, don't forget that each satellite can be mounted on any wall of your choice, just like their more expensive systems.
The Design
Everyone wants to have stylish-looking speakers to go along with their computer right? Well, not particularly me with a white tower and gray monitor… but I will say these black speakers look mighty cool.
Each cloth grill placed on each satellite is removable and very durable. It would take an extensive amount of force to press your finger through the grill and damage the cone of your satellites… so even if your baby brother or sister gets a hold of them you shouldn't have that much to worry about except, well, drool.
Placed on the right front channel satellite you will find the usual volume control, power button, and a headphone jack. I'll interrupt myself here and say that the headphone jack there is awesome… no more having to bend over and plug my monster headphones into the subwoofer.
On the back subwoofer you will find inputs for each satellite speaker, color-coded again for morons like myself, and a nice-sized knob for bass volume adjustment. On the front of the subwoofer you'll find the air hole (or port for you techies out there) and the Logitech logo to let everyone know you're the man (or woman, respectively).
The overall quality of the materials used is astounding. From hard plastic to, well, more hard plastic… but regardless everything is sturdy and stable without that cheap look. I have knocked over two different satellites with harsh force but no noticeable damage was inflicted.
Only complaint I have about the design is the same complaint I had with my previous speaker system… the stand on the center speaker is idiotic. It takes a screw to loosen and tighten which is almost possible to get to without a small extended screwdriver. It took me almost 15 minutes to get the center speaker to stand up on its own. A few more minutes I would have honestly thrown the thing across the room.
Cord lengths of the satellites are very impressive. If I wanted I could string the rear speakers to the back off my room. The only short cord is the right front channel satellite whose cord is bigger than the others. You really don't have many options in placing the front speakers… but then again, they do sound louder when they're closer.
Specifications
And now for the pure numbers, thanks to Logitech's web site. Total watts RMS of this system is 70 – 25 for the subwoofer, 7.4 for the surrounding satellites, and 15.5 watts for the center satellite. Double the watts RMS and you've got the total peak power of 140 watts, which for a set of speakers made for computers is something to be proud of.
Frequency response, which I found at the store to be wider than most of the other speaker sets, is 40 Hz – 20 kHz. You will notice this due to the fact that with the exclusion of one song, this system can handle all of my collection.
And finally, driver size… those were those coned shape things again. Each satellite has dual 2 inch drivers and the subwoofer packs a 5.25 inch driver. You may frown at the subwoofer size, but this isn't a car stereo, this system is for computers… and when it comes to these systems a 5.25 inch subwoofer is huge.
Oops, forgot the signal-to-noise ratio, >96dB. Now you've got that as well and with all those specifications, go around and compare these raw numbers to those of other systems to see which really will be able to handle the most audio.
The Bottom Line
Now if you got bored reading the above, all you need to read is this line. The X-530s are the cheapest, yet most effective at their price range 5.1 system out there for your computer, video game consoles… or even for your home theater. It won't get you sound ordinance violation tickets, but it will impress you as well as your friends and family.
The Purchase
Before buying, I compared many other speaker sets and nothing quite matched the price and power of the little, but extraordinarily surprising Logitech X-530 system. My best friend was quite embarrassed as I pulled out all of the boxes that were displayed to look at the specifications and when I discovered that I didn't have enough money to buy them. He spotted me a few dollars, and I was off to calm my craving for 5.1!
The Setup
I walk into my room with the massive package, cradling it as if it were my child. Second thing I do of course is get it open and unwrap every piece individually. Although this was a hassle at the time I was very impressed at the packaging. My Sony VAIO laptop computer wasn't as safe in its box as my X-530s!
Setup was a breeze from then on with each speaker plug color-coded to be placed in the back of the subwoofer. In a total of about 20 minutes I was up and ready to go! Thing is, my soundcard only supported a 4.1 system… doh!
The Soundcard
The next day I purchased the cheapest 5.1 soundcard available to my knowledge – the Creative SoundBlaster Live! 24-Bit for a whopping $30.00. I get it slapped in as fast as I can, and finally I'm able to experience the sound of the entire system. A word of warning for everyone, make sure you have the proper hardware installed before buying a set of speakers. Why? Because if they don't work to their maximum potential it drives you crazy!
The Sound
My first impression to the system was complete shock at the raw power of the sharp-sounding satellites and the skid mark in my underpants at the fact that the subwoofers range was outstanding. From trance, to rock, to heavy metal, to rap, to even opera… everything sounded extremely decent for what I had paid.
The only thing I noticed negative was the satellites overpowered the subwoofer at high volumes. Now of course this is expected in a value system, but as a bit of an audiophile it gets annoying every now and then. My word of advice for this one is to set the subwoofer to a low volume of about ? its capacity so it will not phase-out and sound like a dead cow while the satellites are keeping up with the pace.
Another thing is the volume levels of each satellite. Of course, it's impossible to get the levels perfect, but with proper software that comes with all 5.1 soundcards you can get darned-near close. I recommend if you plan to surround yourself with the speakers at a close range, set the levels of all the satellites to maximum, but if you set them far apart, give a little more juice to the rear satellites than to the front and center satellites.
Otherwise, from the overwhelmingly filled aura of music, the crisp and realistic gaming experience, and the home theater effect of movies, I can say I'm thoroughly satisfied even if I do exaggerate a bit. I love this system!
The Subwoofer
Because, who really cares about what the treble sounds like? Needless to say, the subwoofer won't give you the biggest boom, but it sure does perform exceedingly well at its price range and size.
At maxed volume on the subwoofer, you can get the most out of it when your audio is played at low volumes… but turn it up just a little and it'll sound like you're destroying the poor thing. I personally keep mine at what I have stated before, only at ? believe it or not, and it keeps up decently with everything.
Placement is a major factor as always with a subwoofer. The best place to put this bad boy is below your waist level but still somewhere on a desk. Even better, if the area where the subwoofer is enclosed around it, it's going to create even more of a boom.
The most unique thing about this part of the system is that the port shoots out an incredible amount of air (approximately two foot shots at maximum volume). Cold air too, so if it's a hot summer day you can use the subwoofer as an air conditioner!
The Satellites
Alright, so you guys do care about treble as well as bass. If I had to describe the sound that the satellites emit in one word, that word would be sharp. Not just crisp, but sharp. Not muffled, muddy, or distant… we're talking extremely clean sound.
Each satellite is equipped with dual drivers – something that is becoming a trend in compact multimedia systems. These allow more sound built into a slender, more compact speaker… and heck, it looks cool too. If you don't know what I mean by drivers, I mean the two round cone shaped things, yeah.
They say for placement you want to spread each speaker out its maximum chord distance for the best 5.1 experience. I, however, do not really agree with this. One, who has the room space for this, and two, I want the speakers close to me… I want to feel their power as close to my body as possible. And with that being said, I say place them as close as possible to you instead. Finally, don't forget that each satellite can be mounted on any wall of your choice, just like their more expensive systems.
The Design
Everyone wants to have stylish-looking speakers to go along with their computer right? Well, not particularly me with a white tower and gray monitor… but I will say these black speakers look mighty cool.
Each cloth grill placed on each satellite is removable and very durable. It would take an extensive amount of force to press your finger through the grill and damage the cone of your satellites… so even if your baby brother or sister gets a hold of them you shouldn't have that much to worry about except, well, drool.
Placed on the right front channel satellite you will find the usual volume control, power button, and a headphone jack. I'll interrupt myself here and say that the headphone jack there is awesome… no more having to bend over and plug my monster headphones into the subwoofer.
On the back subwoofer you will find inputs for each satellite speaker, color-coded again for morons like myself, and a nice-sized knob for bass volume adjustment. On the front of the subwoofer you'll find the air hole (or port for you techies out there) and the Logitech logo to let everyone know you're the man (or woman, respectively).
The overall quality of the materials used is astounding. From hard plastic to, well, more hard plastic… but regardless everything is sturdy and stable without that cheap look. I have knocked over two different satellites with harsh force but no noticeable damage was inflicted.
Only complaint I have about the design is the same complaint I had with my previous speaker system… the stand on the center speaker is idiotic. It takes a screw to loosen and tighten which is almost possible to get to without a small extended screwdriver. It took me almost 15 minutes to get the center speaker to stand up on its own. A few more minutes I would have honestly thrown the thing across the room.
Cord lengths of the satellites are very impressive. If I wanted I could string the rear speakers to the back off my room. The only short cord is the right front channel satellite whose cord is bigger than the others. You really don't have many options in placing the front speakers… but then again, they do sound louder when they're closer.
Specifications
And now for the pure numbers, thanks to Logitech's web site. Total watts RMS of this system is 70 – 25 for the subwoofer, 7.4 for the surrounding satellites, and 15.5 watts for the center satellite. Double the watts RMS and you've got the total peak power of 140 watts, which for a set of speakers made for computers is something to be proud of.
Frequency response, which I found at the store to be wider than most of the other speaker sets, is 40 Hz – 20 kHz. You will notice this due to the fact that with the exclusion of one song, this system can handle all of my collection.
And finally, driver size… those were those coned shape things again. Each satellite has dual 2 inch drivers and the subwoofer packs a 5.25 inch driver. You may frown at the subwoofer size, but this isn't a car stereo, this system is for computers… and when it comes to these systems a 5.25 inch subwoofer is huge.
Oops, forgot the signal-to-noise ratio, >96dB. Now you've got that as well and with all those specifications, go around and compare these raw numbers to those of other systems to see which really will be able to handle the most audio.
The Bottom Line
Now if you got bored reading the above, all you need to read is this line. The X-530s are the cheapest, yet most effective at their price range 5.1 system out there for your computer, video game consoles… or even for your home theater. It won't get you sound ordinance violation tickets, but it will impress you as well as your friends and family.
