audioengine

People love sound bars for a lot of good reasons: they eliminate most of the wiring and setup hassles associated with traditional 5.1-channel home theaters, they don't take up a lot of space, they are less expensive than subwoofer/satellite packages, and since most sound bars are self-powered, you don't need to buy an AV receiver. A skinny sound bar positioned under a sleek display is certainly a more appealing solution than a 5.1 or even stereo pair of speakers. There's just one problem: sound bars can't fill a room with sound nearly as well as separate speakers can.… Read more

DENVER--The Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, held in Denver, was a must-see event for audiophiles young and old. The biggest change this year was a bonanza of affordable high-end products -- mixed in with the usual crazy expensive gear -- along with a good helping of midpriced goodies.

Music Hall had a rather plain-looking little monitor speaker, the Marimba ($349 a pair), that sounded big and truly powerful. I have never heard that level of bass "slam" coming out of such a diminutive speaker; I can't wait to get it in for review.

Woo Audio's stunning new … Read more

Judging by the number of e-mails I get on this subject, a lot of folks don't understand the difference between computer and hi-fi speakers. For example, how is an Audioengine A5+ ($399 a pair) functionally different from a PSB Alpha B1 speaker ($300 a pair)?… Read more

Hi-fi has a dated, almost "Mad Men" ring to it, but it predates Don Draper's 1960s time frame. Sound-quality advances in hi-fis first grabbed the public's imagination 10 years earlier, in the 1950s.

A hi-fi system could be configured in a variety of ways, but the basic setup had a turntable, amplifier, and a pair of speakers. That sort of rig, with a CD player, still works for today's audiophiles, but they're probably 1 percent of all music listeners. For the other 99 percent, their "hi-fi" is in the car, or maybe … Read more

There are times when you can't quite believe what you're hearing. Little speakers' bass limitations are a fact of life, but Audyssey's Lower East Side Media Speakers can generate considerably more bass punch than I've heard from any speaker of this size and price. Beyond the bass, the sound was lively and fun; I really enjoyed spending time with these speakers.

The Audyssey Web site lists the price at $249.99 a pair, but Amazon sells 'em for $199.95.

The red-accented, matte-black plastic cabinets feel sturdy and come mounted on metal desk stands that tilt the speakers back at a rakish angle, so the sound is aimed up toward your ears.… Read more

CNET Reader Kato asks:

I have speakers directly hooked up to my TV via the "speaker audio out." It works fine. I then hooked up additional speakers I had from a computer. Upon doing so the volume on the original speakers went way down and I get even less from the new speakers. What am I doing wrong?

Oh, so many things...… Read more

It seems like every time I write about a USB digital-to-analog converter or portable headphone amplifier I get a slew of reader e-mails requesting a review of one of Fiio's low-cost/high-performance audio components.

Pricing may be solidly in the affordable range, but don't for a second conclude Fiio's components aren't beautifully designed little gems.… Read more

I rarely get all that excited by the sound of iPod speakers, if only because you can so easily get better sound from a good set of desktop speakers. I've cited Audioengine's terrific little speakers many times in this blog, and I still love them, but there's a new speaker from Emotiva Pro, the airmotiv 4, and it's raised the sound quality benchmark for $399 per pair speakers.

Look at the pictures of the airmotiv 4 and you'll see it's missing something found on most speakers: a dome tweeter. In its place you'll … Read more

Audioengine is one of my favorite brands. For me it all started with their petite A2 speakers ($199/pair), and then I gushed over their P4 speakers ($249/pair). But Audioengine isn't the sort of company that reinvents its line every year or two. No, they invest a lot of time into designing great products, and then let them be. The A2 and P4 are still in the line, and are still stellar.

I was smitten with the new Audioengine D1 USB DAC/headphone amp ($169) as soon as I plugged it in. It's a USB powered device, … Read more