Stylishly speaking...

Introduction

External speakers for computers are nothing new. But in my experience they're generally not very good if you like quality audio in your ears. You may have had some USB speakers bundled with a computer that you've bought. You may have bought some because your laptop speakers are not up to scratch. You may have some really tinny sounding things squeezed into your monitor.

If you're not happy with the sound from your current speakers, you'll want an alternative. And you might like a nice bit of bass. Step forward the Edifier E3350 speaker system, a stylish 2.1 speaker system for your computer. A left and right speaker, and a separate downward firing subwoofer.

In order to run these speakers you require mains power. That instantly sets them apart from a lot of the USB powered speakers out there.

When you get them out of the box, you notice the design. The left and speakers are a stylish elongated pyramid shape, and the subwoofer is a kind of pyramid with the top chopped off. There's also a nice little triangular volume control, which is attached to the base via a wire. This also houses a 3.5mm jack for input from an external source, and another one for headphones. There's a 3.5mm plug included with the speakers to attach to your PC.

Operation

Pretty simple really. Unpack everything. Plug in to the mains. Plug in an audio source, either connecting it to your computer's line out or by connecting any external audio source (e.g. MP3 player) to the other line in jack.

Press the power button on the top of the subwoofer pyramid to switch on (a nice little red LED indicates power). Adjust the volume with the stylish volume triangle. That's all there is to it.

Sound Quality

As with other computer speakers, you have to remember that it's just that. A computer speaker. It's not a KEF speaker. It's not a Mission speaker. It's not a "insert name of famous speaker manufacturer here" speaker.

Having said all that, it's a damn good set of speakers! It's the best computer speaker that I've ever listened to, overtaking the Verbatim Multimedia audio bar that also sits on my desk. It performs very well indeed. The range of response is good, the bass is very good (and you can adjust it), the treble is good. Listening to anything from the computer gives very good results. From spoken word material (podcasts, radio comedy shows), to iPlayer and CDs or iTunes, everything sounds really good. Nothing really trips it up. The sound has a richness to it that fits my ear very well. Speakers are a very personal thing, but this one really works for me. I just need a detached office to appreciate it all the more (or work early or late!)

Using it with an MP3 player also produced very good results - it would make a fine speaker for your iPod or iPhone. Other MP3 players are available.

Conclusion

A superb bit of kit at a reasonable price. It's a very good speaker system, with a nice rich bass response and a clear sound. You'll need another mains socket in order to power it, but the results are worth it - it's just so much better than your usual USB speaker. You may never have heard of Edifier before, but they make a cracking set of speakers!

If you want to improve the sound coming out of your computer, whilst looking stylish at the same time, this cool set of noise pyramids should do the job! You just need enough space to accommodate them (and a good surface for the subwoofer to live on).

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