Packed with power: Audioengine A2 Desktop Speakers
Typically with home computer speakers you have two speakers and a subwoofer sitting on your desk and the floor. Sometimes this combination can take up quite a bit of room depending on the speakers, but today, that's about to change with the Audioengine A2 desktop speaker system.
You may not have heard of Audioengine, but they consist of former employees of Harman/Kardon, Gibson Guitar, Alesis Studio Electronics, and Apple Computer. Their first product, the Audioengine A5 speakers, were released with a built-in USB port for charging iPods, and an extra power socket on the back for plugging in an AirPort Express. But today, our focus is on the A2 system.
Just recently, they released the A2 speakers, which are almost half the size of the A5 system - but they don't compromise on power or sound quality. According to their site, "Audioengine designs and constructs hand-built speakers at factory-direct prices. All Audioengine products are based on custom designs with very few off-the-shelf parts."
Setting up the A2 speakers is easy. Plug one speaker into the other, plug in your audio source, and turn ‘em on! I tested the A2 speakers on both a custom-built PC and an iMac. I was so surprised from the bass these two speakers were putting out! No more huge subwoofer on the floor wasting space, these *are* the best speakers for your desktop, notebook computer, or media player.
The only caveat I had was that the power / volume knob is on the back of the left speaker, so every time you want to adjust the volume, you have to reach over the left speaker and try to find it by touch. There is no power LED on the front of the speaker either, which isn't that big of a deal for me.
The Audioengine A2 desktop speaker system is available today for $199 from Audioengine and Amazon.com. Expensive for some, but well worth it for the sound quality.
Pros
- Great sound quality for such a small package.
- Dual audio inputs.
Cons
- Power / volume knob not on the front.
- Somewhat expensive.
Final Verdict
4.5 out of 5 stars.
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Nice review thanks! I have just got a pair of AudioEngine A2's here in the UK and love them to bits. I drive these speakers from my Mac and think they are not bad value. The sound is surprisingly large!
If you hear a humming through the A2s, make sure you connect the mini-jack cable from the A2 to your computer using the headphone jack. The connections for outboard speakers on the computer are powered and will cause the extra hum through the already powered A2 speakers.
For optimal sound quality, I recommend using an outboard DAC with USB or Optical connections.
Place the A2s on stands for better imaging.
You can extend the treble output a bit (some say the A2 are a too bass heavy) by lowering your A2 volume and ramping-up all the computer volume controls.