Overview:
Welcome to the review of the Edifier e1100 Plus Multimedia Speaker. As far as I am concerned, Edifier has a history of turning out good quality speakers, although some have been at a price point that might make you wince at the checkout. So when the e1100 Plus speakers arrived, I was not surprised to see that they looked the business, and felt solidly constructed, something that was lacking a bit from the e3350 speakers. I then glanced at the price, and was pleasingly surprised at the cost. For these, you can expect to part with £39.99, or thereabouts. If you would like to know if these 2.1 speakers sound like they cost £39.99 or perhaps more, and hopefully not less, then read on dear reader, read on.
Review:
The first thing you notice, of course, is the box the e1100 Plus came in. Mean and moody. There is a sticker on the box that has a depiction of a creature very reminiscent of one found in the film Alien, and follows the HR Giger school of design. One assumes that the speakers are aimed at the gamer perhaps? Anyway, opening the box and alleviating it of it’s contents leaves us with one bass speaker, two tweeters, a cable to connect the afore mentioned two, plus a 3.5mm headphone jack to 3.5mm headphone jack cable to attach the lot to your computer. You will also receive a sticker with our Giger inspired alien on, and a manual, plus a power adapter.
Lets take a quick look at the spec. shall we?
"¢ Two 2" magnetically shielded drivers, 4 Ohm
"¢ One 4.5" down-firing subwoofer, 6 Ohm
"¢ Power Output: RMS 21 W (12W + 2 x 4.5W)
"¢ Signal-to-Noise Ratio: ≥ 85dBA
"¢ Input Impedance:10K Ohm
"¢ Input Sensitivity: R/L 450mV, SW 150mV
"¢ Frequency Response: R/L 200Hz ~ 20kHz, SW 20Hz ~ 160Hz
"¢ Dimensions: Subwoofer—-162 x 167 x 267mm (WxHxD) Satellites—- 68 x 105 x 103mm (WxHxD)
"¢ Audio Input: 3.5mm stereo line-in
"¢ Gross Weight: approximately 3.5kg
Fairly reasonable I think you will agree?
Focusing in on the subwoofer, the unit is piano black. Looks nice, and as yet, hasn’t suffered too badly from the finger marks. The unit is an attractively styled curve almost like a skiing helmet, or the head of the alien in the film of the same name. At the apex of the curve is a back lit volume control that has a pleasing resistance to being turned; ever so slightly stiff, but still glides around. Looking underneath the subwoofer, we can see clearly the downward facing 4.5″ speaker. The idea behind this is that the speaker fires it’s low frequencies at the surface below, and the surface will scatter the resulting sound waves around the room. This is all fine until you put the subwoofer on carpet, or another surface that soaks up sound waves. Turning to the back, and we have all the connectors you might expect for this type of set up, one jack for the satellite speakers, and one input from the PC, and a power adapter socket. There is also a dedicated knob for adjusting the bass level.
The Tweeters are similarly styled in the piano black, curved, Alien fashion, and look pretty good. The cone is 2″, and is magnetically shielded, so they won’t interfere with any of your other nearby kit. They feel solid and have a good bit of weight to them. Due to their attractive styling, they would look at home nearly anywhere, and their compact size means that they take little desktop real estate. To protect the cone, a small plastic bar goes from one side to the other. While this keeps the aesthetics in check, I can’t help but think that they are open to and accidental jab from a pencil, or a prod from a curious finger.
So description over with, what do they sound like? Well to give them a bit of a good test out, I used, AC/DC – Highway to Hell, Sasha – Mongoose (Exclusive emFire Edit), and Grand Daddy I.U. – Nobody Move, because they are all pretty hard on speakers. I also used the film “The Matrix”, and had a quick go on “Batman: Arkham Asylum” to cover all one might do on a computer these days.
The music test was very good. Bear in mind that these speakers cost £40.00, they sounded a lot more expensive. The bass was warm, rounded and clear. I felt the mid range lacked a bit of punch, although reproduction of sound seemed very good. The top end came out clearly, although on occasion, slightly muffled. Turning the speakers up to 11, and likewise for the bass volume, did produce distortion, however, it was too loud at this volume anyway, and I’m not sure how often this would be an issue. All said and done, I was very impressed with the way these speakers sounded.
The film test was reasonable. I have to admit, having been so impressed with the way the e1000 Plus coped with the music, that I was a little underwhelmed at how they dealt with the The Matrix. Although they stayed true to the film score and sound effects, they lacked that rumble and precision that I hoped for. I am not convinced though that this is not due to the limitations of a 2.1 solution, and had these speakers been 5.1, then perhaps it would be a different story. They were still a pleasure to use though, and any excuse to watch The Matrix is worth it.
Batman: Arkham Asylum faired a lot better than the film test, and I am happy to report the dull thud of Bat-glove on thug was marvellous. The background music was handled with aplomb, as were the sound effects. There was still a bit missing in the mid range, but that is the worst I have to say about it. A sterling performance here.
The Gaj-It Verdict:
Design: 9/10
Usability: 8/10
Features: 6/10
Value: 9/10
We Say:
These speakers look and sound a lot more expensive than they are. It may have been nice to see some digital connectors on the back of the bass unit, but for the price, it is understandable. A very capable set of speakers for a very reasonable price. Highly recommended.