|
Altec Lansing SoundBar FX3020
Testing:
I decided to test the Altec Lansing Soundbar during a friendly game of Call of Duty 4. While there is a lot of tinny gunfire in this game, there is also a lot of bass from explosions. This is one of the best tests I could think of, since it covers just about every sound in the spectrum. I started off by plugging the Altec Lansing SoundBar into the main speaker jack. I turned the volume to 100% in Windows Vista, and left the volume on the SoundBar at 0%. As I played the game, I increased the volume a bit each round, finally ending in 100% volume.
I was rather unimpressed with the bass performance from the speaker. You would think a speaker that advertises XdB bass technology would actually have bass. The treble sounded quite clear, and I noticed the Expanded Sound Stage Technology used to create a "surround sound" type atmosphere. The sound got quite tinny and crackly upwards of 85%, but it was loud enough at that volume, and was on par with the highest volume from other computer speakers. Overall, the treble quality was great, but the bass was lacking. I tested the speaker again with MP3s and movies to find the same results.
When it comes to fitting under a monitor, it really depends on which monitor you're using. Out of the four LCD screens in my office, it only fit under one of them, but it was a perfect fit!
Conclusion:
What Altec Lansing has created is a decent main speaker. The bass seems fairly worthless. I don't know exactly what the XdB Technology entails, but it needs some adjustments. The quality of the two treble speakers is amazingly crisp (for the first 85% of volume), and truly worth the money if you were thinking about piecing together a speaker system. My bottom line is this: if you want to pay $80 for a main speaker, and want it to fit under your LCD monitor, then the Altec Lansing SoundBar is right for you.
REALTIME WEB PRICING ON THE ALTEC LANSING FX3020