Rating: 
Summary: Amazing Sound
Review: After reading all of the positive reviews I decided to take the plunge and buy these Yamahas. They really are something else for the money. Once you listen to these speakers, you'll wonder how you survived for so long with the garbage speakers that normally come with computer systems. Simply stunning sound to the point where you feel lost in the music - totally surrounded by incredible sound! Mine are plugged into an Audigy sound card which probably adds to the quality of sound too.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: Absolutely amazing. They were the best sounding of the bunch at the computer store, but didn't seem like anything too special. At home it's a different story. They have a "liveness" quality that's very pleasant and I find myself firing up the computer to listen to music instead of the big stereo...
Rating:
Summary: Mighty Good Speakers
Review: All I can say is they are GREAT speakers! It's the difference from day to night. I love them so much that I bought 2 more sets as gifts and was proud to give them.
Rating:
Summary: Great system for the price!
Review: At this writing, it'll be darn hard to find a better 3-piece system than this! So that you know where I'm coming from, I label myself a "low-budget semi-audiophile," meaning I squeeze as much value as I can while building my stereo component by component. Translated, I hate all-in-one mini stereos and especially loathe tinny speakers. I demand clarity, warmth, and good, tight bass response. I'm also an amateur musician for the last 15 years, and I was looking for a system that would do reasonably well while I build a somewhat low-to-mid budget computer recording setup. These Yamahas deliver almost exactly that for this price point, with some qualifications as noted below. They have done exceedingly well in reviews here and elsewhere on the net, even after you weed out the chaff, which was a major reason for me to at least try these speakers. These speakers will not replace your component stereo (certainly not my Klipsch bookshelf speakers and Polk sub), but at less than 100 USD, that's to be expected. The sub is plenty tight and as loud as you need it for various music--some earlier reviewers, it appears, need to learn that subs are more to be felt than heard. Given the price, I find the crossover to be just fine. Mids are also quite strong. The speakers are generally *very* warm (and I typically dislike most component loudspeakers as too cold and sterile!) with something of a "surround"-type presence. The qualifications force me to disagree with some reviewers, if somewhat subjectively. The treble is reasonably good, but not great, certainly not brilliant or sparkling as previous reviews and advertising may suggest. There is no treble knob, as there darn well should be (my old Altecs had a treble knob...). As a treble fix, I've downloaded the newest versions of Winamp (2.78) and Sonique (1.95) to use and compare their EQs (less than 10 minutes download on either on a 56K modem). That solves some of my yearning for treble, but to a point, as each EQ appears to affect MP3s far better than direct CD-player audio, where Sonique appears to have a slight, marginal edge (and a 20-band EQ instead of 10 on Winamp). I should underline that I am a perpetual EQ tweaker, and really, the treble with the added EQ is quite good. Still, I've kept my old Altecs chained up to the second (additional) input on the Yamaha's right speaker to add a bit more treble for direct CD-audio. One other minor qualification is that the power cord is built directly into the back of the sub. This may be typical of the competition, but it's annoying to pack back into the box if you have to move it, and will be subject to stress with much greater difficulties in replacing it, compared to a cord with an adapter that you could remove. The plus is that the plug on the other end is a normal-sized three-prong, not a wall-wart (i.e., big fat AC adapter). Overall, the sound is excellent at this price point, and I'm very happy with my decision to buy this three piece system. Sure, you can spend $$$ and get something better, but I very much doubt you'll beat the bang for the buck this Yamaha 3-piece provides.
Rating:
Summary: Very good sounding, convenient and solid.
Review: Got these because I occasionally wanted to listen to music without earphones at my desk and wanted something that would sound good when cranked up. I was not disapointed, the speakers sound very nice and the subwoofer (which is pretty large, but easily shoves away under the desk) really puts out a lot of base. (so much so that my neighbor complained and I had to turn the sub down a bit even though the music was relatively soft). The earphone plug on the right speaker is very convenient, and the volume and power switches allow the volume to be adjusted or turned off. The speakers automatically mute when you plug your earphones in as well. Probably my only negative comment would be that the connectors from the sub to the sattellites are somewhat odd, one is a standard RCA and the other is PS/2 style cable like you see on mice. I guess the advantage is that it's easier for people to plug in because they can't get the right and left speakers confused, but I would have preferred standard RCA or miniplugs on both so that I could possibly use other sattellites if these broke. Overall these are great speakers....
Rating:
Summary: beats any 3 speaker system!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: Having owned both the Altec Lansing 48s and these I feel I am knowledgeable to speak about thses speakers. I blew out the Altecs(easy to do since they have a digital volume adjustment with no readout so if your computer restarts you have no idea what they are set at until you play them). The Altecs were good speakers BUT THE YAMAHAS-LIKE MANNA FROM HEAVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!The bass is deep,tight and rich and the satelites are so clear that I am hearing stuff now on songs that I never heard with the Altecs. These Yamahas are a masterful feat of engineering-BUY THEM!!!!!!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: This has to be one of the top speaker systems!!
Review: I am always trying to find bargains when it comes to computers. I have wanted a nice inexpensive speaker unit for my computer since I am upgrading slowly with limited money. I done some searching over the net and found great reviews on these speakers on every page so i decided to buy immedietly. (...). I first opened the box and was suprised to see the size of the sub. I hooked the system up and was taken away by the crisp sound and bass I was getting from these speakers. I must say I was using onboard sound at the time and they sounded damn good but I was not gettin the quality I read about. A few days later I bought a sound blaster card for my computer and I was very thrilled to hear the speakers. The became even more crisp and louder, and let me tell you these speakers are LOUD...The bass BOOMS...I live in a dorm and my RA's desk is probably 30 yards from my room. After I installed my sound card, I, being an idiot turned the bass and the highs up as loud as they would go. My ears were almost ready to buckle when I heard a loud bang at the door. My RA told me either turn my music down or I would be written up because she could feel the vibrations at her desk. Needless to say all my roomates plan on buying a set of these speakers. I also hear sounds in my music I never heard before. If you have ever heard surround sound you know what I'm talking about. These may not be a 3D or 5.1 system but I will tell you from experience they are just as good as those more expensive speakers. Dont be dissapointed if your plugging these puppies into onboard sound and you dont get the quality you have heard about. I would suggest you go out and buy a good sound card and I gurantee it will do wonders for this awesome set. Although the speakers are the best I have heard for a computer I dont understand how YAMAHA does it for the price. (...) I have to say the bass from this woofer is beyond explaianable, its very rich and very DEEP. I suggest you buy this system if you plan on upgrading and dont have a very big cash flow.
Rating: 
Summary: Really good, but not perfect
Review: I bought these speakers after reading nothing but positive reviews online, and listening to many different systems in the stores in my area. After getting these things plugged in, I was really amazed - they sounded so much better than the HK's that came with my computer. The bass was really good, tight, not really distorted. The highs were clean, a little harsh though, and the mids were fairly good.
That was about 3 months ago. Now that I've had some time to listen to just about all the music that I own on these speakers, I have noticed a couple of things that I didn't hear before, probably because I was still in that phase of being excited about my new purchase.
First of all, the sub is low-passed at 200Hz, and the tweeters are high-passed at 12KHz. But I think the midrange drivers get the whole frequency range. So when I play anything with a lot of low bass in it ( < 80Hz or so), this really distorts the midrange because they can't reproduce those frequencies very well. I noticed this one day when I had the sub level turned all the way down (by accident I think), and I found out why the mids were distoring. The other thing is, the sub does not have really great low frequency extention as I would like. For midbass ( > 40Hz or so) it is pretty good, but I really need sound in the 20-40Hz range for some movies and songs. The frequency response of the system only goes down to 32Hz anyway, not low enough for me sometimes.
Another thing, now that I think about it, was that when they did the specs for this system, they measured the wattage at a THD (total harmonic distortion) of 10%. That is a lot of distortion, so you will probably not get 80 watts out of this system (even though it does get loud, the people in my dorm can tell you that) unless you like a lot of distortion.
Now it might sound that I am unhappy with this system now, but I still really like it. For only (...) (what I paid) it was a really good investment, but of course it is not gonna rank up with higher end stuff. But for most of the things I use these speakers for, they are great. Just certain things are a little lacking, but I think I can stand that for now.
Rating:
Summary: More than you can buy for the price.
Review: I bought this speaker system about a year ago after being disappointed by a Philips' system of about the same price. The difference was amazing. I use my computer as my home audio system and believe me when I say that I am satisfied.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent speakers, best 3-piece set for the price
Review: I generally listen to music in two ways: 1. Turn the volume down low so I could pick every nuance of the music and let my soul blend in with the tune.
This set delivers relatively well when you prefer "quiet music". The bass can still be gently felt even at very low volumes. But the very high frequencies seem to be rather muted. My solution is to pair a pair of PC Works tweeters in the front and place the two tweeters from this 3-piece speaker in the back. The PC Works tweeters seem to render crisper high frequencies compared to this set.The resulting surround sound effect is extremely pleasing. Considering that you can get a set of PC Works for $50, it's worth the extra money. The Yamaha speakers, unlike other PC speakers, has a broad listening range. You could be a fair distance away from your computer doing other stuff and still enjoy the music.
2. Turn the volume so high that my liver turns black by the booming bass.
The bass for this speaker set wouldn't disappoint even its harshest critics. The subwoofer could fill the entire room with the volume half-way up. I usually turn the volume to half its maximum when I want to listen to loud music, and it's LOUD at that level. The sound nevertheless becomes somewhat distorted after you turn it over three quarter to the maximum. Unless you want to die a deaf man, though, you should not try listening music at such a high volume. The sound this set of speakers deliver is sweet given its price point. The rebate also came back to me after a 3 week waiting period, which is fast for PC rebates. I find this to be the best $100 I spent on PC equipment since the time I purchased my Voodoo 1 card (Yep, I got a deal back then for the real stuff;). You won't be disappointed.
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