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Altec Lansing FX4021 2.1 Speakers
Taking a Closer Look
Every part of the FX4021 looks great. And it's not just the matte black finish with aluminum highlights. The whole setup is geometrics fluidly mated with soft edges. It's bold without being harsh. The wired controls are built into a neat square (with headphone and mic jacks) and the wireless remote is a small aluminum bracket that is angled so as to be easy to pick up, with foam rubber feet to keep it in place and/or to prevent it from scratching surfaces. Both controllers are very light, to the point of being prone to self-rearrangement. They'll shift around the desk is all; it's not like their buttons move around. That'd be silly. Both remotes control all the features of the speakers: volume, treble, bass, sfx, and loudness. The wireless remote has an extra button, reset, which sets all the controls to their defaults.    The wireless remote isn't terrible. It's probably handy for more than a few people, and it does the job. On the other hand, it's not super well-made, and the surface of the remote has lumps where it should probably be flat. It almost looks like it might warp if you accidentally leave it in the sun. Overall, it's not sturdy, but fortunately it's the only thing in the set that isn't. The wired remote is better constructed, with green LEDs in the buttons for each function. They're not bright or distracting, and the labels are written next to each button, fine white on black. They're hard to read with a light on, actually. Still, four buttons shouldn't be hard to memorize. The volume, treble, and bass levels are all manipulated using the center dial which has a good feel to it, and a small amount of positive feedback, like clicking, when it's turned. The cable is heavy compared to the remote and it has a slight tendency to pull the remote backwards off the desk.      The satellites stand on simple metal bases and are balanced well; each one has two small drivers behind black steel mesh. The bases have rubber pads to keep them from sliding around, which is necessary, as they are quite light. Despite that, they're strong enough to use as make-shift weapons (which may not be necessary). The satellites have two drivers: one 18mm and one 40mm cone. That is alarming, as it is highly suspect that a driver that small is nowhere near capable of producing good mid-range sound. The subwoofer is a stoic square trunk about the size of a small PC, and the heavy wood houses two 5.25" long-throw drivers in an isobaric arrangement, with the air coming in through the top behind more strong steel mesh. By using two cones in this specific configuration, the subwoofer effectively doubles the volume of air moved without needing to increase the space around the drivers. In other words, this subwoofer kicks hard. Still, it only uses 5.25" cones, which are a little range-limited compared to also-common 8" cones. The subwoofer is the source of the set's weight.
Page 1: Introduction & First Looks
Page 2: Taking a Closer Look Page 3: Setup, Features & Sound Quality Page 4: Conclusion 
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