Audioengine A2 Computer Speakers - Articles / Reviews

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Audioengine A2 Computer Speakers

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Max Slowik
Beth
Audioengine
May. 16, 2008

Specifications

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Sound Quality

Compared to the A5s, the A2s are identical in character, if a little better balanced, although the 20Hz range is nonexistent. The character, by the way, is astonishing. It's uncommon for speakers to sound this good; is unheard of for small speakers like these.

20Hz: inaudible
30-40Hz: strong
50-2,500Hz: strong
3,000-13,000Hz: strong
13,000-17,000Hz: strong, slight scratching (over full volume)
18,000Hz: audible, slight scratching (over full volume)
20,000Hz: barely audible

Having tested these with the standard slew of sounds (Anne-Sophie Mutter performing Mozart's violin concertos, Il Giardino Armonico performing Bach's Brandenburg concertos, the Real Group's accapella, Ella Fitzgerald, Tool, and fixed frequency tests) these little boxes make beautiful sound, without needing any equalizing whatsoever. But they are small, and produce perfect audio, not loud audio. The sounds, though... overwhelmingly precise, but warm and clean. Like studio phones wrapped around a room.

In an office or a dorm or anything like that, they'll rock the best. But, if you're expecting them to make the walls drip blood during a viewing of The Exorcist, you'll find yourself longing for the ground-shaking A5s. That said, I couldn't hear much, if any, difference between the A2s and the A5s at low volumes, it's just that the A2s hit ten well before the A5s break a sweat, and are quite a bit easier to overdrive.

And the two work together amazingly well, with the A5s for front channel audio and the A2s for rear channel; home theater types will have a ball with these in tandem.

Conclusion

Although the MSRP is $199, you can find A2s for much less. In that price range there's a lot of noise, but believe me, these are the signal. Compact and stylish, they're unfortunately easy to overlook; a stereo-speaker needle in a 5.1 haystack. And I would, in every conceivable circumstance, take this pair over any other likewise-priced speaker set.

You just can't buy better sound for the money; sure, you can find more sound, and more channels, but what good is that when the scratching starts with the dial at four?

These are amazingly versatile speakers, and Audioengine gets yet another pat on the back for going beyond the standard for it's followers. Connected to a media player, gaming machine, or (and we know you're still out there), Discman, you'll find yourself hearing the details stolen from you by hackish audio fiends. Paired with a set of A5 speakers and you'll find no comparable home theater audio.

Pros

Amazing speakers for the price
Under $200
Small
Sexy

Cons

Only two channels
Not loud (quality over quantity)

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Page 1: Introduction and First Looks
Page 2: Sound Quality and Conclusion

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1 User Comment

1 - Posted by Max Slowik on May 28, 2008 - 7:39 pm

A couple of readers have emailed me about not being able to find these speakers for less than $200--a shame, but they're still a decent deal.

If you've got a little more audio cash, many etailers are selling the A5s, which sound the same but get a lot louder, and fill up larger rooms--and they're commonly below MSRP.

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