Altec Lansing XA3051 Home Theater Speakers - Articles / Reviews

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Altec Lansing XA3051 Home Theater Speakers

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Kurtis Kronk
Brian
AltecLansing
Aug. 24, 2003

Introduction

Are you a lazy bloke that likes to sit in front of your TV all day and play video games? Don't listen to your mother or your wife, this is a good thing. What could be better than kicking back with a cold beverage* in one hand, and a remote or your favorite console's controller in the other hand; All the while having a sub blasting hard enough to make you shake with every explosion, or every footstep for that matter. Let's see if the XA3051 can do the job.

The Box

Call me vain, but looks are important. If looks weren't important we wouldn't see new products constantly pushing the envelope with innovative designs. Who wants to buy a product that was shipped in the Fugly truck when you can easily find one that looks great and performs well at the same time? A quick look at this box will tell you that Altec Lansing knows looks are important. The box looks great and is decorated with lots of high-res pictures of the product along with the familiar Altec Lansing logo. I give an A+ to Altec Lansing's graphics department. The box also has tons of details about the product, which is great for those that like to buy retail. Okay, so the box is cool, time to check out what lies just inside it.

First Looks

Included Items:

Four Powered Satellite Speakers w/ Metal Brackets
One Center Channel w/ Metal Bracket
One Powered Subwoofer
Wired Digital Controller
Wall Mounting Hardware for Two Satellites
Color-Coded Cables and AC Adapter
Users Manual & Quick-Connect Card

The first thing I would like to point out is that this 5.1 system isn't "true 5.1 surround sound." The XA3051 emulates surround sound by separating the left and right channels into front and rear channels. I will talk more about this pseudo surround sound and if it does its job later.

With the speakers pulled out of the box, you can see how great they really look. Although I don't particularly like the style that Altec Lansing chose to go for (vintage look), they do still look very nice. To be perfectly honest, my first thought was "Hmm. Is the sub plastic?" Well, to answer my own question, yes, the subwoofer enclosure is entirely made out of plastic. I will talk about that more later, though. If you can't tell, the design of the speaker grills mimics the microphones from ~ 50 years ago. This is actually quite an idea, and I like it just because nobody else is doing it. Other companies, such as JBL, have gone for the futuristic look with computer speakers (JBL Creature Speakers). As a matter of fact, even Altec Lansing has been focusing on futuristic style speakers up until these came out (XA3051). It's nice to see that Altec Lansing isn't afraid to try new things.

If you have a look at the satellites, you will notice that they are all the same. The only real difference between the satellites is that the center one has been rotated 90 degrees so that it is as wide as the others are high, and vise-versa. Each satellite has a fully adjustable removable stand as you can see in the pictures below. Each satellite has a label on the back side to let you know where to position it when setting up the system (i.e. "Center" or "Right Rear"). The cables coming from each satellite are also color coded to help you figure out where to plug them in on the sub. Unfortunately, there are only two mounting brackets included with this system, but that won't matter if you have an entertainment center to set the front 3 satellites on. As you can see in the pictures below, the included mounting brackets are easy to use and work quite well. The only problem I have with them is that they don't allow you to pivot the satellites left or right, only up and down. Oh well, enough about the satellites, let's talk about Mr. Subwoofer.

First I would like to say that this sub is HUGE! Okay, it may not be large enough to earn the "HUGE' label, but it is big. The sub has legs on two sides so that let you sit it laying on its side or standing up tall and proud. Again I would like to say that the sub is made of plastic, but we will take a closer look at the sub in the Quality section.

We are far from done, now we look at the remote! But there is both bad and good news here... The bad news is that the remote is wired, but there is a reason. This remote is not wireless because it has two jacks for headphones to be plugged into. That's right, when the wife isn't home you can blast these bad boys, but when she is, you and a friend can plug in headphones so you can still enjoy your video game, football game, or movie. You can also adjust several things through the remote, including Power (on/off), overall volume, bass volume, treble volume, center channel volume, rear channel volume, Mono/Stereo, and you can even test the speakers with the remote. For details on how to use all of these features, consult the manual. To adjust settings, Altec Lansing used a rotating knob. Counter-Clockwise decreases volume, Clockwise increases, and so on.

Altec Lansing opted for an external AC adapter to power the system. This is no ordinary AC adapter either; it looks like it came out of "Honey I Blew Up The ~~Kids~~ AC Adapter!" To help keep things more organized, I would have preferred an AC adapter built into the sub.

The last thing to look at is the included audio cables (red and white) that connect your system to the audio source via RCA Audio Output jacks. The cable should be plenty long to get it where you need it. Let's plug all this stuff in!

Setup

Did you ever play with blocks as a kid? If you didn't have trouble putting the Orange block into the Orange hole, then you shouldn't have much of a problem setting up these speakers. For those who tried to jam the Green block into the Orange hole, there are labels and some handy-dandy instructions to help you out. If you need any help setting up these speakers, consult the manual and the very helpful diagrams.

Setting everything up is extremely easy, however, there are some limits. When setting up the speakers, you may or may not be able to set them up to work with your DVD player, console games, and TV all at once. In my case, I opted to use my Playstation 2 and my Xbox, thanks to a nifty adapter from Radio Shack that allows me to plug both in at the same time. This means that I did not use the speakers with normal TV, I only used them with video games and DVDs played on the consoles.

Testing

I tested these speakers using my Playstation 2 and Xbox consoles. DVDs used during testing were played via the Playstation 2. The games played during testing include "GTA III: Vice City," "Gran Turismo 3," and "Splinter Cell." DVDs used for testing include "The Matrix" (Lobby Scene) and "Saving Private Ryan" (Opening Scene).

Games
When testing games with the PlayStation 2, I noticed that more often than not, the rear satellites would emit no sound except for a bit of static. For most of the time while gaming, all the sound was coming only from the front 3 satellites and the sub. The static I mentioned isn't a big deal; for the most part it can not be heard as long as the satellite is actively emitting sound. It is when the satellite is that the static can really be heard, but even then you must be very close to hear it.

Also, at times when all satellites were active, it seemed like the sound was being split between the front and rear speakers (left or right side accordingly), emitting the same noise as one another. For example, when playing "GTA 3: Vice City," no sound would be emitted from the rear satellites while walking around or standing in the hotel. Although the hotel has music playing behind and to the right of where I was standing, the sound only came from the front 3 satellites. Rarely would the rear satellites kick in and actually make any noise.

While testing "Gran Turismo 3" I found myself straining to hear the background music which can normally be heard clearly on my TV's speakers. The engine sounded nice as did the braking, skidding, etc. but after a while that gets old. For me, a big part of this game is the music that plays in the background while you race for hours. I'm not sure why I couldn't really hear the music, but it could only be heard faintly from the center satellite while all the car sounds were emitted clearly through the front left and front right satellites. By turning up the center channel volume via the remote, I was able to hear the music better, but it was too loud and didn't sound balanced with the other speakers.

The second I turned on the Xbox I was shocked. For some reason the Xbox very much outperformed the PS2 in terms of audio because while playing Splinter Cell, I was always able to hear sound coming from the rear left and rear right satellites. When using the speakers with the Xbox, I have absolutely no complaints whatsoever, these speakers sound great.

DVDs
This is where I got a bit worried. As I mentioned before, the PS2 gaming audio wasn't so great with these speakers, so I was praying that the DVDs would sound better. Apparently the praying paid off, because the DVDs sounded great!

The first DVD I tested the speakers with was "Saving Private Ryan" (Opening Scene). The reason I chose this movie and this scene is that I felt the rippling water and waves, explosions, and bullets zipping by in every direction would adequately test the overall quality of these speakers and help me see if they provide a 5.1 experience. The sound of the boats and the water crashing against them immediately got my attention. Not only was the sound quality great, but it also felt like I was listening to True 5.1 surround sound speakers. I was even more impressed when the door was dropped and the bullets ripped through the group of soldiers. Once the soldiers made it to the beach I was further impressed by the bullets zipping by that could clearly be heard from the appropriate directions. The sub also performed well with explosions and gunfire even with its volume cranked down halfway. There are many who would be happy with the sub on half volume, but I personally prefer to crank it up. With the sub on full volume I didn't notice any loss of quality; I was very pleased with it.

Next up on the testing roster was "The Matrix" (Lobby Scene). I also continued testing as far as the helicopter explosion. The reason I chose this movie is because it has pretty much become a standard in speaker testing, although I personally think "Saving Private Ryan" shows off the quality of the speakers better. Like in the previous test, the speakers performed very well. Every gun shot could clearly be heard on the proper channel, and I didn't notice any static coming from any of the satellites (all the other sound drowns out the static, as stated earlier). It sounded especially cool when Trinity kicked the guard's shotgun and shot him in the back. The next thing I wanted to check in this test was how the chain gun sounded. These speakers didn't let me down, the chain gun sounded crisp and clear and it made the sub rumble quite nicely. The sound of the bullets ripping through the wet floor left me wanting more, but testing is over so let's move on.

Quality Check

As I mentioned earlier, the subwoofer is made out of plastic. A large wooden box would probably sounded better, but it would have also looked odd along with all of the rounded satellites. It may be a bit of a hassle when you put the sub back together, but you should be able to get it plugged back in without too much of a problem. Inside the sub there is a fair amount of sound dampening material, which absorbs the vibration from the plastic to give off better quality sound. The sub is constructed from molded plastic, and it is quite strong. As you can see, the sub also has a large opening allowing air to move in and out as the speaker moves back and forth.

Something definitely worth noting is that these speakers are not TRULY 5.1 surround sound enabled. They do, however, utilize technology which simulates true 5.1, and it works very well as I noted for the Splinter Cell and DVD tests. The XA3051 tries its best to separate the left and right channels into front and rear channels. While the speakers did do a great job during Xbox gaming and DVD movies, the rear channels really suffered while gaming on the PS2. I am not sure if it is Altec Lansing's or Sony's fault that the rear satellites emit little sound while playing PS2 games, but the speakers work great in every other application.

Conclusion

Overall during testing I found that the speakers perform best when playing DVDs, or when playing games on the Xbox. The speakers didn't sound bad when testing the PS2, but I was a little disappointed in the digital "5.1" performance, which seems to be the fault of the PS2. If you want to enjoy great sound while watching movies or playing games, these entry-level speakers would be a great choice if you aren't looking to spend hundreds of dollars on a home theater system.

Pros

Unique style
Large subwoofer
Ease of use
Remote control
Features
Two included wall mounting brackets
Affordable

Cons

Not TRUE 5.1 surround sound
"Surround sound" lacking w/ PS2 games
Plastic subwoofer

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5 User Comments

1 - Posted by Sapphire9800 on August 24, 2003 - 2:51 am

ya gotta have my limits as to how much i want to spend on items, good review , good idea inspecting it :)

2 - Posted by F|eA on August 24, 2003 - 2:36 pm

85 bucks aint that much for a decent set of speakers. Although altec lansing is a great company, im not really liking the grill kind of look on those speakers. 5.1 still kicks ass though.

3 - Posted by deftno9 on August 24, 2003 - 3:21 pm

Kinda reminds me of a fencing helmet except plastic and ugly. Altec's a great company though, I have a primo surround system I bought from them for only $40. 2 years and still going strong. Nice review although I'd prob never buy that specific model.

4 - Posted by Kurtis on August 24, 2003 - 4:17 pm

yeah I don't particularly like how they look, it would be nice if they had the same thing with different looks available, but what can you do right?

5 - Posted by MaNiAk21 on August 24, 2003 - 9:43 pm

Well, I don't mind that look on the 4 satellites, but the sub and center channel don't look to appealing. I likes my Logitech Z-640s... :)

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