Customer Reviews

Acoustic Research AW-811 Indoor/Outdoor Wireless Speaker (single)

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(32)

 

 

It's not pretty. The sound is not great. But it does what I wanted it to: gets sound from my living room receiver into the kitchen.

Setup is very easy. Everything you could need to connect is included. The unit tunes automatically so there is no fussing with a tuning knob. The auto-tuning is quick and effective.

As promised, the transmitter is compatible with my AW-721 cordless headphones. I now have both transmitters connected to my receiver. (It doesn't seem to help with static but why not.)

In general the signal seems to come through with little interference. The sound is slightly distorted, something I had noticed with the headphones also. It is also overall somewhat tinny. It is hard to say whether that is from the transmission or the just all-right speaker.

One nice feature they don't advertise: if you buy the eight (!) C batteries needed to make this truly portable, you can charge them in the unit. (If you buy NiCad or NiMH batteries- try www.thomas-distributing.com)

Apparently, Acoustic Research and Advent are the same manufacturer.

Like one of the other reviewers, I use this speaker primarily to listen to Streaming Internet Baseball broadcasts in my yard, while safely keeping my computer indoors. The range is excellent, and it puts out plenty of volume. I'm not sure I'd recommend it for audiophile listening, but the sound is definitely as good as a decent radio or boombox. Plus, the price from Amazon is unbeatable -- Best Buy sells the same thing for over $100! This is a fine product that performs exactly as advertised.

Acoustic Research AW-811 Indoor/Outdoor Wireless Speaker (single)


[REVIEW UPDATE - 02.07.2009]

Another discovery I made recently is that the type of audio source you have attached to the antenna makes a big difference as well. For example, I had to use my tweaks below to make the unit sound good with an iPod Nano (one I found the right channel, it worked great). However, a Sony PSP will produce a good signal right from the start. From my computer, I had to do the tweaks. From my stereo, I had a good signal right off the bat. So, also try playing with different audio sources and see what your results are.


[ORIGINAL REVIEW]

Initially, I had problems getting this unit to work (this may have been because my unit didn't ship with instructions). Like many previous reviewers, I either got no sound at all or couldn't get reception very far away from the transmitter -- and when I did, it was full of static. But, after a little trial and error, I have it working great and I must say it sounds pretty darn good.

One important thing I've discovered is not to plug the speaker in and/or turn it on until you have the transmitter hooked up to your audio source and the blue "Level" light is displaying on the front. Once you do, turn the speaker on and see if you can get good reception. From what I have read, for some people, the unit works right off the bat and sounds great. If you have a solid green light on the front of your speaker and the sound quality works for you, then consider yourself blessed -- you are good to go. But if, like me, you do have a lot of static or no sound at all, try the following fixes:

1. Play with different channel settings on the back of the transmitter; there are only three, and one of them should produce a stronger signal than the other two. Find the strongest signal to your speaker and leave it there. DO NOT FORGET to turn the speaker off and on again after each time you change channels on the transmitter! Yes, running back & forth from the transmitter to the speaker is a hassle, but it's critical that you do this or you'll have trouble getting a green light on the front of the speaker instead of a red light. In fact, I don't think the next fixes will make any difference if your speaker has a red light with no sound at all -- so it's imperative that you get SOME type of reception (even if it's intermittently blinking green/red) before you try the next two steps.

2. Try raising/lowering the transmitter and the speaker itself. For some reason, my transmitter works better when it's behind my stereo. You would think that the higher the transmitter, the better the signal, but this hasn't been the case with me. Additionally, I found that when the speaker is underneath certain things like a wrought iron table, you might get more interference than you would if the speaker was on top of said table, or underneath something like a wooden bench.

3. Once you do get reception, try adjusting the level on the transmitter and volume on both the audio source and speaker unit. From where I am transmitting, my speaker reception is best when I have the transmitter level at about 50%, the volume on the audio source at about 35%, and the volume on the speaker at 100% (you can always turn the speaker down using the volume control on the speaker itself if you don't want it so loud, which is a nice feature). You won't knock down any buildings with wall of sound at these settings, but for me the reception is crisp and the treble/bass sounds very good.

I hope this info is helpful and saves you a little frustration, because it really is a nice little unit. I'd be interested to any additional tips/suggestions you may have.

If you can get one of these speakers that works you're in luck. The sound is o.k. for the product type. In my case I bought a pair(they must be purchased individually and although each comes with a transmitter, only one is required for a pair) but only one worked properly. Got a prompt replacement speaker from Amazon but this one wouldn't even turn on. A call to the manufacturer revealed that the maker (Recoton)went bankrupt and the customer service rep for the firm that bought them out as much as admitted that the speaker is junk ("we get calls about them all the time"). I'm sending them both back and moving on. Any suggestions?

I wanted background music on my deck. I bought 2 of these units. They sound very good for this purpose. There is a small amount of hiss, but it really isn't noticeable in my environment. The units have worked dependably for the entire summer.

A few notes:

- If you use regular batteries, DO NOT PLUG THESE UNITS INTO A WALL RECECPTICLE! The unit will try to charge the baterries and destroy them. Rechargeable batteries are available, but cost a lot. I have used one set of regular batteries all summer. So I question the need for rechargeables other than environmental concerns.

- The speakers do not turn on immediately. It takes a few seconds for them to find to correct frequency.

- Be careful adjusting the gain level on the transmitter. It has a big impact on the sound you get from the speakers.

(Don't bother buying the unit without the transmitter. For the few extra dollars you get a spare transmitter. I hooked one to my TV to broadcast the cable music stations. I connected the other to my reciever.)

I got a speaker for my birthday and absolutely love it. I love jazz and really love KPLU out of Portland. My wife likes the Lynx disco station and her itunes stored on the pc. Bought mini speakers for my laptop but we hated having the wires and cord running across the sunroom floor. And then if you needed to move the laptop... Then I saw these speakers. Read the stuff about the button and was nervious but the price looked good. Frankly, this is my favorite toy and the on off seems to be working great. I hope the people who had switch problems read the manual cuz the switch is not your usual on off switch. It is a cylinder that sticks down from one of the flanges on the side of the speaker.

Initially, I would give the switch a tap and the unit would come on (most of the time) and sometimes it would take a couple quick taps. Then, one time, it did not come on with my usual tap. Yikes! I thought I had a bad speaker. Then I broke out the manual. It said, you needed to press and HOLD the switch for a couple seconds to turn the speaker on and off. Held the button and it worked perfectly. So, no complaints. Maybe I'll be complaining a couple months from now and I promise to come back and put in another review if my fails like theirs did.

The sound is fine and the range is great. I have transmitter in the basement PC and can move speaker all over 1st floor. Haven't actually taken it up to 2nd floor yet. And it travels about 75 yards to the limit of my back yard. I even like the little optional grey rubber pad you can put on top to hold a beer. Bottm line. It's a perfect summer toy for hearing your PC music outside. (of course you can also link it up to your stereo or tv or any other audio source)

Let me start by saying that I have never written a product review before, however, my experience with these speakers was so disappointing, that I find myself moved to share it with others.

I purchased a pair of these speakers last month so I could have music on my back deck for the summer. When the speakers arrived, they worked for about an hour, however, the tuning was not precise. Shortly after I began using the speakers, one speaker would no longer "turn on". In addition, the transmitter stopped working. After speaking with AR, they believed that the speaker's power switch and the transmitter were both defective.

As the purchase was within the Amazon return period, I shipped the speakers back to Amazon for a replacement pair. When the new speakers arrived, they worked GREAT. The sound was very good and the reception was impressive. I used the speakers sporadically over the course of the next two weeks and then it happened -- the power switch on both speakers stopped working. No matter what I tried, the speakers simply would no longer "turn on."

Once again, as I was within the return period, the speakers went back to Amazon, this time for a full credit.

Buyer beware on these speakers. If you get a pair that initially works, play them A LOT throughout the first 30 days to make sure they continue to work. Best of luck.

I purchased two of these speakers so I could have music outside on the patio. I plugged them in and got them set up in a couple of rooms in the house. The sound quality was much better than I expected and I was really happy with my purchase. Then I put batteries in one. I read ALL of the instructions first. Followed those instructions to the letter. When I turned on the speaker with the batteries, it came on for a fraction of a second and then shut off. I spent the next hour taking batteries out and in and plugging it in and unplugging it... it never came on again. Dead. Money wasted. The other speaker still works fine and has never seen a battery. I suspect that there is some faulty wiring in these speakers that causes them to permanently shut off when you use batteries. Read the other reviews. I'm not the first to have this problem.

For all of you who research a product before you buy it and if you have read some negative reviews for AW-811, I was pleasently surprised.
First, it was bigger than I thought. It is about a foot high and it looks like a modern spreaker. (I don't know what the people who said it was ugly were expecting, it is a speaker-not a piece of art!?)
Also, the auto tune feature is great. I was also considering the AW-810 but you had to take the time to tune it yourself and it cost more (for what reason? AW-811 seems so much better).
I just received it and used it all weekend with the AC adapter. I did order recharge batteries, since the AW-811 is also a battery charger, but they didn't arrive yet.
The sound was great for a small outside party on your deck. I am impressed

This speaker took a couple of minutes to have operating after I unpacked and made sure I had all the pieces. Hooked the receiver up and when it turned green I plugged in the speaker and it worked like a charm.
I may buy another one in the near future.
I bought it from Amazon and had it in a week and it worked right out of the box.
Bob