Athena Technologies AS-F2 Dual 8" 2-Way Floorstanding Speaker (Single)

by Athena

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 57 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B0002H4YPI
• Item model number: AS-F2
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #272,970 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Drive home the action and get your party rocking with the AS-F2 Audition Series floorstanding speaker from Athena Technologies. Equally well suited to home theater and music use, the speaker provides clean, well-balanced performance with low end extending to an impressive 35 Hz for house-shaking bass even without the use of a stand-alone subwoofer.

The floorstanding speaker is sold by itself, so pick up 2 (left/right) for starters or buy 4 or 5 for use as surround and/or surround and center speakers. (It will also mate seamlessly with other speakers in Athena's Audition series.) Use caution when planning the AS-F2's position as a center speaker, as its 42-inch height will conflict with the position of many TVs; a flat-panel television mounted to the wall above and behind a speaker would probably work nicely. Many of today's music-only surround-sound media--such as DVD-Audio, multichannel SACD, and DTS surround CDs--are mixed with 5 or more full-range speakers in mind, so if you have separate music and movie rooms, 5 speakers is the way to go.

The 2-way AS-F2 uses a pair of 8-inch injection-molded polypropylene woofer with a 1-inch Teteron dome tweeter. The 8 ohm-compatible speaker can handle up to 250 watts of amplification, and it's designed to be extremely efficient and therefore undemanding of your power amplifier. Most amplifiers with a power rating of 20 to 100 watts per channel will drive the speaker efficiently. If you're using more than 1 pair of speakers on the same amplifier channel (an additional pair of speakers for another room, for example), make sure your amplifier can handle loads under 8 ohms.

The front-ported, bass-reflex enclosure allows the speaker cones to push more air, resulting in greater bass output, and the speaker is magnetically shielded to prevent distortion when placed close to a television or computer monitor. For the best stereo "imaging," you should place the speakers (assuming you use more than 1) the same distance from their respective side walls and equidistant to your listening position.

What's in the Box
One speaker, a speaker grille, and a user's manual.

Note: If you intend to use more than 2 AS-F2 speakers simultaneously, please contact your amplifier/receiver manufacturer to verify the low-impedance drive capability of your equipment.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best main speakers under $1000, August 9, 2004

By 

sonytoao (Silver Spring, MD USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Athena Technologies AS-F2 Dual 8" 2-Way Floorstanding Speaker (Single) (Electronics)

The Athena FS-2 floorstanding speakers are some of the best reviewed anywhere, probably because at their price-point, they are unsurpassed in quality. Mid-range frequencies are crisp; bass reproduction is sharp; and higher frequencies for percussion instruments are vivid without being fatiguing. All-in-all, as many have said before, the overall sound quality can best be described as "transparent" (i.e. the listener hears the music as if "there".)

I replaced some older Pioneers with these as mains in my HT setup. And although I'm not fond of the silver front, the sound quality more than makes up for introducing a mismatch color scheme in my all-black system. If you are unfamiliar with speaker manufacturers, note that Athena's parent is Audio Products International Corp. (API), which also markets speakers under the names Energy, Mirage, and Sound Dynamics. And if the FS-2 is a little out of your price range, buy the lower-priced FS-1, which has one 8" Woofer vs. the dual configuration of the FS-2, with a slightly smaller frequency range.

One final caution: As of the time of this review, Athena only has four authorized "etailers": Best Buy, OneCall, BestPriceAudioVideo and AudioAdvisor. So be careful when price comparison shopping.

4.0 out of 5 stars Spend 10x to get the 5th star... Best speakers in class, July 20, 2007

By 

Jeff Hutchison (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Athena Technologies AS-F2 Dual 8" 2-Way Floorstanding Speaker (Single) (Electronics)

I debated the star rating for a while... for the price, these are 5 star speakers, but then what would I rate a better, much more expensive speaker?

I've been blown away three times while auditioning speakers. The first time was a pair of Sonus Faber Grand Pianos - $3,500 /pair at the time. They provided what I can only describe as a religious experience. The second time was when I listened to the Athena F2's. They filled the room with music that was effortless and unstrained, and created a soundstage that brought the music to life.

The third time I was blown away was when I heard the price of the Athena F2's. I purchased them on the spot and I've been happy ever since.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I believe Amazon may have these priced improperly...?, November 29, 2004

By 

Rishard "railman" (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Athena Technologies AS-F2 Dual 8" 2-Way Floorstanding Speaker (Single) (Electronics)

These are fantastic sounding speakers for the money. Only trouble is they are listed on Audio Advisor's own website as being priced "$399 PER PAIR". An Amazon pricing error? If you are planning on purchasing these speakers, check out this price discrepancy.