49 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent PC speaker upgrade
I was a little reluctant to purchase another set of Logitech speakers. My first set, the Z-560, worked well, but one of the channels burned out about 16 months after I purchased them.
My second set, the Z-680, sounded great but had a fatal flaw: HISSSSSS. I had to have a box fan going in the room to drown out the constant hissing. It finally drove me to...
Decent sound for the price.
This speaker set is a good value for the money. The sound from the satellites is not the most crisp for music, but good for gaming, it's main target audience. It seems to lean toward heavy mid-range, rather than higher frequency highs. The bass is a bit muddy if turned up too loud, as the subwoofer is not really large enough to handle big thumpin bass. But it is good...
This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
I was a little reluctant to purchase another set of Logitech speakers. My first set, the Z-560, worked well, but one of the channels burned out about 16 months after I purchased them.
My second set, the Z-680, sounded great but had a fatal flaw: HISSSSSS. I had to have a box fan going in the room to drown out the constant hissing. It finally drove me to seeking another set, and I desperately sought out a non-Logitech set of speakers. Sadly, in my narrow price range, there were no alternatives that I can find.
With some relucatance I ordered the G51. I set them up yesterday, and so far I'm very pleased with them. The soul-searing hiss present on the z-680 is mercifully gone, and the system sounds excellent. The bass is sufficient without being overpowering (provided you turn it down a notch or two from the default setting), and the control pod is sensibly sized and sports a great, logically laid out interface. Mids and highs are perfectly acceptable for a relatively cheap computer speaker set.
The matrix mode works surprisingly well (though I think it's likely nothing that revolutionary, just a re-imaging if their existing stero x2 mode) for both games and music.
I don't have plans to use the silly 'patent pending mod system' (pretty much just a piece of transparent plastic to slip printed designs into), but if you do want to 'pimp your rig' then I suppose the option is there.
Here's a couple of tips for the new G51 users:
1) Take off those grills on the speakers! They are *not* acoustically transparent, and in my ears the highs opened up a bit after removing them. Just be careful not to poke anything into the exposed speaker drivers!
2) BE CAREFUL if you mount the center channel on your LCD screen; I cringed when I read the instructions to 'tighten the hinge screw' - this is applying pressure to your LCD monitor. If you over tighten you might experience the pleasure of cracking your LCD screen in half. I simply placed mine on top and used a little double sided tape on the base - I'd rather have a slightly loose center channel than a pair of non-functioning 11" flat screen monitors.
PROS:
+ great sound
+ easy installation
+ excellent control pod
+ simple center-channel LCD mounting option
CONS:
- front speaker wires a bit too short
- hard-wired speaker cables
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
These speakers are a lot smaller than I thought they would be as shown on the product image. Still, they pack high quality sound and the bass is good, despite the subwoofer being almost half the size of my last one. My one huge complaint though - these are surround sound speakers Logitech - why are the cables so short! I'm unable to mount the rear the satellites anywhere - currently with the sub/amp under my desk, the maximum distance the rear cables will reach is about 6 ft behind me, and the satellites on my desk have no further slack on the cables either. Really, the cables were quite a big disappointment as it severely limits where I can put the speakers. I don't think having the rear satellites sitting on the floor partially obscured is what these speakers were designed for. The cables seem to be some kind of RCA plug and are hardwired into the satellites, so I don't know whether it's possible to try and extend them.
Besides the cables, everything else is great. The default bass level was way too high for my liking, it took a fair bit of playing around to find a good spot where it wasn't too boomy. The matrix mode works somewhat well, although I'll probably be leaving it off since having to adjust it constantly is not really worth it. For those like me who were somewhat worried that matrix mode could only be set to "Gaming" or "Music", the button is a push-button that toggles between None, Gaming and Music, it's not a sliding switch as the pictures may make it seem.
Overall these speakers are excellent value for money - sure they won't go as loud as some of the higher end models, but they are perfectly loud enough for movies, music and games. I would not hesitate to give these 5 stars if it weren't for the issue with the cables. If you're looking for compact 5.1 system, you won't get much better value than the G51.
Update (2007-11-16): I purchased some 25ft RCA F/M cables for the rear satellites and they have much better positioning now. One additional issue I have noticed is whenever the system is powered on and not muted, the subwoofer driver is vibrating and causing a very low but discernible hum that is audible over my system noise. Raising or lowering the volume has no effect on the loudness, and the hum only stops 2-3 seconds after muting or immediately on power off, which leads me to believe it's some internal component causing it and not noisy output from the sound card or interference. We do get slightly higher than usual utility voltage, so it could be something that goes away if you have clean 120v power.
Update (2009-11-21): System died one month after warranty expired. Control pod still gets power but woofer and speakers are lifeless.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
Received these a week ago, gave them to the daughter of a friend of mine as a gift, she took them into her room as me and my friend were chatting, by the time we went back to her room to set them up for her she had already installed them and was online playing WoW and telling her friends about her "awesome" new speakers, I think this speaks volumes about how easy they are to install.
The speakers allow you to use RCA plugs to hook your stereo into them and switch between the computer and the stereo at the push of a button, a feature for which my friend curses me every day when his daughter wakes him to 200db music in surround sound, seriously though these are loud I can hear her music in the driveway, distortion free.
In summation, I feel if you are in the market for speakers these are the best in their price range.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
The sound is fantastic, everything that the other reviewers have noted and then some. I was more than satisfied.
Some notes on what others said:
One reviewer stated the speakers were tiny compared to what was expected. So I was waiting to receive some really tiny speakers, but they were pretty standard looking to me. Perhaps that reviewer was waiting for theatre speakers or something, but these are made for a computer. They are a little over 4 inches wide at the widest part and 8.5 inches tall. They were actually bigger than I wanted. But that is not a big complaint.
Another reviewer stated they did not like the volume knob because it skipped volume levels. I agree that the notched feel of the volume knob doesn't allow someone to get the exact volume desired, but it is subtle degrees of loudness and I would not hesitate to purchase these because of that.
Another reviewer stated the wires for the back speakers aren't long enough. I measured them a while ago when I first set them up and my vague memory says they are 14 ft. long. This wasn't an issue for me as I have an L shaped desk and was not concerned about getting perfect surround sound. They would be way more than enough length if a small speaker table was set up behind the chair, but if these need to be mounted on a wall, there might be an issue with cable length.
And there was a reviewer who said the sound improves without the speaker covers. I agree with this assessment. They sound a little more clear with the covers off. So I keep the covers on for protection when I am not listening to music, but pull them off when I am planning on extended listening time. I probably could leave them off, but I don't want to worry about the dust collecting on them.
The subwoofer is gorgeous looking and very powerful.
The table top volume control is cool because you can push a button to select the total volume, subwoofer, back speakers, and center speakers and changed the volume for each of these. There is a mute button and a place to plug in headphones and a microphone.
I didn't like how the speakers are at one set angle and can't be adjusted. And I also can't see how they could be wall mounted unless someone puts a shelf on the wall to set them on. They don't appear to have the ability to just screw into a wall.
All in all, the price is hard to beat for the kind of sound these speakers produce. Exceptional value!
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
I picked up these speakers about a week ago and am ecstatic about them! I upgraded from a very good 2.1 system to this 5.1 surround and the difference was amazing (even using my onboard sound). This setup has a controller which allows you to emulate 5.1 sound via a 2.1 card. I also went ahead and upgraded to a 5.1 sound card and the difference was amazing. These speakers really shine on their native sound card. The balance is nothing short of astounding for such small speakers. I am an audio engineer and am impressed with this product. Logitech is still the leader in the industry for peripherals. I will always get their products. Oh and btw, surround sound is a must for gaming!
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
I received my new Logitech G51 5.1 Surround Speakers about two weeks ago in the mail, and so far I love them. It makes gaming a lot nicer; the sound quality is just fabulous. Here are some pros and cons about the speakers.
Pros:
The speakers have excellent sound quality, even when the volume is turned to max.
The speakers have adjustable sound controls (i.e. more subwoofer, more surround, more in center)
The speakers have a control pod that sits on your desk, allowing for easy volume/specific sound control
The speakers have plenty of cord, so there is no problem putting them behind/to the side of you.
The speakers have a re-usable Velcro straps to wrap up unused cord
The speakers' cords' ends are plugged directly into the subwoofer, and a cord is included to connect the subwoofer to the computer. There are options that can adapt to 2 port sound card also, so no worries.
There are ports directly in the control pod for a headset/microphone
The control pod has three pre-programmed settings for gaming, music, and just in general. They make a big difference, and they work very well.
All the speakers have nice mounts, sitting upright. They also have the attachments to mount the to the wall, for better surround system. The center speaker also has a special mount so it can mount very well on a flat screen monitor, no screws or nails.
Cons:
The speakers messed up my music at first, until I figured out all the settings to make my music better. That took an hour or so of fiddling with the console and sound controls.
When reading the directions, it was hard to figure out where the English directions were. They were all jumbled in with the Spanish and French directions. Once you found the English, however, they were very clear and easy to follow.
The center speaker made no noise when I first got it, and I had to turn the "center" channel to max, and had to adjust all the other levels accordingly.
The cons were definitely outweighed by the pros, and they are all resolved by now anyway. All in all, this is a great speaker set; I definitely recommend it.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
These are quite honestly the best computer speakers I've ever own. The quality you come to expect from Logitech is only matched by their products performance.
Pro's
Central Control Pod which controls muting, volume, bass, and microphone - No more reaching around the CPU tower to plug/unplug my headset and microphone, or finding a mute button for whatever application I'm using. Its all right there at a convenient centrally located device.
Matrix sound compared to music sound - Adds an extra dimension of sound that heightens play enjoyment. With the surround sound it really makes you feel closer to being in the battle.
Uniform sound quality - The quality of each speaker meshes so well with each other that it's often difficult to decipher which sounds are coming out of which speaker when you're sitting right in the middle of it all.
Moding capabilities - Though a small pleasure, the moding capability to alter the look of each individual speaker is an added bonus. Not a necessity, and definitely not the selling feature, but it adds some flare for aesthetic enjoyment.
Con's
Not wireless - The one real disappointment with the speakers is that they are not wireless. I don't mind that the front speakers and bass unit have wires, but the rear speakers have wires dangling from them which travel along the floor. It doesn't look very appeasing, and it becomes a small hassle as I have to pull my rear speakers forward and put them on my desk when I'm finished using them. If they were wireless I'd just attach them to my back wall and forget about them.
Ease of attaching rear speakers to walls - While they aren't difficult to attach to the wall per se, it does require slightly more effort than I would've liked. I feel like there is a small design flaw in the fact that I have to use a screw driver to twist the speaker to aim it down at my gaming station. It should've had a simpler hinge design that allows for aiming the speakers in any direction I wanted.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
This speaker set is a good value for the money. The sound from the satellites is not the most crisp for music, but good for gaming, it's main target audience. It seems to lean toward heavy mid-range, rather than higher frequency highs. The bass is a bit muddy if turned up too loud, as the subwoofer is not really large enough to handle big thumpin bass. But it is good enough for some serious bass in movies.
I recently had the big amp on my set of Creative Gigaworks S750 7.1 surround speakers set burn up after 5 years of heavy use. That system had 700 watts of power - 210 for the sub alone, and is without a doubt the best computer speakers I've ever heard. Even better than Klipsch 5.1's, of which I'm a big fan. But at $499, I was not happy to find out the Gigaworks amp burning out is a common problem with that speaker set, so I opted for a more disposable set that wouldn't upset me if it burned up.
The G51 is a solid value with decent sound, but audiophiles should stay away. If your budget is higher, go for the Klipsch 5.1's.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
I received my speakers a few weeks ago and apart from being a total surprise to get them this setup really blew me away. Of course I had just the usual speakers that came with my computer so I can't really compare them because these speakers are definitely hands, feet, and ears above regular speakers. This setup has a controller which allows you to switch and adjust the sounds easily. I play City of Heroes/Villains a lot and it was like entering a whole new world and that's just with my standard system sound card. I need to now upgrade my sound card to the 5.1 so I can truly enjoy everything they have to offer. The balance, the sound effects, and yes even music and movies are nothing short of astounding for such small speakers. I highly recommend these speakers for all gamers and music afficionadios.
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This review is from: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black) (Electronics)
I just got these speakers and I'm already pleased with them. They have great sound and the controls are really nice. I especially like how you can control the volume of just the sub. Logitech really outdid themselves on this one. The different matrices is also very nice to switch between music and gaming. The only thing I would really like in these speakers is that the rear speakers be wireless, but overall these speakers are the BOMB!!!
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