I really like this style of speaker in general.

A good 6 inch 2 way like this will handle enough power to get very loud in an average room as long as you leave your bass controls relatively flat, let's say roughly something like 100 wpc.

These are larger than bookshelf speakers, unless you have very large bookshelves, and that extra cabinet size will extend the frequencies down to the point where they are no longer directional, or below 80Hz, and that's important to me because instead of pushing the bass up I'll let a sub handle the rest, creating a 3-way system with the dedicated sub amp to push those long, power hungry waves below 80Hz. This makes the system response closest to a flat 20-20kHz when correctly adjusted, and allows for higher power handling with increased clarity from the woofer, because I'm not trying to get these lows from the 6 inch. By the way, I've used these speakers On These Stands and they work just fine as long as you use the holes that the stands have in the base to screw them into the floor or something for a larger base like two 1 x 6's, otherwise they are a bit unstable. But now that you know this about them, they are a good inexpensive option otherwise.

I also prefer the front porting that these use, because they're likely tuned to around 70-80Hz and those frequencies can end up as standing waves or creating a boundary effect and are then over emphasized even more when cabinets use rear ports. This leads to an unnatural boost or a booming bass sound. This effect is reduced to just the cabs resonance and not the port also when front ports are used, and this will result in a flatter frequency response from them. While rear ports are able to enhance these frequencies to a greater degree by using the wall for reflecting them, they also need to be physically adjusted for it, which means perfect placement and I prefer to use a sub to extend the frequency response of a system rather than a wall.

My last reason for liking these is simply because I've always found studio monitors to have less markup, and you will get more speaker, or a more focused design on faithful audio reproduction, for less money when compared to more typical speakers. Let's get into the facts of what it is that you are buying with these monitors, from both my own observations and according to the Alesis web page.

The cabs are made of a high density, rather than medium density fiberboard to reduce flex and reduce resonance. They measure 8.5W x 10.3D x 15H and weigh in at 14.3 lbs each, the glossy front appears to be plastic, but it's very sturdy and the rest is that tough pebbled coating that you may be familiar with. They are magnetically shielded and come with two dense foam pads the width of the speakers instead of feet.

You'll have your choice of ¼ inch or 5 way posts for inputs that will feed a x-over set at 2.2kHz. They've included a high frequency trim adjustment switch of plus or minus 2dB above 3kHz to provide for some room tuning. I believe that this switching has to be relative, meaning that it's really 0 -2 -4dB, because you can't boost from within a passive speaker, but you can cut. I hope that this makes sense to you, because the manufacturer's plus or minus doesn't to me, you would need powered speakers to be able to actually boost by 2dB, so it has to be a relative adjustment with +2 being no cut. It just seemed odd to me, it doesn't really matter.

The output is from a 6 inch Kevlar woofer and a 1 inch silk dome tweeter.

They rate this speaker at a sensitivity of 88 dB, a maximum output of 108 dB, for up to 150 watt RMS amps and at an impedance of 4 ohms. The extended frequency response at -10 dB, is 45Hz - 24kHz for what that's worth, I'll make the guess of about 65Hz-20kHz at -3dB, which is pretty good. Sorry, but I find the -10 rating on speakers to be almost useless and just a method used by manufacturer's to exaggerate the actual response, so be observant of these manufacturer's ratings because they try their best to fool you. Obviously, I'm tired of audio companies trying to deceive consumers, and wouldn't we all really like to know the response of our speakers at a flat 0dB?

I spend a lot of time around other audio engineers and I should point out that some find a speaker like this to be somewhat senseless to purchase. It's way too large to be a near field monitor and a bit small for a mid field, but I can agree to disagree. I think that at this price, it's target consumers will be home recording enthusiasts who will likely find this to be an useful mid field monitor. By using a high quality power amp or even a high end home stereo and a sub to extend the lows, you could say that these are adequate mid field monitors for most rooms.

Okay....I guess that I have to provide an opinion on how they sound, although if you've been reading carefully, I already have to some degree because I like facts. I don't use descriptions like sound stage because that was a place, back when I worked in TV, not a description. But warm or present and few others I will use on occasion and I'll assume that you're familiar with them. Also, please understand that I feel that your room has such an impact on how your system sounds, that it could be the most important factor if you are not listening near field, and therefore will in part determine how your speakers sound. So by moving them to a different room I could give a different description. Current or 40 year old recordings, the amp used and it's input signal quality would also mean different descriptions, and with all of these variables I find that comparisons are more useful.

I'm not going to compare these to Adam or Genelec or Dynaudio, because that would be unfair with the price difference. I can't compare them to powered monitors because they aren't.

I can compare them with good consumer speakers like Infinity or Polk or JBL and the few inexpensive passive monitors still for sale, which does not include the Bag End MM8's that I was recently using, those I really liked. I have compared them directly with my Polk Monitor 40's and a few others from both categories however.

These Alesis speakers are designed for accurate reproduction and they do that pretty well down to where you would want the sub to take over. I'm using a JBL with a 4th order x-over and I can run it way down around a 50Hz x-over point, so that it mostly provides a room shake from the 41Hz of the low E of a bass guitar and it's lower harmonic frequencies or the low frequencies from the electronic instruments that are so prevalent in today's music. Above the sub frequencies, the Alesis' accurately provide the 82Hz of the low E from a six string guitar smoothly up to and above the sizzle of high hats and sound great when properly setup. These speakers can also be part of a fine system to plug your keyboard into and run at fairly loud levels.

The front panel, designed to create a wider dispersion, is only important for close listening. I'd actually prefer it without, because at the distance you would listen to these at 20 or more watts it only reduces separation and I would prefer the image more focused. Fortunately, I don't believe that it's a strong effect anyway.

So when compared to consumer speakers like my Polks, I like that they are more present and have a flatter frequency response across the audio spectrum, they are simply more accurate than most consumer speakers. To many this will translate as a brighter sound, but what they really are, is not softened to be less "fatiguing", I think that's what some would say...Not my word and critical listening does tire me, but it's from trying for total awareness, not tones. I myself, want to hear the recording as is, not how the speaker designer thinks it will please me.

I have passive JBL Control 1's (which I can highly recommend at the $118 that they are often sold for here) and because of the larger cab and deeper tuned ports that are used, the Alesis provide noticeably more low end. I also have KRK R6G3 Passive Monitors much like these and compared to them, it's six of one and a half dozen of the other. They sound much alike when properly setup and I would mix better off the one that I was more familiar with, but I like listening to either. Becoming familiar with your system is really important and having multiple systems to play from also helps immensely in determining your final mixes.

I've run these from my 25 wpc SMSL Q5 mini amp, I've inserted them into my living room audio system and I've tried them in my home studio control room in place of my JBL LSR6332 monitors, connected to a 300 wpc Crown amp. My real reason for purchase was just to try them out as inexpensive, accurate home speakers and the last two weeks they have been moved from room to room and amp to amp and have passed my testing with flying colors.

They are near the the bottom end of professional monitors and yet that still puts them far above most consumer speakers for mixing, at even twice the price and certainly for hearing accurate audio reproduction, which is their purpose after all. They are also easy to seamlessly integrate with a sub because they cover all of the lowest directional frequencies and for many home recording enthusiasts, they will be the cheapest method of creating a system that you can mix with if you already have a good amp and the sub, if you choose to use one. Although these provide substantial lows, I would still recommend that you do so for the most accurate mid field listening, but that's just my opinion.

It's easy for me to recommend these speakers as a great value at about $100 apiece, very easy.

I would give these speakers a very high rating based on affordability and use. the biamp system make listening a breese.

No complaints, especially at these prices. I'm older and my hearing isn't quite the benchmark it used to be, but they work for me.