Harmon Kardon Soundsticks III
Hello and welcome to another of my reviews, unlike tom and the reviewing staff here at OC3D, i dont get things sent to me by companies to review, i only buy things with my own money and review them for the rest of the members here to benefit from my experience, of-course i do not just buy things to review them, i have a need/want/desire to own them too, but if that much wasn't obvious, ....well, it should have been
A few weeks ago, i decided in my mind that the inbuilt speakers in my iMac were no-longer sufficient, ...and my PC was not exactly brilliant coming through its Scythe Kama Bay Speakers, as good as both of them are.
So i decided i needed a good 2.1 system, as my 5.1 system, whilst at the old house powered my dedicated PC room, had been annexed for the living room, ...i used to own a set of Harmon/Kardon Soundsticks II, and they were brilliant speakers, but due to financial constraints back in the day, i had to rid myself of them, an utter utter shame, however, needs must in financial difficulty.
So, without further adieu, a quick trip to hull, an apple authorized reseller, and tadahhh!
I have my speakers, the guy in the shop was worried about them traveling 35 odd miles back home to me, and wrapped them up in some clear plastic, then in a white carrier.....frankly, it was un-necessary, however, the concern was appreciated.
So, lets whip it out on the bed
Sorry for the lack of a photo-booth quality, and style photo, i do not have time to set up a sheet, and take good quality photos, in the same way that tom etc do, this was done in a "i want to get into it, and i cba with taking pics really" style
Right, time to open it up....first thing we see is all the documentation...lovely, paperwork...just what i always wanted, ...the instruction book is ...insightful, and roughly condensed says "plug into power, plug into computer, touch sensors turn volume up and down on right satellite, and button on sub turns sub on and off, there is also a dial on the sub to turn sub volume up and down", this apparently took 17 pages.
So, tossing aside the "instruction book", there are the power cables, although for some reason, i ended up with the foriegn cable, im not even sure what country this is for:
If i had dropped the box from say the car's boot onto the floor, i needn't have worried about any damage, everything is packaged firmly in solid cardboard, that, while solid in the middle where components are, is soft and squishy and absorbent around the edges, so as to absorb careless bumps, needless to say if this was being couriered to my door, if i ever bought another, unless the courier decided to sit on it, and even then only if he weighed a good 20 stone, i would not be worried about the product reaching me in optimal condition, anyway, lets whip the next cardboard out...
The sub is wedged in almost as firmly as the speakers, the top cardboard is flush with the top of the box, and the bottom is flush with the bottom, it is quite firm, when the sub is whipped out, under it i find the two satalite speakers wedged firmly in another piece of cardboard....
All the wires are neatly and tidily wrapped up in plastic, and tied with a wiretie, as i have come to expect from ..well most modern companies, however, i do like the fact the speaker wires are both braided and them plastic coated, the quality does really shine through.
So, time to whip everything out, and do away with the box, lets see what we have here:
From left to right, we have:
- The Sub
- The Satalites
- The Instruction book/Warrenty paperwork
- The Transformer
- The Foreign plug
- the Aux - aux cable
- The Aux - Red/Black adapter
So, time to give it a quick plug in and test ....
All plugged in, and set up, an easy task, the satellites have different connectors, and both plug into the sub, so you cannot get them the wrong way round, sub into power, aux into device, and tadahhh, working... 'simples'
I plugged it into my iPhone 4 just to test it at this time...
A bit of David Guetta soon showed just how bassey the sub is, it is UNBELIEVABLY bassey, i had to turn it down to half straight away, but good god, that was an experience...i don't think the average user would ever feel the need to turn it up over half, overpowering is not quite the word of it...
These are some seriously powerful speakers, so ... these pictures were taken a few weeks ago as i purchased these speakers, and wrote an initial review about them, what are they like to live with you may now ask?
Well, a few weeks later, i can confirm, they just get better and better...
There are a couple of little things, but i have never had a product that has been perfect, i will start with the small couple of bad points...
1. No volume level, if for instance you have the speakers plugged into a computer, and you press play, and you have forgotten you left it on loud last time you played music, you may give yourself a heart attack, there is nowhere, a volume level, to be seen, this is a small issue, but its an issue non-the-less.
2. Touch sensors for volume up/down, on the right satellite there are two kidney shaped metal surfaces with "+" and "-" on them, for obvious reasons, touch "+" and the volume increases, and touch "-" and it decreases, hold both for rapid increases/decreases, this is good, but when i say rapid, i don't mean fast, i mean light-speed, it goes from whisper quiet to blowing-out-the-windows in a nanosecond, so to be safe, i always tap it slowly...
These are the only bad points i have found so far, apart from the foreign plug, however, i have an adapter in my possession, so i was lucky, it takes, what i call the infinity loop style plug, because when its looked at it looks like an infinity loop, not a kettle lead.
The good points, ....
1. it looks SEXUAL, you have to admit, you can see all the wiring inside the speakers, the white light of the sub, it looks amazing, here's another pic i have taken just this morning:
In my own opinion, they look stunning.
2. The Bass reproduction, is incredible, as im listening to songs im hearing bass i have never heard before, now, if i had left it on full, or if it had been not-adjustable, this would have been a bad point, it would have been overpowering, however, as it is, it is incredibly good, and when you couple this brilliant sound with the striking looks, i think that is a winning combination...
3. Don't let me banging on about Bass make you think that's all these speakers are good for, oh no, listening to some of my electro style music, it seems the high's are just as crisp and clear as the bass is deep and loud, even the middle is pretty spot on, to my ears anyway, these are as much a electrical masterpiece as they are a work of art.
Conclusion
Right, time to wrap this up i think, i have used these speakers with all sorts of music, everything from the eagles to Frankmusik, from the Beatles to David Guetta, from Razorlight to Clubland, and these speakers, again, in my opinion, have excelled with everything i have thrown at them, never any crackling, never any feeling like the speakers are being pushed beyond what they are capable of, never any problems, never any issues, they do what they do, and they do it happily.
They look stunning, to me, whether you agree with me, is another matter, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and all that, but i personally, think they look stunning, if you want any more pics, or close-ups, do just let me know, and ill do my best to edit/ammend the review and add those to it
At £125.00 they are hardly....affordable...when compared with some competitors, however, another old saying 'you get what you pay for' in this case i think you get a little bit better than what you paid for.
It seems whatever i throw at these speakers they seem to just continue working, if i plug them into my iPhone, work perfect, iPod, work perfectly, iPad, work perfectly, PC, work perfectly, iMac, work perfectly, telly, work perfectly....they seem to be good all round speakers...
One thing i didnt include in the review, and i bet you were thinking 'ahhh, music, but what about films?' ...yes! i have watched films while listening through these, my comments about music apply to these too, highs, mids, lows, all spot on, explosions are deep and boomy, upbeat music is high and punchy, and dialogue is clear and crisp.
One thing i have missed however, i am not a gamer (hense why i have a mac
So, to conclude, finally, i like them
