Logitech Z-5300e THX-Certified 280-Watt 5.1 Surround Sound PC and Gaming Speaker System
by Logitech
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List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Logitech Z-5300e THX-Certified 280-Watt 5.1 Surround Sound PC and Gaming Speaker System
Customer Review: My experience of upgrading to this system.
Summary: 5 Stars
Well, my last review (question really) about how long the rear speaker wires were wasn't very helpful to most folks. (0 out of 10). Well, I've answered my own question by finally getting the set. For those who also want to know, the wires are about 16 feet I think, going by the ol' finger tip to finger tip test (I'm 6', and it spanned the distance twice and then another 4' or so.)
Anyway, here's what happened when I finally got the system. I was upgrading from a Logitech Z-640 5.1 set to the Z-5300e. The 640 set was decent, but had very little mid-range, if at all, and the 25w sub just didn't have the punch it needed to sound good for DVD playback and music. Oh, the reason I brought this up is because I had my sub sitting on a shelf about 6" above my monitor. It was fine. Didn't affect anything. And so I get the Z-5300e set, and for those who have it, know the sub is HUGE. (11.5"w x 12"h x 14.25"d <- and that's without the wires hooked up (add another 4" minimum with the wires). Anyway, I tried setting the sub back up on the shelf where my old one was. It pulled the color out of my monitor! Not all of it, but damn near all of it. Damn big magnet in that thing. I told the clerk at Radio Shack about it (more on this later) and she said hitting the monitor's "Degauss" function may have fixed the problem, but I didn't want to have to worry about it. So I decided to put the sub on the floor as Logitech suggests. By doing so, I required rear wire extensions, because I lost about 6' of length that I needed. So that's where the trip to Radio Shack comes in. Bought two 6' extensions for $6.
Anyway, so I get it hooked up and WOW! Major sound coming out of these relatively small satellite and center speakers. Of course the sub handles most of the low end. This system sounds better than what I've got for my main TV.
Many people complain about the over punchiness of the sub. I agree, it's a bit strong and overpowering if your only control over it is the provided remote control. However, if you have good soundcard software, as which comes with most Creative Labs high-end surround sound sound cars, there are several bass level adjustments in it that you can back off the bass level to a point where you can practically minimize the bass. For example, for the Audigy 2 card series, there's a bass cross-over control and by sliding the control to the right, you can take almost all bass out of the sound. I ususally set my slider at a quarter of the way across from the left (bass side) and it's adequate. And then if you have separate bass/trebble controls too, you can lower the bass there as well.
But if you like bass, this 100w baby can do some serious thumpin'. It has a dual-chambered construction where the cone is inside the box mounted on a center divider which allowed the bass to resonate better than if the cone was mounted on the outside.
Some people also say that there's no on-system cross-over from the sub to the satellites. Well, duh? The satellites are not woofers. They're basically mid-range speakers that can duplicate tweeters as well due to their dual drivers.
Break-down:
Pros:
Awesome sound for an affordable price.
Well-constructed speakers.
Enough wattage for your PC or console game system.
Cons:
Relatively short speaker wires.
Wired remote control.
Inadequate on-board control of bass level.
But with that last one, you can tailor it better if you have good software with your soundcard.
Also had I not had to put the sub on the floor, I wouldn't have had to buy cord extensions.
Customer Review: Incredible Product, Incredible Service.
Summary: 5 Stars
This was my first time ordering from Amazon.com Before I get into the speakers, I just want to say that I was BLOWN AWAY by the speed of shipping. I ordered this less than 24 hours ago and have already received it!!!!! This level of service, with FREE shipping no less, is just incredible. I see now why Amazon.com is such a major player in online retailers. As for the speakers, I haven't given them a thorough rundown, but after quickly hooking them up and testing them with some MP3's and Halflife 2 I can say that both the Stereo aspect and the 5.1 are just incredible. I can't believe these have only cost me $110.00 (after the rebate). I am a major BASS nut. And these things deliver. The bass is deep and full. The mids and Highs are also incredible. Logitech has done a great thing. I know that the 5500's are a little more powerful and have a built in decoder, but for the amazing price that you get these for (even without the rebate) they are a tremendous deal. I highly recommend them, and HIGHLY recommend you buy from Amazon.com, I know I will be much more often.
-----Added 4/3/05-----
Now that I have had some time to get aquainted with these speakers I can say that my initial review was pretty accurate. These have EXCELLENT sound all bass, mid, and highs sound great. I have found that the "Matrix" mode can be a nice thing to use. I always turn it on when I am playing MP3's or any music. It gives a nice "fuller" sound. I'm kind of mixed on using the matrix mode with games that don't have 3D audio. Sometimes I like it and other times I think it's better left on stereo, as the matrix mode isn't perfect (nor could it be, really) and the stereo sounds coming from behind you can be a little off. But it certainly serves it's purpose with music.
As far as the Sub, I have heard a few people complain about the sub being to "boomy" And I could understand where they come from with that. I have had a couple of songs come up that were kind of drowned out by the bass. But with the handy-dandy control pad you can change the level of the bass. And it goes low enough that it should be able to accommodate any listening preference. After all this is a 5.1 system, and that .1 is bass!
The only bad thing I can think to say is perhaps the cable length. When I was doing my permanent installation, with the place I had to put the sub (it's pretty big) the left front speaker BARLEY had enough wire length to put it where I wanted. I had to move my desk a little to be able to reposition the sub to fix this problem. I think that the 5500's or the 680's had detachable wires, this could be a nice idea, but I suppose that could add extra cost.
Bottom Line: For the price of these speakers (even without the rebate) are a great buy!
If nothing else I can say that playing first person shooter games (half life 2 and battlefield 1942 for instance) the sounds of the gunfire and explosions are pants-wetting! It sounds INCREDIBLE, if nothing else buy them for that reason :)
Customer Review: Great Speakers Reasonable Price
Summary: 5 Stars
Pros: Great sound for the price. All of the parts appear to be high quality. I purchased these speakers in conjunction with an upgrade to a Sound Blaster Audigy 2 zs sound card. The speakers arrived first and were double boxed with the typical Styrofoam protection. Since I did not receive the Audigy 2 zs I hooked them up to my old Sound Blaster 2 channel card that was missing its adjustment software. The set up was all color coded and very easy to perform and the speakers have settings for 2, 4, and 5.1 channel sound. I was very impressed with the sound as Z5300e even from two channel sources as it has a matrix surround feature which creates a form of surround from 2 channel stereo. When the Audigy 2 zs arrived two days later I was further impressed as to how that card improved the speakers even more. Everything sounded as it should. From music CD, DVD movies, Gaming, even the analog TV sound from my ATI All in Wonder video card sounded great. I grew up in an era where Speakers were everything to a sound system and in that respect the Logitech's meet their mark. A old sound card will make these speakers sound great an good sound card will make them outstanding.
Cons: The speakers have RCA plug connections at the Subwoofer and are hard wired to the five satellites. The cords for the back speakers were not long enough for my installation so I had to buy RCA extensions instead of using less expensive speaker wire. The subwoofer is large and you may have trouble fitting it under a smaller desk. No inputs for other sound devices on control, or subwoofer.
Other Thoughts: Due to the Matrix surround feature the Z5300e's would make a fine set of speakers for a small room when hooked to a stereo TV, CD player, MP3, or XM or FM tuner, to make a inexpensive quality sound system. Some reviewers have noted an over dominant bass. I find this to the result of the over emphasized bass that appears to be present in much of today's audio source material rather than the design of the Z5300e's. You can work around this bass problem if you wish with the software that comes with your sound card. The installation of the Audigy 2 zs presented no problems for me just make sure you uninstall all of your old sound cards drivers and software. However, I did find that after the Audigy 2 zs was installed I had to update all of the drivers for my ATI All in Wonder 9600XT, for the media center to work.
Customer Review: BANG for the buck? Heck yeah!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This set is incredible. Don't worry about the previous reviews about too much bass. Anyone who would bother buying these speakers should have a quality soundcard such as an Audigy or X-Fi. Those components have software suites which allow you to make these speakers sound however you'd like to have em sound. You want to do some remodelling in the bathroom? Throw these badboys in there and close the door....crank the volume and wait about 3 minutes.....scrape anything that hasn't fallen off the wall......and repeat if necessary.
I have this system in a 25 x 20 space. My only problem with the set is the short speaker wires. I had to buy some RCA stereo cables with gold connectors and gold couplers. You can split the stero cables into two strands thereby getting 24' out of a 12' cable. The quality will remain if you go this route.
As far as practicle application? Well, if you use iTunes or other compressed music, you hear the imperfections loud and clear. Your best bet would be to use less compression or use original source material to listen to music. Games? I play a few online such as CoH and BF2142. You will be able to hear someone coming up behind you very easily!! This set rules for these games.....you will finally hear stuff that you had never heard previously....you will be amazed, and you will be pleased to find that your wallet hasn't been raped and pillaged to acquire these.
Are these speakers the best on the market? Heck no!! Are they a great buy? You bet they are...worth every penny. I still haven't pushed the volume past 50% yet....it's that powerful!! You will get plenty of BANG for your buck. Get em now before Logitech stops making them.
Customer Review: I can't believe my ears
Summary: 5 Stars
I was not planning on buying another pair of speakers for my computer for a couple of years when my CHEAP pair of Philips 5.1 speakers broke. I shoped around and after a 50 dollar rebate from Logitech, I got these speakers for just 100 bucks including shipping from comp-u-plus. The sound is amazing. I use my speakers mainly for listening to my music in iTunes and I cannot find the right word to discribe these wonderful speakers. I personaly had no problem with the cord length the way I have my desk set up but if you have a problem, it is a sinch to get extention rca cables from Radio Shack so dont let the cords draw you back. There are only two problems I have with these speakers which are not that big of a deal.
-The coards are built into the speakers so if there ever is a short, you are stuck unless you find some way to repair the coard, however I am sure this is covered in the first 2 years of the included limited warrenty from Logitech
Last but not least, the sub woofer produces great base which unfortunently is too overpowering for me because i share my wall with other bedrooms and my parents dont like it, however i made some tweaks using the equalizer in iTunes and now I am fine. As one other user said, you can also lower the base if you have good sound card software.
What ever you do, do not let these minor flaws keep you from purchacing these speakers. For the price paid, even if I paid 200 bucks, they are simply amazing!