Holy crap!
Normally we like to
stick a “witty” subhead under the title of the review, one that
uses the product's name in a clever way. Or not. But we couldn't
today because we're all stunned from the battering our ears have just
received from the Edifier S1000 Speakers.
The Edifier S1000
Speakers are large shelf or desktop speakers designed to pack as much
punch as possible, while still being compact enough to use in the
home. From the outside they look quite conventional, with wooden
panel sides, and forward facing grills. But there is lot more going
on here than first meets the eye.
For a start, these are
the most expensive speakers we've ever seen from Edifier – and
we've reviewed quite a bit from them. At the time of going live
they'll set you back just shy of £350 in the UK, which really puts
them into the category of audiophile-purchasng speakers. So, why?
Well, it term of
connectivity, the Edifier S1000 Speakers have you covered. They boast
Bluetooth 4.0 with aptX profile as standard, meaning you can connect
your wireless music devices to them without loss of signal or
annoying latency and breaks. Pairing with any device was as easy as
it should be, allowing you to control the whole set-up with your
phone or tablet – as well as the included remote control which can
be used to switch the input source.
If you want or need a
physical connection instead, you'll be well served here as well.
There is a standard aux input, as well as coaxial and optical, so no
matter where your music is coming from, you should be able to hook
them up. Because of this we had no bother connecting the Edifier
S1000 Speakers to our TV, and then enjoyed one hell of a loud Netflix
session.
In terms of the
speakers themselves, they look nicely put together with some
excellent details and materials used. They're big, obviously, so you
get a nice chunk of grainy wood on either side of both, while the
metallic front is brushed aluminium and surrounds the netted grills
very well. They are also angled slightly back, which apparently helps
with acoustics, but also adds the to dynamic aesthetic – something
hard to achieve with boxy shelf speakers. Oh, and on the inside the
tweeter is made from titanium, as opposed to the traditional plastic
or aluminium, which is supposed to improve the quality of the sound.
So does it? We're no
experts, but we've certainly heard a lot about cheap speakers over the years,
and the Edifier S1000 Speakers are phenomenal. All that real estate
is well used and the resulting sound is clean and beyond powerful.
'Room-filling' doesn't apply here, as these are 'concert-filling'.
Apart from a couple of hours connected to the TV (and to test the aux
cable connection) we found they were best used with the Bluetooth
4.0, and we were never disappointed. The wireless link was always
stable and the sound itself was fantastic. Positioned a decent
distance apart they created stereo that felt fully-immersive and
heavy on powerful bass.
Speakers like this
might not be everyone's cup of tea, and neither might the admittedly
steep price, but once you fire them up you'll probably change your
mind. Seemingly more powerful than any soundbar we've ever tested,
they have the added convenience of being able to space them out to
create a wider field of sound. Yes, they are expensive, but if you're
looking for an incredible living room sound set-up, they are definite
contenders.
£349
Visit
www.edifier.com
