Top positive review
27 people found this helpful
Brilliant clarity, but it requires excellent source.
By Davey on Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2013
First off - the quality is brilliantly clear - period. The bassis remarkable for such small speakers, my friends were initially looking for the sub-woofer because the deep, thunderous nuances were so well pronounced. If your picky about the clarity over anything else than your on the right track looking at the Bose Companion 20's. This needs to made very clear - the type of music you listen to is going to need to be taken into consideration. The companion 20's do their best work with classical (orchestrated) music or similar live instrumental styles. I'm listening to Barbra Streisand's 'Love Is The Answer' album now which is mostly a type of smooth jazz, and every key and nuance is being reproduced extremely well with excellent bass response. Earlier I was sampling different types of music from techno, hard rock to a variety from the 60's. The speakers did not fair well with the hard rock and techno as I expected. It seemed the trebles were fine but they lack in the hard hitting drum type sounds. Do not let this discourage you though, as some music really needs a large sub woofer regardless. The spoken word and dialogue without music was perfectly crisp with detail beyond the immediate sounds. You really feel as though you are there. Alternate tests were done with LP recordings (rendered at 24bit 96Khz far beyond CD quality) - once again the companion 20's nailed analogue audio perfectly. I personally did not plug the speakers into any source and just fire away. After reading other reviews that rate the Companion 20's sub-par; I'm concerned that too many people blindly listen to music not realizing their source (mostly the DAC in the computers) is inferior for these speakers. I purchased a Creative Labs Sound Blaster Go Pro! THX certified external sound card ($34) before reviewing these speakers which I would recommend to anyone for utmost clarity. The THX modes on the Go Pro! lift up the bass to a much more appropriate level retaining lower notes (such as ones produced with a cello) that would have been lost with my inferior on-board sound system. Remember this before jumping to conclusions if you buy these. Not all audio sounded the same. I placed the companion 20's on the sides of a TV in my bedroom and watched different scenes from movies (Prometheus, Silence of The Lambs, various James Bond films) which were great - while the best audio experience was about 5' in front of the sound system which makes me think they would be very well suited on a bookshelf at about ear level also. While I listen to them now on the computer about 2.5' in front of me in a smaller environment, I need to push myself back some to get the full range appropriately but this is nit picking. Oh, the volume level was much more than sufficient as well. Overall the volume dial is fantastic and made with mostly aluminum parts with a rubber dial, that which if you touch the top of the Bose imbossment on the top it will shut the unit off and on. It came with a male-male 3.5mm cable for PC or pereferal connectivity. All cables were also about 3' long on each speaker which was more than enough. The only thing I could think of that I wish it came with was a digital audio in of some sort but I honestly doubt you would notice a difference being so close to the audio source (digital and fiber optic cables are mostly beneficial when near electrical sources such as a home theater besides). The build quality of the speakers is what should be expecte from Bose - the speakers are a mixture of metal and some plastic, they feel very, very solid and are slightly heavy (as expected with the driver is has). In the end I highly recommend the Companion 20 mostly for the audio reproduction accuracy and overall clarity. Another great product from an American company.
Top critical review
31 people found this helpful
This is a review for a desktop computer which will satisfy when you are sitting in front of the computer ...
By Little Ms. Sunshine on Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2016
I will keep this review as detailed as possible to save a lot of you guys time in your search. Before reading this review, please understand that I wasn't searching for a home theatre speakers to fill my living room with rich sound which will shake the walls while watching Avengers through my computer. This is a review for a desktop computer which will satisfy when you are sitting in front of the computer doing work or listening to audio in a bedroom or office room. Price of speakers. Bose Companion 20 = $260 ish shipped (Amazon Prime) Harman Kardon Soundsticks 3 = $180 ish shipped (Amazon Prime) I've read about many speakers and reviews out there to find the speaker that will really fit what I was looking for. I wouldn't call my self an extreme audiophile, but I do own some audiophile type headphones. To name a few, Audiotechnica ath-m50, Sennheiser Momentums, V-Moda Crossfade and 3 others, so when it comes to audio, I know more than the basic base head and am NOT a Beats headphone fan at all due to lack of clarity and overtaking bass. I just spent a lot of money on my first desktop ever! (I know I know kinda late right?) I always rocked the higher end 13" MacBooks as my main computer and used headphones as a form of my music speakers. Easier to travel with and all, but now that I've purchased a new home, it was time for a decent computer set up. During my search for speakers, I narrowed it down to these Bose speakers and the Harman Kardon Soundsticks 3. I couldn't figure out which one I wanted so I purchased both at the same time. If anything, I don't mind paying shipping back to return one or the other, but I couldn't go on without finding the best speaker I could for my computer. I received both speakers and the time for testing begins. Bose was the first to be installed. Fit, finish and built quality was there. The metal construction gave it a very nice feel and had good weight to it as well. Turned on iTunes and played the first song. My reaction was more like an "Okay....." Almost sounds similar to my cheap $40 speakers I had laying in my garage. The only difference was this Bose could handle louder volume when turned up all the way up, but within the same range, it sounded similar but with a bit more clarity and bass. This speaker wasn't able to project the lower frequency bass as I thought it would like many reviews I read.. It seemed to struggle as I hard the slight vibration through the speaker. Definitely felt like it lacked a lot of sound. Jazz sounded really good, but when listening to pop, it didn't sound as full as I expected. I did like sound volume knob and how easy it was to reach and adjust the volume on the speakers. I had enough. It was time for the other speaker. I installed the Harman Kardon speakers to the computer. Fit, finish and built quality was also there. Only main difference is the Bose is metal construction while the Kardon's where of high quality plastic. Heavy and sturdy though. Each speaker on the Kardon was about half the size of the Bose speaker, but it does require a little more space underneath your desk for the subwoofer. I adjusted the bass the way I liked it and tested the same songs I did as the Bose. The Kardon put a smile on my face right away. It filled my office with very good sound and clarity. These speakers were more clear than the Bose and had WAY more bass than the Bose. If you don't like bass too much, you can adjust the bass knob behind the subwoofer to your liking. When turned on all the way up, it was very loud but speakers handled it well. The volume adjust is built in the right speaker which I didn't like it as much as the Bose. Overall, the Harmon Kardon Soundsticks 3 sounded better in every way compared to the Bose Companion 20 and it was cheaper! Cmon Bose, you gotta do better than that. My friend owns the Bose Companion 5 which sounded pretty good and should be compared to the Harmon Kardon Soundstick 3. But the Kardon's are still cheaper and sound the same as the Companion 5. Bose Companion 5 costing $399. IMO, the Companion 20 should cost no more than $100 while the Kardon's is rightly priced at $180. Trust me when I say this..... If you are looking for a stationary speaker to your desktop, get the Kardon's. They will not disappoint, or you can do what I did and will probably end up returning the Bose. Bose definitely need to step up their game. If the Bose were priced at $100, I would've given it 5 stars, since for that much money, they would be worth it, but for $260, they are garbage. I hope you guys found this useful. This is the longest review I have ever written lol.
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