Speakers on a shelf: TOP passive stereo systems for home use

Hi-Fi audio systems and only them have been produced under the German brand Heco for almost 70 years. Victa Prime 202 — entry-level stereo speakers, with balanced sound and a pleasant price (about 150 USD).

The speakers are made in a durable MDF housing, which reduces the risk of vibrations. They are offered in three colours: alder, black and mahogany, which allows them to fit harmoniously into any interior. The back wall of the cabinets is narrowed and has a phase-invertor holeBass Reflex for better bass transmission.

The upper 20 mm silk speaker performs very well high to the limit of 40 kHz. The sound is clean, without splashes, the hearing does not cut. The 120-mm woofer / midrange driver will please with accented bass, but you still need to understand that without a subwoofer, it will not be possible to achieve full sound depth in the lower range.

The middle sounds good at acoustic performances, but it doesn't quite cope with the attack, there is a certain blurriness. Thanks to a diffuser made of craft long-fibre paperThe midrange speaker sounds open and natural, there is no "plasticity" characteristic of inexpensive speakers. Metal flanges on both speakers, in addition to reducing excessive load, give the system a spectacular appearance, so that it can be used with a clear conscience without a grill.

For the Victa Prime 202 to work, you will need an amplifier with a power of up to 110 watts per channel. The gold—plated openings will provide high-quality switching, and the nominal output power of 130 watts will ensure comfortable voicing of a room with an area of up to 25 m.

Given the solidity of the brand and the democratic value, Victa Prime 202 will appeal to most music and film lovers. A decent choice for little money.

The JBL brand is part of the Harman music giant and is famous for its portable speaker systems. But classical stereo will not go out of fashion for a long time, so the brand successfully implements itself in this segment. Arena 120 is a compact shelf stereo pair with dense and confident Hi—Fi sound.

The speakers are clad in a closed MDF case and are available in white or black vinyl coating with a wooden texture. The speakers are protected by grilles, top and bottom framed by a thin aluminium profile and covered with black fabric.

The products are quite compact and occupy a height of 34 cm, a width of 19. But they are most advantageously distinguished by a depth of only 11 cm. The speakers won't take up much space on a shelf or wall. By the way, it is quite convenient to mount them on the wall, for this purpose special canopies are provided on the back panel of the case. The weight of one speaker is only 3.5 kg, so you can safely mount it even on a drywall surface.

The two-band system uses a 140-millimetre low-frequency / midrange driver made of polycellulose and a 25-millimetre high-frequency dome tweeter, providing sound in the range of 100 – 40,000 Hz.

The bottoms, of course, are a little dry, they do not differ in depth, she simply has nowhere to go in such a thin case. For listening to music with a predominant rhythm section or watching movies with special effects, a subwoofer obviously does not hurt. But the power reserve of 200 watts in the system is, as they say, in excess. In a room up to 25 m². in size, half the volume is enough to inconvenience the neighbors. High and medium frequencies are worked out accentuated and clearly, without blurring, at the same time, they provide volume and openness to the sound.

In addition to the system, an amplifier with a power of 20 to 100 watts per channel will be required. Switching is carried out using gold-plated screw terminals on the rear panels. Thanks to the precious metal coating, you can not be afraid that the contacts will oxidize, and the conductivity of such a connector is better than that of a conventional one.

Overall, JBL Arena 120 leaves a good impression. But the price of $ 200, in our subjective opinion, does not quite correspond to the sound parameters, which, in general, is familiar to JBL, and its ardent fans are not at all confused. Others may prefer less "arrogant" brands.

DALI is an abbreviation that stands for Danish Audiophile Loudspeaker Industries (Danish Production of Audiophile Acoustics). Since 1983, the company has been creating acoustic systems based on the principle: the buyer needs the right combination of size, shape, sound quality and price. Zensor 3 is a representative of the famous series that fully justifies this concept.

The speaker system is offered in a phase inverter housing with vinyl trim in three colours to choose from: black, white and light walnut. The walnut coating looks especially fresh and attractive.

The dimensions of the cabinets are quite compact 35x20x29 cm, but the weight is considerable — 6.3 kg for each. The reason for this is the thick walls of the MDF case and a rather large 7—inch low-frequency driver with a diffuser made of paper reinforced with wood fibers. Such diffusers, unlike Kevlar ones, really sound, and not just vibrate.

The bass sounds velvety and deep, and the middle is wide and open, with excellent detail of live instruments and voice.

The upper range is worked out by a 25 mm tweeter with a soft fabric dome, due to which the high ones sound juicy and clean. Although some listeners, according to reviews, lack brightness, and this, perhaps, can be trusted, since the frequency range of the system is stated to be within 50 – 26,500 Hz, while the nearest competitor HECO Victa Prime 302 Price from 12 410 up to 14 899 ₴, for example, the upper working band reaches 40 kHz.

And yet, it's not for nothing that Dali Zensor 3 is a multiple winner of Hi—Fi sound contests and tests. The acoustics are really good, and the only thing that can push away from buying it is the considerable price of 400 USD. But Zensor 3 is worth it.

The German manufacturer of Magnat acoustic systems has been on the market for more than 30 years and has gained an impeccable reputation. The brand's acoustics are used in its cars by the famous Volkswagen, and home systems are among the TOP preferences of European consumers. Quantum 753 is a pair of powerful two—way stereo speakers with excellent sound, at an appropriate price.

The cabinets are made in a classic rectangular form factor of three colours: white, black and mahogany. The front panel is opened with glossy piano varnish and looks very impressive and expensive.

With a relatively small size of 36.2x19x33.5 cm, "quantum" weighs very solidly — 18.4 kg for two. This weight is explained by thick MDF walls. The two—layer front panel is 4 cm thick, and the podium, equipped with wide supports, is 3 cm. On the one hand, such weightiness practically eliminates the appearance of unwanted vibrations on the body, and makes the sound cleaner and more accentuated. On the other hand, you can hardly put such cabinets on a suspended shelf.

For better processing of low frequencies, the phase inverter port has a wide cross-section and is placed on the back wall. 4 gold-plated Bi-Wiring terminals are placed under it. Such switching, when properly connected, improves the sound quality and frequency detail.

On board the system we have a dome 25-millimetre tweeter made of textile compound with an extended operating range up to 50 kHz and a 170-millimetre woofer/Midrange speaker with ceramic-aluminium diffuser, working through the lower range to the limit of 30 Hz. The bass sounds weighty, deep and clear. The middle is detailed, without unnecessary coloring, but the tweeter does not work enough in nuances, it could be brighter and sharper.

In general, the scene is formed quite voluminously and on a large scale. Definitely, the quality of such a sound should be evaluated above average. The total power of 240 watts did not disappoint either. For an apartment it will even be in excess, but for a private house, an outdoor summer playground, a small cafe — just right.

With all the advantages of the Quantum 753, the only thing that can stop you from purchasing it is the price of $ 750. Although, is this money for excellent sound?

The French acoustic manufacturer Focal has been successfully operating since 1979, delighting connoisseurs of a good sound. The brand is famous for its innovative developments and is the winner of several awards in the nomination "Automotive acoustics". Stereo systems for home use are not lagging behind in quality. Aria 906 is a premium shelf speaker system with a well—developed sound, beautiful design and ... high cost.

At first glance, even before turning on the sound, it is extremely difficult to say why two such compact (39x22x25 cm) and light (8.5 kg) speakers with a total power of 120 watts cost almost $ 1100. We decided to figure it out.

Let's start with the appearance. The form factor of the cabinets is quite elegant, the light rounding of the front panel and the case slightly tapering to the back wall provide not only beauty and originality of appearance, but also additional strength. I also liked the abundance of colour combinations: white and black lacquer, black lacquer with laminated MDF side walls in the colour "dark walnut" or natural walnut veneer. In general, there is a lot to choose from.

The price began to seem more justified after a detailed study of the speakers and their sound. The 3-layer 165 mm woofer/midrange diffuser Flax is made of cellulose coated with the thinnest glass film that protects against deformations. The bass captivates with a pronounced attack, dense and collected delivery, the middle immerses in a wealth of timbres with an open and expressive reproduction of vocals and live instruments. For the best length of the lower case in the cabinets, a phase-inverted acoustic design with a port on the front panel was used.

A 25-millimetre tweeter with an aluminium-magnesium dome is responsible for high frequencies, making them bright and transparent.

The overall dynamics and clarity are very decent for drivers of this caliber, only at high volume you can hear a slight compression.

In short, the Focal JMlab Aria 906 is undoubtedly good. And the sound is beautiful, and the design, and there is magnetic shielding, and all this with a fairly compact size and weight. If only the price were lower…