Logitech Z-4 2.1 Speakers

[Unregistered]

Unfortunately, thats a major problem with most multimedia sound systems you will buy. Not many of them are capable of handling proper midrange, and those that are, are not in the $100 price range.

Unfortunately there isnt much you can really do about it, other then turn downt ehbass and the trebbile a little in hopes of bringing them down tot eh midranges level. But as the midrange on drivers that small is often -8db or more, its difficult to acheive that.

So you have to just live with it.


All things considered though, for the value in the speakers, you really cant go wrong.

Thanx, well yeah I thought so.
Can't really expect high class midrange out of those small speakers.

There's definetely a dip at 200Hz - 1kHz in the spectrum.

Replaced the satellites with new ones ( a pair of from my old home stereo ).
Much better midrange, but now I get too much bass and hardly any treble ... lol.

 

[Buck-O]

Thanx, well yeah I thought so.
Can't really expect high class midrange out of those small speakers.

There's definetely a dip at 200Hz - 1kHz in the spectrum.

Replaced the satellites with new ones ( a pair of from my old home stereo ).
Much better midrange, but now I get too much bass and hardly any treble ... lol.

What you might try, as i have done with an old pair of Altec Lancing ACS45.1 speakers i had, was disassemble the drivers, and put polly fill (the stuff that goes into craft projects like stuffed Animals, and pillows), and stuff an equal amount of it into the two satalites. THat in effect lowers the tuning frequency of the driver, and help pick up some of the midrange loss.

Although, thinking about it, im not so sure you could do that with this satalite driver arangement. So, hehe, i dont know why i mentioned that, but if you ever get another system with a larger satalive enclosure, it works fantasticly.

 

[Unregistered]

About the polly fill ...

Sounds like a smart idea, unfortunately these Logitech Z-4 satellites are ( afaik ) impossible to disassemble - they look hard sealed.

I guess 5 years of using Sennheiser headphones made me somewhat picky about the sound, even though I'm that kind of person who can't hear the difference between 64 kbps & 128 kbps sound. He He ...

Thanx!

 

[Unregistered]

a question

First of all. Overall, a nice review. In my opinion, technicalities don't matter so much because we're not dealing with a costly separate speaker + amp setup here, but a very, very cost-effective sound solution, that can put out surprisingly good sound. ^^ ...And looks pretty good and is very practical. Did I mention I think they offer lots of bang for buck?

So... I have a question. Being a paranoid thing I am, I'd like to know do you other Z-4 owners get a slight "thud"(very short ~50 Hz sound) from subwoofer when powering off the speakers? This "thud"'s loudness is volume-independant. The cone makes a little movement at the same time.

Technically I have pretty good idea what's causing it, but I'd like to know is this normal behavior for The Logitech Z-4?

 

[Jen McPherson]

Thanks. ^^ I haven't noticed a thud coming from the woofer on the set I have, so I'm not sure. :| What do you think is causing it?

 

[Unregistered]

"Technically I have pretty good idea what's causing it" - Ehm, I guess my phrasing wasn't very exact. It should've been like: I know this is pretty typical behavior for amplifiers, but I'd like to know if it's normal for the Z-4. ^^;

My guess is that it's because the operating voltage of the amplifier is dropped to zero immediately when powering off, and this, for some reason, causes the woofer to get a "burst of unstable voltage"(what? : D) as the capacitors* in the power source and amplifier are emptied suddenly. It would probably be audible from the main speakers too, but they're uncapable of producing that low sounds loud enough.

In most separate amplifiers this behavior is eliminated by designing the thing in a way, that prevents this behavior. tehee~ >_>'

Aaand the reason why I think it's 50 Hz - well, in addition that it sounds like it -, is because the mains current we get from wall outlet is 50 Hz Alternating Current. Oh and around here we have 230 V voltage in mains, so maybe the power source has a little design flaw compared to the US model?

*In case you don't know what a capacitor is, think it like this: Imagine an empty bucket. Now when we plug power in it(yes, we plug power in the bucket), it fills up and works as a reserve. If the subwoofer's amplifier happens to be under heavy use, it can take large amounts of power suddenly and that power is then drawn from the capacitor(s), or bucket(s) that are part of the power supply inside the Z-4's subwoofer case. In other words, the capacitors in power supply help the current sent to the amplifier to be stable.

There are other uses for capacitors too, but I think and hope, that this explanation was fitting in this case.


***By the way, I'm pretty sure that the sound quality has improved a bit now after using the speakers for a while, or "burning them in". And overall, now after having listened them more, I think the mids are pretty nicely audible especially if the Bass level is turned at ~1/3th or a little more instead at half(or more : o).

 

[Unregistered]

Thank You

Thank you for the review. I'd been all over the place trying to decide which speakers to get for my PC. Just trying to get rid off the last beige bit on my desk after upgrading my PC seemed like an endless task. I liked the fact that the review was not all wattage and technical as it meant I could understand what on earth the speakers were like as a 'how they are to use' review is very helpful to dithering buyers like me with limited technobable knowlage.

It was these and a set of Creative speakers that also hooked up to my Zen Micro that I was dilly-dallying over, but I think these have won as they appear simple to use and set up and are great value for money. Of to order and abuse my poor credit card further.

Thank you lots,
Liz

 

[Jen McPherson]

Thank you Liz! And yes for the price these speakers are great. They will certainly look really sweet going with your pc, instead of those old beige things Super easy setup, great sound, I know you'll enjoy them! And I certainly know credit card abuse... I'll be abusing it again soon when I get me a new graphics card... and PC case... and...and...! XD


And alright, I see what you mean about the sound when you shut down the sound, and have noted it now as well. Its not so much a pop is it is a small thump from the subwoofer. And yeah, your explanation was more than great ^^ So thank you!

Yes, I think they sound even better after using them for as long as I have, and I just love them. I also listen with the bass turned up slightly higher than your basic level. ^^

 

[Unregistered]

Ah, thanks Jen for reporting about that thump. It's good to know that it's not just my set of Z-4 that produces that little thump at power-off. And I might have given a bit exaggerated image of that sound with my babblings. It's not loud. Once again, great set of speakers for the price! ^^d

 

[Unregistered]

Ah, thanks Jen for reporting about that thump. It's good to know that it's not just my set of Z-4 that produces that little thump at power-off. And I might have given a bit exaggerated image of that sound with my babblings. It's not loud. Once again, great set of speakers for the price! ^^d

Even the Altec Lansing FX6021 produce that thump...

When it comes to computer speakers, I think one should explain how/why they listen.
You have the more audiophile amongst us that listen for sound accuracy and would like a little sense of spaciousness. The other camp is those that want loud thumping sounds.
In a perfect speaker, you’d have both.

The Logitech Z-4 sound constrained, as if the sound is trying to get out but just can’t. Muddled is another word for it. Sure you get some oomph but is that enough? With a dealer cost of less than 87.00cnd$, you maybe able to get a bargain on these but at the price point in this article, this is not enough to recommend them.

I’m not trying to be overly critical of this review, but I do know it will be indexed and get some traction but a problem with most computer speaker reviews is that they are done by the thin eared.

I mostly listen to music on my computer speakers, so 2.1 are fine for me, but a gamer may want more. These speakers were compared to Altec Lansing FX6021 (lacking midrange) and Logitech Z-2300 ( too much bass) and clearly had a different audio signature. I’m not expecting much at this price point and they are above most speakers in this price range – just not worthy of such a high rating.

 

[yakooza]

Listening to music and watching movies on our PC's has become something we do on a daily basis, and how that sound is output is very important. The audio should be crisp, clear and undisturbed by distortions caused by speakers. The Logitech Z-4, an award winning product, promises crystal clear sound deliverance in a sleek retro design with advanced driver technology.

After reading the review here, don't hesitate to discuss it here!

Bedankt