Summary: Good quality sound in a solid, compact package.

Disclaimer: Every user has a different setup and different expectations. Take their comments with a grain of salt and note that what they experience with the speakers do not apply to everyone.

Official Overview and Specifications

Professional Reviews (click links for more information)

Average User Reviews (click links for more information)

Good

"Overall, the Inspire T10s are quite a decent set of speakers, considering their price. Their strong mid-range and treble performance makes them quite suitable for a variety of tasks, including music and movies…"

"The speakers coped with all the music challenges we set it. Yes, the lack of a dedicated subwoofer means that some very intensive bass tracks can suffer, but from metal to house to opera we found that the experience was one to be savoured, with the tweeters delivering the higher details that often get obscured. "

"… my career is in producing and adjusting audio. I’ve worked in L.A. radio for over 20 years. These are the best $50 I’ve spent on my computer. Looking for a great-looking, nice-sounding, affordable set of computer speakers? Like clean, clear, natural-sounding music – especially acoustic? I recommend these speakers wholeheartedly."

"They look and feel just fantastic, like they’re much more expensive than they are. They’re *heavy* for such small speakers, and the nice black piano finish is classy. They reek quality in touch and feel. "

"They have more bass than should be possible from two small speakers. Bass is not just strong, but it’s clean. Most of the affordable subwoofer/speaker systems tend to sound boomy or muddy."

Bad

"… the weak point for the T10s is bass reproduction. The addition of a BasXPort^TM port on top of the speakers does give them the ability to handle deeper notes without the need for a subwoofer. Unfortunately, however, the bass still manages to sound relatively weak, and lacks a defining presence in the music. At times we noticed that it almost became separated from the mid-range, which made music sound disjointed."

"They are perfectly nice to listen to but if you value clarity in your music, you’ll have to opt for a more expensive set. "

"A good set of speakers for an office or someone who needs decent speakers with a small footprint. For anyone else it is probably best to look elsewhere."

"Yes, the lack of a dedicated subwoofer means that some very intensive bass tracks can suffer, but from metal to house to opera we found that the experience was one to be savoured, with the tweeters delivering the higher details that often get obscured. "

"(when watching movies) Volume and bass are surprisingly strong and drive louder sections along nicely but intimate scenes can be a struggle to keep up with as conversation gets lost in the swelling romantic music."

Personal Opinion

Now, it’s important to note that the Creative Inspire T10 is NOT related to the Creative Gigaworks (T20 and T40) series, despite the "T" in its name. The latter series is admittedly better, but costs more although the T20 is close enough to the $100 mark such that it will be reviewed at a later date.

One of the main selling points for these speakers is the BasXPort^TM technology, as noted by the holes on top of the speakers. These are supposed to acoustically simulate the deep bass of a subwoofer but without the need for a space-consuming third piece. That doesn’t mean it’s an accurate replacement for a real 2.1 system however, which may lead to disappointment if you’re expecting so. What it does is enhance the lower midrange, and it does a mighty fine job of that. While the lower frequencies are never quite reached, the bass reproduced in these speakers are superior to most 2.0 speakers. The trebles and mids are plenty strong and clear too, so they’re not lacking at all. These speakers are solidly built too, as noted by a user review above, and the individual parts, along with the overall designs, feel professional and well-made.

That said, as mentioned previously if you’re expected the same bassy presence of a proper subwoofer you won’t find it here. This is certainly a high performing 2.0 system, but you can’t really compare the bass of a 2-speaker setup to a 2.1. This does deliver a good low end punch for a 2.0 though, so if you don’t have the space for a subwoofer these are great.

Buy Now (click vendor to purchase)

Vendor	Price
Amazon.com	$52.86
mwave.com	$49.55
TheNerds.net	NA
TigerDirect	NA
OnSale	NA
B&H Photo Video	$44.95
Buy.com	$44.44
eBay	See Below

Summary: All the bassy power of a 2.1 packed into 2.0 speakers.

Disclaimer: Every user has a different setup and different expectations. Take their comments with a grain of salt and note that what they experience with the speakers do not apply to everyone.

Official Overview and Specifications

Professional Reviews (click links for more information)

Average User Reviews (click links for more information)

Good

"… the Companion 2 Series II multimedia speakers offer TrueSpace surround digital processing circuitry. This ensures that all sounds is crisp and boastful, from the deepest bass to high operatic notes (if you’re into that sort of thing)."

"The sound quality of Companion 2 is excellent considering the compact product size. The speakers produce rich and noise free sounds. We tested many tracks of different genres. The speakers are well designed to produce high-quality sound even at high volumes."

"The advantage Bose has to other speakers of the same class, is the digital circuitry they probably use to enhance the sound to bring in increased stereo separation and roominess to the sound. The sound coming out is definitely more pleasing to the ears, and feels room-filling. You wouldn’t get this experience with speakers from other brands, however faithful they are in reproducing sound as exactly as recorded. "

"The best thing about Bose is the clarity and bass response. I don’t know how they packed it into this small set, but they did."

"The bass is actually quite adequate for what I use them for and I would recommend them to anyone looking for an asthetically pleasing compliment to their existing computer set up. They look good, sound good, are relatively small and priced right for the quality you get. "

Bad

"The sound from the speakers is excellent–as long as you don’t get too crazy. At times, the bass can be overwhelming with no easy way to alter the levels."

"Most midrange sounds are nice and warm. Treble is excellent, and are not screechy and distorted as much on higher volumes like many speakers that I have tried out before these… The only problem is that these two ranges are overpowered and thusly shadowed by the artificially amplified bass that the speakers pump out. "

"The little speakers put out a reasonable amount of bass–but that’s arguably the best part of the speakers’ sound… the speakers seemed to emphasize sibilants."

"It has more bass compared with most of the other speakers of the similiar size but the problem is that the music is twisted (in order to empasize bass) sounding like from a can."

"The sound is great until you go past the halfway mark on the volume knob. After that you notice the sound can’t get any louder. In an effort to offer you more, the bass becomes super muddy, as if the tiny speaker inside the unit have given up and decided to blow air in your face."

Personal Opinion

Within the speaker and headphone community, there have always been a sub-group called "bassheads" who tend to prefer an audio output that, obviously, presents more of the lower frequencies. It’s not a question of whether it’s a good or bad thing, but rather a personal preference. Maybe it’s the genre of music they listen to, or the feeling they get when that deep bassy tone them in the chest; regardless of the reason, bassheads exist, and thus speakers and headphones that have a stronger bass output exist as well to cater to these people.

Bose is a highly reputable brand in the audio world, boasting what they term as "Truespace", which is results in a wide, rich sound stage. These entry-level Bose speakers certainly have that too, but rather than having the equalized frequencies that they usually offer, these speakers tend to have scooped mids; that is, more pronounced highs and (especially) lows. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing per se, as there are many music genres that benefit greatly from this equalization (which can be modified via your PC itself anyway). That said, the main feature of these speakers is its robust bass. Obviously not as strong as a having a proper, good strong subwoofer but it’s pretty damn close especially considering the size of these and the amount of space you’ll save without the extra component. In fact, some sites list these as a 2.1 because of the powerful woofers they have. Another plus point, which is a little nitpicking of mine, is that the volume control and headphone jack is conveniently located on the front of the right speaker.

Of course, being that the audio produced from these are understandably subjective, there are bad points. If you want a more equal footing in your frequency spectrum, these probably aren’t for you. This is arguably its main strength and weakness, depending on yourself. There are plenty of people who intentionally have scooped mids when they EQ their audio through software anyway, so they would certainly benefit from these if that’s their preferred sound.

If you crave the bassy thump of a 2.1 but don’t have the space for it, or just want a bass-heavy 2.0 setup, these will certainly fit you.

Buy Now (click vendor to purchase)

Vendor	Price
Amazon.com	$99.00
mwave.com	NA
TheNerds.net	NA
TigerDirect	$99.00
OnSale	NA
B&H Photo Video	$99.00
eBay	See Below

Summary: The perfect 2.0 speakers for a mid-$20 budget price range.

Disclaimer: Every user has a different setup and different expectations. Take their comments with a grain of salt and note that what they experience with the speakers do not apply to everyone.

Official Overview and Specifications

Professional Reviews (click the links for more information)

None.

Average User Reviews (click the links for more information)

Good

"I have owned several speakers in the last 12 years but these babies are the absolute best you can buy for the money. "

"Adjusted bass to my liking and turned volume to max, no sound distortion, and the extra bass sounds great in games. "

"For the price: These are tough, sturdy attractive looking speakers. In fact, better than most. The treble is excellent and the mid-range is near perfect. The bass is a high-bass, so don’t expect your desk to rumble, but the overall quality of sound is very good. "

"Speakers deliver a rich, warm sound yet deliver plenty of bass that others in this price range fail to provide."

"Darn good bass for there not being a subwoofer. and when positioned correctly you’ll actually get a mostly pleasing audio experience."

Bad

"I’m surprised at all the positive reviews, but I guess different strokes for different folks. I think these things sound awful…not enough low end, very "middy" and hollow for my ears, very boring, lifeless sound. "

"The tweeter and woofer are connected, so when a decent amount of bass hits, you’ll lose a little bit of the mid-high/high frequency response."

"The bass is a little lacking, but that’s a result of their size."

"These things are big. Too big. Also, the cords are hard-wired into the speakers – Ugh!"

"Some pop and crackle at not particularly high volume, bass takes away some clarity from midrange. Okay for casual listening while sitting at the computer."

Personal Opinion

Now, the reason I chose to cover this as my first entry is that this kick-started my search for cheap computer speakers in a way.  This being the first pair of speakers I got a while ago while I was on a super-tight budget but didn’t want worthless speakers, I was blown away by what I got for the price. As you can see from the official overview, the main selling point for these speakers are its deeper bass and slim profile. This means that for you guys out there without much desk space for huge speakers, these are great for providing a good quality sound even without a subwoofer.

Seriously, for the size (which is a bit big and heavy for speakers in this price range, but it’s not offensively so) the sound from these 5W (!!!) speakers is amazing. Some user reviews have complained of a low general volume but maybe it’s their computer settings or something; my volume setting on the speakers is set below the halfway point and I still have to tone down my Winamp player so I don’t destroy my ears. The bass is also surprisingly robust, albeit a little muddy, especially when turned up on the tone knob.

Another plus point is the peripherals, such as the aforementioned tone knob (as well as volume knob) on the front of the right speaker for adjusting the bass equalization. There’s also a convenient headphone output and input for MP3 players on the front. Furthermore, you can turn off the speakers remotely without having to unplug them.

These are the best 2.0 speakers in this price range in my opinion, and surpasses many cheap 2.1 setups as well. While there’s no professional review probably due to the low price of the product, you can’t go wrong if you’re on a budget.

Buy Now (click vendor to purchase)

Vendor	Price
Amazon.com	$22.99
mwave.com	$23.99
TheNerds.net	$26.99
TigerDirect	$26.99
OnSale	$25.99
eBay	See Below