Altec Lansing GT5051 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System(4 Pieces)

Rating:
Summary: my GT's from Heaven, PA.
Review: WOW! That is as simple, straight forward and to the point as I can be. I have been an Altec Lansing affecionado for many years now, graduating from the legendary ACS-48 to my current love...the GT-5051. It was a change I must admit, going from stereo imaging to surround sound, but well worth it. I was looking for something newer to compliment the arrival of World of Warcraft (probably the game of the century... :) when I found the GT's at the manufacturer's site. It may have been love at first sight, guess I will never know!
Lets get to some specifics. The clarity is just incredible. All I can do now is smile when I listen to my old favorites. It is almost as if they are re-issues of the same music, as if I had only heard half of the music before. And playing games is so strange with the voices and sounds being positional...they move as the action or characters in the game do. Something else, new but pleasant to get used to.
Setting them up is a breeze, which is one of the main reasons I had previously shied away from surround sound,it just seemed so complicated! You will more than likely need a sound card with a surround sound setup option to help tame these little rascals and adjust them to your personal tastes. There are some controls on the right satellite for this, but I found that I needed more perfecting, which is the only reason it gets 4 stars rather than 5. The Sound Blaster Audigy 2 sound card was a great help in this area. And by the way, the controls which are backlit an alluring electric blue adjust the center, sub or surround separately.
Bottom line folks, it is an Altec! Expect quality and lots and lots of sound! If you are ready to make that move to surround sound for your PC, this is probably the right choice. It was for me....... :)


Rating:
Summary: Awesome stereo, but where's the surround
Review: Just hooked these up yesterday and thought I'd add my two bits to the growing input on them...

First off, these speakers absolutely rock when in stereo. I'm replacing an old Advent speakers/Yamaha subwoofer combo with this setup and the Altecs win hands down. Whether it's a CD, MP3 or game you're looking to play, the sound and power from these speakers are top notch. Just make sure you've set the little switch on the back of the sub to 2/4 speaker mode and you're set. I'm even considering hooking up my stereo to these speakers using the RCA inputs and shelving my Bose speakers.

Other pros include: solid construction, intuitive controls and a killer look.

Where this system starts to lack is in surround sound. Maybe it's my setup in the corner of a room with my built-in nVidia SoundStorm audio, but I got absolutely no feeling of surround sound in HL2. I'm also wondering if the SoundStorm is to blame for a slight crackly sound on some MP3s (or is it the MP3s themselves??). More experimentation to follow...

Another drawback is that the all-important 2/4 speaker <==> 6 speaker switch is located on the back of the sub instead of being positioned along with all the other controls. This could be a real pain if you frequently switch from listening to CDs to playing games on a regular basis.

Overall a very good value for what you get!

Rating:
Summary: I love it, I love it, I love it!!!!
Review: The short story: Wow... look no further. This system just came today and it's absolutely AMAZING! Phenomenal (and I mean PHENOMENAL) sound, brilliant design, superior workmanship, incredible value, awesome features, NASA-quality controls... I'm tellin' ya, you'll be stunned by this one. Just can't say enough about how pleased I am with this purchase. Bottom line: No need to continue your search. This one you can order with absolute confidence. Period!

Details: OK, first, so that you know whether or not to trust my recommendation, here's the scoop on me: My profession is mechanical engineering and I'm the kind of guy who researches all over the Internet before making a purchase like this. I want the very best in quality, price, workmanship, value, everything... and I don't want the hassle of making a bad choice, sending it back, looking for a replacement unit, etc., etc.

So, when I accidentally blew-up my old Altec Lansing sound system (for my A-Open computer), the search began for a replacement system. I checked the reviews, compared the specs, even went to two different computer stores to test sound quality. Frankly, none of the systems I found were all that hot. The workmanship was so-so (SoundBlaster systems especially), and the sound quality mediocre. Somewhat disappointed, I was at Circuit City and about to "settle" for a hum-drum Sound Blaster system, when my eye caught this system in a box on the shelf. It wasn't yet on display (and I never saw it on the Internet - because it was just recently released) so I didn't even know about it.

It's weird how this works, but when I saw the system, I knew instantly it was the one I wanted. I didn't even have to listen to it (a good thing because they didn't have one setup), I just went online, found it for around $115, and ordered it.

When I got it, man, talk about heaven! I wish you could feel one of these satellite speakers... hold it, check the fit and finish, feel its solid weight, they're amazing! The quality will absolutely blow you away. I actually feel grateful as I type this that there are companies like Altec who won't cut corners on quality. For those of you who don't know, Altec Lansing is considered one of the very best in this kind of audio componentry, and with this new purchase, they have my business for life. Normally I would never take the time to post a review like this, but I am soooo delighted with the purchase, I actually feel obligated to let other people know!

One thing that's easy to overlook in other systems, and then feel the pain of it later, is the extra features. Here I'm speaking of things like auxillary input connections and system controls. This unit has an extra 1/8" stereo input jack PLUS a set of standard RCA inputs (on the sub-woofer). Very hand because you can run output from, say, your stereo equipment or MP3 player directly into this system (and no need to have your computer turned on).

The right speaker has all the controls you need including separate controls for overall system volume, center channel volume, sub-woofer volume, and surround satellite speaker volume. It also has a headphone jack and a power button. I know what you're thinking, "A power button? That's not much of a feature!" Trust me, it definitely is a feature! Some systems don't even have a power button. This one's close at hand so that it's a cinch to turn off when the phone rings, but more importantly, if you've ever had a speaker system that had no power button and suffered from the annoying drone of that 60-cycle hum coming through your speakers, with this one you'll have nothing to worry. Click the power button and your room is totally silent. Nice!

So, how do they perform? Well, a moment ago I just popped in my Matrix Revolutions DVD and listened to that massive battle scene towards the end of the movie. Oh my God! The sound is stunning! When I saw this movie in the theaters, the action and sound were so intense that it was almost a bit scary. I know the comparison will seem impossible, but I tell you that I just had the same little tinge of fear go through me as I pumped up the volume and watched that scene again... just like in the theater!

As for the surround sound effect, check this out. I have the two combo satellite speakers and the center channel speaker setup on a shelf above my computer monitors. The satellites are about 2 feet apart and the center speaker right between them (how's that for a compact, breeze of a set-up! No running wires all over the place!). Now, in Matrix Revolutions there's a scene where a guy is typing quickly and loudly on a keyboard, and he's way off to the right side of the screen. When I watch that scene, I hear all the background sound filling the entire room, but I hear his typing coming distinctly from the right side of the room. That's pretty sweet!

As for other audio, like regular CD & MP3 playback, the sound is equally outstanding. There's a certain crispness or purity to the sound that is quite extraordinary... unlike any system I've heard before.

Could the system be improved? Well, it'd be tough, but there are a couple things that come to mind. First, it would be fantastic to get an auxillary input connection on one of the satellite speakers so that you don't have to kneel down or climb under your desk to work with those connections. Second, people who don't have the speakers within arm's reach probably will wish for a separate volume controller that could be set on their desk (instead of having the controls built into one of the speakers). Of course, these engineering compromises help bring the system down into its super-appealing price range. Me personally? I love the simple, elegant design the way it is. I think it's a thing of beauty.

OK, I realize this review was overly positive, so I just want to reassure you that I don't work for Altec, I don't know anyone who does work there, and I don't stand to make any money from posting this review. Just an incredibly satisfied customer who's pretty darn happy with his purchase.