Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

Mr.Lime · May 10, 2001, 08:44 AM

Still no good?
Almost every thread I've read about those speakers said that the USB-audio is not good enough yet. Has this issue been fixed with OS 9.1? X?
I want those things really bad (mostly because they look so damn good) and just need to know if they're good enough for me. I'm no audiophile, SoundSticks would be used mostly for listening mp3's, some gaming and occassionaly for DVD-playback.
Most troubling question for me is will the SoundSticks work through and USB-hub? I'm and iBooker with only one USB-port so this is very important. If SoundSticks work through a hub, is there any drawbacks I should be aware of when using other devices (mouse) connected to the same hub?

Thanks in advance,
Mr.Lime

runningdog · May 10, 2001, 11:23 PM

i have the Soundsticks, a Bondi Blue iMac Rev. A using OS 9.1 and a Belkin 7 port USB hub. It all works and i haven't had any USB/OS/hub related sound problems. i haven't had any drawbacks using the SoundSticks with five other devices plugged into the hub: scanner, printer, joystick, ZIP drive and a digital camera connector.

OverclockedHomoSapien · May 11, 2001, 01:38 AM

Soundsticks are crap. USB audio adds CPU overhead, and also limits the bandwidth of the USB bus. Try printing and scanning and then see how those soundsticks sound.

The worst part is the speaker quality. The Soundsticks simply don't measure up to the competition in terms of sound quality. Save yourself some money and find a good three-piece speaker system for well under $100. Altec Lansing, Polk, Cambridge Soundworks, Labtech and many others all have systems that sound better than the Soundsticks, and sell for less.

Is it just me or do the Soundsticks look like sex toys?

nine11always · May 11, 2001, 03:34 AM

May I suggest either the Monsoon MM-700 (iM-700 for graphite plastic) or MM-1000.

Absolutely unbelievable sound for $100-$150. Check 'em out at www.monsoonpower.com

Cipher13 · May 11, 2001, 04:23 AM

USB audio = *vulgar expletive* crap.

Totally.

Get a set of Boston Acoustics BA635's for under half the price - better yet, two sets for under the price of SoundSticks, and hook 'em up via a minijack splitter - they friggin' rock.
www.bostonacoustics.com

------------------

AIM: Cipher1387
ICQ: 48111606
mail: [email protected]

zigzag · May 11, 2001, 11:24 AM

I wouldn't pay attention to the "Soundsticks are crap" stuff. Speaker quality is notoriously subjective, and subject to variables in the listening environment. Unless someone has actually sat in your listening environment and compared one speaker against another under controlled conditions, such statements are virtually meaningless. For your purposes, the Soundsticks should sound great. As for USB conflicts, all you can do is try them out on your system and see. Plenty of people, like runningdog, have no problems. Hopefully someone with an iBook will report on their experience.

There are many good small speaker systems, including all of the names mentioned. My advice is to get the ones you like, and if they don't work as advertised, exchange them.

TheDoctor · May 11, 2001, 05:12 PM

The SoundSticks I heard sounded very good. They were running on a FlowerPower iMac in CompUSA which is certainly not the greatest environment for audio.

Sure, they probably won't sound as good as some of the speaker sets you can buy these days, but they do sound pretty darn good. They also look rather nice.

One caveat, though, they definitely will not work with OS X 10.0. I do not know if that has changed with the later updates to OS X.

power96 · May 11, 2001, 06:11 PM

I just bought the Soundsticks and they sound pretty good with my Titanium and i connected them through my Belkin Hub (Where i have my Zip, Scanner, MP3, Belkin Light) and everything works perfect.

Justin Morgan · May 11, 2001, 11:26 PM

C|Net, which tends to be pretty PC-centric, gave the SoundSticks 8/10 in this review.

They also gave the Ti PowerBook an Editor's Choice recommendation.

AJ · May 13, 2001, 08:06 AM

Originally posted by TheDoctor:
The SoundSticks I heard sounded very good. They were running on a FlowerPower iMac in CompUSA which is certainly not the greatest environment for audio.

Sure, they probably won't sound as good as some of the speaker sets you can buy these days, but they do sound pretty darn good. They also look rather nice.

One caveat, though, they definitely will not work with OS X 10.0. I do not know if that has changed with the later updates to OS X.

RoofusPennymore · May 13, 2001, 06:08 PM

Originally posted by OverclockedHomoSapien:
USB audio adds CPU overhead

I thought the whole point to USB audio was the audio processing was offloaded from computer and handled by the USB device.

May 13, 2001, 11:16 PM

huh? how would a dumb usb port process audio signals, digitally or not?
the whole digital audio through usb is a very dumb idea in practice, at least
with only 12mb of bandwidth per port...

RoofusPennymore · May 14, 2001, 12:12 AM

Originally posted by pazuzu:
huh? how would a dumb usb port process audio signals, digitally or not?

The USB port is just a hole in the side of the computer. The device on the end of the cable, you know that box that the sound comes out of, that does the processing. Or maybe not. That is what I was asking.

And exactly how much bandwidth is required for stereo computer audio.

BigMark · May 14, 2001, 02:59 AM

I don't pretend to know the in's & outs, pro's & cons of USB audio, but the argument that an overloaded USB bus leads to poorer quality audio tends to hold some weight IMO.

If you have the option of sound out, I recommend a pair of Monsoon MM1000 speakers. My brother has a pair at his desk, and they simply quite the best computer speakers I have seen or heard.

The soundsticks do look a little strange (better than the Apple speakers though, I think), although I'm sure the sound is probably fine for watching DVDs and listening to music at your desk.

If you are looking for perfect sound, then go out and splurge on an expensive BOSE setup.

Package · May 14, 2001, 10:23 AM

Mr. Lime,

Don't sweat all the negativity about the Soundsticks. If you think you'll like them, go for it. As always, it's best to buy something after you've been able to check things out and compare different brands/models in person. And buying from a store with a generous return policy is always nice. But back to my original point, all the comments you hear about the crap sound quality of the Soundsticks on these forums is really laughable. It's sort of like debating the subtle flavor differences between different brands of aerosol cheeze sprays - I mean, c'mon, none of these "multimedia speakers" could even begin to hold a candle to a set of pro monitors or even a decent stereo system or "prosumer" monitors, so let's all get off our high horses about the sound quality of the 'sticks, please. And if you're willing to pay the premium price for the look of the Soundsticks because you want something other than the usual beige or black cubes, then that's your business and you shouldn't have to take any **it for it. That's just my opinion.

Package

zigzag · May 14, 2001, 12:06 PM

Package, well-said. There are more myths surrounding speakers than almost any other product. The audio biz is a giant sinkhole for fraud and misinformation, rivalled only by the cosmetics industry. People go into a computer or hi-fi store, see a bunch of speakers sitting on a shelf, ask the salesperson which ones are good, play loud, badly recorded music on a bunch of them, and actually think that they can evaluate them under those conditions. It's lunacy, like test-driving cars underwater. Magazine reviews are almost equally useless. People don't know any better, so I don't blame them, but it's lunacy nonetheless. Even under optimal testing conditions, it's almost hopelessly subjective.

At this level, for ordinary listening to music or DVDs at a computer, get the speakers you like, even if it's partly for looks. There's no reason to believe that the Soundsticks are significantly worse, or significantly better for that matter, than other small speaker systems. I'm assuming, of course, that USB will work smoothly on your iBook, but you'll have to test that.

I would note that the world's leading speaker researcher, Floyd Toole, heads Harmon-Kardon's speaker division (they also now make Infinity and JBL speakers). I don't know if he had any direct input on the Soundsticks, but it's not as though they don't know what they're doing over there.

Mr.Lime · May 15, 2001, 03:45 AM

I'd like to thank you all for your input. I guess I'll go for the SoundSticks. Moonsons and those other systems you've described sure sound great (not that I've heard them in person). It just seems like no reseller have any of them here in Finland and since I don't have a credit card...
SoundSticks not yet working with OS X sounds bad though. I mean if they haven't sell well enough, will there ever be support? Any one know how many SoundSticks there are out there

Have they sell well enough for Apple to support them in later versions of X?

Mr. Lime

Cipher13 · May 15, 2001, 06:02 AM

The fact that they NEED to be supported should be enough.

Can you plug them into your discman? No. PC? Probably not. TV? No.

OSX computer? No. Do yourself a favour and use line-out...

BA635's.
www.bostonacoustics.com

------------------

AIM: Cipher1387
ICQ: 48111606
mail: [email protected]

zigzag · May 15, 2001, 12:29 PM

Originally posted by Mr.Lime:
I'd like to thank you all for your input. I guess I'll go for the SoundSticks. Moonsons and those other systems you've described sure sound great (not that I've heard them in person). It just seems like no reseller have any of them here in Finland and since I don't have a credit card...
SoundSticks not yet working with OS X sounds bad though. I mean if they haven't sell well enough, will there ever be support? Any one know how many SoundSticks there are out there Have they sell well enough for Apple to support them in later versions of X?

You never know with Apple. I think plenty of Soundsticks have sold, and I'd be very surprised if they weren't supported by OS X - I expect to buy some myself for my Cube - but Apple has certainly been known to change its mind. If you're feeling insecure about it, you might want to take Cipher's advice and go with some analog line-out (headphone jack) speakers. I'm sure there must be some good-quality brands available in Finland that people use for their PCs. They may not look as good, but you won't have any USB or OS X complications. If you still want the Soundsticks, ask the store for a guarantee that they will work on your iBook and on OS X.

As for sound quality, having a subwoofer is a bigger factor than having any particular brand of speaker. Any pair of satellite speakers will sound thin compared to a system with a subwoofer.