Being a headphone guy myself, when Wes told me I was being shipped some speakers, my first instinct was either a portable speaker set for laptops or mobile listening, or maybe a small set of speakers for a desktop setup. To my surprise AlienVibes sent out one of their W401 model speakers. This is part of a new larger line of speakers that AlienVibes recently released. The W401 is a full size desk speaker setup with subwoofer. After clearing off some room around my desk it’s time we take a look and see what these guys are capable of.

Product Name: AlienVibes W401 Speaker System

Review Sample Provided By: AlienVibes

Written By: Brennon

Pictures By: Brennon

Specifications

Total Peak Power	110 Watts
Total RMS Power	Satellites: 15 Watts RMS x2 Subwoofer: 25 Watts RMS
Drivers	Satellites: (3’’+1’’)x2 Subwoofer 4’’x2
Frequency Response	35Hz to 20KzHz
Function Control	Volume/Bass/Treble
Cabinet Material	Wood and Plastic
Color	Black
Dimensions	Satellite: W110mm x H246mm x D132mm Subwoofer: W280mm x H228mm x D220mm

Packaging

The packaging for the W401 speaker set is clean and simple. On the outside of the packaging we can find quite a bit of information about the product. On the front we get our first glance at what the speaker system is going to look like. We also get to see the company name and product name in opposite corners. Also on the front is a list of product specifications. The cool part about the specifications is that they are not really listed, but the information is put into little circles along the top left and bottom right of the front of the package. This not only makes the package more visually appealing, but also makes the specifications somewhat enjoyable to read and understand.

On either side of the box we can find more product specifications and more detailed pictures of the different features of the speakers. On the rear we can find even more pictures of the product as well as a summary of everything we have found. First up we see a product description, a short one paragraph description explaining what the W401 speaker set is capable of. Underneath that se see a bulleted list of product specifications and another bulleted list of product features.

Upon opening the package we find that the speakers are each stored separately. Each speaker is tightly wrapped in a plastic bag to keep it from getting scratched or dinged during shipping. Both speakers and the subwoofer can be found nestled safely in a foam shipping frame. This keeps the speakers from bouncing around too much inside the box itself. Also inside the box is another plastic package. This package contains a single sheet of white paper with installation instructions as well as an RCA to the green PC audio jack.

Installation

I was a little frightened before getting the speaker set that the installation would be something more than I was prepared for. Looking a little closer I was pleasantly surprised with the installation process for the AlienVibes W401 Speakers. All we had to do is hook the wires from both speakers, which are white and red, into the subwoofer input jacks. From there we ran the cable that came with the speaker set from the output jack to our computer. Honestly the most difficult part of hooking the speaker set up was knowing which speaker was meant to go on the left and which was meant to go on the right. This was easy once we looked on the back of either speaker because they were labeled left and right for easy hook up. Once all three (I know it seems like too many) wires were hooked up, all we had to do was go into our pc sound options and select the correct output and we were ready to put the speakers to the test.

Audio Quality

Ludwing van Beethoven - Für Elise – This is a very light recording. The more I listen to it for reviews the more I grow fond of it overall. The range is excellent. With mids and highs throughout and the lows towards the middle and end it really tests any form of audio equipment well. The first thing I noticed when listening to this track on the AlienVibes W401 Speakers is that something was missing. The light static noise that I have come accustomed to throughout previous reviews has vanished. This isn’t a bad thing at all; it does take away from the age of the song some, with the static being audible it makes you appreciate the age more. However, age isn’t a requirement when enjoying music, and as far as the song goes, the speakers actually did an excellent job of both clearing up the track and producing all of the sounds clearly.

Nat King Cole & Natalie – Unforgetable – This is another light song, but with more emphasis on the vocal side of things as well as different instruments. We get a great range of lows to highs and the great part about this song is that with two different singers, Nat King Cole and his daughter Natalie, we get lows and highs at the same time. Sometimes audio devices aren’t able to clearly produce that range of sound at the same time. The W401’s had no problem with this tune. Not only was the clarity of the voices excellent, but each instrument also came through loud and clear without being muddled by the rest of the audio.

Eric Clapton - Rush (Soundtrack) - 10 - Tears In Heaven - This song has a pretty consistent flow of both mids and highs. The vocals and different instruments came through clearly and nothing felt like it was lost in transition. This track is a great example of what guitar sounds like on the speakers and I am pretty impressed.

Bone Thugs N' Harmony - Tha Crossroads – “I just wanna say, Welcome, to the part of the show, where the bass drum hits hard and slow, your face becomes aware that I’m startin’ to flow, and it sounds like a song that you already know…” Maybe I just have a bass fetish, but this was again my favorite song on the speakers. I think that it is because it really gives the subwoofer a chance to shine. Turning the bass up nice and high we can really feel the bassline. The great thing is that the vocals don’t get buried in the bass, even when I turned the bass up as high as I could get it.

Flight – Movie – Flight is a drama starring Denzel Washington. From a movie standpoint it was okay, it was a good story, but in the end it was a basic drama, nothing that really excited me. The W401’s did a great job especially the plane crash scene. The subwoofer did a good job of bringing through the heavy bass that is a commercial airliner coming to a crash landing. The only thing I will say is that the movie would have been better in 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound, but I think that goes without saying.

In Game – Dead Space 2 – I wanted to test the speakers out in game, and initially I was testing it with League of Legends and Heroes of Newerth. The sounds in these games were great and I have no complaints, but I feel like the speakers weren’t getting a chance to show their true colors. So I booted up Dead Space 2. The speakers were perfect for this game. They did a great job of capturing all of the enemy sounds and ambient noise. It did an even better job with the action sequences and the booms and bangs. There is an added level of scariness when you can FEEL when an enemy jumps out to rip your head off. The added bonus of not having my headset on made it a little more frightening to play. I bet the speakers would be more than perfect for Amnesia, something that is almost entirely about the ambient noise and the visuals of the game.

There are a couple of things I want to touch on that affect the performance. These are the volume, treble, and bass controls. There is a separate dial for each and you can adjust the levels however you please. The reason I felt the need to mention this is for two simple reasons. The first is that we are given three different controls. Most similar speaker sets only have one control in the volume knob. The other reason I like them is that they are all three located on the subwoofer. It is a pet peeve of mine that speaker sets with a subwoofer often have the volume knob on one of the speakers. I like to put my speakers up out of sight out of mind, but my subwoofer always sits just below my desk. With the centralized control scheme it is easier for me to reach and change the volume, bass or treble without much of a headache. In other models I have to often reach up or around things to get to wherever my speaker is hiding.

The other thing I want to comment on that is purely preference is the look of the speakers. I feel like more and more companies are designing their speakers to look futuristic. They all seem to have different curvy and wavy designs that I am simply not a fan of. I don’t mind that my speakers and big, black and professional looking, because...they are speakers. I’m not trying to show them off or impress anyone with them, so I don’t see why I need a special design. Like I said, it’s purely personal preference, but that’s just how I feel about it.

One thing that we haven’t mentioned earlier is that the speakers are 110w speakers. This means that they are powered through a dedicated power chord rather than through USB, which is common with many desktop speakers. The subwoofer has a power switch that can be flipped off to conserve power when the speaker set is not in use. The subwoofer also has a hole in the side of it. Upon a bit of research (and by research I mean I Googled it) I discovered that this hole is called a bass reflex port. Its purpose is to allow air to escape in a structured manner so that the sound doesn’t get distorted. One final minor but nice touch is that the speakers and the subwoofer both have feel. The speakers are a simple padded foot that gives it a little bit of a grip and keeps surfaces from getting scratched up, and the subwoofer has a bit larger set of feet, but they are also a material that keeps it from moving around or scratching up surfaces.

Overall and Final Verdict

Overall I think the AlienVibes 401 Speaker set is a good product. At under $90 they are competitively priced with similar design speakers. There is a 402 model of the same speaker set which is very similar but has many more features for $10 more. The speakers were incredibly easy to set up, gave off great sound quality in everything that we tested it with. The bass especially with the dedicated subwoofer was better than any set of speakers I have ever used in the past. The design including the three different level controls and the simple shape and sleek paint job were also favorable in my own opinion. The only real complaint I have at all is the fact that there is no warranty on the speakers. With the company being relatively new and unproven, I know if I were plopping down some of my hard earned money, that I would want it to be backed by some sort of warranty. I think it is possible to find a 5.1 system at the same price point, but I also feel like the quality isn’t going to be as good. For a three speaker system designed for use with the PC, the AlienVibes W401 do their job very well.