Creative GigaWorks T20 Series II 2.0 Speakers

Comment:
About 6 or 7 years ago, I decided to get a good set of 2.0 desktop speakers to listen to the music on my computer. After looking at reviews online, my finalists were the Klipsch Pro Media Ultra 2.0 and the Creative Gigaworks T-20. I chose the Pro Media Ultra 2.0 because reviews gave it a slight edge and it was made by a well-known speaker manufacturer.I have been pleased with the sound quality of the Pro Media Ultra 2.0. Unfortunately, after a couple of years, the speakers developed a scratchy volume control (fixed with DeoxIT), followed more recently with intermittent power loss. As this later problem was getting worse, I had to accept that I needed another set of speakers.The Pro Media Ultra 2.0 is no longer being made, and I still wanted another 2.0 speaker. Around my $100 to $125 budget, the only alternative was the Creative Gigaworks T-20 that was my losing finalist years ago.I was expecting the Gigaworks T-20 not to be at the level of the Promedia Ultra 2.0. However, I have been pleasantly surprised by the sound quality of the T-20. I have lost nothing compared to the Promedia. I can even say the sound is somewhat tighter, with slightly more sparkling highs and a punchier bass. I bought these speakers to play music and am very satisfied with the results. Volume is also more than adequate.On the downside, the bass reflex openings (BassXport) on the top of the unit is sure to fill with dust over time. Shining a flashlight into the right opening shows a circuit board at the bottom. As a preventive measure, I found a piece of thin-but-dense mesh in my wife's sewing box, cut two pieces and anchored these on top of each unit by squeezing the fabric behind the removable front grille. No dust can enter and there is no impact on sound quality.

Comment:
good build quality and nice clear sound. beats your average 2.0 desktop speakers

Comment:
These speakers are definitely a step up from the gamut of desktop speakers out there, but come with a bit of compromise.As 2.0 speakers, these really shine. Some people might complain that they sound distant or even tinny, but that is mostly because their source isn't driving them properly - get an amp, then revise your review. They lack a bit of bass, but that's completely expected given that their BassXPort is not a true substitute for a subwoofer. I avoid heavy bass regularly, so this isn't an issue for me whatsoever. That said, they can handle low frequencies very, very well without losing any clarity in the highs. This is especially important while gaming, when constant heavy weapons fire usually drowns out other channels (e.g. Teamspeak/Mumble chat) coming in through the speakers in mediocre audio systems.Are they the perfect speakers? Far from it, but they are very good at what they do.They suffer mostly from a couple of physical issues:1) the supplied 3.5mm cable that joins the two speakers is horrible. The first thing all new owners should do is replace it with anything better. Mine wasn't even working straight out of the box: the plugs on one end was so poorly set that it didn't even fit in the female jack in the left speaker (the plug was too small that it didn't sit in the jack).2) the power brick is really large for something driving only 50W. You would think that something providing less than 20V at 5 amps would be relatively small, say like 2-3 decks of cards stacked together. Instead, the power brick on this thing rivals those of most laptops. This must mean that rather than using a few high capacity resistors they decided to use a lot of lower capacity resistors to reduce costs I guess.

Comment:
Bought these for multimedia and gaming and they did not disappoint. The function and sound excellent. The design is slick and they look and feel well built. I recommend.

Comment:
Sound quality is horrible, for the price these are not worth it, go get some Edifier instead. Nothing is crisp and bass is bad as hell. The feel pretty plastic cheap.

Comment:
Got this when it was on sale, definitely a good product. I was skeptical about getting 2.0 due to the lack of subwoofers. But this baby provides enough bass to rock the body. I have noticed that it is someone "muffled" compared to my altec leassing 3 piece. But the family loves the sound.

Comment:
I'm extremely picky about sound quality and these satisfy me very much, they sound like $500 speakers no joke. Highly recommended..These speakers are a proof that you don't need a huge ugly box under your desk to get awesome bass.