Edifier E3350 2.1 Desktop Speakers

E3350 Setup and Build Quality

The impossible - that's what motivates me. In fact, isn't that what motivates all of humanity? The first astronaut in space, an electric powered car, the telephone, the atomic bomb. There are so many examples of people achieving what was once thought the impossible. Our personal impossible achievements may not be on the same level as the printing press, but still the impossible is what drives us. When reviewing the E3350 system by Edifier, I wondered if they set out to achieve the impossible. Did they ask themselves, "Can we make a sound system that is both an audio and visual piece of entertainment? Can our sound system also be its own art collection?" I believe that these questions drove the design of the E3350.

I have seen many speaker systems, most of which are designed to be heard and not seen. This is not true however for the E3350. It is clear through the construction of this system, Edifier set out to not only be heard but also seen. Winning a CES 2008 Innovation Design and Engineering Visually honorary award, this 2.1 speaker system is a stunning piece.

Setup

Edifier's lifestyle E3350 is definitely a nice looking set of speakers. Visually unique and available in seven colors (black, blue, gold, green, pink, purple and silver), this system would fit into to any post-modern décor. Opening the box you are greeted by seven plastic-wrapped items. Simply opening and plugging in is all that you need to do. However, for those who are completely technologically impaired, directions are included on one of the flaps of the box. Opening, assembling, and turning on takes a mere five minutes; ten if you are distracted.

Included in the E3350 system are your standard 2.1 speakers; two satellite towers (each handles up to 9W) and one sub (RMS power rated at 32W) are encased in a uniquely shaped, pyramidal type enclosure. The audio out/input jacks, wired remote, and power cord all plug into the back of the sub. The subwoofer, a down-firing, 5 1/2" driver, is the centerpiece of this system.

Though simple to assemble, for those whose fingers are larger than others, you may find it somewhat of an annoyance tightening the screws of the wired remote to the back of the subwoofer. No tools are required for assembling this system; however, a small flathead screwdriver makes things a little easier.

The dull finish on the subwoofer is a very nice look when fresh out of the box; however, after setting up the system, you will find a slew of finger prints. The prints will fade with time, but will not return to the original shine, unless you do some light buffing and dusting after setup. I would suggest wearing gloves when setting up this system.

Once all of the cords are connected, just plug in the included 3.5 mm jack into your audio source. Press power (on top of the subwoofer) and enjoy.

E3350 Use, Listening Tests and Conclusion

When the sub is powered on, a "halo" type light circles the power button, adding a nice visual effect. On the back of the subwoofer is the location of the manual bass level control, which is a simple little dial that you can adjust with one finger. It is the only dial in the back, so adjusting without looking is very easy to do. I mention this, because you will be adjusting the bass quite often.

Volume is adjusted by a wired remote which features a metal dial with one little notch to indicate volume. When the system is powered on, a red light illuminates around the edge. The smooth metallic knob, unfortunately, smudges very easily. On the top of the dial are little circular grooves, so dusting only helps marginally. On the base of the remote and all speakers is a felt-like non-slip pad, which appeared to work well on all surfaces we tried. The remote also contains a headphone out and auxiliary input.

The two satellite speakers are average speakers with decent mid and high ranges. The two-way satellites, each with a 2.75-inch oval-shaped driver and 0.75-inch soft silk tweeter dome, are magnetically shielded. (This hardly matters in today's electronic market, unless you are using an old CRT monitor.) Looking at the speakers straight on, there is really nothing visually unique. However, if looking from the sides or from above, the speakers have a crisp shiny finish and look very nice.

The unique looking down firing sub is nothing short of disastrous. Though the sub enclosure is very nice looking, bass distortion and rattling begins at a mere 25% volume capacity. To the benefit of the speaker system, there is a manual bass control, but if you turn it down just a little, you really can't hear much bass. There is a very fine, extremely frustrating line of adjusting your bass to sound good without distortion. However, little bass can be heard if you turn the dial down even a little. So you basically have two options: bass that distorts the music or no bass at all.

Listening Session

Just for kicks, I turned on some old Dr. Dre, put the volume at 50%, and even with sticky, felt-like pads on the bottom, the subwoofer started to vibrate and move around on both tile and hardwood flooring. By the time a song was over, it moved about an inch. The sub did not move around on carpet, but the same sound distortion was there. If you wanted to use this system for your computer, do not have this on your desk. The sub will cause everything to shake. Now, for a big bass fan like me this sounds cool, but with this system, it is not.

I also listened to some softer music, including tracks by James Taylor, Enya, as well as several softer artists. This style of music came across much better with the subwoofer and the E3350 actually sounded like a good system. However, anything after 25% did distort any bass that may have been on the different tracks.

Conclusions and Overall Perception

After reviewing this product, I believe that Edifier concentrated more on the look than the sound. The E3350 is eye candy; visually unique to fit into any décor. The system is a nice mix of dull and shiny plastic and if nothing else, a beautiful paperweight. This system is clearly designed to be seen but fails to capture its one true job; to be a good speaker system.

For those of you that are interested in computer gaming, especially first/third person shooters, or music with any kind of bass, I would not suggest this system. The E3350 is perfect for the casual light music listener who does not want to spend the money on a better system or is on a tight budget. This system basically just has its looks and that is it. Think of it as the dumb blonde stereotype, but for speakers. It may be nice to look at, but once you start listening to it, the attraction goes away.

If all that you want to do is look at the speakers, than this is the system for you. My advice, save your money a little longer and spend an extra $50 on something else.

Edifier E3350
MSRP: $100

Edifier North America
Unit 3, 13511 Crestwood Place
Richmond, BC V6V 2E9 Canada
1-877-334-3437
main@edifier.ca

About Edifier North America
Edifier Group, founded in Beijing in 1996, is one of China's first specialized manufacturers of genuine wood enclosure speaker systems. Edifier was also the first speaker manufacturer in China to successfully develop an exclusive international market when it evolved in 1998 into a transnational group company selling into most major world markets.

The Group has about 3,000 employees and more than two million square feet of manufacturing facilities with full product research and development, plastic injection, machining, molding, painting, silk-screen printing, product testing and assembly facilities. The annual output of active speakers is eight million sets.

Edifier Enterprises Canada Inc., the North America head office of Edifier Group, was founded in Vancouver, Canada in 1998, and is mainly responsible for group strategic planning, product research and development, marketing Edifier products for customers in Canada, the United States and Mexico.

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

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Metric	Rating
Audio Performance
Build Quality
Ergonomics & Usability
Ease of Setup/Programming/Integration
Features
Fit and Finish
Performance
Value