Edifier Prisma multimedia speakers

Edifier Prisma review: PC speakers that are stylish and sound good in a small room

PC World Australia (online)

Edifier's Prisma multimedia speakers are reasonably compact and sound good as long as you don't turn them up too loud. The system is also well built and looks stylish.

Pros

  • Stylish design, good build quality

Cons

  • Bass distorts at high volume
  • Satellite speakers harsh at high volume

Bottom Line

The Edifier Prisma is a 2.1 channel speaker system designed for a PC, laptop or iPod. It's capable enough for low and moderate volume listening, but we wouldn't use it at maximum volume or in a large room -- it doesn't have the power. Sound quality is reasonably clear and punchy although more expensive systems have less background noise and cleaner bass response.

Would you buy this?

  • Price

    $ 129.95 (AUD)

Edifier Prisma: Design and setup

The Prisma system comprises two satellite speakers and a subwoofer. They're all well built and feel solid, and we're confident they'll stand the test of time. The volume control is large, metal and pleasantly weighted; Edifier's speakers always have excellent volume knobs. The power button is on the top of the subwoofer, which might be annoying if you want to keep it tucked away under a table.

The system uses the subwoofer as a connection hub. The satellites, which have a Y-shaped cord around 1.5m long, connect with a 3.5mm jack. A 3.5mm male-to-male cable of any length can be used to connect the Prisma to a PC, laptop, iPod or other audio device.

Like Edifier's other speaker systems, the volume control plugs into the subwoofer using a screw-in connector — this adds a minute or two to the setup time but it means you can place the volume control wherever you want and use an extension cable if necessary. There's no remote control, but we don't see the need unless you intend to use the Edifier Prisma in a big room (where it's out of its element). Bass volume can be changed with a dial on the base of the subwoofer — difficult to access, but once you've set the bass once we don't see a reason to change it.

Edifier Prisma: Sound quality

At moderate volume levels with the bass turned up to just below its maximum level, we found the Edifier Prisma had reasonably good sound quality — good levels of detail could be heard in treble notes and bass was warm and forward. Mid-range frequencies are a little recessed, which makes the system sound 'punchy' — prominent, clear treble and audible bass — but some music tracks suffer and can sound hollow. The Prisma is well suited to playing compressed music files off an MP3 player like an iPod.

The Edifier Prisma speakers perform best at moderate volume. They're well suited to near-field listening, like when you're sitting at your computer or within a small office or study space. Larger rooms show up the speakers' lack of mid-range power. With the speakers and source turned up to maximum volume, the Edifier Prisma does fill a large room with sound, but this comes at the cost of harsh treble and muddy, distorted bass. We wouldn't recommend the Edifier Prisma for use in a large room or at sustained full volume.

Edifier Prisma: Conclusion

The Edifier Prisma is a well designed speaker system. It would make a good addition to a similarly styled PC or laptop, or any of a huge number of shiny white Apple products. We wouldn't use it at full volume, though.

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