5.1 Surround Sound on the Cheap

Logitech X-530, Continued

In practice, the 530's satellites are small columns equipped with two 5-cm (2") loudspeakers with a metallic-coated membrane with a center phase plug and a nice-looking half-roll surround. They're mounted on a stand whose vertical angle is unfortunately not adjustable. The center speaker is pretty much identical, but arranged horizontally (and with an adjustable stand). Note that the center satellite has significantly more power than the others, which is logical. It does handle most of the dialogue in movies, and thus needs a good dynamic range, and any distortion will be more audible. This is a common technique for optimizing the output of small multi-channel systems.

The subwoofer enclosure, fairly small in volume, is of the bass reflex type with a 13-cm (5") speaker mounted on the left, with the port opening to the front. On the rear are the connections with the satellites and - not ideal for accessibility - the adjustment for the subwoofer level. The connections are made to the right satellite, which connects to the subwoofer enclosure via a lockable DB9 connector. Input is via a cable ending in three 3.5 mm (0.1") jacks. Controls are limited to an on/off switch and a volume pot, which is a bit limited. There is a 3.5 mm (0.1") headphone jack.

Technical characteristics

• Bass power output: 25 W
• Satellite power output: 4 x 7.4 W
• Center channel power output: 15.5 W
• Frequency response: 40 Hz - 20 kHz
• Inputs: line (5.1)
• Headphone jack: on right satellite
• Satellites: two full-range with phase plug
• Subwoofer: 13-cm (5") woofer
• Satellite dimensions: 63 mm (2") x 203 mm (8") x 76 mm (3")
• Subwoofer dimensions: 152 mm (6") x 285 mm (11") x 235 mm (9")