Logitech Z-5450, Continued
As far as the speakers go, the subwoofer is a 6.5" driver in a band-pass designed enclosure. It looks really stylish, as there is no speaker grille in this type of enclosure - it's simply a minimalist black box with a black metallic badge on the front and a port on the side. The badge shows the Logitech and THX logos engraved in silver lettering. It looks very chic, and conveys a sense of capability commensurate with the 116 watts of power the subwoofer is fed.
The satellites are 2.5" each, with classic, metallic-looking enclosures and removable front covers. They are contemporarily styled, and look appropriate for home theater, like something Sony or Pioneer might release. The center satellite takes 42 watts, but the other four take 38 W. Like most home theatre systems, the front and center satellites are attached to the subwoofer enclosure with conventional speaker wire, which could be cut or even replaced as desired. It's just the rear left and right satellites that are wireless.
The control box is connected to the subwoofer. It has a very simple and effective front panel interface; all of the buttons are clearly marked, and are easy to figure out. The illuminated LCD display is also clear and concise.
On the back of the control box you will find all of the connection options, the digital inputs and three analog inputs. The other systems in this review have all connectivity on the subwoofer enclosure, so this is a little different. The three analog inputs can be used with a 5.1 sound card to supply surround sound, but they can also be set up as three independent two-channel inputs by flicking a switch.
The control box also has an antenna for broadcasting to the rear satellite speakers, although it seemed to work just as well positioned down as up. As far as the wireless rear satellites go, getting them to work was as simple as plugging them in. They immediately caught the signal broadcasted from the control box without any work on my part, and worked flawlessly throughout the review.
