Altec Lansing VS4121 Speaker Review

Wattage Ain’t Everything!

by Josh Walrath

DVD Playback

            These speakers do very well in a movie situation.  The sound field helps to capture the mood of a well engineered film, and dialogue and action are well represented.  The lack of midrange is not nearly as pronounced in this setting as it is with pure music.  Voices were clear, and spatial cues were right on the mark.  The subwoofer is able to put out some very impressive bass in action scenes, and never once did it pop or cause any distortion at higher listening levels.

Note the single input on the back of the subwoofer.  This system can only be connected to one device at a time (many other speaker systems have a jack for a 2nd source).

            Again, due to the lack of midrange, some sound stages were not nearly as expansive as other speakers that have a stronger midrange.  However, the twin 28 mm drivers do an excellent job of covering the upper midrange and high end of the spectrum, which does help out quite a bit.  The speakers did not sound tinny, nor did they make the listening uncomfortable after extended periods of time listening to these speakers. 

Gaming

            This is probably the strongest area for these speakers, and they compare well to other competitors’ products at the same price range (and even higher).  The tight bass that the subwoofer produces plays especially well in games with a lot of gunfire and explosions.  The sound stage is also large enough to produce a great amount of ambience in titles that do not solely rely on action and explosions (think System Shock 2).  The lack of midrange here is not noticeable at all, and other technologies such as DS3D and EAX help to overcome some of the limitations of the sound field.

            Overall, these are a great set of speakers for a wide variety of gaming needs. 

Conclusion

            Altec appears to be concentrating on the 2.1 market and leaving the surround sound arena to its competitors.  I can see the logic in this as the majority of computer users do not want to string yards of speaker cable to attach rear speakers, and also find a place where those rear speakers can sound good!  Most offices and computer rooms do not have this luxury, so most users settle on either headphones or solid 2.1 systems.

            The VS4121 is not a high end product for Altec, but it is a very solid mid-range product that offers a lot of value for its price.  It compares very well to competing products in the same price range, and the overall design, fit, and finish of the product provide even more value for the money.

            This set of speakers will not be for everyone.  For the hard core gamer that may want a bit more power, they may opt for the Logitech Z-2200’s.  For the user that wants a good all around speaker set which is not an eyesore, nor take up much space, the VS4121 should be very high on the list.  Even though it has a slightly muffled midrange, it is very enjoyable to listen to music on.  In all categories I never felt fatigued after listening to these speakers for long periods of time.

            Altec did a very good job on these speakers, and even though they did not blow my socks off, I was unduly impressed by how competent these speakers were in nearly all categories.  For most users I would consider it $99 well spent.

Pros

Appealing design

Solid workmanship

Excellent fit and finish

Aesthetically pleasing

Excellent high end reproduction

Excellent bass for subwoofers size and power

Good sound stage

Cons

Slightly muffled midrange

Fairly low power

Inability to remove grills

Not as “room filling” as hoped

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