Klipsch Pro Media 2.1

Klipsch has been in the audio business for more than 60 years, so making a speaker isn't anything new to the company. Its Pro Media 2.1 speaker set is a testament to that when it comes to sound reproduction. The $150, entry-level, speaker set sounds great and is a great value in spite of some minor quibbles.

Setup is dead simple, and the included wiring should be sufficient for any desk, as well as most room setups. The conventional speaker jacks also allow you to replace the included wiring with any other speaker wire.

The metal speaker stands for the left and right channel bend rather easily if you lean on them by accident (which we did). But getting them back into proper shape is just as trivial. You can wall mount the speakers, but frankly, the result would look silly because many of the wires would hang out of the left speaker.

Once plugged in, the set handled everything from Nick Drake to Nine Inch Nails quite well and was detailed enough to bring out minor elements in the music at low volumes. When cranked, the set played on distortion free. Bass response at the recommended setting felt fantastic at all volume levels, and you certainly don't need to crank up the set to feel the punches.

Input options are the Pro Media 2.1's biggest stumbling point. With just two inputs, even with a few devices (computer, game console, MP3 player), you're going to have to play the cable-swap game. Both inputs are of the headphone-style variety, so you'll need adapters for your consoles. In an interesting twist, there's no button to push when you switch between inputs. If you have two devices plugged in and playing music, the speakers will pass both signals through at the same time.

Outside of the limited number of inputs, we're quite pleased with the Klipsch Pro Media 2.1s. Excellent sound quality, compact size, and a tolerable price point make it hard to go wrong with them.