Titanium Power Subwoofers

Review by Julia Rietmulder-Stone : Sounds good to me

I'm using this setup with my MacBook or my boyfriend's MacBook Pro and a CreativeLabs SoundBlaster wireless transmitter, mostly for watching movies, but sometimes for listening to music. What a HUGE improvement over the little Altec Lansing computer speakers I had been using!As other reviewers have noted, I'm not entirely sure what the intended use for these speakers is -- seems like overkill for a standard PC situation, but not enough for a true home theater system. It may be that the intended audience is someone like me -- enjoys good sound, not about to shell out $1,000+ for speakers. I think if you fall into that category, this is probably a great option.I wish there were more adjustments that could be made, and that not everything plugged directly into the subwoofer (seriously annoying), but it's attractive, sounds very good (even turned up loud), and seems like a good price for what you're getting. Using it wirelessly with the laptop is also pretty freaking awesome.Overall, recommended.

Review by J. Powell : Great Speakers

Firstly I got these as a replacement for a Logitech Z5500 that had a control pod failure. So I have owned and used both systems. Now if you currently have a Z5500 and are thinking that these would be an upgrade, they are not and you should not get these. To go from the Z5500 to the Z906 is pointless unless you have to. They both have similar stats and both sound roughly the same. If you are looking to upgrade to a new set of 5.1 speakers, these are an excellent choice. The satellites sound exactly the same as Z5500. Crisp and clear. Very fluid and a warm sound. Also can get very very loud. They also made them much easier to wall mount by just having a bolt hole in the back of it which is an industry standard. They have removed the cloth covers that the Z5500 had but that is just a personal taste thing. Now when it comes to the sub-woofer, here is where the difference comes into play. The Z5500 has a 10 inch sub, the Z906, an 8 inch sub. You would think that this would cause the system to suffer compared to the Z5500 however this is not the case. The sub-woofer on the Z906 seems to have more of a bass punch to it then the Z5500. While at high volumes however, the Z906 obviously falls prone to being a smaller sub-woofer then Z5500. On bass test tracks it can bottom out or become "farty" before the Z5500 does. So in a sense, it cannot shake up the house/room as much as the Z5500. It still CAN shake up the room and cause things to move however, this still is a powerful sub woofer and sounds better then any PC sub woofer out there. But the plus of this system is the punch it gives at normal listening volume. Another plus is the actual size of the sub woofer box. It is almost half the size of the Z5500. Makes putting the sub and also moving it much easier. Through design they have kept the great sound of the sub woofer and greatly shrunk the size of it. The control pod also is redesigned for the better. Its much smaller, doesn't have a bright LCD screen on it that can be distracting, and doesn't heat up like the Z5500. Another note is that changing the effect mode of the system is much quicker then the Z5500. It happens instantly, the Z5500 would take about 1 full second to change the effect mode. The downsides of the system are as follows. The remote control feels really cheap. The buttons have this plastic "clicky" sound/feel when you press a button. Another is having all the inputs on the sub woofer instead of the control pod. Which means you have to have all your devices within roughly 4 feet of the sub woofer. This was probably changed due to the failure of the control pods but its just a minor complaint. This is an awesome sound system and overall is slightly better then the Z5500 which was already an awesome system. Don't listen to all the people who bought this set expecting to be way better then the Z5500. This is meant to just be newer design. It isn't meant to out perform or out class the Z5500 at all. Worth it if you can get it under $350.

Review by Glenn R. Howes : Good Sound but Lacking in Features and Little Touches

Seven or eight years ago, I bought the predecessor to this system, the Z-5500, and it turned out to be one of the great bargains of my tech buying life. Everything else in my life has changed, but there sits the Z-5500 on my wife's desk pumping out decent surround sound and experience enhancing subwoofs. And now into the house comes its successor, the Z-906 with just about the same quality of sound--very good for the money--and yet my major impression is disappointment as Logitech missed the opportunity to modernize the system and instead made this release about cutting manufacturing costs and losing functionality. So, as unfair as it might be to the Z-906, this review has to be in comparison to what came before, as what came before shows what was possible in a desktop surround system. I should define the category this system falls in. It is a surround system for the desktop, usually meant to be attached to a personal computer, and as one adds components--Blu-Ray players, Roku boxes, AppleTVs--they attach with a DVI cable to a shared monitor and a separate audio cable to this speaker system. Ideally, you would fill up the three digital connectors first, the ones with potential for surround sound, and leave the analog inputs for simple stereo devices like iPods. This is not a proper home theatre receiver which would become the hub of both audio and video by taking multiple HDMI cables in and a single HDMI cable out to a television. Because of the lack of HDMI, there is no chance for decoding the advanced codecs found on Blu-Ray disks or handling uncompressed digital audio with more than 2 channels. (Well I guess you could use a specialized PC sound card to use the included 6 channel analog cable to allow your PC to do this decoding, so there is a chance for desktop computer users.) As such, this device is in a very narrow category, a major step up from the typical desktop speakers thrown in with computers, but not able to compete in a feature race with home theatre systems the consumer can cobble together or get as a home theatre in a box system. An example of the need for HDMI support came up this week. I'm taking delivery of a Roku 2 XS streaming media player. It has no optical output, just HDMI and analog stereo. I'll have to purchase a rather pricey HDMI switch, like this one, with TOSLink output to compensate, which will further complicate my system and make it less reliable when switching between devices, as well as being another power sink. Setup is quick for anyone familiar with where surround speakers go. The rear speaker cables are very long to allow circuitous routes along walls and under couches. Everything plugs into the subwoofer including the inputs. This is a bit of a downgrade from the Z-5500 where the inputs plugged into the desktop control unit, so when I put the Z-906 in the Z-5500's place I had to find longer optical cables to reach all the way down to the subwoofer. At least there are two optical (TOSLink) ports, a welcome addition from the one optical port in its predecessor. Sound is quite good. Not spectacular or showy. If the THX label means anything it means you are given an accurate experience of what the artist intended, not overly boomy or processed. Some may complain that the subwoofer is smaller than the one in the Z-5500, and that it will not shake the room as much at full power but that is the least of my complaints, I never turn a speaker system all the way up and don't enjoy being inundated by sound just shy of painfully loud. There is a "3D" mode which at least gets some 2 channel sound into the center channel, which makes me happy while watching most Netflix content. The speaker hardware is better than OK. I've been listening to some piano jazz with them, and the sound is clean and crisp. I much prefer the appearance of the new speakers to the old, too; the metal grills look nice, and while the speakers no longer have integrated mounting brackets, I always thought the old brackets were eye sores. So, I'm fine with the new speakers just having standard 1/4" 20 threads per inch mounting holes. You can leave them sitting on the desk or mount them to the walls with a few dollars spent at the hardware store and a bit of creativity. I ordered a pair of pre-made mounts, but that is hardly mandatory. One issue I am concerned about is that the speakers have 4 Ohms of impedance, which is a bit hot (high amperage), and will limit my ability to reuse them in other configurations in the future. For example, my Denon home theatre receiver supports a recommended impedance range of 6-16 Ohms. As I already have a nice center channel speaker mounted over my TV, I set aside the included center; the third party speaker (an Aperion 4C) has an 8 Ohm impedance, but seems to work fine, I'll just play with the levels from the control unit--and, yes, this likely ruins the THX balance. The subwoofer seems more cheaply made than its predecessor and lacks the large heat sink which dominated its back. I miss the solid industrial design and visible bolts holding it firmly together. Still it does its job. The control unit is the most glaring regression. What was metal and glass with an LCD display is now cheap plastic and LED indicator lights. I miss the big metal volume control which was literally my favorite feature of the old system. At least Logitech has used nice soothing amber LEDs instead of the blinding blue ones other manufacturers use to keep me awake at night. Also no indication of support for the 96 kHz PCM input mode available to the Z-5500. The remote is simple enough, good, but could use dedicated input switching buttons as I'd rather not go tap, tap, tap, tap, tap to get from the second optical input to the first. Energy efficiency is much improved though. When off, the unit is really off with 0 Watts of power detected by my Kill-A-Watt. The previous unit had a large standby wattage of 12W. Whether this lack of warmup power affects the sound quality I'll leave to the audiophiles. However, the unit still drains 20 Watts while on, so the conservation minded should remember to turn it off while not in use or program their universal remote to do so. In summary. This is not junk. It's a fine desktop audio system, feature slippage from its predecessor not withstanding. I'm just not sure about the utility of buying this versus investing in a low end HDMI based receiver system and then gradually upgrading the components. After migrating my TV room to a receiver as hub system, I wouldn't want to go back to managing separate audio and video pathways, and a real receiver would shine at getting the full master audio experience out of BluRays. This system doesn't seem has if it will last in usefulness as long as its predecessor did in a world where audio and video mostly go through the same cable. .

Review by Jason Wheeler : Excellent set of speakers

These are my secount set of Logitech speakers. They were easy to setup. They sound really good. My last set lasted about 10 years I hope these just as long.

Review by Slow Zerba : Great

The z906 system is one of the better speaker sets on the market for that price. The sound is superb instillation was super simple and the fact that the speakers use reg speaker wire makes it ideal for odd shaped rooms. I saw a ton of reviews saying it wasn't as nice as the z5500 I never had that set of speakers so I don't know, but the bass on this is great, better than my 10 inch car sub for sure. The bass is ajustiable so if u like more or less it's not a problem. The lights on the console are not as distracting as some ppl say they are I didn't mind them at all. The remote is small but sturdy, it has a nice weight to it so it doesn't seem like a toy. I didn't give it a 5 because my buddy set up his own sound system (costing a little over 5k) and it's not quite as nice as his but defiantly the best for the money!!!

Review by Philip OBrien : Awesome speaker system

These speakers are awesome. The bass rocks my entire building if I want it to(it is very adjustable). The sound quality is amazing. The speaker set looks really cool in the living room. If I try to turn the volume all the way up while playing music, I can't even adjust it to the top without covering my ears because it can get so loud, without loss of quality. The surround sound for movies/games is great and makes playing call of duty on my ps3 really immersive. Playing blu-rays and dvd's are also awesome with surround sound. Some minor complaints: Doesn't have hdmi port like newer home theater systems, so you will have to buy a digital optical cable pretty cheap) for 5.1 surround sound with games/movies if you are not using a computer(it comes with a 6 channel computer cable). If you have a laptop, you have to get an external sound card (20 bucks for a cheap one, 55ish for a high quality one)that allows you to plug in the computer cables (unless your laptop has them, which is rare). I am very happy with these speakers, they are some of the best speakers i've ever heard and are worth it, however, it would be nice if they had an hmdi port for my laptop so i don't have to buy a sound card separately for it.

Review by S. WIlliams : Easy Set-Up, Sounds Good

Let me preface this by saying, I am not an audiophile. I like big, full sound, but I'm not the sort of person who can hear minute differences nor someone who appreciates speakers that cost as much as my car or sits in the middle of a perfectly modulated room to listen to my favorite tunes. Set-up with our TV, DVD and satellite box took less than 20 minutes and went off without a hitch. The unit can serve up to six devices, but be aware that it doesn't clearly specify what is connected or what kind of sound it's receiving, just lists 1-6 and lights up the speaker icons in use. I was up and running quickly, though be aware cables for most connections are not included. This Logitech system seems very well made, especially for an all-in-one unit. Heavy and well-built, these don't look, or sound, like other cheap "home theater in a box" systems I've seen before. Even at less than half power/volume these were out-puting very loud, rich sound that was distinctly "surround." Movie dialogue sounded crisp and clean and the bass is big enough to create sound effect vibrations. Music too sounded pretty good to me though, again, I'm no audiophile. While I can't imagine using these in a top-of-the-line set-up, the sound from these easily fills a small to mid-sized room and would be perfect for a bedroom (where we tried ours), apartment-size living area, dorm room or office. The remote isn't great. It's small, easy to lose and simplistic (basically just on/off, input and volume up/down), but we have a Logitech Harmony remote and using this speaker system with that took only a few minutes to set up. I'm guessing Logitech assumes most people will use some kind of universal remote to tie all their components together and therefore didn't put a lot of time or money into the included system remote, since most people have a TV, DVD player, set-top box and sound system. Having tried this for just a day, I can't attest to the longevity issues others have reported. I can say it has vastly improved our bedroom TV set-up, which used to consist solely of the TV's built-in speakers. One of my main "issues" with the unit was the odd size of the receiver, making it a bit difficult to incorporate into an equipment stack. It's smaller and thicker than most cable/satellite boxes and DVD players, meaning it will have to go on top, or on it's own, a potential issue for those short on shelf space. It also won't fit into a standard rack without some manipulation. This is a simple system designed for ease-of-use and decent sound. It's a big step up from under 100 all-in-one sets, but still well below using a dedicated home theater receiver to decode your audio and video and out-put to a top-of-the-line 7.1 THX speaker system. On the other hand, the Logitech system is also a fraction of cost of such a set-up.

Review by Mark B. Ribau : Awesome Sound

I had a Cambridge Soundworks Megaworks 510D for about 10 years now, and it finally gave out (amp/receiver/sub won't power up). I had used that system both for 4.1 music (in office/living room), 5.1 movies (in living room), and as a 2.1 PA system for music in a approximately 30x30 wooden floor dance area. That system had great quality, filled each of the areas use with clear treble and booming bass. My goal was to replace this system with something of equal quality. I tried out the Sony MHCEC909iP Mini Hi-Fi Shelf System, Logitech Surround Sound Speaker System Z906 (980-000467), and the Logitech THX-Certified Speaker System Z623. The 906 is the best system out of these 3, hands down, for all the above applications. The 906 has the best clarity out of these systems and at only 40% volume makes my floor vibrate with the bass. This system seems better than the 510D that it replaced, but I cannot do a side by side comparison as the 510D no longer works. Rating the other systems in order, I'd say the 623 is better than the Sony. I am primarily basing this on their quality for music in 2.1 modes and the distance they can throw sound. Additionally I viewed a number of Blu-ray movies in 5.1 mode on the 906 and it was quite amazing. 6 inputs (the 5 advertised on the sub + 1 auxiliary on the control unit) let me hook up all my devices at once, which is a HUGE bonus to me. I have (on the sub) a X360 and PS3 each hooked up via the 2 opticals, TV out to the SPDIF (Digital RCA), an HTPC via 3x 1/8in, an airport express for airtunes via 2x RCA; and (on the control unit) an auxiliary cable for laptops/ipods. Each input remembers its "effects" setting -- you can choose 3D for 5.1 sources or to "upchannel" lesser sources into 5.1 (C gets a FL/FR mix, RL/RR get a LPF of FL/FR); the 4.1 setting will take a 2.1 source and map FL/FR to RL/RR (good for music); and the 2.1 setting is for no-upchanneling. As a note: the PS3 and X360 both turn on and off their optical output while in XMB/Dashboard, so some of the sounds get clipped on this system. The system's optical inputs seem to take a moment to "warm up" when a signal is supplied -- since these devices do not supply a constant signal, the beginning of sounds get clipped. During gameplay or movies, a constant signal is provided and is not a problem. I suspect this is a sort of safety feature to prevent audio popping. I have not tried optical inputs/outputs using any other devices, only ever used analog before. Maybe this is normal behavior for this type of connection. The remote is small and plastic, but doesn't feel cheap to me; felt very light without the batteries in, it felt better with the batteries. The control unit feels solid to me. The amp/receiver/sub unit is a bit heavier than it looks. The satellite speakers are definitely heavier than they look; they're also quite sturdy -- as one fell off of the stand I had and it damaged the floor and not itself (hardwood floor) [it still sounded fine, no rattles or hisses or dampening]. I don't know how this unit compares to the 5500. I have listened to a 2300 fairly often at work and the 906 seems a bit clearer. Both have room shaking bass. I am going to purchase Atlantic Satellite 77305018 2 Speaker Stands (Black) to go with this system, I will attempt to edit this post or post a review there detailing if they're any good with this system. While I would believe that a dedicated Amp/Receiver and a multi-thousand dollar system could outperform this system, I believe that this system is sufficient for most people not attempting to fill a large hall with sound.