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(More customer reviews)I've been using an old Atlantic Technology Pattern 100 sat/sub system for about 10 years now and I decided it was time to try something a little more modern. (Also, the AT 100's had an annoying habit of playing a local AM station that has a big antenna near our house through the speakers at various, unpredictable times.) I was going to get a pair of M-Audio AV-40's, and also thought about getting a pair of Behringers, but after reading the reviews of those speaker systems I decided to go with the Numark NPM5's.
My first impression upon taking them out of the box was that they were bigger than I expected. (That's not a problem -- they fit perfecty on my desktop on either side of my 23" monitor. It's just that each speaker is almost the size of some of the subwoofers that come with cheap Logitech or Cyber Acoustic sat/sub sytems.) They were a breeze to set up. Everything is included except a cable to run from your computer -- either on board sound or sound card -- to the speakers or a mixer, but those cables are readily available on Amazon: HOSA CMP159 Stereo Mini Male to Phone Y-Cable-10 Feet, Live Wire 3.5M (TRS)-Dual 1/4" Y Cable, 10 Foot, or Belkin Audio Y Cable Splitter 1-Mini Plug/2-RCA Plugs --6ft. The wire connecting the left/right speakers is plenty long for any setup I can think of. If not, it's standard speaker wire so you don't have to deal with any proprietary cable/wiring. You just loosen the plastic black and red tightening knobs, thread the wire through the hole in the post, and retighten the knobs. There was even a 3' dual RCA to dual RCA cable included, which surprised me because I didn't see it listed in the "what's included" list.
Now...for the big test...the sound. I did notice a difference in bass between the AT Pattern 100's and the NPM5's, but that's to be expected. Back in the day, the AT 100's got rave reviews, competing against $2,000.00 + speaker systems. But for what they are, the NPM5's are excellent speakers in their own right. And at $80, including shipping, they're simply unbelievable, especially considering the adjustable bass and treble controls on the back of the main speaker. All in all, I feel like I've committed some kind of crime getting these babies for $80. I did my best to match the sound coming out of the speakers to a pair of Grado SR-60's headphones, and I was able to get it pretty close, except for the bass, which to my ear is a little thin on the NPM5's. But aside from that the sound is tight, clear, and accurate.
I did put a small piece of black electrical tape over the light at the top of the speaker that has all of the controls in the back. Otherwise, the light is a little too bright and distracting, especially at night with all the room lights out. But the tape softens it considerably, so that now it gives off a nice, soft blue-ish glow. Also, there are some speakers similar to these that have the volume and bass/treble controls in the front. That would have been nice, but it's no big deal to reach around the back and fine tune the sound just the way you want it.
I'm using the computer's on-board sound (volume set to max, no EQ) and a little Mackie 402-VLZ3 mixer (channel 1/2, both volumes & bass/treble set to the middle position). The volume on the NMP5 main speaker is set to 2 o'clock, and the Mackie's master volume is only set to between 8 & 9 o'clock -- and these speakers are rocking!!! I just finished listening to The James Gang -- Bomber Medley, and I still can't believe all that sound came from these two speakers. And on something softer, like Al Petteway's 'Spindrift', it's as if he were playing right there in front of me on my desk. Very impressive/highly recommended!!!
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