Part 0: Vs bass-boosted Usher S-520
Well if I'm going to return it to Lazada then I gotta act fast. I still have to compare it against R2000DB which is going to be more important since they are similarly-priced.
Still, I want to compare it against the sound I am used to and see where it falls short.
First impression is, the sound is actually pretty good. And that lasted for about 5 seconds until I realize the high frequency is just garbled up. And when I do a direct comparison with S-520, z623's treble in general is pretty off too. Not by a lot, but certainly worth minus-ing points.
But if you don't have anything to compare against, it has a pretty tolerable sound and relatively accurate. More accurate than Razer Leviathan definitely. It also has a bit of the type of sound I dislike on R2000DB, maybe slightly less of it? It will be interesting to put them against each other.
Vocals actually sounds sweet, albeit harsh in the upper frequencies.
And the key to the good-slash-tolerable sound is the frequency response from bass to mid. It actually nailed it pretty good. I was expecting peaky boom boom and nothing else because the internet only talks about the subwoofer and how good this speaker is for gaming, plus that is usually the sound from 2.1 systems. So what I heard was a surprise to me - The sound with default bass setting is actually just right. If I apply EQ to remove the 98Hz +15dB room boost, I need to adjust the bass higher to compensate the quantity. And even at max setting, the bass volume is not too much over the treble. But well, this depends on where you place the subwoofer anyway. And also because I run EQ; If you don't run EQ to remove room boost, then prepare to eat a huge peak at a certain frequency, which will result in the boom boom. Even though it's not the speaker's fault in this case.
The sub has a pretty good bandwidth and pretty flat across that bandwidth. Unfortunately I can't back that statement up with measurements because it is too hard to get one that actually reflects what I hear when you have sound coming from 4 different locations. (The subwoofer's woofer and port count as different sources located in different locations.)
The subwoofer is just a bit audible at ~33Hz and pretty usable down to around 40Hz. This is around 1 to 2 notes lower than the bass-boosted S-520. Not the best I expect from a 8-inch woofer, but can't complain at this price. And I would rather have this kind of sound over one that reaches low but is peaky to achieve that.
The subwoofer reaches pretty high frequencies, but this is needed because the satellites can't reach very low. The transition is pretty smooth, and I don't hear too much of the "frequency hole" that plagues 2.1 system because the satellites can't go low enough and the sub can't go high enough. Speaking of which, the satellites go pretty low for their size. Transition seems to start at around 200+Hz and the last audible note is around 125Hz.
Speaking of size...
Can anybody tell me what you find weird about the photo above?
Audioengine A2+ specs says a 2.75" woofer, although when I tried buying replacement woofer it turns out this size can be considered 3".
Anyway, the woofer in z623 is noticeably a size smaller than the A2+, despite taking up the same footprint. This is not a space-efficient design.
Back to talking about the sound...
Treble, this is the part that is hard to talk about. Let me just say again first, the overall sound is pretty decent, while the mid to low frequencies are good. Now, treble, the problem is these satellites are highly directional, so you can control how much treble quantity you want. Well, normally this isn't exactly a problem. But the complicating factor is that the treble is harsh, too. Exactly what you would expect from a full-range woofer trying to reproduce high frequencies without a tweeter. If I point it towards myself, I get more treble quantity, the sound is more defined, but it makes other speakers sound muffled. And it also sounds like metal rubbing against metal. And squeaky. Basically, the V is strong. Also, I find it quite hard to judge the treble and keep having to change my verdict, because the sound seems to depend on the music I play. Complicated passages slaughters it, but with simpler songs, the sound is actually pretty acceptable. In some cases it sounds ok, in some cases it sounds like a chipmunk squeaking.
And, if I point it straight forward instead of toeing-in, this sound is more consistent and closer to what I like. Treble quantity is around normal, but higher frequencies are noticeably missing. This results in me switching between toeing-in and not depending on whether I am in the mood for more sharpness, but I think the better long-term choice is to keep them pointing forward and put myself off-axis. I also tried increasing treble via EQ, but it doesn't do any miracle - The treble still sounds metallic.
Overall, z623 is pretty ok. It performs just nice enough for you to not want to upgrade if you haven't heard anything better before, but if you have heard something better then you would probably be wishing to upgrade. And "something better" is pretty much most things with a tweeter, but even then it can be hard to upgrade in terms of size and money, especially when the z623 does do the bass part pretty well.
So, the scoring.
The buzzing. = Not worth buying, or at least taking a severe hit in value. Because, c'mon.
Now, assuming the buzzing in your unit in your setup is acceptable for you, then,
Other 2.1 alternatives, I immediately think of Swan M10, M50W. (Edifier M3600D seems to have disappeared.)
M50W should win it easy. I did complain of satellite bass extension and how the sub was peaky, but now I have enough EQ and positioning knowledge to improve on both. And while I complained about the FR, I don't remember thinking it sounds weird or low-quality. With a bit of tweaking it should sound much closer to proper speakers compared to what z623 may achieve.
M10... I haven't heard it in my room,
so I'm going to guess: 3" woofers + 0.75" tweeters should have no problem against smaller full-range woofers. Bass should be around that of a good bookshelf, while z623's bass is a tad better than that. I would choose good treble while sacrificing some bass extension. Of course, this assumes that the 3" woofer + 0.75" tweeters + that subwoofer actually perform like what I think they do, and I have been tricked by appearance before.
I think the problem is that Swans are too good for their price here, actually wait no, certain bookshelves brands are too good for their price here, and Swans 2.1s just happen to be rather bookshelf-y.
I would say, at the USA price of USD$99 or around SGD$135, the z623 is a pretty good choice, as the only dangerous opponent here is M10 and this is a price where it can trade blows with M10 - both have advantages and disadvantages over each other. Maybe a 4.5-star?
So let's calculate backwards - Each 0.5 star is worth 12.5% of price. If $135 is 4.5 star, then 4-star would be $150, 3.5-star = $175, 3-star = $200, 2.5-star = $230, 2-star = $269. Plus minus around $10.
Also this is where I find my star system may be inaccurate, because z623 should be no worse than Razer Leviathan yet the Razer Leviathan got a 3-star @ $300. Checking back, I valuated the Leviathan at $200. So I may have valuated z623 too low. But then I can't help it because M10 and M50W. Actually I think the main problem is M10. Or perhaps I valuated the Leviathan higher because of the features and the form factor.
Anyway, z623, at $269, definitely hard to justify. Current prices? Somewhat a possible candidate, and that is primarily because the market is so empty. Essentially this against M10, and the cheaper it gets during sales, the better.
I think the main fun is really going to be comparing it against bookshelves that are priced at the same price.
