FIRST REVIEW: PSB Alpha AM5 Active Speakers
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- čas přidán 23. 07. 2024
- Here's more about the PSB Alpha AM5, www.psbspeakers.com/product/a...
Specs:
5 ½” (133mm) Black steel polypropylene midbass woofer
¾” (19mm) Aluminium ferro-fluid cooler tweeter with front waveguide
Built with a high-performance Class D amplifier with 50 watts
Acoustically engineered cabinet with a tuned port for low bass
Built-in phono preamp with a rear RCA input for turntables
Qualcomm aptX HD for high-definition Bluetooth streaming
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Steve’s System:
SME 15 turntable sme.co.uk/audio/product/model...
SME V tonearm sme.co.uk/audio/product/serie...
Ortofon Cadenza Blue cartridge
Van Den Hul Grail phono preamp audioshield-distribution.com/...
Jay’s Audio CD Transport www.jays-audio.com/
Denafrips Terminator DAC www.denafrips.com/terminator
Denafrips Ares DAC www.denafrips.com/ares
Mytek Manhattan 2 DAC mytekdigital.com/hifi/product...
Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ mytekdigital.com/hifi/product...
Border Patrol DAC borderpatrol.net/DAC.htm
Oppo BDP 105 Blu ray player www.oppodigital.com/support/b...
Pass Labs XP30 preamp
Pass Labs HPA 1 preamp/headphone amp www.passlabs.com/products/hpa-1/
Pass Labs XA25 power amp www.passlabs.com/products/xa25/
Pass Labs XA100.5 power amp
First Watt J2 power amp www.firstwatt.com/j2.html
First Watt F7 power amp www.firstwatt.com/f7.html
First Watt SIT3 power amp www.firstwatt.com/pdf/prod_sit...
Amp Camp Amp Stereo diyaudiostore.com/collections...
Schiit Aegir power amp www.schiit.com/products/aegir
Mytek Brooklyn Amp+ mytekdigital.com/hifi/product...
Denon PMA600NE integrated amp usa.denon.com/en/shop/amplifi...
Klipsch Cornwall IV speakers • Klipsch Cornwall IV wi...
KEF LS50 speakers
KEF LS50 Meta speakers • REVIEW: Radically impr...
Q Acoustics 3030i speakers www.qacoustics.com/3030i-book...
Emotiva B1+ speakers emotiva.com/products/airmotiv...
Adam Audio F5 speakers
AudioQuest digital cables www.audioquest.com/cables/dig...
Kimber digital cable www.kimber.com/products/D60
Cardas interconnect cables cardas.com/clear_reflection_ic...
JPS Labs interconnects jpslabs.com/collections/inter...
Nordost speaker cables nordost.com/leif/red-dawn/red...
AudioQuest power cables www.audioquest.com/ac-power/a... - Zábava
Thank you Steve, I have been really enjoying all of your reviews during this strange year of Covid et al. Keep up the excellent work, yours, Steven Howie.
Steve, I really appreciate that you include the recordings in your reviews 👍 I really dig Pink Floyd, Yes, king crimson, especially the earlier, jazzier, experimental stuff. Hope you and yours are well!
Thanks Steve - love your presentations and knowledge, I’m going to set my teenage boys up with a set of these for vinyl, Bluetooth and TV sound! PSB was a part of my youth growing up in Ottawa 🇨🇦
Active speakers can sound good and I like that you can connect a subwoofer. The phono inputs will come in handy to users like my daughter who is asking for a turntable for her 17th birthday and
wants to keep her first stereo system simple.
You might like to consider the tannoy 8 inch monitor gold series better speaker than this or the klipsch 5 getting for no more than $400 a pair, they are priced individually. has a frequency response on 54 to 20000Hz 300 watt amplifier bi- amp they will go loud and will not distort you have been warned lol. it has three inputs to 3.5 mm jack a Xlr a TRS phono jack what is balanced as well no phono input only line and balance. You won't need a sub with them it has basic justement on the back two positions from flat -/+2 and the treble position on the front with volume!. But I'm assuming you're buying a table not advisable with a built-in phono stage if that's the case you should go with the project primary e, that has a built-in phono stage very good table best phono stage built in, should be under $200 don't buy a crosley or anything similar.
Fantastic upgrade for the turntable but it's fantastic in itself ortofon 5 cartridge you could get later on when you need to replace the stylus, get audio Technica dual moving magnet atvm95ml cartridge has microline styli that's what you want to go for that's what everybody should be going for about $140. looking for a cheap phono stage there's art DJ ideally without USB!! but if that's desirable to connect to computer then do so $50 better than that is the ifi zen phono stage $150 can't really go wrong with that price for a phono stage you would need to go probably into $500+ to better it. Food for Thought hope it helps the speakers ideal in a book case scenario being front ported
I have the passive ALPHA P5s as an additional, more relaxed bookshelf option for my main system and I really enjoy their “listen all day” vibe. And for such small speakers they pack quite the bass wallop.
I can see the active version being a solid choice for an office, larger bathroom, kitchen, or dorm room if one didn’t want to or just couldn’t be bothered by separate pieces. I certainly praise the convenience combined with high quality that you get with all PSB gear.
Would be interesting how these speakers compare to the klipsch fives.
So glad you've reviewed another active speaker. I wouldn't advise any music lover stereo newbie to buy separates unless they really wanted to go down the rabbit hole. PSB does rock. My first "serious" speaker was their Stratus Bronze.
Streamed Bluetooth music from any source is enjoyable for both background and discovery of new music especially on internet radio channels. Good one Mr Guttenberg.
I love my active speakers. M-Audio BX5s for work and Klipsch RP-41s with JBL 10 sub for TV gaming. Klipsch Mirage OM-9s towers for the music room.
Wow Steve I have the box set for the early years Pink Floyd. Also my favourite era xx
Nice Rug. I am a fan of PSB speakers having owned four sets over time. I was a little let down by the Blusound Node 2i sound. Things improved a lot when I replaced the throw away IC cables with a pair of Audience Ohno ICs. Also another improvement when I fed the stream into my Gugnier DAC instead of using the Dac in the Node. Now I'm playing with modestly priced COAX digital cables.
Fun with stereo.
Sounds like they would make a great desktop system.
Well what do you know... finally, a review of a PSB product. Long time coming. I hope you can do another in the next 4 or 5 years. Sorry for the sarcasm. Love the channel.
There's a interesting rabbit hole with actives also. I am doing a project with the new hypex fusion plate amps. Three way actives. You have the hypex filter design built in so lots of flexibility with driver choices because your are designing your own crossover network. Combine this with dirac room correction and dsp and you have av pretty wild set up. It is not cheap. When you consider your amplification, and dac and room correction is built in, you are actually getting straight to the music in its best possible light for any given environment. Not everybody is willing to explore these rabbit holes, however it really is a way to get extremely excellent sound and a shortcut to the magic carpet ride experience i love so much.
Smoke a number and always enjoy your day
Should certainly check out the Edifier S2000mkiii's. Out of all the powered speakers Ive had and measured over the years, they are definitely a gem and perform lightyears above their $400 price point. I hoping to measure them soon but there are a few reviews out there who have already done so, and they do very well.
I think PSB speakers are one of the best bang for the buck's that you can find. I also draw the line after over 50 years as an audiophile with active speakers. I thought I was a liberal minded guy but maybe I'm a conservative at heart when it comes to audio electronics. I don't care what it sounds like. Smacks of planned obsolescence just like cell phones, LCD's and the other new modern technology that I find useless. That's awfully harsh of me but I wanted to throw my two cents in here.
@@FelixtheMetalcat I agree. My opinions are just my preferences. Everyone should have what they want and what they like.
I know a few people who swear by active speakers. I don't think there's any planned obsolescence with actives - professional studios have been using them for years. But I still remain to be convinced that a passive speaker + decent amp can be outgunned by an active monitor. They might achieve transparency (and save space), but if you want more than that then its the trad route for me as well
@Wattage Vintage and current models of the great Klipsch speakers are the real deal. The speakers I am speaking of are made in China, totally different design philosophy and have nothing to do with the great Cornwall's or the other great Klipsch speakers. These are some of the greatest speakers ever crafted. Don't mix apples and oranges even though they have the same company name. I know that Steve has a very different opinion than mine but we are all entitled to our opinions.
Neil, I’m probably around the same age as you,and I think active speakers are a younger person’s playground.
They maybe want a simplified version,and if I was that age I might as well 👍🎶🍷
@@richardjohnston4682 Richard, like the Audiophiliac. I have been around the block more than a few times with so much equipment that it would make your head spin. That's part of the insanity of loving music and audio equipment. It's too late for me to stop now. Other people may very well enjoy this new technology.
Hi Steve, great review as always. What are these little cones on the Cornwalls for?
Great review Steve.
Pink Floyd, is all personal opinion. I discovered them with Wish You Where Here. For me their best albums are DSOTM, WYWH and Animals. But I love all their work, from their debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, the early psychedelic records, through the more mature and progressive sound from Dark Side through The Wall and also the more relaxed and ambience sound post Waters era. Pink Floyd is a long life companion that reflects the changes we all experiment during the course of life.
Hi Steve great show I was just wondering what those speakers are behind you in this they remind me of my old Petterson Studio monitors great old pair of Aussie made speakers have you heard of them before ?
I would like to hear your review on the Focal alpha 65 which is an active speaker.
I still have a pair of PSB from the 90s...my first pair of hifi speakers.
I would say the ones I have are voiced closer to the brit sound than the American
Thanks for the review.do you perhaps know at what Freq the speakers cut of when sub mode is selected.
Wow Active speakers, if you get the possibility to test the LS50 wireless 2 I'm really curious about how it compares to passive LS50 Meta. Being that on the wireless it has all components integrated by KEF it self. Would also be nice to get to know the difference between LS50 wireless 2 connected to a CD player or playing Tidal music send by bluetooth.
So - these are most of a stereo system - inside the speakers! Add the source(s) and you have a stereo.
Are the cabinets any larger volume, than the passive version - to make room for the electronics? With the DSP, they could have dispensed with the passive crossover, altogether.
How do they compare to the Alpha B1? I have my alpha b1 running from a recording quality dac, into a tube amp with gold lion kryogenic treated KT88's.
Still miss my PSB Imagine Minis. Fantastic for the size.
Hi Steve, relatively new to the youtube magazine style thing; old Stereo Review subscriber. Great review. Looking through your and other reviews, I noticed no one seems to be talking about Martin Logan. Am I missing something? Keep looking at their motion series as an upgrade to my original motion 10s.
An avid '80's Stereo Review/High Fidelity/Stereophile reader here!
Right now, I'm in the market for a replacement set of speakers for my desktop PC, which is where I do all of my listening, which I want in fine quality. I'm considering this here reviewed PSB Alpha AM5, and I will have a look at Steve's review of the solution from Bowers & Wilkins.
Currently, I own (as of now, 5 yrs.) the PSB Alpha PS1 speaker pair, which has something wrong with its amplifier section. I also own the Nakamichi CA-5 preamplifier and the Yamaha MX-1 power amp. Therefore, could I get better sound, just paying $399.00 (instead of $599.00) for a pair of the PSB Alpha P5s, given that my separate - albeit big and cumbersome - preamp/amp solution may be better quality than is provided with PSB's active solutions?
I'd be interested in hearing how the PSB Alpha AM5 compares to the Audioengine A5+, my current desktop speakers. I've long been a fan of PSB--the Synchrony 1 is the heart of my main stereo system.
Have you finally experienced the comparison?
have you tried the JBL LSR305
, I think they're discontinued now but I have them since 2016 and would like to know if you have an opinion on them
As others have said I would love to see you compare these to the Klipsch Fives. I don’t think I have seen you review The Fives that I can recall. Please correct me if I am wrong about this. I really like The Fives. They sound good and have the added convenience if HDMI ARC. And a DAC that will do Hi Res files. I am using a sub with these and am very happy with them.
Question about these Speakers, If i want to connect them from a Mojo2 via 3.5mm analog input they will downsample to 48khz, or the input will go straight to the build in amp? From what i understood only the digital connections are limited, the usb and bluetooth cuz they use the internal DAC of the speakers. Thank you in advance!
So I went from here to look up Son of Dave - please please tell me you watched his lock-down video. It is hilarious!
Hey Steve ,i have a question i just baught these they are freakin awseome but i feel like they dont get very loud . Is it just me?
Do you have any Speaker suggestions for people with sensitive hearing, or hearing issues? I am very sensitive to high pitched sounds but would like to build a system that does not make my hearing worse. I've heard that Songs Faber might be good but the are a bit pricey. Thanks
Buy an eq
Currently enjoying my acoustic energy AE-1 Actives. More money but pretty darn good. They're holding me over until my Decware 2 watt amp arrives per your recommendation. Been waiting since July. There are still about 40 people ahead of me. Plan on pairing it with klipsch rp600m.... Another one of your suggestions. You think that'll make a nice pair? As for Floyd, can't stand any of it including and after dark side of the moon. Absolutely love meddle & umma gumma
Wish You Were Here is pretty cool but the wall? Hmm. Anyway made an 80 min CD from Ummagumma vinyl yesterday. 4 tracks. Meddle my all time floyd favorite.
I love the early Pink Floyd. Great review Steve
The "Class D" amplifiers by Emotiva in my system deliver true "audiophile sound". So do the PS Audio amps, and the Bang & Olufsen amps.
Meaning: class D amps have really "arrived", and are good fot these PSB speakers!
I have Cary Audio integrated class A tube amp, naim cd player and the efficient psb imagine T speakers... hard to beat combination unless you go really high with your budget. Very happy PSB owner!
I have the Image T6 towers driven by the Cambridge AZUR 751-R2 receiver/amp. I like the towers but, I find them a bit to soft for my liking. A bit too passive.
@@clasvirhodes4969 not sure about the T6, I see they are considerably less expensive. Also the rest of the gear and the room play an important role....
@@cesarestefanini1299 I paid $1100.00 for them back when they were new. PSB has since changed the model name Imagine X2T. Appears to be same speaker.
Steve off topic,what amp do you like best to pair with your Cornwall lV ‘s. and why.
@@clasvirhodes4969 Cabinet design very different (tapered for the imagine T, rear port, traditional for the t6/x2t and front port), different drivers and arrangement. Imagine T were 2k dollars, T6 and x2t around 1.1k. No experience with t6 but I guess the sound is similar, maybe due to the design a bit slower and a bit less controlled bass. Also my listening room is not big and not reflecting, which helps. Btw I have also in main room turntable (ariston audio + ultracraft arm and dynavector cartidge) with solid state pre/fin audioanalogue and maggies, which is in some areas better, but not in everything....
Is that the Leak130 with the Klipsch speakers?
I absolutely agree with you on the old Sid Barrett days of Pink Floyd. It’s like AC DC with Bon Scott. It’s just more fun.
check out Andrei Cerbu's Garage on yt. Not only top notch guitarist but every band is great and his singers are all fine too oh yeah just fun stuff.
I Love that shirt !!!
Any thoughts on MBL or JTR?
Wonder how they're with classical music, large orchestras, operas?
how would they be as TV speakers....thx
Do you think they can be good as desktop speakers?
Sounds like a good option for a near field workdesk speaker.
Wondering same. Maybe the model 3?
I STILL HAVE A PAIR OF OLDY BUT MOLDY PSB AMAZING ALPHAS. I HAVE THEM ON THERE SIDE END TO END AS MY CENTER CHANEL SPEAKER.
m.czcams.com/video/c5YEJaItFNo/video.html
A little hard to pay attention with those Cornwalls laughing at me in the background. Steve, what are they sitting on and why? Someday....
Hahahha... me too bro... and tannoy berkeleys and jbl l100 and ls3/5a
With advancements in all other wireless tech, im still floored at how they cant get bluetooth to transmit full uncompressed 16\44 PCM at the very least : (
Another great review, by the way, Steve. Talking about Pink Floyd... I have the "Early Years" huge boxset, wich is beautiful and full of surprises. I grew up with Pink Floyd and, like you, the first half of the way is most challenging and the most important. For me, 1973 "Dark Side of Moon" is not a masterpiece (is a good record but is full of sonic artifacts and sounds like a crystallization of their ideas, that can't beat the previous records). The masterpiece is "Atom Heart Mother". The last highly recommended record from Floyd is 1979 "The Wall". After " The Final Cut" David Gilmour transformed an historical band in a "stadium pastiche".
Ironic that Atom Heart Mother was reviled by the band itself, and was their least favourite of their creations.
Personally, I really like parts of it.
After The Final Cut, The band transformed from Pink Floyd to 'Pink Fraud'.
Dark Side of The Moon ”a good record”. As a musician it’s a bit more than that.
Millmoor Michael , like I've said... Apart from the audiophile quality, they recorded much better records before "Dark Side...". It's a personal opinion, but is not a sacrilege.
“Atom Heart Mother” has a special place in my heart. What do those Pink Floyd guys know.
I smacked my 30 year old Fisher receiver with a hammer and it started working again. I put 65 watts into my Klipsch towers for the first time and was pleasantly suprised. Glad to have tone controls. Not needed for 70s rock but way too warm for techno.
I bought the AM5's with a 12" powered sub. I've had them for about a week. I sort of wish I would have started with just the speakers. They sound really good, standalone, without a subwoofer. I'm constantly playing with the subwoofer volume, and EQ- to get, the bass, perfect between songs. Too loud, too quiet, too tight, too extended. It's a hassle. Even using LFE + default settings. Even when you get it dialed in. Change genre, it's all wrong. The AM5's without a subwoofer- there's no fuss, no muss, no coconuts. It just sounds good with enough bass to suite most situations. It is nice to have the subwoofer.
Steve have You try the Vanatoo Transparent One? Its sound amazing for the price
Amazing speaker!
The vanatoo transparent ones or truly a butt ugly speaker no matter how good they sound or how cheap they are!
That sounds like a mighty little speaker loaded with features for the price.
I am down with you on the early Pink Floyd that's all I ever listen to when I listen to Pink Floyd
Yes Steve, whats it really like in NYC? We are hearing its a ghost town, all kind of gloom and doom. What does it feel like to live there and are reports accurate? Thanks
Brooklyn feels almost normal, Greenwich Village is also doing OK, neighborhoods are mostly getting by, but there are NO tourists, and that feels strange. Most big office buildings have yet to come back to life. As with most things, it's complicated.
APTX isn’t totally terrible if it’s balanced . I wonder if y’all agree?
Less than a minute in and can’t keep my eyes open, goodnight.
Just bought the album on discogs
Nice T-shirt.
I have PSB T6 Towers. Wanting to upgrade but dont know where to go.
Re. Active speaker planned obsolescence. I have recently changed my system from Meridian M2 after Around 30 years of use and only because they died and I can't get them mended. My replacement is very good quality but I wouldn't say better, just different. It seems that if you buy well either way can be a good choice.
Try some Dunlavey towers?
There is a turnstile of the same products making the rounds for opinion on social media. Is there any way to break this chain?
Yes stop watching or reading them.
@@scottyo64 I don’t think so. There is more out there. It should be presented.
agree about Floyd
STEVE - let's settle it. Please, I beg you. The TOTEM STEEL TOPS/NIPPLES - do they, or do they not, work? And what are the effects. Thanks.
Beeks. Jeff
@@duncanmacfie7572 RIGHT! Beeks. Can't believe I forgot that. Time flies.
Real shit.
A Leak review on the way?
Is putting a phono preamp inside a speaker a good idea? I know it's convenient, but...
Well your main amp is in there too. I think they should bi amp it TBH like my ADS 2002 ones I need to rehook up that have a 60 amp for bass and I forget what for the top end. Active way ahead of it's time.
@@JohnDoe-np3zk Because I always read that Isolating a phono preamp from vibrations is important, more so then a line level preamp, and inside a speaker is not the most vibration free environment.
@@laurelhardy4064
Isolation from vibrations is important, but what's more important is to 'drain off' or eliminate vibrations and resonance from *every* piece of gear. The cumulative result is much more clarity and transparency.
This isn't a 10k system, doubt you would notice a difference.
I like Early Floyd
I think an equally relevant question is what your system can do with badly, heavily compressed recorded music where the sound is bad but the tunes are good.
Compare this with the Monoprice Monolith MM-5R (38620) with AMT Tweeter and same features (Bluetooth, Sub-Out, Toslink) and USB, Headphone Output, Dual AB amps, Remote Control, ALL for half the price ($299 at Newegg). Read the reviews.
Long Hallways gets compaired to early Pink Floyd from time to time. Not sure if I agree or not.
Hats off to you Stephane the Golden record blouse gone platinum I'm saying most sincerely, planar speakers transduce the correct sound as it is aside headphones. Sweet spot is a tweak at least with some pokes for each with 🆓 free time scale and humidity in mindsets. As a result I'll be more attentive to enjoying at some megawatts and Java as in homebrew alcohol free beer to really relive the as they call it in music theory "Movement" the special emphatic of meaningful reliving the spirit of the nevertime. infinity has arrived in every xsilium and as it stands after a decade with the life troubles coming and going (R.Syd. B. Without error, movement brings good fortune, sunset sunrise sunriiissseee. O:-)
Oh, man, that's so heavy!
The Reciva Internet Radio website is shutting down as of January 31, 2021. Grace Digital as well as many other Reciva bases internet radios will be affected. Sorry this is off topic.
Steve, what is your opinion of the greatest albums ever released by an artist, back to back. Here is my choices : 1. Tea for the Tillerman / Teaser & the Firecat, 2. After the Gold Rush / Harvest, 3. Rubber soul / Revolver
Those are good choices
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac Love to hear yours
Why are the tweeters on the bottom?
I like this reviews but that was not a fair comparison
The one major issue with all active speakers is that none of them have lighted meters on the front. How can you be an *audioposeur* without meters? What's that? You say you just listen to the music? How arrière garde is that? ;)
I agree with you about pink Floyd, Dark Side of moon is a work of art but musically overrated. And everything after just sounds like you're on a downer after a hard night (not a good feeling).
I agree pre-Dark Side Pink Floyd is much more interesting. Before Roger Waters' ego became the size of a planet.
Jvc bombaster is better
Never use Bluetooth
These features, while not exact, are on hundreds of active speakers. Why so long to review one? Prolly cause you wanna control the amp in use.
I don't know what it is about PSB Alphas that get Stereophile so excited but truth is they are pretty mediocre and nowhere near the hype your mag bestows on them. A friend picked up a pair of Alphas and tried to live with them as they were compact but in the end he switched back to his vintage KEF Corellis. Ahhhh what a difference. Sorry Steve, no comparison. Vintage still rules at the budget level.
OMG! I cannot hear this anymore: A 5 1/4 inch "Woofer"? Are they all kidding? A 5 1/4 " Driver is a midrange Tweeter, but not a "Woofer"! A Woofer has to have an 8" Diameter for the minimum to be not just a Toy!....
This
@Wattage The 3.5s are a typical example for overrated and overpriced! OK, If I would be a Collector, then it'll be ok. But otherwise, there´s enough out there for 3K that´s better and more attractive ;-)
Epic beard, dude. : )
@@HareDeLune LOL..Yeah...It took a while ..
It all depends what you are using the speaker for. For near field use these are ok. I do not want 18" tall speakers on both sides of my computer monitor on my work desk. If you want more bass use the subwoofer out function.