Kanto Powered Desktop Speakers - Gloss Red

I'm running my YU2s with an an Audioengine S8 sub (crossed over at 80Hz). I'm mostly going to talk about how these are with a sub as I really don't find the YU2s adequate without one. If you want anything close to full ranged sound, you're going to need a sub. Out of the box, even with the sub, the YU2s have a tinny sound that is desperately in need of mid-bass boost. This is pretty normal as we're working with some pretty small 3" drivers. Fortunately this is easily taken care of with Equalizer APO (Windows) and the Peace UI for APO. This is a powerful PC EQ for audiophile use. I know there are Mac alternatives though I don't know them by name. Learn how to use these tools to avoid clipping and you can make a really squeeze performance out of your speakers. Don't let that inital tinny sound fool you, these speakers are capable of much much more. The YU2s are capable of putting out respectable and great sounding mid-bass for their size. They aren't going to replicate what larger drivers can, it's that simple. But are they great for gaming and music on a PC? Will they impress you with what they can do for their size? Absolutely. My last PC setup was a set of Klipsch Promedia 2.1. This setup is definitely a large improvement over that. The YU2's top end is detailed and clean. Nice sparkly highs, clear vocals and punchy mid-bass after tuning out the system. If you want a sub with your system for gaming, movies and music, I do recommend the Audioengine S8. I chose this to pair with the YU2 specifically because it is a ported sub with a small footprint and a good sized woofer for a small office room. If you want your explosions to go "BOOM" you need a port for the added bass extension. This particular sub handles music great too. If you're not into games or movies, you may want to try Kanto's SUB8 instead which is sealed. A sealed sub will provide an arguably tighter punch, but will be lacking for games and movies. I personally like the versatility of the long throw ported S8. Build quality and looks of the YU2 are fantastic on the enclosure, tweeter, driver, backplate and knobs. I got the flat white which is just perfect looking for me. Beautiful and quality finish. I did knock a star off on build quality due to a pretty garbage mini-jack cord that shipped with the system. It was flimsy and caused a really loud buzzing sound when moving the wires due to a bad wire connection near the connector. They should choose something with more reinforcement for a mini-jack. This was the only weak-point as the speaker wire, RCAs and power cord were fine. I chose to use a mini-jack instead of the USB as I want to use my keyboard to change volume. Sounds great this way. No complaints, no hiss, no hum, even with no music playing and the volume set to max. Very clean sound. Cord length is plenty long so getting the wires to the left speaker was not a problem. My PC hangs under the desk on the right, and the main speaker connections are on the left speaker. If your setup is similar, worry not. I got them with the matching stands which I do recommend. If you don't get stands, they do come with some felt stick on discs you can place on the bottom. The stands will angle the speakers to ear level, improving clarity. Worth it. The 5 star sound rating I chose takes their size into account. These are great for 3" computer speakers. If you are space limited on your computer desk, you're going to be hard pressed to do better at this price point. Their obvious competitor, the Audioengine A2+, is more expensive, and from what I've read, they can have a hiss and come more overly pre-colored from a sound signature standpoint. The A2+ has a 60watt peak, compared to the YU2's 100watt peak. The A2+ seems over-priced to me for being more or less the same thing and less powerful. Overall very happy with the purchase. Great speaker at a great price. -- Tweaked out the profile and I'm even more happy with these speakers. Attached image shows my Equalizer APO YU2 settings with the Audioengine S8. If I have one major complaint about the YU2 at this point it's the lack of a high-pass filter for use with a sub. If you try to achieve any really loud volumes the speakers distort. If they had added a high-pass filter these could achieve a clearer sound with less distortion by sending the low frequencies to the sub. Still goes plenty loud, so not a huge deal, but certainly a missed opportunity by Kanto.