Edifier R1280DB

Sources split almost evenly. The Headphone List, Pokde, nloop, EnosTech, EFTM and Digital Reviews hear a warm, smooth, well-balanced speaker, and Hardware-Helden hears a mild smile curve that is fun for games and music. ASR's Klippel measurement of the R1280T shows two resonances and a jagged response, and Amir heard it as a bit bass-heavy and then bright. Several owners hear the same thing: bass-heavy and very bright with the dials flat, harsh, or muddy and dead. Amazon's sound mentions run 984 positive to 127 negative. Owners who like it after adjustment usually turn the bass down and the treble down or up.

Full and punchy for a 4-inch driver, with no real deep bass. ASR found the R1280T's bass holds up at elevated levels, and Pokde, EnosTech and nloop call it punchy and deep enough. The Headphone List hears a warm mid-bass emphasis with some bloat, Hardware-Helden says the upper bass is laid on too thick, and EFTM misses any real rumble. Some owners find it boomy or too heavy for TV dialogue, while others want a subwoofer. Placement changes it a lot: closer to a wall or corner adds bass, and raising the speakers off the desk tightened it for one owner.

“It has excellent bass that doesn't fall apart even at elevated levels with a single speaker playing.”

Audio Science Review (R1280T, same drivers)

“Some bloat is apparent, and the R1280DB is neither the most agile or separated speaker.”

The Headphone List (Ryan Soo)

“Der Oberbass-Bereich ist etwas zu stark angefettet.”

Hardware-Helden (German: 'the upper bass is laid on a little too thick')

Sources split, and the split tracks what people use it for. For music, The Headphone List praises a natural, well-articulated midrange, Hardware-Helden says the midrange is well rendered, and Pokde finds vocals clear. Buyers using it as TV speakers often struggle with dialogue: Stu's Reviews found vocals muddy on TV, an ASR owner describes a recessed midrange, a Reddit owner can't make out film dialogue, and an Amazon owner found speech clearer on the TV's own speakers.

Sources split three ways, and the complaints point in opposite directions. Pokde, Hardware-Helden and an AudioKarma member who repairs powered monitors find the tweeter clean and not too bright. ASR measured a tweeter peak near 10 kHz and heard it as bright, and several owners call it extremely bright, harsh, tinny or fatiguing. Others hear the opposite: The Headphone List says it rolls off early and lacks air, and owners on AudioKarma and a YouTube reviewer found the treble muffled or lacking clarity. Owners who dislike it turn the treble dial down or up to suit.

Wide at the desk, small in a room. An ASR owner who raised and angled the speakers into a nearfield triangle found the stereo image surprisingly wide, and EFTM heard a good overall soundstage. An AudioKarma owner comparing them with a Sony receiver and bookshelf pair found the Edifiers constrained to the boxes, and a HiFiVision owner lost the effect as soon as he left his seat.

“The separations of instruments, the stereo, man it's wide!”

ASR forum owner (nearfield, raised and angled)

“The Sony's had dynamics and a wide soundstage that made the Edifiers sound constrained to their physical space.”

AudioKarma forum owner

Sources split. The Headphone List rates it one of the more detailed speakers at its price, and Pokde, Digital Reviews and a HiFiVision owner find it detailed. Stu's Reviews doesn't think the clarity is there, nloop finds it less clear than the cheaper Micca PB42X, an AudioKarma owner heard guitar parts on a Sony pair that were missing on the Edifiers, and an Amazon owner calls it extremely overrated for detail.

Sources split, largely by distance and room. Hardware-Helden found it composed even at full volume with a metal soundtrack, ASR's R1280T got through Amir's 'speaker killer' tracks at elevated levels, and Mattie K.B. found it much louder than expected. Others hear it congest: Digital Reviews says it gets muddy at full tilt, an ASR owner says it falls apart at higher volumes and farther away, a Reddit owner calls it very congested as the volume goes up, and Amazon's volume mentions run 137 positive to 77 negative. ASR's sweep sounded fine at 86 dB but not at 96 dB.

Sources agree it is a nearfield speaker that needs aiming. ASR found little vertical margin and pointed the speakers up at the listener, a HiFiVision owner recommends tilting them towards your ears if they sit on the desk, and an ASR owner found them transformed once raised and angled. Several owners say the clarity and punch fade as soon as they move away from the seat or use them across a room. The front port allows placement near a wall, which adds bass, and a corner adds more. One owner tightened the bass by raising the speakers on foam and paperbacks.

“Vertically you don't have much margin of error so I suggest pointing the speaker up at you as I did during my listening tests”

Audio Science Review (R1280T, same drivers)

“Once I move out of my chair in front of PC, it loses the clarity, detail, punch and volume.”

HiFiVision forum owner (desk, PC)

“they achieve greater bass depth and emphasis when placed in front of a wall, and even greater impact when in a corner.”

The Headphone List (Ryan Soo)

Sources split, on a handful of owner reports; no reviewer mentions noise either way. A Reddit owner hears an obvious static-like buzz at idle on every input, which forum replies put down to mains interference or a ground loop, and an Amazon owner hears hiss from the powered speaker. Other Amazon owners say it has little or no noise. Edifier rates the noise level at 25 dB(A) or less.

A strong point. Two RCA inputs, optical, coaxial and Bluetooth, an infrared remote and bass and treble dials are more than most rivals offer, and reviewers from Techtesters to Hardware-Helden single this out. The limits: no subwoofer output (added on the later R1280DBs), no aptX, no Dolby Digital over optical (set the TV to PCM), optical and coaxial accept only 44.1/48 kHz PCM, only one input plays at a time, there is no USB input, and Bluetooth connects to one device at a time.

“It lacks AptX support”

Pokde

“they don't support Dolby Digital”

Stu's Reviews (YouTube)

“you can only use one input at a time you cannot mix multiple inputs”

Mattie K.B. (YouTube)

Sources split between easy setup and fiddly daily use. Reviewers and most owners found setup and Bluetooth pairing simple; The Headphone List notes it reconnects to the last device by itself, and Amazon's setup mentions run 201 to 5. Others hit snags: Bluetooth that stays latched to a TV until you disconnect it, stuttering over Chromecast, a PC that won't pair, and noticeable lip-sync lag on TV. Owners also complain about the small remote (Amazon: 85 positive, 91 negative), an input light hidden under the side dials, volume that jumps up at power-on, and no sound until the fourth volume step.

Sources split between looks and longevity. Reviewers find the MDF cabinets with wood-effect sides solid and attractive, Hardware-Helden calls the pair well made, one ASR owner's pair survived years of abuse by children, and Amazon's appearance mentions run 282 to 4. Against that, Stu's Reviews and wwenze (on the R1280DBs) found glue residue and an off-centre knob, and ASR found glue strings on the R1280T. The bigger concern is reliability: several owners report the Bluetooth receiver dying after three or four years, others report a buzzing woofer or a crackling or distorting speaker, and an AudioKarma member who repairs powered monitors has repaired Edifiers with blown power supplies.

Sources split. Techtesters gave it a value award, Pokde and Hardware-Helden rate it highly for the money, nloop calls it the best speaker under $150 for vinyl, and Amazon's value mentions run 586 positive to 41 negative. Critics disagree: Stu's Reviews thinks it is a little overpriced, ASR's sweetchaos says Edifier's own MR4 monitor is better with or without EQ, an Amazon owner found it extremely overrated, and Techtesters itself noted that the DB's price edges towards the larger R1700BT's. Techtesters and an Amazon owner also find the premium over the wired R1280T hard to justify unless you need Bluetooth or optical.