You may ask, 'What is the use of a 5.1 sound system for a computer which does not have a multi-channel sound card?' Good question. But what if you get a system that does not require a 5.1 sound card but uses a USB port to stream audio? The FX5051 from Altec Lansing is for sure worth a try and we did just that.

We opened the not so heavy box to find a neatly packed speaker set in a thick layer of styrofoam. Digging deeper, we came across diamond shaped satellites and a sturdy looking subwoofer. The system had a cool black finish with a silver lining along the edges and the cross¬section of the subwoofer dividing it in two parts; one opaque and the other semi transparent honeycomb mesh through which you can see the magnanimous driver unit of the subwoofer. Accessories like the colour coded cables, wall mounts and the control pod were also included in the box.

Technology
First let us clear the basics. The satellites have a 40mm mid-range driver and an 18mm tweeter - each gives out a modest 12 watts per channel and 13 watts to the centre. Pretty common right? The subwoofer comes with a surprise though. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it comprises two subs and not one ie there are two 6.5 inch long throw woofers facing each manner, which effectively doubles bass output from a relatively small-sized sub! Now the claim was for us to ascertain. Also it does not have a bass reflex port (which one would generally find in these kinds of systems); instead it has the honeycomb mesh which we have mentioned earlier. The amplifier lies in the subwoofer enclosure.

The rear of the subwoofer houses all the input connections for the audio and USB. A small selector switch is available for switching between 2/4 and 6¬channel mode, allowing users of stereo equipment to upmix their music to quadraphonic sounds The colour coding of the cables is not that helpful though as it is coded only on one side, while connecting, one has to trace the cables, which does not serve any purpose.
The FX5051 comes with two control options - a control pod connected to the subwoofer via a DIN pin that has an auxiliary input with a headphone out and a wireless remote control. As we have already mentioned, this system can stream audio through the USB, which acts as an adapter to convert the output from the computer to a 5.1 channel audio stream. So even if you don't have a multi-channel sound card, you can still experience 5.1 channel audio.

Performance
Setting up the speakers was not difficult at all. The small sized speakers with the stands could easily fit on our desks with the help of comprehensive guidelines in the manual. So we hooked this system to our computers through the USB and loaded the 'Planet Earth' DVD. As we switched the system on, we noticed the soft hiss of the busy amplifier emitted from the satellites, but it was negligible. As we played the DVD through the VLC player with all bass, treble and channel settings flat, we
found the system to be quite adequate without need for much adjustment. The bass was perceivable enough to lend a realistic feel to the movie experience and did not overpower the rest of the spectrum at all.

The vocals were very clear through the centre channel. The high frequencies were rendered convincingly with the babble of the birds projected agreeably. The speakers created an ambient atmosphere and we found ourselves being pulled into the picturesque landscapes. The dispersion of the speakers was quiet wide and filled the workspace nicely, not suffering the need for highly accurate positioning that sounds terrible once you leave your seat. Now for the music: we played Urban Thumris from the film 'Lets Talk'. We chose the fourth track "Eri Sakhi" for its overemphasised bass. Though we didn't experience any problems with compression, the bass provided a good kick only when it was pushed to max. Thus the two bass drivers were not as powerful as they claimed to be. For treble, we heard the third track, "Nena Lagai" which started off with a synth arpegiator and was later joined by a highly processed voice that could be very sibilant. Here there was no problem at all; the speakers could convincingly deal with all the cymbals and the synth sounds.





Conclusion
The FX5051 makes for a good 5.1 system that does not take up a lot
of space, is easy to set-up, sounds convincingly pleasant with a good frequency response and displays satisfactory directivity. Also it is sure to enhance your desk with its unique styling and invigorate the atmosphere around your workspace.