Alesis M1 Active 320 USB Reviews

His Productions
from Howe, Indiana
June 11, 2012Music Background:
Musician, Hack Engineer, and Radio Producer

For $100...CAN NOT BE BEAT!!!

I am in the broadcast industry and in our main production studio I use Adam's A-7 monitors, WHICH I LOVE!!! But, I couldn't justify $1000 for a couple of secondary locations for our editors. I bought these monitors for 2 of our editors and upon first glance, these are REALLY decent monitors, ESPECIALLY for the price. I was really blown away by the fullness of the sound out of something so small and so inexpensive.

Christopher S
from Boston MA
October 8, 2011Music Background:
Songwriter

My overall purchase experience

Your combination of knowledge, experience and customer care impressed me very much. The equipment is well suited for the application. I will certainly shop with you again!

Ryan McAtee
from Bloomington, MN
November 23, 2010Music Background:
Guitarist, bassist, songwriter

Why buy run-of-the-mill PC speakers for the same money?

After being disappointed by the sound quality of Bose Companion II speakers, and with the onboard audio of my gaming/entertainment PC starting to fail, I decided to take a chance with the M1 Active 320s. Music playback was leaps and bounds better than on the Bose set, and as USB audio devices, I was able to bypass my onboard audio. Games sound great, and music sounds better than I've ever heard on a PC. Although I wouldn't use 3" speakers for tracking or mixing, these don't seem to boost the low end like so many PC speakers and headphones do, and are certainly sufficient for listening to mixes on something other than your large(r) monitors.

For $99, I don't see how you could go wrong with these.

Peter Gutierrez
from Elk Grove, CA, USA
December 19, 2009Music Background:
Pro guitarist, playing a variety of genres for over 40 years

Terrific sound and great value

Just received and connected these speakers to my PC. I am getting into recording my guitar in a modest way and needed an upgrade to the spkrs that came with my PC to get a better sound for the mixing process. Set up was easy. Three simple connections and the necessary cables/power cord were included: One to connect the left and right speakers, one power cord, and one USB cable to the PC. No need for drivers or other steps, just connect and you are done. Audio quality exceeded my expectations. For the price, an outstanding value. Thanks to Mark Magdich my sales engineer ( X 1265 ) for helping me make a super choice. In addition to mixing, there is so much great free guitar instructional material on the Web that now I can hear the audio portions of lessons or rhythm tracks and playing in front of my PC is far more enjoyable with quality audio. The Alesis speakers really deliver!

Peter Gutierrez
Elk Grove, CA

Em
from New York, NY
September 5, 2011Music Background:
producer, pro keyboard player

Small but powerful

I ordered these monitors thinking they'd just be some "good-for-now" type speakers, but once I got them hooked up, I was really impressed. They are light, easy to hook up but VERY powerful. These are great for referencing mixes if you want to hear tracks through something different. These are also really great for a mobile/travel recording set-up, which is why I bought them. Super easy to pack and carry, easy to set up, GREAT sound for the size and price and adds to the ease of recording on location.I highly recommend them.

Joe K.
from Southern New Jersey, USA
September 7, 2008Music Background:
Recording and Performing Musician/Vocalist

Some Pluck for your Buck

A great and economical solution to desk top [and remote] mixing, and potentially many other applications. They were actually a little better than I expected, and I had fairly good expectations. The USB input/playback options are nice features, too. I feel that these speakers were a very good investment for me. They sound real good for my monitoring applications considering the money spent.

And, I must commend Sweetwater [and A.J.] for a speedy overall transaction. {Free] shipping time was very fast...thanks! I'll be back.

CEZAR BEATS
from Miami,FL
March 14, 2008Music Background:
HIP HOP PRODUCER

CANT BEAT THE PRICE!!

This is a great buy! Plug and play. very nice sound. you cant beat it for a $100

Jimi Trujillo
from Colorado
July 30, 2012Music Background:
Singer, songwriter multi Instrumentalist and allround good guy.

Super

Just got the Alesis active 320 usb speakers perfect for your laptop not to big not to small.If your looking for a boost to your pc's sound,grab thies little box speakers and youll be amazed.

Paul Strikwerda
from Easton, PA USA
January 19, 2010Music Background:
Voice-over professional

Big sound, small package

My computer never sounded better! After experimenting for years with cheap external speakers for my laptop, I finally found these miracle monitors.

As a voice-over professional, it's important to me to be able to hear my voice back, the way my clients would hear it. These active monitors do the job very well, without taking up too much space on my studio desk.

When I watched my first blockbuster on my laptop, I realized that these small speakers can really rock the house!

With a simple USB-connection, it's plug-and-play straight out of the box. Coupled with Sweetwater's excellent service, these monitors offer exceptional value for money.

Robert Maier
from NC
November 9, 2009Music Background:
Broadcast Production Instructor/Producer

Solid Speaker

I bought 3 sets for a college. Sound much bigger than they are. Love all the Input options. bass boost. Very sturdy. Plenty of power for desktop.

M
from Broomfield, CO
March 19, 2008Music Background:
Musician

Flat Response, Great Soundstage

These speakers have really grown on me, perhaps they're breaking in. They reveal detail well, even in the lower frequency range. Their soundstaging is impressive, e.g. vocals can appear to come from between the speakers. My only problem was a slight mismatch in volume balance. Definitely worth the money. Compared to higher-priced units these don't have separate power supplies and cords, and they share a volume control mounted on the front of the right speaker - nice conveniences. Recommended.

Scott Sundberg
from South Central MI
March 10, 2008Music Background:
Mucking about in the basement ...

Terrific Bang For the Buck!

While this monitor/interface system isn't going to set the pro recording world on fire, for those of us who fiddle around for fun, it's quite hard to beat the combination of small, powered monitors and a usuable USB audio interface.

Having used another USB interface that I abhored, I was fully prepared to have this one be easily clogged with data. I am using an HP dv2000 laptop (dual processor and 2 gig of RAM), with the latest version of ASIO4ALL installed. I recorded my test into Audacity.

When the 320's arrived, I promptly set them up in place, and proceeded to hook up my Soundcraft Compact 4 mixer (with two open mics and a CD player running through it), MC-909 and an MP3 player. Even with that cacophony blaring through the speakers, I had no audible lag, nor did it hang up on me - the 320's performed like a champ! Honestly, I will probably never put that much signal through the system again, as what I do is pretty minimal, but it was a good way to find out what it could handle.

I must admit to having been a combination of both skeptical and hopeful when I first saw these on Sweetwater's site. When I watched the demos Alesis posted, I was even more so. However, after testing them like I did, I am sold! For a small, integrated system, these are great and I have no qualms in recommending them to others in similar situations.

Thank you, Alesis, Sweetwater, and my rep Jeff for a terrific product!

Pete Wildermuth
from Ashfield, MA
November 30, 2010Music Background:
Live Audio Engineer

Not a well-built product, buyer beware!

Only 12 months after I bought a pair of these (exactly when the 1 year warranty expires!), the left speaker on a regular basis, after just a few minutes of listening at moderate volumes, dropped down in level by about 10db below the output of the right speaker, causing a severe and distracting balance issue, that can only be remedied by turing the volume knob way up on the right speaker (the speaker which houses all the inputs, outputs, and amplifier stages). That would temporarily kick the left speaker back into gear and resolve the balance issue, but the problem will return with a few minutes of listening at regular volumes. I am an audio engineer who troubleshoots complex audio systems on a regular basis, and trust me, I eliminated the possibility of it being a bad cable or audio source. These speakers are cheaply built and I don't trust that they'll work for more than a year or so. I called and the technical support personnel at Alesis did nothing to help, except direct me to take them into have them fixed on my own dime at an authorized repair facility two states away, in New Jersey! (I live in Massachusetts). To sum it up, I wish I hadn't spent my hard earned money on an Alesis product.

Mark
from Atlanta, GA
April 21, 2010Music Background:
30 years playing and recording

Sounded good for the few minutes they worked

Within minutes of setting these speakers up, the left (slave) speaker would intermittentlly lose the audio signal for as long as 15 to 30 seconds at a time. Since this is a slave speaker with the audio coming from the right speaker through a small-gauge wire and mini-plug, there is no way the problem was related to the source or signal to the master speaker. I admit they sound good for the size/money, but I'm taking these back and will probably replace them with another brand model.

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