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PSB Alpha Intro system

Alpha Centauri - PSB's shine brightly

By Jamie Gemming

August 2004

PSB Alpha Intro home theatre speaker package. $1699

I had been told I was reviewing a sub sat combo but if it hadn’t been for the PSB branding on the box I would have sworn my assignment had changed to assessing a decent sized TV. I thought the box almost comically huge for five small cubes and a little sub. Once I began unpacking the kit I could see why the box was so big. Like a set of Russian dolls the big box opened to contain several smaller boxes - a large box for the subwoofer, two smaller boxes in which each contains a pair of the identical front and rear speakers and a small box for the centre.

My assumption of five tiny cubes serving each channel was way off. While the speakers are by no means bookshelf size, they are certainly larger than many of the sub/sat systems on offer. The combo features four Alpha Intro LR speakers for each of the surround channels. Each has a 19mm anodized aluminum-dome tweeter and a 90mm mini-woofer with a polypropylene cone and rubber surround. The magnetically shielded speaker enclosure measures 108mm wide, 159mm deep, and stand 171mm high. The enclosures are covered in light oak coloured veneers and feature removable grey aluminum grilles up front. Underneath, the speaker has a small rubber feet at each corner. Around the back the high quality build continues with five-way gold plated binding posts, keyhole slots for wall mounting and a tapped brass insert for attaching to the optional stands.

The Alpha Intro CLR centre speaker is very similar to the LR surround speakers. However, they aren’t identical, as a second 90mm woofer flanks the other side of the tweeter. The magnetically shielded centre speaker features the same light veneer, grille, quality binding posts, keyhole slots, brass insert and rubber feet of its smaller sibling. The difference is its wider, lower stance of 248mm wide, 159 deep but only 108mm high.

Subwoofing

The Alpha SubZero i powered subwoofer matches the other speakers with a light veneer cabinet and grey aluminum front grille. The sub features a 203mm (8 inch) polypropylene woofer. The woofer fits nicely into the magnetically shielded cabinet which is 244mm wide, 337 mm high and 368mm deep. These dimensions give the driver 19 litres of air to push around internally. The back panel of the cabinet has the usual inputs with low level RCAs and high/speaker level binding posts as well. The amplifier provides 100 watts RMS and has the ability to switch the signal out of phase.

Unfairly, the left and right front channel PSB was perched atop of my reference speakers, a pair of B&W floorstanders. Not really comparing apples to apples but the B&W’s did make nice speaker stands. The speakers I received were straight out of the box and the fact that they had not been used before was apparent as soon as a signal was supplied. Like a sportsman returning from an injury break, the speakers were initially short of breath in the midrange. Though after a punishing fortnight of exercise the mini speakers are certainly up to pace, having pleasantly developed that missing dimension.

Home theatre is where these little gems really shine. Voice reproduction is brilliantly clear and neutral. I was really impressed with the cross-screen and front-to-rear effects, such as the banking NASA jets in Armageddon. Not to mention the multiple gun battles in Bad Boys II that encompass the listener and draw them into a richly detailed yet realistic environment.

Whether it is something like the soft vocals of Charlotte Church, the driving guitar riffs of AC/DC or Elton John’s mastery on the piano, the PSB’s were able produce dazzling performance each and every time. Although the mini speakers do provide high quality output it is when listening to music in 2-channel that the slightly shallow midrange is apparent. This is only a petty little niggle and will only be noticeable if you are used to the comparative depth of floorstanders.

Smooth, articulate and good looking would be the best description of this sub sat system. The PSB’s will crank out huge volumes of high quality music without any signs of displeasure. Home theatre wise, these little babies will transfer the movie watcher from the couch right into the middle of each scene. I know a few people who have small sub sat combos which sound how they look - not very good! My reservations have now been blown away. Anyone with space problems or looking for something discrete without compromising the décor should experience these. At $1699 retail, this combo is great buying.

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