Home > Consumer Reviews > Benwin EX4A 3 Piece Flat Panel Multimedia Speaker System

This speakers are really nice. They look really cool and they were pretty cheap. I would recommend these to anyone who wants some stylish speakers for a good price. They have a 3D mode option which is nice for gaming. And if it doesn't sound that great you just switch to "regular" mode and they still sound nice.

The Benwin EX4A flat panel speakers were the first of its kind. The innovative "flat panel" design was different from ANY speaker previously released. The benefits of this are immense, but the most important key of this flat panel speaker set is that it can NOT be "blown out" by listening to music loudly. In other words, that rattle-like sound one gets when they listen to music too loud will never happen with these speakers. The other many benefits are the following: a generous amount of control over bass and sound from the right speaker, clean and crisp sound, compatible with Mac or PC, and most importantly (perhaps because of the impossibility of ever blasting them out) is that they last well past any other speaker I've purchased - I've had these speakers for 10 years now.

Keep in mind:
- The speakers are only a part of what makes sound "quality". If the sound card isn't at least decent, the sound may not exactly be enhanced all that much - definitely a step up, though.
- These speakers were used by me while composing music in college, and for play back and sound quality checks coupled with a moderately good sound card, these speakers were top of the line (especially for the price considering hey, what college student *really* has $200 dollars to spend on an elaborate speaker system that can be blown out the next day). Note - I have been the editor and sound organizer for at least 5 CDs, 3 of which have sold out and went for reprints*.
- The outside design is going to be a hit or miss. These speakers were released around 1999, with the hype of the millennium and the "futuristic" look was (in my opinion) over done. It seems that the speakers from Benwin that have come out since have kept with this style, but have gotten a lot less "just came off a spaceship" and more "trendy".
- The flat speakers are extremely light, so they can give off the impression that they are not durable by their lightness - this does not compromise sound at all, though.
- If there is an object touching the speakers, they will rattle a little - so they need to be just not touching anything. If there is ever a sound that comes out of the speakers that doesn't sound crisp and clear, check to see if a pencil holder, desk calendar or other odds and ends are touching them.

That said, I bought these as soon as they came out, and today I'm going through the process of replacing them with a later model. Why? Not because the speakers stopped performing. It was something to be expected: after a while, some moves, and cats chewing on cables and all that sorta stuff, the cables ended up getting a short in them. Something that can be easily fixed by my husband with a soldering iron, but hey, an excuse to buy a newer model in these fine speaker lines is just too tempting for me to pass up. Extremely, highly recommended. I find them much better than some speaker systems that are specifically marketed towards music composers or "music nerds" (for lack of a better phrase). I would not recommend any other brand to anyone. I have been extremely pleased with my experience with this set of speakers, great price for quality and I'll miss this particular set. : )

*these speakers do not guarantee a sell-out CD.

I was at first very enamored with these speakers and wrote a positive review, however after time I realized that they look good but don't quite measure up to others out there. For instance, at the office the hardware "3D" effect makes listening to streaming audio (e.g., NPR) difficult and hazy, even with the effect "switched off". Even my music sounds distorted on these speakers, I do not recommend them.

with a minor in audiophilism, i pride my self on making my ears happy. ive over a grand sunk into my car stereo, so you can imagine my interest. currently im runnin a set of altec lansing run-o-the-mill 45.2's i think theyre called; v'hadem for maybe a year or two. i bought the ex4's for a friend, with some package deal from benwin direct and tested them out on my rig, to be fo sho; i was literally astounded at their sound quality.
included in the package was (for an xtra ten bucks) some benwin s-50's. not only did i have to re-eq my winamp to compensate for the high end loss (in the ex4s), turn down all my gains to about 10 percent, but the 10 dollar cheapo speaks were easily 2x better. better overall lack of distortion, better max volume (w/o distortion), more even sound stage. in short: these are a joke. compared to the ex 4s, my altecs shine, shine like they never have before.
unfortunatly the falicy lies in the technology: the flat panel is mounted to a tweeter basically, so you get what you can imagine a tweeter with a piece of plastic stuck to its front, sounds like.