Testing:

Computer / Gaming:

Playing the previously mentioned games, the first thing that popped up is that these are truly a 2.2 audio speakers. There is no way to detect sounds from the back. However, with the speakers placed a little apart, I was easily able to detect sounds from the left or right, as well as upper or lower level sounds. Every bit of the sound was clear and I was easily able to turn the volume all the way up and turn the bass up. None of the previously mentioned games seemed to stress the bass reproduction as there was no distortion at any level. The bass was powerful and clear; you could feel it when something exploded. All the other game sounds were clear and crisp with no distortion.



USB / SD Playback:

A few quick playback options that can be customized is the treble (-7 to +7), bass (0 to 15) and volume (0 to 32). Each of these are individual settings, and can be adjusted anytime with the remote, using the front panel options it is a little more difficult to do, but is still very easy.

Playing the previously listed music, I adjusted the treble, bass, and volume to my tastes, and the sound was perfect! I couldn't ask for any better. Everything I expected to hear in the music was crisp and clear with no distortion or vibration sounds. Turning the bass to maximum did not cause problems either, it was just TOO much bass for me. Turning both the bass and volume to maximum did cause some vibration distortion from the music with heavy bass, turning them down one or two spots was once again perfectly clear.

On a side note, I did learn something new about the Galaxy S3 and Apple iPhone 5 (quite possibly any sensitive touch screen device). Do not place them too close to speakers with heavy bass. While Muse and P!nk were playing with the bass turned up, it would automatically answer the phone! Several times I received a phone call while listening to music and the phone would automatically be answered and turned onto speakerphone mode! The callers got a special treat listening to me talk to myself while making notes. Thankfully, I wasn't trying to sing along.

When playing music from the USB drive and SD card, one missing function became evident; shuffle playback. When playing music from a computer, smartphone or tablet, you would be using those device playback features. When playing from a USB drive or SD card the W601 controls the playback, but I want to have the music mixed rather than playing off a pre-determined playlist. On a minor note, another playback feature that would be nice to have is a scan (forward and back); this is very minor as most times you don't need it.

The W601 could easily be converted into a complete bookshelf system by adding a radio tuner. This is not going to be considered in the conclusion as the speakers are not designed with a tuner, however it would be a great addition to a more advanced model.