ARTist 5 review by CE Pro magazine
Reviews
Berlin, February 28, 2012
Robert Archer, Senior Editor of CE Pro magazine, has recently reviewed the ARTist 5 in desktop and recording environments. Please read some passages of that review below.
Setup
I used the speakers in a computer audio system that included an iMac connected via USB, and in a recording system using hardware from PreSonus and Apple, as well as Apple Logic Pro software. […]
Desktop Audio
My initial impression of the speaker is that it’s much more consumer friendly thanks to the inclusion of the USB input, which eliminates the need to buy an external DAC.
I think the speaker sounds much more balanced than the A5, and it’s much smoother too. After letting the speakers break-in I began evaluating and found the speakers to produce an airy top end with a variety of AIFF, WAV, Apple Lossless and AAC files. In addition, the speakers produced a focused image that delivered a lot of detail. […]
Music Production
[…] My track was much more involved due to the use of multitracking (we recorded takes for the left and right channels of the mix). The song showed how nicely the speakers can be used as a pro tool. We employed the ARTist 5s to help with mic positioning, which included the placement of a Shure sm57 on the Marshall cabinet, as well as an MXL condenser mic used for room ambiance. With the ARTist 5s we listened for mic phase issues and changes in tonality and room ambiance.
Getting into the mixing, we were able to dive and fine-tune the EQ and compression used on the drums and bass to help flesh those instruments out of the mix, and to set tonality so the drums sounded like authentic 1980s-era drums. We also used the speakers for other things like adjusting the amount of flange (a modulation effect) used on the chorus section of the song.
Final Thoughts
Overall for computer audio and recording, I think Adam has seriously stepped up and delivered a product that is reasonably priced and much better than its previous prosumer products. The ARTist A5 provides nice octave-to-octave balance to deliver a focused and detailed image that in a near-field listening environment will fill a seating area with dynamic, uncolored sound. Throw in its variety of connection options, attractive finishes and front-mounted power and volume controls, and the ARTist 5 adds up to a killer product.
Robert Archer, cepro.com, February 27, 2012
Please read the full review here on the CE Pro webpage.