Logitech Z-560 THX Certified 4.1 Speakers

Author : Wayne Date : 3rd May 2002

...Product	Logitech Z-560
...Manufacturer	Logitech
...Supplier	Logitech
...Price	RRP £199.99

 

 

 

The Sub :

As you'd expect from a speaker system aimed at the serious user the sub is a bit of a monster. At about 11" x 15" the wooden cabinet features a 3" internal diameter flared, tuned port and a killer 8" front firing long excursion, long throw speaker. If the weight alone doesn't convince you that this thing means business than just look at that heat sink! The front grill is very robust and features a silver trim surround in keeping with the design of the sattelites.

Covering almost the entire rear surface of the enclosure the heat sink is evidence of the kind of power being generated internally. It's not just for show either, crank it up loud enough and for long enough and it gets quite toasty. The side port measures an impressive 3" internally but the problem is that the bigger the port diameter the longer it needs to be. Clearly the sub isn't wide enough to accomodate a port of the required length but rather than cutting corners Logitech took it as far as they could internally then doubled it back on itself in a "U" configuration. Even where it goes unseen Logitech have done things by the book and deserve praise for it.

To the left of the sink are the eight colour coded and spring loaded speaker connectors. They felts pretty solid and gripped the cable nicely. Below this is the DIN plug into which you plug the SoundTouch control centre and finaly below this is the master power switch and mains supply cable. My only real complaint here would be the lack of a digital and line in but at this price it's not unusual and certainly not the end of the world.

At the hub of the system is the grandly named SountTouch control centre. From top to bottom it features a power standby button, an M3D selection button, bass level control dial, fader control dial and master volume dial. The master volume dial features an illuminated ring around it that glows with an almost neon-like blue glow when the power is on. The M3D button also illuminates green when M3D is selected. The control centre is suppled with a silver stand that allows vertical placement or alternatively you can remove the base and situate it horizontally instead. Finally at the bottom of the unit is an amplified headphone jack. Having it situated at the bottom means the weight of the headphone cable is less likely to topple the unit and is another demonstration of the levels of planning that have gone into this speaker system. The whole thing is a nice weight and combined with the stand's rubber feet it stays where you put it.

Worth mentioning is that the fader control doesn't work as a conventional fader. In fact it would more accurately be desribed as a rear speaker volume control as it doesn't alter the front speaker volume at all. I can't imagine anyone would particularly want to set their speakers so that the rears are outgunning the fronts but with the fader operating this way it isn't even an option without using your sound card's mixer settings, assuming your sound card features a fader adjustment that is. The pots felt reasonably smooth and although they don't feel like ultra high quality components they weren't at all loose, spongey or gritty and certainly seem up to the job.