andrew dodson

I found myself in need of a new set of computer speakers this past week. I wanted something nice, but didn’t want to spend $75-100 on the “really nice” sets on the market. Being the audiophile I am, I of course wanted something with a subwoofer, and wasn’t opposed to experience a set of 5.1 surround speakers for the first time.

I headed to Wal-Mart late the other night and found a set of Altec Lansing speakers for $25. Since Wal-Mart will take anything back with a receipt, I decided to buy them. Here’s where the plan gets good. My next step would be heading to Office Depot or CompUSA or Best Buy. There, I’d actually be able to listen to different sets of speakers in the store. A “test drive” for speakers, if you will. Should I find a set that sounded better than the Altec Lansings, I’d buy ‘em and take the AL’s back to Wally World.

Tonight, I was in Office Depot and checked out the speakers. My findings? A small set of $22 speakers sounded far better than a set priced at $84. I think I’ll keep my $25 set. After hearing what $50-84 speakers have to offer, I’m quite pleased with my purchase.