What We Like
- Great looks.
- Good balance across the range.
- High versatility.
What We Don't Like
- Weaker low end.
Edifier is a brand that offers some of the best bookshelf solutions for those who want to get into hi-fi. Their R1700BT is by far one of the most interesting speakers of this type you can get under $200.
Design
Edifier doesn’t pay too much attention to aesthetics. This might sound counterintuitive when you look at the R1700BT. In all honestly, these look great. Our statement was aimed more towards the fact that most Edifier speakers share the same design aside from minor differences. The core of their aesthetic solution are the natural finished wooden panels which sandwich a composite core.
With that said, the plastic portions of the body are extremely sturdy and work well in terms of acoustics. Edifier R1700BT feature an angled design where the transducers are aimed at an upward angle compared to the surface they are sitting on. These come with a grille, although many will agree they simply look better without them.
To top things off, Edifier put the port at the front, which was probably necessary due to that angle we just talked about. Overall, R1700BT look very refined considering the price you are asked to pay.
Features
What we have here is a set of active speakers which deliver 15 Watts RMS each. Edifier has chosen a .75″ silk dome tweeter and a single 4″ driver for this build. The active speaker comes with a two-band EQ on it, along with volume control. What is interesting about these speakers is the fact that they are fully Bluetooth compatible and can be controlled with a remote controller.
From that, it is fairly apparent that Edifier wanted to deliver a package that would be attractive to everyday user as well as fans of a good tone. In terms of I/O, you are looking at a dual RCA output as well as a 3.5mm headphones out. Compared to other active speakers in the same segment of the market, R1700BT comes across as fairly complex. Lastly, it is worth mentioning that these speakers come with DSP as well as Dynamic Range Control.
Performance
Active speakers are not something that more conservative audiophiles recognize as legit. However, Edifier made it extremely hard to ignore the R1700BT. These speakers offer a very well balanced performance that puts them well within the hi-fi territory. The tone is full of warmth and clarity, especially in the trebles.
When you cross over to mids, you are subjected to a great balance of girth and definition. The only aspect of performance where these start to falter is the bass. Those 4″ drivers aren’t capable of providing too much definition. Instead, they try to compensate by moving a lot of air.
With that said, we can’t really criticize Edifier too much considering their target user base. What matters is that Edifier has given us a ticket into more refined audio without having to get standalone amplifiers. On the contrary, you can pair these speakers to just about any mobile device.
The Rumble:
Edifier R1700BT packs a decent performance in a format that is highly versatile and flexible in nature. If you need more refined general purpose bookshelf speakers, these are something you should add to your shortlist.
