Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I'm guessing at the year the AS-B1's were purchased. I have a pair and my daughter, a rock musician, also owns a pair. The reason I am writing this review is that I want to take exception to the reviews that describes the tweeter as harsh. I also owned the Athena towers using the same tweeter for several years and neither product ever exhibited harshness. They are lively, very efficient speakers but neither product ever caused listener fatigue. Both speakers, the bookshelf model and the tower, were used with highly rated electronics, including CD player, integrated amp, and stereo receiver. I suspect the harshness heard resulted from the associated electronics. My impression is the tweeter is smooth, lively, and clear, but not harsh.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I have lived with the AS-B1's and their big brother F2's now for a few years. Tried them in a 2 channel arrangement powered by a Chinese tube hybrid amp and a vintage Marantz integrated amp and sourced with a SACD player. I have also used them as rears in a panny xr55 based 5.1 HT system in which they complimented the large Athena F2's up front.

Since they are rear ported placing them too near a back wall is problematic. Unfortunately I found them somewhat fatiguing and sharp edged after listening to them for extended periods. I would have given them a higher rating except for the fact that they do not compare so well with the Cambridge Soundworks Model Six which cost even less.

I now use the B1's in a small bedroom system powered by a t-amp and sourced with a Xmod wireless. Their 90 dB sensitivity rating means that they can play quite loud with a t-amp.

Price Paid:  $150.00 from online

Summary:
The perfect budget HT bookshelf pairs but when used for music while attention grabbing initially, I get tired of the very wide treble with no real focus. But it's designed for HT and that's what you want so I shouldn't be complaining.

Strengths:
Bass and wide soundstage which is what the Teteron tweeter is about. Their new LS line is using aluminum tweeter that's standard with everything else budget below $1K. It's really designed for HT though it can do some wonders with music.

Weaknesses:
Too wide soundstage. No typical crisp on brass instruments but it's a matter of preference.

Similar Products Used:
Yamaha, Pioneer, Sony, Bose, Philips, Onkyo HT speakers.

Price Paid:  $89.00 from best buy

Summary:
i am an audiophile with a small budget! i have listened to more expensive bookshelf speakers such as the epos m-5 & an nht model bookshelf and considering i payed $89/pr on close out!!! such a soundstage & great construction!!! i moved here from out of town and sold my old onkyo/polk system.. & i would never go back...i can't wait till i make more money to afford to spend $$$ on high end type of audio!!! the athenas are highend type sound without the high $$$$$$

Strengths:
for a 5.5" woof & 1" tweet it is quite smooth and extended , rolling off without any boom... or coloration... just excellent!!!

Weaknesses:
none!!!!

Similar Products Used:
epos m-5,,nht,,polk phase tech,nad,yamaha

Price Paid:  $120.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
Ok, I bought these based on the price and the many good reviews (consumer and published). I was looking for HT speakers for a relatively small room. At the time I bought them, I had several other speakers in the house allowing me to do some side by side comparisons. All the comparisons were done with an A/B switch and the speakers powered by a yamaha RX-V630. Keep in mind yamaha has been known for being a "bright" receiver. The Athena speakers may perform better with a "warm" receiver.

The speakers I tested the AS-B1's against were: Bosotn Acoustics CR95 and CR85 as well as Energy C-3. Keep in mind all of these speakers cost three times what I paid for the Athena. Bottom line, despite what you may read, a $120 speaker has a hard time keeping up with speakers in the $400-$600 range. My biggest complaint with the As-B1 is the axaggerated high end. These speakers can be harsh to my ears. I did a four day burn in, so I can't blame improper break-in. All the other speakers had a much fuller and more natural sound.

After the side by side comparison, I did some basic music and HT listening. This gave me a chance to tweak my set-up for the Athena speakers. First thing I did was to turn down the treble. This helped quite a bit. While they still didn't have the full sound of the other speakers, they were not as harsh as during my testing. In my HT matched with the Athena AS-C1, the AS-B1 made for a nice set-up. Being a little bright didn't have as much of a negative impact in HT, however, the others offered better perforance during the music portions on the soundtracks.

I'm keeping these speakers because they offer very good value.

Strengths:
Great Value
Good Detail
Nice Sound Stage

Weaknesses:
Exaggerated Highs

Similar Products Used:
Boston Acoustics CR95, CR85
Energy C-3
Axiom M3Ti