Price Paid:  $230.00 from Authorized Dealer

Summary:
No other bookshelves at the price I paid for is more balanced and realistic sounding. The midrange is better against some $1000 bookshelves. Bass is very tight. Treble is acceptable for speakers at that price. Even against the Usher S-520, it still came out on top. So the Usher goes to my office system. Overall rating is for sound quality and satisfaction.

Strengths:
MIDRANGE realism and clarity. Tight dynamic bass.

Weaknesses:
Crappy cabinet materials true to PSB style. I painted mine metallic merlot right after purchase. Now it looks real nice.

Similar Products Used:
Bookshelves up to $2500.

Price Paid:  $190.00 from Audio Video Creation

Summary:
I was originally turned on to PSB when my best friend bought a pair of the old Alpha Mites (4 1/2" woofer) for our college dorm room. I liked them a lot, but didn't fully appreciate the sound until I went home on a break and listened to my Polk RT25 mains, which sounded boomy in the midbass by comparison. I immediately upgraded to the PSB Alpha Minis, which I loved. I ended up buying the Alpha B speaks because my wife's cat was using the Mini's cloth grills as scratching posts. Since the grills were unremovable, I decided to move them out of reach and bought the Alpha Bs, which have steel grills and matched my center, the Alpha C. On the whole, the Minis vs. the Bs are nearly identical in sound- neutral and detailed, with good bass for the size, but you'll want to add a sub for full range sound. I have a B&W ASW600, and the blend is virtually seemless. The only difference I've heard with PSB's new Alpha series, and it's extremely subtle, is that the older series was a little more laid back sounding. I've read that this was to counter the harsh recordings of early CDs, and that with the advent of high res sound, PSB made the sound a little more forward. Emphasis again on extremely small difference in sound. It took me a long time of A and B comparison to come to a conclusion. Anyway, if you have enjoyed PSB in the past, the Alpha B is a worthy successor, and if you're unfamiliar with the line, it's excellent performer for the price and in general.
My audio system:
Denon AVR 1801 receiver
Toshiba SD-2800 DVD player
PSB Alpha B mains
PSB Alpha C center
PSB Alpha Mini rears
B&W ASW600 sub
AR and Radio Shack Gold wires

Strengths:
Neutral and detailed sound, easy to drive, attractive.

Weaknesses:
Steel grills are hard to remove and put back on (minor quibble)

Similar Products Used:
PSB Alpha Mini, Alpha Mite, Alpha C

Price Paid:  $200.00 from 800stereo.com

Summary:
I own a company that edits tv commercials and movies. I was looking for a natural sounding small speaker to replace the flat sound of the speakers that came with our 7 editing sysytems, but did not want to spend $1000 per room. The Alpha B's were highly reccomended in Sterophile so I bought one pair to try. I could not believe the difference between these and the KRK's which were twice as expensive about 5 years ago. They have a pleasingly uncolored and detailed sound reproduction which is perfect for film projects. Voices are clear and true. I have also listened extensively to various types of music at both high and low volumes and have found myself smiling because at this price, I shouldn't be able to suddenly hear backgrouund vocals on songs I've been listening to for years. I also sampled the B&W LM1's in my cutting room, but was dissapointed in the sometimes harsh brightness and anemic bass. While the bass handling of the Alpha B's doesn't really produce below 50hz, the rear port, when the speaker is about a foot from the wall, provides much livelier bass than I expected from a speaker this size. I find the over all sound to exceptionally rich and balanced, especially for a bookshelf speaker, especially at this price.

Strengths:
natural, detailed reproduction
clear, even voice handling
price

Weaknesses:
not really a weakness, but of course you'd want deeper and more defined bass, but never in a speaker this size-get a sub!

Similar Products Used:
KRK Rokets
Blueroom Minipods
B&W LM1's