Price Paid:  $300.00 from J&R Music World

Summary:
I saw these gorgeous speakers at J&R and since I was already contemplating putting a system in my bedroom I decided to give them a listen. I immediately recognized enough positive attributes to make purchasing them a worth risk. After all, speakers retailing for $1200 but selling for $300 did arouse my suspicions! First of all the fit & finish is definitely worthy of the $1200 price tag: high gloss finish, 5-way binding post, detachable desk stands.

Impressions: Word of warning! They take a long, and I do mean LONG (3+ mos.)time to break in. Upon first listen the speakers were very closed in and lacked carity. They did possess the ability to play very loudly for their size. This is primarily due to the following factors:
1) The woofer is only 3 in. and therefore is asked to cover a larger frequency range than a speaker this size would normally be.
2) In order to help it cover this range the woofer was designed to be highly compliant and it takes some time for the suspension tho loosen up properly.
3) The tweeter contains a neomydium magnet which in my experience are notorious for requiring a long break-in period.

Once they are broken in they open up significantly! They only remaining drawbacks are that they still lack the last word in carity & you don't get the very top of the high frequencies. That being said they are very refined, very musical, a little laid-back side and have they ability to disappear when used on stands. The overall sound quality is definitely not worth $1200 but it's a steal at $300!

Recommendations: Do not cheap out on cable! It will make a difference. Use stands if possible. If using a subwoofer try to use one with a high-pass filter & set it at 100Hz or higher to alleviate some of the stress on the woofer. It will greatly improve carity & trancparancy

Strengths:
fit & finish
very refined sound & very musical
acts as a point source

Weaknesses:
lacks some trancparity
missing a little of the highest frequncies

Price Paid:  $300.00 from J&R (www.jandr.com)

Summary:
I recently purchased a pair of Technics SB-M01 compact monitors at J&R (www.jandr.com) for $300. These little 5.4" x 8.8" x 8.4" marvels originally retailed for $1200! They have what appears to be a 3/4" thick solid mahogany enclosure with a clear high-gloss laquer finish that is drop dead gorgeous. What's more, they sound exceptionally good once you make a few tweaks. For table-top/bookshelf use I recommend plugging the rear ports to reduce bass boom. I don't have stands, so I have not tried them free standing. Overall clarity was further improved by engaging the high-pass filter on the Luxman 1050 receiver I have been using to drive them. Finally, I placed cork pads under the supplied support cones to decouple them from the surface they are resting on. My next round of tweaks will probably involve upgrading the crossover. Stay tuned.

For a technical overview see:
www.panasonic.com/consumer_electronics/technics_audio/compact.asp

For specifications see:
www.technics.co.uk/ukhome/navigate.asp?MenuItem=382&NodeType=P

For photos and measurements see:
www7.gateway.ne.jp/~lalala/technics/sbm01.htm

Strengths:
Exceptional clarity, especially on vocals. These babies really sing.

Weaknesses:
Bass (80 Hz cutoff) and sensitivity (79 dB/W).

Similar Products Used:
None