Price Paid:  $260.00 from High Fidelity

Summary:
What a great littly speaker that will not break the bank but still provide a $1000 sound. I previewed speakers ranging from a $600 6-speaker set from Polk to a $38,000 collection from Mark Levenson. Although the $10+ market did provide superior sound, for $1700, the Teatro 4.5s (front), 6.5 (center), CI40s (rear), and Power10 (sub) provide the most bang for buck. I rented IceAge the first night, and the audio was phenominal. As stated in previous reviews, the highs are crisp yet smooth and the bass response, although not earth shaking, is very respectable. Due to the rear firing port, however, speaker placement is key. On stands and away from the wall a bit is ideal. Inside a bookshelf, the speaker may seem a bit boomy although still very good. A very close (if not identical) product is the Infinity Modulus. The Infinitys, however, were vetoed by the wife as the rears were not recessed into the wall.

Strengths:
clear consise vocals, compact size, good sound stage, excellent bang for buck

Weaknesses:
no maple finish available (but black is, hence no major loss),

Similar Products Used:
previous fronts were McIntosh XE-10

Price Paid:  $260.00 from High Fidelity

Summary:
In my search for a great sounding bookshelf speaker that doesn't break the bank, I made many outings to several major Hi-Fi retailers in the Central Texas area. In their listening rooms, I auditioned Klipsch's, B&W's, and Def Techs among others. When the salesman plugged in the Phase Tech 4.5's, they immediately caught my attention. They handled my favorite albums extradinarily well (mostly heavy rock, but some pop and classical organ), and when I examined them up close they looked and felt like they sounded: Solid. Then I asked, "How much do they cost?". The answer to that question was what sealed the deal for me on the 4.5's . I power mine with a Denon DRA-395 85x2 Stereo reciever. The Phase Techs will get louder than I can stand with this amount of power, but I'm yet to hear any audible distortion out of them.

Strengths:
Even though they only use a 5.25" midrange, the 4.5's still put out a respectable amount of bass, down into the mid 50hz range. They have a clear, undistorted, laid back sound with tight, controlled, and ample bass. The 4.5's have absolutely no sibalance problems and an overall thick, rich texture. They are VERY easy on the eye, especially with grills off, and they're physically compact in size. Perhaps most importantly of all, the Price::Performance ratio is very nice!

Weaknesses:
If you really crave deep bass (under 50hz), you'll want to eventually add a sub. Other than that, it's tough to criticize these.

Similar Products Used:
This is one of my first ventures into home audio. I used to have some old paradigms with an 8" woofer. I also used to have a JVC all in one unit from the mid 90's, but both of these are, of course, co

Price Paid:  $200.00 from tsto

Summary:
Well, these are not Phase Tech's top of the line, and don't sound quite as accurate as the 60 Mark II's I had (from the company's Premier Collection) but for what I paid these babies can shine. And I mean "can" in the sense that you may have to work with placement a while. Luckily, I got good sound from them right where my stands already were. But I agree with the previous review that they can sound a little bloated if too close to a wall or corner. I have them placed at angles about 16" away from the walls and they excel with lots of music. Good overall sound, treble (as stated below) is nice without being fatiguing, and bass CAN (there's that word again) be very good. Use the tuned port to your advantage thru different placements.
Anyway, now to the real deal- what really gets me about these speakers are the soundstaging and imaging. The soundstaging especially is very wide for these small boxes, and really envelops the listener, yet somewhere in there you can pinpoint the location of instruments. For me, these two virtues working together is what makes these speakers impressive. Coupled with very good sound quality, the 4.5's really do the job.

Strengths:
Extremely good soundstaging and imaging for their size, very good treble reproduction and better than average bass

Weaknesses:
DEFINITELY susceptible to placement- work with 'em a while!

Similar Products Used:
Phase Tech PC 8.5's and 60 Mark II's

Price Paid:  $182.00 from avid systems, Lawrenceville, GA

Summary:
I've had the Teatro 4.5's as my main speakers for about a month now, which has been enough time to work out speaker placement and to spend plenty of time listening to them. I thought I would post my impression for the sake of anyone interested in these speakers.
For the first couple of days, I'll admit that I was somewhat unhappy with their performance. The higher frequencies were quite impressive, having a good amount of presence without being harsh or fatiguing, but the midrange seemed too pronounced and the bass was too imprecise and overbearing. These are my first pair of bass-reflex speakers, and I am convinced they are more sensitive to placement issues than acoustically sealed speakers.

I moved the speakers, which were about 12 inches from the wall, to about 22 inches away. What a difference! The heavy, blotty bass went away and was replaced with tighter, punchier bass. I'll take bass quality over quantity any day. With the bass problem fixed, the midrange and high end now balance out much, much better. Instead of sounding like good speakers are playing off in the distance, the sound is very immediate and well-defined. I think the 4.5's have really good mid-range for the money. Guitars and saxophones sound nice and warm, but without much coloration, and without losing definition.

I still imagine that a good M&K setup might sound a little better, but after I get a couple more 4.5's and a 6.5, I'll have a really good quality surround system (minus subwoofer) for less than $600! Even if I can afford to upgrade in a few years, I haven't dropped a lot of money into the Teatro system, and it will definitely be worth what I spent.

I am planning to add a subwoofer soon. The speakers have fine bass response for most music, but I want more bass for movies. Anyway, I want to let the mains and surrounds focus on their job, and give the rest to a good sub.

Feel free to write me if you have any questions about these speakers!

Strengths:
treble response, imaging, warm (but uncolored) midrange, great cost

Weaknesses:
none really for the price; sometimes not *quite* as tight-sounding as I'd like

Similar Products Used:
Infinity RS-3 speakers, circa 1990

Price Paid:  $200.00 from American Theater Systems

Summary:
I had been looking for a home theater system that would replace some large towers that I had been using. After searching for about six months and listening to every speaker system that you could possibly imagine I came across the Phase Techs.

These speakers are amazing. I bought them @ American Theater Systems (www.amsound.com, 800-889-5845) from Mike. I paid $200 a pair for the Teatro 4.5's. I also purchaed a Teatro 6.5($180) for a center channel, and a Power 8 sub ($249). Mine came with a rosewood finish. They also come in black, but the rosewood finish is stunning to look at. The Teatro 4.5 consists of a 1" soft dome tweeter and a 5 1/4" driver with nice butyl rubber surrounds. They are ported in the rear and have 5-way binging posts. The polypropylene drivers have a very cool metal-like finish on them, and the cabinets have beveled edges. You would not expect to pay only a $100 for a speaker that looks this good.

These speakers sound better than they looked. The imaging and the sound stage are awesome. They have a very detailed,smooth midrange,crystal clear highs, and suprising bass response from a bookshelf. I wanted a speaker that would sound good on both 2 channel stereo and 5.1 digital. I was not let down. All of my favorite cds sounded better than I had ever heard them.

I really can't say enough good things about this speaker. The grilles were pretty flimsy, but the speaker looks better with the grilles off. I could live with that minor flaw. They are not shielded (the teatro 6.5 is though), so just don't set them closer than 1' to your T.V. and this won't be a problem either. I can honestly say that there is no better speaker within this price range.


My system consists of:

Sony es333 reciever
Panasonic DVD-a110
Dynaco tube cd player
(4) Phase Technology 4.5
Phase Technology 6.5 center
Phase Technology Power 8 subwoofer
Monster Cable speaker wire and interconnects

Strengths:
Where should I start.........?

Weaknesses:
Grilles are cheaply made.

Similar Products Used:
none