Exceptional clarity, smooth response, solid soundstage, and good power-handling.

Bass roll off below 75hz.

I never experienced any of the harshness in the upper end of the spectrum that a few reviewers referenced and who said that they had to have the crossovers adjusted. The "effect" may have been alleviated in subsequent models, as mine were a 2002 product. I added a BIC powered subwoofer to the equation to compensate for the loss of low end bass, and I now I hate to go to bed at night! I had BIC Venturi Formula 2's and Formula 4's when in college many years ago. I was pleased to see that the company's innovation, quality, and value were still present 20 years later!

Similar Products Used:

KEF, Boston Acoustics, Bose.

Great sound quality at a very low price.

NONE

I have the OLD BIC V52si speakers, the ones before they messed up the crossovers. I have many other bic speakers besides these. I use these in my bedroom system. They are simply the best speakers you can find at this price range period.

Similar Products Used:

too many different speakers to name. I'd be here all day

Easy to get for under $100.00, good workmanship at the price. Ability to have Ed Frias re-work the crossover.

Spring clip connectors for speaker wire

Excellent entry into great sound!

Similar Products Used:

Axiom, KEF, B&W, Mission,Wharfedale, Pyramid and others

Truly full range with respect to size and budget.

Cheap spring clip connectors.

These little speakers can match anything at 2-3 times the price. I''ve had these for a year and am shocked at how good they sound. They keep up with my mains (Wfdale EM 97). Though, of course, bass is diminished, the BICs can rumble without clipping. Surprisingly detailed as well. I''ve heard that the Venturi 62''s are even better. These can easily serve as main speakers in a small room.

Similar Products Used:

CS

Cost less than the stands upon which they sit. Detail and accuracy will make you forget the price.

Closed-in soundstage at low volumes. Animal cruelty at high volumes.

I bought these to use as surrounds with three B&W''s in the front. It''s hard to complain about a set of speakers that sound this good for less than $100, but not impossible. These speakers have been described as "bright". That''s a nice way of saying pain-inducingly shrill. I have played them at moderate volume levels for days to see if they would warm up a bit, but they have not. It''s a shame that this sonic assault distracts from their many other qualities. Since they were so inexpensive I will be sending the crossovers to Ed to see if his mod lives up to the hype. These speakers have incredible accuracy and detail for the price, and the soundstage is very good for this size of a speaker. However, they can''t match the amazing combination of detail, warmth, and openness that the B&W''s possess. At three times the price the B&W''s are a lesson in diminishing returns, but sometimes you have to pay a lot for the little something extra.

Similar Products Used:

B&W, KEF, Def. Tech., and Bose (Hey! they were a gift; give me a break!)

Upper Bass, Midrange

Slightly harsh treble

I purchased the indoor/outdoor version of these speaker in White for $37 a pop at Ubid. They are great speakers for a home theater setup. They have areas on the back for attaching to a nail head, etc.. for placement on a wall/ceiling. I'm using one for the Center as well. Good bass down to about 100 hertz (review these on BICAMERICA.COM)
The only problem I initially had with these speakers was the reflective/somewhat distorted sound that appeared to be coming from the tuned port (a sound you might expect from a plastic enclosure). I suspected a lack of insulation within the speaker and I was correct. If you purchase these speakers, do yourself a favor and add a big handful of fiberglass insulation or something similar to the inside to break up standing waves(they are opened by 6 phillips head screws). It made a big difference in sound quality....

Extremly pleasent overall sound. weather proof. designed to be used as a near field monitor. very easy/flexible to wall mount. shielded. extemly good value. (ubid 2 pair $101 delivered)

BIC claims base response to 70hz. I have not put a meter to them, but I would estimate that below 100hz its rolling off pretty quick.

regardless of price paid, these are a fine little speakers (no they do not compare to my PSB golds) They have an overall pleasent sound and in the right application sound wonderful. If you factor in market price, I dont think there is much out there that can come close.
recomended uses: outdoor, with a subwoofer, or if you listen mostly to acoustic or chamber music, smaller rooms, home theater (shielded and ease of mounting)
*(If placing on a shelf, I recomend placing a some piece of rubberized anti slip carpet pad under ea. speaker and placing the front edge of speaker flush or even just over the edge of the shelf and at least one foot or more from side walls)
*(If you want to tighten the base reponse (reduce chuffing), albiet raise it, you can open the speaker and block the port with either fiberglass wadding, simply a cloth rag, or don't laugh cutting down to a few inches in length and filling the port with them making a honey comb look. I read this once in an audio mag and tried it in a small powered sub that had a really annoying port noise and it worked fantasticly).

Overall great little speaker

Similar Products Used:

auditioned many. bose, boston acoustic, cambridge audio, teac, plus others.

Great Sound, Great Price, Great Company and a Great Warranty.

None

These speakers are just like every other BIC speaker I own; excellent. I'm currently using these speakers for the rears on my system. They do their job very well and I would be willing to put them up against about any other bookshelf speaker. For the price, I believe these speakers may be one of the best speaker buys out there.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha, KLH,

astronomical price/performance

too inexpensive, lack of reputation

This review is of DV 52si with modification on cross-overs by Ed Frias.

Before starting, let me point out a confusion about the identity of the product: DV 52si are small bookshelf speakers which I believe are identical to Venturi V 52si being reviewed here.

Okay, Ed Frias's modification on x-overs of BIC speakers is just amazing. I can't believe what I got just for as little as $30. The DV 52si got transformed into a completely different animal after the modification. The more I listen to the new DV 52si, the more I love them !!! I can't stop smiling, and can't sleep. Hey, give me a break.

To be honest, I didn't expect so much. But my expectation was greatly betrayed in a good way. I would enthusiastically recommend his x-over modification and modified speakers he is selling to everybody who loves audio AND doesn't have prejudice against "lower priced" audio gear.

To be honest, the modified DV 52si outpeform a number of much more expensive speakers from reputable brands like B&W, Boston Acoustics, Celestion, Dynaudio, Mission, Rega, Sonus Faber, Pathos, Vienna Akustics, and probably others which I haven't auditioned yet. So, why don't you try these marvelous guys, or some other modified speakers that Ed modified, if you consider yourself a real audiophile or audio enthusiast?

Now, it's my pleasure to tell how much I love the DV52si with your x-overs. Let me discuss my likes (and dislikes) in some detail.

In my opinion (and with my audio gear explained later), the sound of the modified DV52si is:

1) EXTREMELY RICH, especially in terms of outstanding nuances with superb imaging. the new speakers beautifully handle acoustic details, especially "overtones" that most other, even pretty expensive, speakers fail to pick up.

I give one fact to support this point. I usually hook TWO pairs of speakers with the amp, making one pair in reserved polarity to play in the reversed phase. My aim is to get richer soundstage that results from this. To my surprise, I didn't feel like doing this to the new DV 52si. They already sound so rich and so natural that they just didn't need such augmentation.

2) UNUSUALLY PLEASANT and SMOOTH (and even tender). I noticed two things related to this point:

3) I HAVE NO TIREDNESS even after a long, intensive listening with a pretty large volume of whatever kind of music.

4) I DON'T FEEL LOUD even if the volume gets pretty large. Actually, it's very hard to keep the volune at low enough at night.

5) If there is something missing (if not wrong) with the new speakers, that would be the LACK OF VERY HIGH RESPONSES. for example, "tzi tzi tzi" of cymbals don't sound so real. I know this "weakness" kind of "compensate" good features like 1) and 2). But I wish I had some more crystal-clear highs in certain kinds of music, if not in all kinds.

6) One more thing to add, if any, would be that the sounds from the modified 52si are very pleasant, but they nevertheless sometimes felt not to be so "tense", even they are feel to be somewhat "watered", sometimes. Some kind of music with "higher strung" may suffer from this.

For your information, let me specify my gear:

speakers: DV 52si with new x-overs
speaker cables: QED Silver anniversary
amplification: Nikko Alpha II (2x100w into 8 ohm)
preamp: Yamaha MVS-1 (purely passive pre)
CD player: Rotel RCD 955AX, Soundstream DAC-1
interconnect: Ixos Bronze twisted pair RCA cables

Sorry, I have already written too long. Maybe, I got too enthusiastic. Thanks again for his marvelous modification. It was really a wonderful experience that I had Ed modify the x-overs and will save hundred bucks to get other speakers to prove they aren't as good as these wonderful guys. I am looking forward to comparing them with Joseph Audio, Jean-Marie Reynaud, Merlin, ProAc, Spendor among others.

Similar Products Used:

Acoustic Energy Aegis 3, Cabasse Galiote, Mission 771 (or 771e), 773e, Rega Model 2

Great Sound, small size, high power handling, good looking.

A bit bright "out-of-the-box"

Like others have said, these speakers sound great but are a bit bright sounding out-of-the-box. Also, like many others, I "Fried" the crossovers...meaning that I had Ed Frias work his magic on them. They now sound absolutely incredible! Very smooth and natural with real presence. They can also handle a lot of power - 125 Watts - so they can really crank out the volumn when needed.

These speakers are a real bargain even after you factor in the small fee to have the crossovers tweeked by Ed! BTW Ed's "tweek" isn't just a minor adjustment...he pretty much completely rebuilds the crossovers.

I highly recommend these speakers and Ed Frias service.

Similar Products Used:

An old pair of Electro-Voice