Corsair SP2500 2.1 232W Audio Speaker Kit Review

Corsair SP2500 2.1 Desktop Speakers – CA-SP211

When we first found out that Corsair was entering the audio market this fall we were a little shocked, but we all know that the PC market is changing. Razor thin profit margins on DRAM has caused many companies to branch out into other areas to keep their companies growing. Corsair has successfully branched out over the years and you can now find their products in a number of channels such as USB Flash drives, power supplies, solid-state drives, CPU coolers, PC cases and, most recently, audio products for PCs. The one thing that Corsair has done in nearly every product category they have ever entered is to bring a new and unique product to market that stands out from the crowd. One can argue that Corsair single-handedly changed the memory and power supply market by causing other companies to increase their product quality in order to compete.

When the Corsair HS1 USB circumaural gaming headset was launched we were a bit shocked to find it to be a very nice headset. This HS1 headset was built using the high quality construction that one would expect from Corsair, but we also found the headset to have an impressive comfort level with clear and crisp audio. We then found out that Corsair was coming out with 2.1 desktop speakers kits we were excited to see what Corsair would be able to bring to market. This month that question was answered when Corsair launched two 2.1 PC speaker systems.

Corsair SP2200

• Total power: 46 Watts
• Subwoofer: 6 side-firing at 30 Watts
• Satellites: 2″ at 8W per satellite
• Frequency Response: 40Hz 20kHz +5/-5dB, -10dB @ 35Hz
• Warranty: Two years
• Part Number: CA-SP212
• Price: $99.99

Corsair SP2500

• Total power: 232 Watts
• Subwoofer: 8 side-firing at 120 Watts
• Satellites: 3″ midrange at 40W per satellite and 1″ tweeters at 16W per satellite
• Frequency response: 35Hz 20kHz +/- 3dB
• Warranty: Two Years
• Part Number: CA-SP211
• Price: $249.99

As you can see, the two speaker systems are very different and Corsair sent over the SP2500 for us to look at, which is their flagship system.

The Corsair SP2500 arrived in a large full color retail box that looked great. As you can see from the image above the marketing team over at Corsair went with the usual blue, black, and white color scheme that they have been using for years. This box doesn’t look big in the image, but it is 23″ x 20″ x 16″. The box has a large picture of the speaker system in three languages and all of the specifications. If you are an audio enthusiast these specifications should be very important to you, so we listed them out for you below.

Corsair SP2500 2.1 PC Speaker System Specifications:

• Frequency response: 35Hz 20kHz +/- 3dB
• 232 Watts total power (measured via FTC RMS method)
• Subwoofer dimensions: 18.1 x 10.2 x 11.7 inches (46 x 25.8 x 29.7 cm)
• Satellite dimensions: 4.25 x 4.7 x 6.25 inches (10.8 x 12 x 15.9 cm)

Subwoofer:

• 8 120W (IEC60268-5 24hr continuous rating) subwoofer with durable rubber surround
• Fourth-order closed bandpass enclosure design
• Bridged dual 60 Watt class-D amplifiers with integrated DSP for 120 Watts of power (measured via FTC RMS method)
• Ultra-efficient integral power supply with 100V 240V AC input

Satellites:

• Bi-amplified, two-way design with detachable audio cables
• 3 40W (IEC60628-5 24hr continuous rating) midrange drivers
• 1 16W (IEC60268-5 24hr continues rating) ferrofluid-cooled silk diaphragm tweeters
• 56 Watts per satellite (measured via FTC RMS method):
  • 40 Watt midrange class-D amplifiers with integrated DSP
  • 16 Watt tweeter class-D amplifiers with integrated DSP

I/O, Controls and Programming

• PC input on subwoofer
• Dual 3.5mm auxiliary inputs (one on subwoofer, one on desktop controller)
• 3.5mm headphone output with digital signal processing
• Wired desktop controller with high-resolution color 1.8 (4.6cm) TFT display and multi-lingual interface (English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese)
• Mod X theatrical audio processing for Blu-Ray and DVD audio that recreates the theater experience
• Dynamic DSP programs and EQ curves for late night listening, environment simulation, and optimal enjoyment of game and movie genres

Inside the box we were impressed to find how well Corsair packaged the SP2500. Each speaker was individually foam wrapped and then placed in a plastic bag to keep it protected and then each major component was secured between cardboard pieces. Our kit arrived without a scratch and the box didn’t have any dents or dings in it either, which is good for something that weighs this much and is so big.

Once you get everything unpacked this is what you will finally uncover: the SP2500 2.1 speaker kit in all its glory.

Corsair PS2500 Package Contents:

• Subwoofer
• Satellites (Two) w/ optional risers
• Desktop controller with 6 / 1.8m cable
• 3.5mm to stereo RCA cable for PC input
• Two 6 / 1.8m satellite audio cables with ATX4 connectors
• Power cable

One of the nicer features of this kit is the 1.8″ (4.6cm) color TFT display controller that makes using the speakers very simple and gives you a convenient location to plug in some 3.5mm headphones. Let’s take a closer look at the components and give you our thoughts on how it sounds!