Dell AS501 Computer Speakers

I have now had the AS501 Soundbar at work for over two years, being extremely satisfied with its performance in an office environment. It is able to produce good quality sound with decent amplification capability - bearing in mind that it is, after all, an under-monitor stereo speaker system intended for computer-related multimedia.
In case I don't wish to disturb my co-workers, there are two handy headphone connectors. The power switch/volume knob is conveniently located and easy to operate.

So, after I have finally replaced my trusty old CRT monitor at home with a spiffing new 24" height-adjustable pivoting Dell LCD, there was no better companion for it then the Soundbar which fits ever so snugly under the monitor, giving it a sleek no-nonsense look. Oh yes, and my old weathered cheap-sounding multimedia speakers looked obsolete next to it, so I threw them out too.

This is a device that attaches to most recent model Dell monitors, and gives them the ability to play sounds. What can I say? It performs its function.

The speaker definitely matches the look of my 2408WFP. It is smaller than it looks (maybe 14 inches across and a little more than an inch tall). It locks into latches on the bottom of your monitor, so if your monitor has height adjustment, it may no longer be possible to make the monitor go quite so low, although this wasn't a problem for me.

The speaker has a 4 or 5 foot cord ending in a headphone jack. It has 2 headphone ports on the speaker so that you and a friend can listen to your computer in private. There is also a volume/power knob. One of the cool things about this speaker is that it turns itself on and off with your monitor. I find this nice, but if you listen to music while your monitor is off, you may not like it at all.

Since it is only a 2W (1W x 2 for stereo) speaker set, it does not get very loud at all. Even at max volume, you will probably struggle to hear it over background conversation. In a quieter room, it will be plenty loud enough. The sound quality is better than laptop speakers, but worse than a real speaker system. There doesn't seem to be any distortion even at full volume (which is not that loud).

This 'sound bar' is probably the best speaker value for a computer I have ever seen! The 'sound bar' looks great under the DELL monitor and the sound is acceptable. This unit sells for around $10 and cannot be beat for the price. It is specifically designed to fit certain DELL monitors but I see no reason why it cannot be 'glued' or 'fastened' to the bottom of other monitors also. Any reasonably handy person can 'McGyver' this to fit almost any monitor with some crazy glue or clear silicone caulk. It comes with a transformer that needs to be hooked up if you do not have a DELL monitor with a power supply output and a 1/8" stereo mini-plug which is standard on almost all computers. GREAT VALUE! Easy to hook up and it looks real nice! A+++

These speakers have decent quality, and save space by attaching to most Dell Ultrasharp LCD with ease. Best of all, they save an outlet as well as many Dell Ultrasharp monitors have a plug that allows the speakers to draw power thru the monitor instead of a seperate wall source. I recommend these for the average user. For the serious audiophile, go with Bose' latest technology- USB wireless speaker system that has a rechargeable battery and can be placed anywhere in the house, allowing it to act as a streaming audio boombox if you will.

The speakers themselves are average quality, not very loud but that's expected because of its small size. works great for listening to average quality mp3s and watching streaming clips from youtube. Bass is too low for me and it should have more sound controls like bass and treble tuning or at least provide software for that purpose. Instalation was easy and simple, it only took me 2 minutes to connect it to my dell monitor and computer. If you like to save some space and have a neat looking monitor like mine, you should buy it.