Energy CB-5 Bookshelf Speakers (Pair,Black)

Replacing my dead Boston Acoustics SubSat6 setup, I researched long and hard before setting upon the Energy CB-5. Solid reviews found all around the web and now I both see and hear why.Compact, but with bigger sound, they are very pleasant sounding units. Not artificially bright and solid, even punchy, mids contribute to a sound I have found to be very neutral and relaxed. Listening to radio, CDs, and watching both cable and BD/DVD sources, I find them very easy to live with.And as indicated in most every other review I have read, they do require a subwoofer. While they do claim bass to 71Hz they simply cannot put out sufficient bass for music or BD/DVD sources. In a small room (a bedroom or office) they may be sufficient on their own as long as you don't try to play them nearer their limits, but with a larger room (such as my bedroom where they are placed) they sound too weak in the bottom end.I recommend the Energy EW-100 subwoofer as a companion. While it overachieves it is very nicely priced when found online and on sale and makes an excellent companion to the CB-5s.As long as your output requirements aren't more than the rated 100W I would hope anyone would find these to be a very good to excellent choice for most any small to medium-sized room application.

When our Bose 3-2-1 system went south, we decided to put together a new system. Our sound installation expert suggested Energy speakers, so we listened to him, read a lot, and even called Energy Customer Service and spoke to a helpful staff member. We had just purchased a Yamaha Natural Sound AV Receiver RX 575 to power the system.We settled on these speakers because of the size and performance - the customer service person did not know they were listed as discontinued, but he thought they would work well for our needs. They are attractive sitting on either side of our Panasonic Viera 50-inch TV. We complimented our two CB-5 speakers with an Energy ESW C-8 Subwoofer. All of these components were purchased through Amazon.

I purchased these thinking I would use them in the basement to replace some old Cambridge Soundworks Ensemble speakers. After breaking them in for a week or so I decided they sounded so good that I replaced the front left and right speakers in the garage surround system...I spend more time in the garage than in the basement anyway. Even my wife, who readily admits she is tone deaf, appreciates the improvement. I'm normally not a fan of "ported" or bass reflex style speaker but these little gems altered my predudices. They sound so nice that if I were to find them again at the price I paid I would order multiple more pairs. The high gloss finish looks great as well. They mount perfect using standard Omnimount style brackets and do accept banana plug terminal connections.

This is the second set of speakers I have purchased that weren't the Sony discount style speaker. I have a polk center channel, which is awesome paired up with these Energy's, and Sony for the surround. Even running on my old pioneer amp these CB 5's sound incredible. The clarity and bass response is immaculate. I find that everything sounds great coming out of these; classical, hip-hop, dubstep, rock. The speakers make titillating highs, and produce very clear lows. For the cost, and the amount of space they take up, or don't take up, you can't beat these little guys. They aren't def. tech monitor 800's, but they make very nice sound, and the price just makes it better.

I bought these for use in my garage but they have me looking into the Energy lineup for Home Theater use as well. I have a set of Acoustic Research AR-1s as my main speakers. They are a large tower with a very full sound. I put the Energy's on top of them and hooked them up to my receiver to give them a listen. I was expecting a much "Smaller" sound from them. To my surprise they sound like a decent tower speaker. Now they lows won't knock your socks off by any means but if I had done a blind audition I would have expected to see a much larger speaker behind the curtains. High's are great, very clear without being harsh, which is what I always worry about in a metal dome tweeter. Many of them sound great but after a couple hours they start to hurt my ears. Not physical pain but I just can't listen to them any longer comfortably. I have not experienced this with the Energy's I have listened to them for several hours straight while working in the Garage and I like them more every time I use them. I see from the branding all over the box they are owned by Klipsh now. Hopefully they will realize Energy has a good thing going and won't tamper with the product line too much!

I'm not sure what audiophile even means, but I like sounds so I guess I am an audiophile. I have "high-end" audio equipment throughout my home and can tell the difference when I listen to crappy equipment and quality equipment. I would put these speakers into the latter category. They provide a nice sound stage that is balanced and very clear. If you have the amp to run them properly, they put out a surprising amount of bass. I use them to listen to music, watch movies, etc and everything sounds great on them. They are in the middle price-wise and I would say the high end performance-wise. Great value for the money.

Great speakers - I heard this model at a big-box home electronics store and was impressed. They stuck in my mind and when I saw them on Amazon - at a far better price - I ordered them immediately. They have replaced the original speakers that came with a bookshelf stereo. Same settings, same location, and the improvement in sound is incredible. Good bass, clear midrange and crisp highs. No muffled sounds or tinniness, good solid build quality. Definitely recommended.

You can't get a better bookshelf speaker for the price... I compared them side by side to the Bose and blew the Bose's away much better sound... I have had my front Energy tower speakers for 14 years and still as crisp sounding as the day I bought them.... These bookshelf speakers are a great compliment to my tower speakers....

These are paired with an 8" 80 watt subwoofer in my family room and together, they offer brilliant sound. I did run them without the sub - they are good for their size but you just can't expect meaningful base from a cabinet that small. I bought them for their size and their reputation and would recommend them for 2.1 applications. They would also be great rear suround speakers.

Fully eight days after I purchased these speakers from AVGear -- well after my order was confirmed, shipped and in transit – I received notification they were on back order. My options were a full refund (like anyone would be satisfied with three quarters of a refund) or an "upgrade'' to CB-10s, the next speaker in the product line. This was no accommodation whatsoever as the CB-10s, according to the web page they sent me, were contained in box that "shows signs of wear and tear.'' If an in-transit box containing the CB-5s didn't exist, I had to wonder about the integrity of the contents of one that was worn and torn. Moreover, professional and user reviews of this "upgraded'' model indicated the speakers were inferior to the ones I ordered. I never received an apology, just a "sorry for the inconvenience'' tagged on the end of an email, almost as an afterthought.Some inconvenience. If I wanted to use that full refund to try to purchase the CB-5s elsewhere, I'd be paying $367 for a pair of speakers I originally purchased from AVGear for $170. I had no real option and no apology.I understand every business occasionally has customer service issues and I have every reason to believe AVGear is usually a trustworthy seller. I want my fellow Amazon shoppers to be leery of purchasing an item when there's "only one left.'' Maybe try contacting the seller for an email confirmation there's one item remaining? But don't assume that because you've been notified the item has "shipped'' and is "in transit'' that that's necessarily the case. In mine, it was a lie.I would have been OK with a real apology and or a gesture of goodwill. But what got me steamed was these guys just weren't about to give. They lied to me and then tried to pawn off some potentially damaged, hard-to-move product to make up for it. I was made to feel I was being used to clear inventory.From my experience, AVGear could learn a lot about customer service from Amazon. Dump the cavalier attitudes, dudes. Understand many of us have a lot more than money invested in our music gear.Add: About two weeks later I found a pair of CB-5s online at The Source for $200 and I'm most pleased with them. It was the only place I could find that wasn't sold out of the CB-5s or selling them for $367.