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UPDATE
I’ve had the 2.1 setup connected to a 4K Stick for 5 months, which has been used as a sound bar/stereo in our master bedroom. From a music perspective, it sounds it’s pretty good! The sound stage is full and produces decent bass. I wish it got a little louder. I find the bass response better for music than movies (I LOVE heavy bass in action scenes). If you like heavy bass for action movies, you may be a little disappointed. .
I have, but no longer experience the connectivity issues others have written about. Mine were limited to music playback, however the issue subsided a few months ago.
I’ll address three improvement areas:
1) When connected with the sub, all the lows go through the sub and the woofers on the studios are rendered useless, unless the volume is high. The trade-off is clearer sound than when the studios are paired alone. Personally, I look at it as a design flaw. All three units should produce lows (or at least have the settings in the EQ to do so) for a better, more immersive bass experience. What good is a 5.25’ Studio driver if it won’t be used when paired?? 🤔
2) As other reviewers have mentioned, there is a lip syncing issue when used as a home theater. Depending on the source the fire stick is decoding, there can be a noticeable sound lag. I have not discovered a way to address this issue.
3) The Studios have the ability to play lossless tracks (24bit). However, paired with a Fire device (Cube, 4K stick... doesn’t matter) the output drops to 16bit, because the sound is decoded in the Fire device and played through the Studio. This simply means that fidelity/musical clarity is lost . The limitation lies within the Fire device, not the Studio. However, it’s worth mentioning because when connected to a Fire device, the Studios will be limited to the capability of the decoding device. If they’re used as a stand-alone stereo for music only, you can use the Studios to their full ability.
BOTTOM LINE
I like the setup. I already owned the Eco Sub so its cost had no bearing on my buying decision. The Studios were an add-on for me. In fairness, I came out off of pocket $240 for both Studios combined. With that said, FOR ME I find great value and functionality.
The question is, if I was to start over and pay full retail ($400 for two Studios + $130 for the sub) for a wireless stereo/sound bar system, what would I think? Could I find a better wireless Atmos Sound bar + woofer with no lip syncing issues for the money? YEP! Could I find a better wireless Smart stereo for the money? I’m not so sure! Could I find one that does both pretty well? I doubt it! Could I split the money between two decent systems, one for music and one for theater? Not why would I go do that??? I’d get one that could do multiple things.
FOR THE MONEY it’s good buy. It’s not a Sonos Playbar + Sub (which is 2x the cost) nor a B&W sound bar & Sub (which is 4x the cost). It’s good for the money.
If you can look past the intermittent lip sync issue, go for it. If that's a deal breaker, spend more and get a sound bar that also produces good music.
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The speakers sounds great! No complaints; simple setup, quick calibration and I was off to the races.
From a price point, it's comparable to the Sonos One. From a sound quality, it far exceeds. Sonos One is probably slightly clearer, but that's where the comparisons stop. Echo Studio has a wider/fuller sound stage, more bass, gets louder. The closest comparison is probably the HomePod or Play 3. IMO, this sounds better than both.
I already own an Echo Sub and ordered an additional Studio for pairing. I have yet to connect to FireTV 4k to test the home theater setting.
In summary, this produces very good sound, the price is reasonable and it's the best smart speaker on the market... in my humble opinion...
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Buy New$199.99
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