[SNAP]
[UPBEAT MUSIC]
Hey, Jack.
Hey, Elias.
Ah.
Like those vintage speakers?
Yeah, they're vintage.
You think you could do better?
Well, Jack, I have some really great speakers
you're going to love to hear.
Really?
Yeah, back in the lab.
Can we go listen?
Come on.
All right.
Let's go.
Jack, welcome to the Listening Room.
Oh man.
So this is where you guys test all your speakers?
All day.
Have a seat.
Elias tells me to be careful not to move anything,
because testing sound is a very delicate operation.
Consumer Reports test speakers for sound quality, ease of use,
and versatility, giving them grades from poor to excellent.
So how do you test speakers in here?
Well, Jack, we do several things.
We use technical measurements using this microphone
which allows us to record what the speaker is
capable of doing.
Then we use our ears.
We'll sit here, two of us will analyze the audio
and describe how well it performs.
Why do you use your human ears along with the machines?
We use our ears, because nothing will ever replace actually
experiencing the sound versus taking a technical measurement.
And it's like if someone told you a steak tasted great,
you'd have to actually taste it for yourself
to know how good it is.
So I want to put those ears to the test.
Well, definitely.
Let's take your vintage boombox, and let's give it a listen.
OK.
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC]
All right, Jack.
Here's your speaker playing the song.
What do you think?
I think it sounds OK.
The bass is kind of rolled off.
It's a little on the weak side.
Now we listen to the same piece of music through this speaker.
Wow.
It's filling up the whole room.
Doesn't that sound amazing?
I mean it's like night and day.
This is only good sound.
There is excellent sound.
While it may be tough to hear the difference through your TV,
trust me.
There is a big difference sitting here
in front of these speakers.
Woo.
Sounds amazing.
Have you ever heard anything like that?
I have not heard anything like that.
Just listen.
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC]
That has depth.
You could feel it come out to here.
It has height.
And it has width.
And you know whats great?
All the layers of the sound, it's really complex.
Listen to the mallets hitting the tympanis.
It's just as if you're there.
Elias, is it possible to get an excellent speaker
for an affordable price?
Definitely, Jack.
What we've seen in our testing is
that you can spend $500, $1,000 and not quite
get to excellent sound.
Really.
But we have tested speakers down at $350 that
will give you excellent sound.
How does that happen?
It's not about the price.
It's about the workmanship, the quality of the sound.
There's also a whole new breed of high tech speakers.
So what are the differences between Bluetooth speakers,
Wi-Fi speakers, sound bars, and smart speakers?
With Bluetooth you have a shorter range
usually between 30 feet or so.
But with Wi-Fi you can be hundreds of feet
away from the speaker to play your sound,
and you can set up multi-room setups in your house
and have a speaker in every room through one network.
Nice.
And with a sound bar, you have all of those features plus you
provide your TV with great sound.
Now what about those smart speakers?
Well, smart speakers are this new player in town.
And so they give you the ability to just talk to the speaker
and ask for the music you want whenever you want.
So when I go to a store and buy a speaker,
what exactly am I looking for?
You want to look for a speaker that
allows you to adjust its tone, its bass, its treble,
so that you can adjust it to sound that's best.
Elias, I had such a great time in this place.
Is it OK if I stay here a couple of minutes just listening
to some music?
Sure.
Knock yourself out.
Thank you, Elias.
You're very welcome.
Enjoy.
All right.
[VARIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
Jack!
Elias!
You're still here.
I'm just having so much fun man.
But it's Wednesday.
It is?
Can I have five more minutes please?
OK.
Enjoy.
Thanks.
You have a good time.
All right.
[CHUCKLES] Yeah.
[SNAP]