The Bottom Line
Pros
- The center and satellite bookshelf speakers provide good all-around performance.
- Speakers can be either bookshelf or stand mounted. Optional stands available.
- Replacable baffles available in several colors.
- Very smooth transition between the rest of the speakers and E10s Powered Subwoofer
- Good price point.
Cons
- Vocals on some CD recordings lacked as much impact as I would have preferred.
- Some drop-off on the deepest bass frequencies.
- Speakers not video shielded for use near CRT-based televisions
Description
- EF50C Center Speaker - Frequency Response: 100 Hz - 20 kHz, Sensitivity: 88 dB, Impedance: 6 ohms.
- EF50C Center Speaker - Power Handling: 120 watts RMS, Drivers: Woofer/Midrange Dual 4-inch, Tweeter 1-inch.
- EF50C Center Speaker - Crossover: 3,000 Hz (3Khz), Dimensions: 14”w x 5”h x 6.5”d, Weight: 9.1 lbs.
- EF50 Satellite Speaker - Frequency Response: 100 Hz - 20 kHz, Sensitivity: 85 dB, Impedance: 6 ohms.
- EF50 Satellite Speaker - Power Handling: 35-100 watts RMS, Drivers: Woofer/Midrange 4-inch, Tweeter 1-inch Silk.
- EF50 Satellite Speaker - Crossover Frequency: 3,000 Hz (3Khz), Dimensions: 5”w x 8.5”h x 6.5”d, Weight: 5.3 lbs each.
- E10s Powered Subwoofer - Driver: 10-inch Aluminum, Frequency Response: 30Hz to 150Hz, Power Output: 100 watts.
- E10s Powered Subwoofer - Phase: 0 or 180 degrees, Amplifier: Class A/B, Asjustable Crossover 50-150Hz, Crossover Bypass.
- E10s Powered Subwoofer - Connections: RCA Line ports (stereo or LFE), Speaker Level i/o ports, Power On/Off: two-way toggle.
- E10s Powered Subwoofer - Dimensions: 10.75" W x 12" H x 13.5" D, Weight: 36 lbs, Available Finishes: Black.
Guide Review - EMP Tek HTP-551 5.1 Channel Home Theater Speaker Package
The EF50C center channel speaker sounded good, but its diminutive size seemed to contribute to a lack of strong impact on some vocals and dialog. However, that being said, the EF50C does does integrate well into the rest of the system. With a little center channel tweaking using a home theater receiver, the user can still get satisfying results from the EF50C.
The EF50 bookshelf speakers, which were used as both left and right mains and surrounds, performed their job well. Although very compact, they held their own in reproducing both front and surround, and balanced well with both the EF50C center speaker and the ES10 subwoofer. The EF50's did a great job with surround effects in several notable movie scenes, such as the first battle scene from Master and Commander, the arrow assault scene in Hero, and the echo game scene from House of the Flying Daggers.
I found the ES10 powered subwoofer to be an excellent match for the rest of the speakers. Despite its compact size, the subwoofer provided a good lower frequency transition from the mid-range and high-frequency response of the EF50C and EF50. The bass response was fairly tight and complemented both music and movie tracks appropriately.
I really enjoyed using this system and found that it provided good, overall, performance, with just a couple of caveats:
I would have preferred a fuller lower mid-range/upper bass response from the EF50c center channel speaker.
The system is best used in a small-to-medium size room.
However, these criticisms are minor in comparison to the total performance of the system. I give the EMP HTP-551 5.1 Home Theater Package a 4 out of 5 Star Rating.
