FX4021

The FX4021 speaker system is supplied in a well designed box. On the outside there are various pictures which detail the product and the speaker appearance. There are also some small sections of text which give information on the bundled accessories and product features. Flipping open the top of the box we find that there are some useful diagrams which save searching through the manual for instructions on how to connect the speakers. We can also see that the product is encased in polystyrene blocks and polythene wrap to protect everything during shipping.

Shown above are the main components of the FX4021 system, also included in the package is a manual, phono to 3.5mm convertor (input) and 3.5mm stereo lead. Looking specifically at the main component pictures above, on the left is the subwoofer which contains Isobaric-configured dual 5.25" woofers. The idea behind this design is that it should produce sound which is comparable to subwoofers twice the size whilst maintaining a small footprint. The Altec Lansing diagram below shows how the woofers are arranged inside the cabinet.

The systems power supply is also included in this unit and so there is a cable which connects directly to the wall rather than an external brick. The satellite speakers are shown on the right and contain one 40mm midrange driver and 18mm tweeter each. The entire system has a rating noise level of 95dB with a power rating of 45watts. The subwoofer makes up 24watts of this (at 8ohms) and the satellites 11w each (at 4ohms).

Many speaker systems have a single cable which runs from one speaker, to the other and then on to the subwoofer, however the FX4021 are more versatile with a cable attached to each satellite. As well as useful design features such as separate cables, Altec Lansing have created extremely stylish speakers which look great and the silver/black colour scheme should fit in well with most modern PC’s or televisions. It is also worth pointing out that the subwoofer has feet on the underside which raise the unit approximately 0.5 inch off the ground. The feet on the Satellite speakers do the same, however they are removable if the user decides to wall mount them.

On the rear of the subwoofer are the satellite connectors (colour coded) 3.5mm stereo connector and DIN which connects to the control module. The side of this control module also features a 3.5mm input and in addition a 3.5mm headphone socket. The inclusion of these sockets means that any audio product with a 3.5mm cable/output can be connected to the FX4021, including PCs and MP3 players.

Control of the FX4021 can be actioned in two ways. The first is via the wired control module, shown on the left picture above. On this unit we have an on/off button, effects buttons and volume dial. There is also an IR receiver on the front corner which accepts inputs from the compact remote pictured on the left. This remote also features the options available on the wired control module.
When powered up the transparent ring surrounding the volume dial lights up green to display the various levels or on/off status of the volume, bass, treble, Loud or SFX (a technology which adds a wider sound to the audio). Overall both the remote and control unit work well however we did find on occasion the light up ring was not as clear as it could have been in demonstrating the current levels which were selected.