Edifier S2000MKIII - Review
In this review of the Edifier S2000MKIII (an easy-to-pronounce product name), we test and compare the 2nd highest active speaker in the Edifiers bookshelf line. This is an exciting product because Edifier usually offers an outstanding money-to-sound ratio with their speakers. The S2000MKIII is priced just under $500, which puts them against some strong competition, but if experience is anything to go by, they should be competing head-to-head with far more expensive brands like Klipsch and Q Acoustics.
What you need to know about the Edifier S2000MKIII
I touched on it above, but the S2000MKIII is the second most expensive speaker in the Edifier line and sits behind the far more expensive S3000Pro. We reviewed the slightly cheaper S1000 MKII and rated it highly due to its clean, energetic sound and modern styling. Our review of the S3000Pro should be up within a few weeks as we have just finished the break-in period and are getting into the testing.
The S2000MKII I has a standard bookshelf design, a 2-way speaker configuration of one tweeter, and a full range woofer. It features internal amplifiers and receivers, meaning you do not need to buy external components (other than your source device, e.g., phone, computer, DAP) to get going. It’s as simple as removing them from the box and plugging everything in; you will be listening to music soon.
The advantage for many people is that you do not have to spend time finding a suitable amp to connect your speakers to. It cleans the clutter in the house by having separate components, and you have the benefit of having all your inputs within the speaker for ease of connectivity.
Many audiophiles like to bash active speakers as they are not in line with the pure spirit of the hobby, but I think few would argue that in recent years they have gotten really good. Often you will hear, but for $500, I can get x, y, or z speaker for the same money, yet they don’t take into account buying amplification, cables, or that you lose a lot of functionality. I think active speakers are great; I have a set in the lounge and another in the kitchen and manage to thoroughly enjoy them because I don’t consider myself an audio snob as such.
Pros:
Sound Quality: The S2000 MkIII offers impressive sound quality with a balanced audio profile.
Build Quality: Made with quality materials, they have a luxurious appearance with wood veneer and an attractive design.
Connectivity Options: multiple connection types: Bluetooth 5.0, optical, coaxial, RCA, plus balanced XLR inputs.
Remote Control Included
Informative Display: The speaker has an OLED screen displaying inputs, volume levels, and other settings.
Cons:
Size and Weight: Being a set of powerful bookshelf speakers, they are heavier than non active speakers.
Price: They may still be considered expensive for some potential buyers. However with these speakers remember you don’t have to pay extra for amps or cables.
Pricing & Availability
The Edifier S2000MKIII is a fairly popular bookshelf speaker and is available from several online vendors who usually have stock or short notice availability. They also may be found in some brick-and-mortar stores. Please use our links below to check the current prices at the respective retailers.
Specifications
Total power output: L/R (treble): 15W+15W RMS - L/R (mid-range bass): 50W + 50W RMS
Signal-to-noise ratio: ≥90dB(A)
Noise level: ≤25dB(A)
Frequency response: 45Hz~40KHz
Total harmonic distortion+noise(%): ≤0.3%
Build Quality
The build is excellent, like really some high-level stuff, and easily on par with the Klipsch Fives, which cost double the money. The cabinet is made from thick MDF cuts, and we also removed the plate to check the internal construction.
Inside, the speaker is well-braced with no excess glue and heavy bracing to reduce resonance.
The material choices are excellent and high quality, and the finishing is to a high standard. This review set of Edifier S2000MKIII is the second set I have owned, and there are never any defects. They don’t claim master craftsmen hand finishing their products, but in general, Edifier has a solid QC team at work because I don’t think I have ever heard a complaint.
Styling
The styling is a mixed bag. I get what they are trying to do, and it does work. It’s just that I really wish there was a light color option available because the standard black and alternative mahogany finishes will date any product.
That’s a shame because the styling is so sleek and clean, adding touches of modernity while still adhering to the strict requirement that bookshelf speakers are just rectangular boxes. There’s usually very little any company can do, but Edifier does go the extra mile.
While we don’t have the sloped back design we find on the S10000DB, we do see the return of the center channel plate where the drivers are mounted. This runs up and over the top of the speaker and breaks up some of that boxiness we were talking about.
Instead of opting to just leave the small tweeter up top, Edifier has inlayed it into a sloped back wave channel that matches the look of the larger woofer and brings balance to the design.
Symmetry is broken only by the remote control infrared receiver on the side of the active speaker, but it’s minimally invasive and not too distracting. What is distracting is that tacky gold HD Audio sticker that I demand you remove ASAP. I love how a design team goes through their process only to have someone from marketing put a sticker over the top.
You will notice that the 2000 sits atop four tiny feet (per speaker), a touch of class because that should also cut down on surface resonance by minimizing contact. It’s one of the few active speakers I have seen with this most welcome feature.
Finally, the sides are beautifully contoured, breaking off any sharp lines, they really didn’t need to go this extra step, but I think it rounds off the design ethos well and brings the style to a more definitive idea.
The Grilles
The protective grilles are usually the first thing to go when I get a set of speakers, I want to use them, but usually, they look so damn ugly. Edifier has followed on from the S1000 and introduced a fam more stylistic grill system that I think makes this speaker look better with them.
The grills flow with the lines of the speaker curving around the woofer and tweeter and form part of the modern styling. I like how they float just of the drivers themselves, but unfortunately, to get this effect, Edifier used traditional pillar plug mounts to attach them.
Magnets are now my preferred choice because it leaves a speaker with a cleaner front side when the grills are removed. Here we have four rather prominent mounting posts on display when using the speaker without the grills.
This can be considered an oversight or Edifier cheaping out because those grilles need to float on those pillars to meet the style brief, but I would always prefer to have the option to remove them and have a clean aesthetic underneath. Sue me; I have OCD.
Connectivity
The best thing about active speakers is that I have built all my connectivity needs. And here, we have a good selection, including Bluetooth 5.0 with its support for high-resolution streaming via APTX.
You also get two standard RCA lines and a 3.5mm aux input. The good thing is that the S2000MKIII allows you to connect multiple input devices simultaneously, so you can have a receiver, a TV, and a set-top box all hooked directly into the speakers, where you can switch the source using the remote.
Oh, I should mention there is also an optical input SPDIF.
What is noticeably missing, however, and a bit of a negative is the lack of an output port to use a dedicated active subwoofer. I think this is something people serious about audio would like to have the option for. Realistically, most people buying speakers like these are not looking to use external components, so it’s not an issue for them, but it would be nice to have the options available.
How to use the Edifier S2000MKIII
For the most part, using these speakers once set up is very intuitive. Almost every function can be controlled via the remote, and the front-facing LED screen lets you know where you stand in the menu system.
The remote has dedicated buttons for playback and direct options for mode selection, power, mute, and the four preset eq settings. The remote is by far one of the best I have used from any company and makes the speaker a joy to use.
Bonus points should also be awarded to Edifier for making the remote available to purchase separately should you ever destroy or lose the original. Take note of the Audioengine A2+. Almost no other company I review offers that option, and usually, they make you beg and grovel with support for a replacement before charging you exorbitant prices. Not here; it’s available to order on the website for just $14.99.
You might also want to consider using the back of the speaker, which has knobs that allow you to tune in the bass and treble to your preferred levels. This works okay but is a crude and limited alternative to a full-band EQ system.
Sound Quality
First, the Edifier S2000 MKIII (I’m getting tired of writing that name now) has no business sounding so good. I tested them alongside the much revered Klipsch Fives, but I can say which is better. They both performed very well in the test sessions, but there is a huge disparity in price between the pair.
The Edifier performed well with every genre I threw at it and displayed few signs of weakness in any area. It projected a bigger sound than the smaller Kanto YU4 we reviewed previously, and I found it to be more on the level of the excellent Audio engine HD6 with its whopping 150w of active power. For note, the MKIII is substantially cheaper.
The treble was damn near perfect in quantity and sparkle. Even when I scaled the volume, it remained airy and sweet with a crisp edge but no detectable sibilance. That is somewhere where so many speakers fail, but the spacing and clarity here are almost refreshing.
The midrange is neither colored nor dry. Instead, it sounds natural, clean, and detailed, with great detail retrieval and solid note decay. They keep up with fast-paced tracks and clearly define themselves as not getting swamped by the other frequencies. Its ability to stand out when you want to do some focused listening but melt into the background when going about your day is a strong point. There is no sharp upper midrange crash on female vocals and no bleeding overlap from the bass. It’s just well-composed and accurate.
The bass is the weakest point, but that’s a limit of physics and not the speakers themselves. The 5.5-inch woofers can only move so much air, which is insufficient to deliver accurate sub-bass satisfactorily. You would need a subwoofer in your system, but unfortunately, there is no option to connect one.
The bass that remains, while being light in quantity, is very good in quality. It’s punchy, fast, and agile. It thumps with energy and displays some detail in the upper bass frequencies, making stringed instruments like cello and double bass enjoyable.
Is it capable of EDM and Rap? You get impact, but when I talk bass, it’s usually about the subwoofer for bass, and any speaker will struggle against such a system.
To sum up, the sound is more than good; it punches well above its weight for what else is on the market, and I’ll say it’s the best-sounding active speaker I have heard for under $500.
Final Verdict
Edifier has done it again. They are the champions of price to performance and are, at this point, relishing being the small company that is putting big-name brands in their place. The Edifier S2000MKIII, shocking name aside, shows us that the company has managed to scale its success from its earlier cheaper models and deserves to be considered, especially if you are looking for something that sounds far better than its price point would suggest. I have 4.5 out of 5 stars on this one, and only really because they didn’t include that sub-out cable option.
