Edifier e255 Surround Sound Speaker Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging & Bundle3. Testing4. Closing Thoughts5. View All Pages

You have to say that Edifier’s design is amazing. The streamlined Ferrari-looks make many traditional speakers seem like boxy Volvos from the seventies. However, speakers are not about looks, they are about audio, so we’re encouraged to make this kind of buying decision based on sound quality alone. That said, design has become a significant factor in so many buying decisions in recent years, so the question we have to ask ourselves is: While beautiful to behold, is the Edifier e255 speaker set really worth £600?

When trying to create a cinema in your living room, there is no real limit on how much you can spend or how many holes you can make in the wall. There is some anecdotal evidence of enthusiasts trying to build the perfect system with 48 or more speakers. Your home cinema experience will only be as good as the weakest link between your source and your speakers.

Audiophiles say that it’s better to save for a few more months and buy the right thing, than to compromise and get whatever you can afford today. We all know that eBay is littered with other people’s mistakes.

While the best 3D sound experience available for your living room may well comes from Dolby Atmos, the majority of people won’t go to the effort of installing speakers above their heads or buying 100% Atmos-enabled content. Generally, most of your surround sound experience will come from Dolby Pro Logic/Pro Logic II.

Dolby Pro Logic II uses hidden audio cues that already exist in stereo content to create realistic surround sound with five full-range channels: Left, Right, Centre, Left Surround, and Right Surround. You won’t get the full dome of Dolby Atmos audio from this kind of faux-surround, but it will give you some kind of 360 degree experience (in a single, lateral plane) on most stereo content.

Edifier says you can be ‘part of the movie with 385-watts of surround sound’ and it allows for wireless connection of the sub-woofer and rear speakers. In practice, the bass was amazing but the rear surround speakers would need some adaptation to be really effective. The surround was there, but without true immersion – more about that later.

Features

• Wireless 5.1 Surround Sound home theatre system
• Dolby/DTS & Dolby Pro Logic II
• Dolby/DTS certified
• OLED display system & current stream
• Independent amps in every speaker calibrated for electronic crossovers
• Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and Dynamic Range Control (DRC)
• High efficiency switch power source
• Touch sensitive controls
• Remote control included

Specifications

• Power output: RMS 16W × 5 (treble) + 20W × 5 (mid-range)
• SW: RMS 220W
• Signal to noise ratio: =95dBA
• Input sensitivity: AUX: Satellite: 600mV±50mV
• Subwoofer: 750mV±50mV
• Optical: Satellite: 300±50mFFS
• Subwoofer: 550±50mFFS
• Input type: Optical x 3 /AUX
• Bass unit: 8 inch (210mm)
• Mid-range unit: FL/FR/C/SL/SR: 3 inch (82mm)
• Treble unit: F19mm silk dome

It was fun watching the courier struggle to get the huge box to the front door, but the smiles disappeared when we began moving the box into the loft for testing. If weight was the only benchmark for audio quality, then greatness would be evident from this unit. Heavy products need protection and the Edifier e255 comes double-boxed with 4 full-size polystyrene foam waffles ready to sacrifice themselves to protect your investment.

Despite multiple impact points on the outer box, the speakers themselves arrived in perfect condition, each wrapped in its own white cotton pouch with pull ties. What was missing was the on-the-shelf printed packaging, suggesting that Edifier might not be expecting to sell this product in a high street environment.

  

 

The box also featured a smaller plastic casing for the user manual and cables, as well as a plastic pouch with an Edifier handkerchief. We wiped the speakers with it, but it could also be used for clearing the sinuses to increase sound quality.

The hand-held remote is a good size and weight with rubberised buttons that are easy enough to find. It would be more effective with a touch of backlight.

The user manual is straightforward, with simple diagrams that make connectivity easy. However, we had an issue with one of the plugs during set up, which made us believe the wireless speakers were not connected.

The reconnection process involves pairing the subwoofer and rear speakers by pressing a button, while the centre speaker is in ‘happy to be found’ mode. While there was a distinct button on the subwoofer, the rear speakers had only a circular indent with a smaller circular indent within.

We were about to try a paperclip, when we realised the actual issue and all was well – the wireless speakers automatically found each other.

   

Alongside the hefty subwoofer (we placed a household plug on the base – to give you a sense of the scale) and clever central speaker unit (detail shots shows its Dolby credentials), you essentially get 4 speakers that are nearly the same, except that the FR/FL have a cabled data connection, while the SR/SL have wireless connectivity.

Overall, for a set of speakers that includes the word ‘wireless’, there are still quite a lot of wires. In this case, one power cable each for the subwoofer, centre speaker, front speakers and each of the rear speakers.

The front mounted OLED is situated just under the tweeter on the central speaker. It has a basic, blue look and feel – reminiscent of an early generation digital alarm clock. The advantage of having a screen on your speakers is that you can see that they’re working (and in which mode), without having to refer to a computer screen.

That said, its small size makes it hard to read from 3-6 metres away while laying on the sofa in an average living room.

   

The tweeters on all the speakers are protective by a curved piece of metal. All of the surround speakers have 2 additional passive base speakers located in the gap. Edifier claim that this enhances overall bass output.

 

  

We tested the Edifier e255 speakers in a rectangular room approximately 6.5 meters by 5 meters, using a variety of music, films and games over a two day period.

The system includes Dolby Pro Logic II which uses hidden audio cues that already exist in stereo content to create realistic surround sound with five full-range channels: Left, Right, Center, Left Surround, and Right Surround. You won’t get a full dome of audio from this kind of faux-surround, but it will give you a 360 degree experience on most content.

The design incorporates an optical output, so that’s what we used for testing. It also offers Dolby and DTS decoding, but there is no mention of a DSP in the manual. Unlike the e25HD speakers we reviewed earlier, there is also no mention of dynamic range compression (DRC).

For direct audio comparison, we used a Wavemaster Moody kit, which retails for less than £100 and – like most 2.1 speaker sets – is a simple, cost effective way to add extra volume to your living room TV experience. We also made direct comparisons with the Edifier e25HD speakers reviewed in November.

Music
These tracks were chosen to push the speakers in different ways across the full spectrum of audio demands. We have included links to the videos for your reference, but were using Apple etc as the source for testing.

Yaeji – Drink I’m Sippin’ On
The deep, pulsing base of this song contrasts strongly with the elegant female vocal. While the Moody 2.1 did it justice, the reproduction on the e25HDs was much more articulate, but quieter. Edifier’s e255 setup punches out ample bass, with only a slight degradation of the vocal. That does take something away from the track but, nevertheless, it was still impressive.

Gary Moore – Out in the fields
Pray tell me the tale of the e255, its tweeters dark, its intentions HiFi. It’s fair to say the Irish rock experience was enhanced through these speakers. Alongside significant raw volume, the e255 also kept the various frequencies clean and distinct.

EDX Festival Remix – Human
Even if you’re not a fan of modern electronic music or Christina Perri, you can still appreciate the testing nature of this remix. When this track reached the drop at around 1 minute 40 seconds, it felt positively dangerous. The room was suddenly full of club-level vibrations, while maintaining audio clarity. In term of the range of frequencies that the speakers are being asked to deliver, this song is as messy as any cinema battle scene, but the e255s delivered.

The Alicia Keys Empire State of Mind
Our experience of this song was disappointing with the Luna Eclipse e25HD speakers, but the piano/vocal combination did well on the Wavemasters. It was brought to life on the e255s. You have to say that Edifier’s engineers have crafted a set of speakers that are versatile.

Massive Attack’s Teardrop
As the tremors vibrated the walls and floor, we felt obliged to drop the volume on this track. The e255s have more than enough delivery for sweeter, softer tracks like this.

Film
With a price tag around £600, the Edifier e255 speakers are prices as something of a luxury home cinema experience. Indeed, the ‘tin’ says that the e255s will allow you to, “Experience the best in home movie experience”. Confident talk, but does it deliver?

Star trek: Into Darkness was the first test and we immediately felt a top-heavy frontal assault. The might of the subwoofer and central unit are undeniable, however the imbalance was clear. During the intense action scenes, some dialogue started to became lost against the background noise.

Mindhunter is a drama series set in the late 1970s as FBI behavioural scientists begin to understand the complex emotions that drive serial killers. There are plenty of scenes that rely on the audio component to build tension. The e25HD units we reviewed before offered a clean sound without muscle. However, the e255 with its awesome subwoofer managed to back up Edifier’s crystal clear separation with a good dose of spine-tingling rumble.

Gaming
The increase in volume – alongside the serious subwoofer – meant that all of the titles we tested were that much more immersive. You can get seriously loud in first person shooters.

Physically, the Edifier e255 is an impressive speaker set. Unboxing the substantial components gives you a sense of satisfaction – that you have bought something with your money. Your £600 buys you a quartet of Luna Eclipse style speakers alongside the OLED-enabled central unit and mammoth subwoofer, alongside a neat little remote control.

Despite all of the power wires etc that remain, having wireless data connectivity to the subwoofer and rear speakers is an advantage when it comes to creating a tidy and safe space. Worth bearing in mind just how much more footfall a living room is likely to experience, compared to the average gamer’s cavern.

There are 3 optical connectors at the rear of the centre speaker, so you can get integrate the e255s into the heart of your living room entertainment experience.

We’re not convinced about the pricing. If Edifier had picked a retail price closer to the psychologically important £499 mark, then the e255 set would still be twice the price of Logitech’s Z906 offer, which is THX certified. The £600 price tag also brings other products into play from the mainstream HiFi market. For example, you can get an Onkyo TXSR444 Atmos Receiver for less than £270 and pair it with a set of Onkyo SKSHT588 Dolby Atmos (5.1.2) speakers for less than £380.

Competition in this space is fierce and you will have a lot of options with £600 in your pocket. The Edifier e255 speaker set looks amazing (in red or black) and offers enough power to shake your living room. If you are looking for a capable set of gorgeous speakers in your living room, then these are certainly worth buying, even if the balance between the speakers still needs work and you are starting to spend Dolby Atmos money at this price point.

Pros

• Stylish good looks.
• Tremor-inducing 8” subwoofer.
• Wireless connectivity.

Cons

• Could be more immersive in the latest films.
• Price tag moves them into HiFi territory.
• Dolby Pro Logic II rather than Atmos capable.

KitGuru says: If good looks and effective audio are enough, then these are a good choice, but it’s worth investigating your options as there are so many in 2017.

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