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Review: Joey Roth Ceramic Speakers

Made of rustic materials but looking ever so Jetson-esque, Joey Roth's Ceramic Speakers offer up a bold, crisp tone. We just wish the base in these desktop beauts had more boom.
review image
Photo by Jens Mortensen

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Rating:

7/10

WIRED
Like buying an art piece and getting great speakers, too. External amp lets you locate the volume switch wherever you damn well please. Go ahead and rage: Joey's kids are loud enough to fill a large room.
TIRED
Boomless bass. Dr. Dre would disapprove. Sound stage suffers if you're not sitting in the sweet spot. A bit more look than listen. No money left for dinner (for a month).

Desktop speakers have a knack for looking boxy and boring and sounding so-so. Enter: Joey Roth and his merry men. An improbable, eye-popping mix of Jetson-esque curves and rustic materials, industrial designer Joey Roth's crockery-cum-speaker set produces a bold, crisp tone that's great for movie-watching and MP3 jam sessions.

From the packaging down to the tiniest details, these well-built speakers look like a desktop design exhibit. Even the cables are pretty (think pink bubblegum). Ceramic horn-shaped speaks sit inside smooth wooden stands that appear to defy the laws of gravity. A separate unit houses the volume control slider, which just adds to the coolness.

Our only complaint was that the bass lacked punch in some action flicks and hip hop; it's highly noticeable at first, but after a long listen, it's easy to forget about the boom. The likes of Dr. Dre would not be pleased.