Introduction
I have previously reviewed the KEF LSX and Bowers & Wilkins Formation Duo. Both are interesting sets but cost 1200 and 2400 euros respectively (the time of writing those reviews). Edifier is an old player (has been around since 1996) and is still refreshing its products, so it’s time to put the new Edifier S1000W to the test.
Features & Specifications
Let’s kick off this review with a video and the features, followed by the specifications!
Power output
35W x2 (mid/bass) + 25W x2 (treble)
Frequency range
45Hz~40kHz
Signal noise ratio
≥ 90dB(A)
Input Sensitivity
Line In 1: 700 ± 50mV | Line In 2: 900 ± 50mV
OPT, COAX: 450 ± 50mV | Bluetooth: 500±50mV
Inputs
Line In 1 / Line 2 In / Optical / Coaxial / Bluetooth / Wi-Fi
Drivers
5.5″ (Mid/Bass) + 1″ (Treble)
Dimensions
198mm x 345mm x 295mm (WxHxD)
Weight
16.77kg
Unpacking
It is time to unpack the speakers.
As can be seen on the box, the S1000W has a lot of options.
Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi, Optical input, coaxial input, line in, DSP chip, and an app to control the speakers.
Edifier supplies the following items:
– One passive and one active speaker
– 2x AAA batteries
– Manuals
– Remote control
– 3.5mm – RCA audio cable
– RCA – RCA audio cable
– Optical cable
– Speaker cable to connect the speakers
– Power cable
And there are the speakers. I must confess that they look special – but also larger than expected. Edifier is using a wooden exterior and a translucent dust cover. And I must confess that it has something. As the main category of my reviews, I write a lot about audio. And I rarely come across a translucent dust cover. The speakers can certainly take it. The hood can also be removed, but I will come back to that later.
The S1000W is finished with wood, as we are used to from the Edifier speakers.
What I like about the S1000W is that the slave is passive and the master is active. This means that the power and all connections are on the master speaker – which then feeds the secondary speaker via one cable. By coincidence, I had placed the active speaker right next to the TV shortly after. It would be nice if this could be adjusted via the app. Suppose a user just has all connections – such as power (which is very handy) to the left of a TV, then it may be a difficult story. Being able to ‘switch’ the speakers as L/R via the app would help the user tremendously.
The grids are held in place by the pins. By sliding this out, the woofer is visible.
It does look strange without a grid. Get that thing back 😉
The back of the right speaker (master speaker) is also very interesting.
This is where all the connections and buttons are located.
At the top left are the volume, treble, and bass controls. To the right of it is the RCA/line in jacks (twice). Below that is the optical, coaxial, and L speaker out connection. To the left of this is the physical power switch with the power connection underneath. A pretty complete bookshelf speaker if I do say so myself.
Just as nice is the long cable that Edifier already supplies as standard. This makes it easy to equip a 55” TV with a set of speakers (left and right).
When switched on, a small white LED is visible at the bottom of the speaker.
I think it’s a neat set of speakers. Because it is slightly tilted, it also blows nicely into the room. Where some speakers – which have a woofer sitting quite low (and blowing straight forward) – weirdly change the sound when they are placed on a shelf/sideboard / or something similar.
Edifier also has matching stands with the SS02.
These are not necessarily the same speakers, but it does show how the stands look in combination with the Edifier speakers. In my opinion, it is a fine combo.
Software
Edifier has its app and it is… yeah. How do I say this nicely? It is moderate. There are very few options. The supplier also sent me to the WiiM-Home app to control the speakers in a better way. Is that a bad thing? If I were to be a speaker of 2500 euros, I would be very annoyed by that. With speakers of just under 400 euros… Well… I don’t think so.
Via the app, you can upgrade the firmware, adjust the input, influence the volume, change the name of the speakers and view the WiFi information. That’s it actually … There is still a manual … but hey, who reads a manual … 😉
So through the app, the speakers can be connected to the WiFi network, these are easy-to-follow steps.
The speakers can be selected and further controlled via the app. However, there is also an option to connect several separate speakers, turning them into stereo speakers.
When adjusting the input, the LED also changes color. Green for line-in and blue for Bluetooth.
After switching on the speakers, Spotify allows the speaker to be selected as a Spotify Connect speaker. Music playback, therefore, takes place directly on the speakers. This also applies to Tidal.
It’s just as easy via Airplay. By selecting a speaker at the bottom with an iPhone, podcasts, YouTube Music, or the like are played via the S1000W.
Well, that was the Edifier app. As said; a lot of options [/sarcasm]. Now the WiiM-Home app.
For example, it is already possible via the app (as with Airplay) to play on multiple devices simultaneously. In addition, there are a lot of (audio) streaming services that can be used via the WiiM Home app.
And this is actually what it’s all about; options. More customization options. Unfortunately, the EQ is not adjustable. Fortunately, this is possible via the Treble / Bass at the back or via an app such as Spotify.
That I listen to Heldeep Radio, that may be clear after all those reviews. I’ll keep spamming it until I get backstage passes… 😉
Without kidding; the screen below the app is nice and clear. It displays what is needed and helps to operate the speakers.
Movies, series and music
Well, of course, you don’t just have speakers for music. Because the Edifier S1000W has enough connections and features, it can achieve a lot. From playing LPs via the RCA inputs or playing TV sound using the optical connection. It’s just fine. The S1000W has enough options and that also makes it a nice set. When the speakers are optically connected to the TV, the sound is already a lot better than what a TV produces as standard. In fact … I have hung a Sonos Beam Gen 2 in my bedroom under the TV (on the wall), and in terms of sound, I think the S1000W sounds better than the small soundbar. It is that these speakers are not so easy to hang up… otherwise, this would have been a no-brainer. As indicated earlier in the review, Edifier does have speaker stands that belong to this set. And those look pretty too. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a picture of this, because I also put them on a dresser for a while.
As for movies and series, you know when you sometimes think, “What are they saying?” Well, that is a thing of the past with speakers like these. And that’s not because I put them on earthquake mode. On a normal setting, speech is very easy to understand and therefore easy to follow. And that is already a very big progress. Where I used to have a set of KEF columns with an Onkyo amplifier (which, by the way, cost 2 to 3x as much as the S1000W), I often still had the feeling that I was missing ‘information’ (music, sound/speech). And that… that is, fortunately, a thing of the past with such speakers. TV audio, of course, is not anything to write home about either. With my LG 55” OLED it is still disappointing. The S1000W is simply a very good addition for a small investment.
Especially for this review, I watched hours series and movies – you’re welcome … I’ll do it all for you! 😛
Conclusion; it just looks nice, whether you watch Max Pennyworth on HBO, or on Netflix another John Wick.
If you have a large living room then I think you should look at columns. It’s just fine – for a normal living room in an apartment or house. The speakers have a great punch.
Concerning music, well… I can also be quite specific and brief about that: it sounds good. Don’t expect quality like the Bowers & Wilkins Formation Duo, the price isn’t up to that either. The latter also has better mids and highs. The lows of the S1000W come out very well.
I have mentioned the song below several times in previous reviews. This helps me determine how something sounds. Does it sound very dull or very clear…? It’s tested that way.
From my iPhone 14 Pro Max, I grabbed Spotify Connect (and then via Tidal Connect) and listened to the song below. And I just have to confess that this one sounds on point. I don’t necessarily miss the detail in these songs. The instruments and vocals come through well and clearly.
We are heading towards Christmas again – Mariah Carey is already defrosting and you will hear it often again. Still, I stick with Andrea Bocelli; besides being a beautiful performance, the mids and highs sound very crisp. You also don’t get the feeling that certain mids or highs are being distorted. Andrea’s deep voice and the children’s higher voices have a great relationship with the speakers. The strumming of the violins sounds nice and full. The piano also sounds present, but not too much. Here too I used Tidal Connect.
It is therefore very nice that from mobile devices it is very easy to stream to these speakers.
Use and conclusion
Edifier has launched a very interesting set with the S1000W. The speakers have all the necessary options for a lot of playing fun. Whether you want to play music via Bluetooth, WiFi, coaxial, optical, or even line in (x2 – for example a record player), it is all possible. The S1000W has the power to light up an entire room. The fact that these are also rotated a bit also ensures that the sound is nicely shot into the room. And that… is nice as a bookshelf speaker.
What is also very nice is that the set consists of a master and slave – with a long cable in between. This eliminates the need for two plugs in the socket.
It’s not all perfect, however. There are also several disadvantages to these speakers. When playing music via Airplay – for example Podcasts – or even via Spotify Connect, in my opinion, there are huge steps between soft and loud. Where you normally have to press volume + 30x to turn it up, this is only a mere 10-14x during testing. That is unfortunately too little. As a result, you have the problem that when playing music or movies, the sound is either too soft or just too loud. Strangely enough, the speakers can also be so loud that they distort enormously. A software limit would also be useful here. At a quarter my living room was already quite ‘lit’.
Suppose you do not have a TV with optical or other outputs (which is not very common these days), but you do have an Apple TV that could stream the sound to the S1000W via Airplay 2, then it would be nice if the audio is in sync with some it is said. By disconnecting and reconnecting these 4 times it was resolved. These points were also passed on directly to the supplier, who passed them on to the developers/engineers.
Edifier’s app is otherwise fine, but not entirely great. The app can be compared to the remote control. You can adjust some things with it, but that’s it. For example, there is no EQ or the like to adjust. The EQ that can be adjusted is the ‘Treble and Bass’ on the back of the speaker. The supplier also advised me to install the WiiM Home app. This has integration with the Edifier speakers, and that works quite well. It offers more options and possibilities. This is also the case; if a WiiM mini hardware streamer is used, the S1000W and, for example, an MS50A can be made into a multi-room set.
Besides the convenience, volume, or the like, it is of course also important how the speakers sound and I can be pretty easy about that. They sound good, clear even. The music that I have been able to listen to comes through well (instruments/sound and vocals come through clearly). Don’t expect the same result as the Formation Duo, but the asking price isn’t for that either. Value for money? Perfect! I doubt whether you will find a ‘better’ set in terms of amplifiers and speakers for the same money. It’s simple: if you have a budget of around 400 euros for a speaker set, consider this one as well.
Edifier was a well-known brand for me that regularly appears on various platforms, now that I have been able to play with it, I also understand why. Except for a software adjustment, the €399 speakers are simply worth 5 stars in my opinion. And so that’s why they get them, 5 out of 5 stars.
