How about something that looks a little different? Orb audio makes some reasonably priced speakers that don't look like anything else in their price range. The question is; is it all form over function?

Each Orb sphere is a single piece of American carbon steel.  The driver is a 3-inch polypropylene cone with Santoprene surround and a neodymium magnet. Frequency response is a claimed 80Hz to 20kHz. In their most basic form, the Classic One ($549), two spheres are paired with the Super Eight subwoofer. The small subwoofer box holds an 8-inch driver and a 200-watt amplifier.

What's clever about Orb is those two pieces are the basis for everything they make.  The Classic Two ($698), for example, pairs two spheres together with the sub. This can expand to 5 pairs and a sub for the 5.1 Mod2 Home Theater System ($1,289). Or if you want to be really crazy, you can go all the way to the Mod4 where each channel has 4 Orbs wired together (as in, a double Mod2 for each "speaker").

You can even mix and match. Mod4 for the front, Mod2 for the rear, and so on. A more powerful sub is available as well.

My review system was the Mod2 Home Theater system: five Mod2's and a single Uber Ten 300-watt subwoofer. In polished steel finish this system was $1,888. A similar system in black with Mod1's in the rear and the Super Eight sub would be $1,049, just FYI.

As you'd expect from small drivers, the Orbs had no problem creating punchy mid-range, but it was never shouty. Even the treble was good, which was more of a surprise given the lack of tweeters. The very highest frequencies weren't as apparent as in other speakers, but we're talking extremely high frequencies. Upper overtones, room ambience, and the like was more subdued. As a result the Orbs sounded slightly less "open" than other speakers, but only slightly. They were never muddled.

The lower midrange was good for such small speakers, but there was still a slight gap between the sats and the sub. It's not as noticeable as you'd expect from such small satellites, as the dual 3-inch drivers act similar to a larger single driver (though it's not purely additive, they don't sound like a 6-inch driver, exactly).

The Uber Ten sub was perhaps the biggest surprise. It played extremely loud, able to rattle the windows if wanted. Yet it wasn't just a "one note" sub that can only play one frequency well. In fact, it could play fairly deep notes with aplomb. It was tuneful, creating bass not just "low frequency thumps". It's one of the better under-$1k subwoofers I've heard. For big explosions or thundering bass lines, your neighbors will really know what you're up to with this one.

In addition to the brushed steel, white, and black finishes, there are also beautiful copper, bronze, and "hammered earth" finishes. Wall and floor stands are available, bookshelf stands are included.

If you don't have a receiver/amp to run the Orbs, they've just come out with the 40-watt per channel Audiophile Pyle Pro amp ($299). You can plug in your game system, PC, iPod, TV, or whatever into its three analog inputs. They also have package deals that include real receivers from the likes of Denon and Yamaha.

If you're looking for a quirky, different, great sounding small speaker, the Orbs are right up your alley. Orb Audio is Internet only, so you won't find them in stores. Instead they have a 30-day in-home trial.

OrbAudio.com