Opening the Package
As it comes to size, it can be said that the size problem has two ends: certainly, it’s all too well to have large and hefty speakers but, on the other hand, moderate size is also an attractive edge. Small size both facilitates transporting and adds to easy installation… One speaker cabinet size is 285 × 175 × 205 mm, that’s why it was so easy for us to pack it into a small-sized box fit to carry it even on hands.
The package contains the following:
- 2.0 speaker system;
- special connection cable;
- standard cable for PC connection and adapter for connection to other sources;
- Russian/English-language manual and warranty card.
SVEN STREAM Light in all that makes its appearance
Exterior
The cabinets of the speakers under review are small-sized, but they’ve retained their imposing appearance in full. To begin with, it is worth noting that the manufacturer provided two versions of coloring: black and cherry-colored ones.
Wooden panels are excellently fitted to each other while film coating workmanship is faultless. The lateral panels are fitted as before with decorative cover plates of rounded shape and stylized as a massive wood. This seemingly simple solution adds attractive and luring power to its appearance.
The size of LF drive has been reduced from 133 down to 100 mm while its design consistency has been preserved. The cone is made from cellulose painted black, while suspense is made from rubber. HF drive is regular: a dome-shaped textile emitter typical for all STREAM lineup products.
Front panels are masked with traditional black textile nets. It is our strictly subjective opinion that without these nets the speaker system looks much more attractive. If you want to take them off, you should consider one important peculiarity: it takes pretty much effort to remove the nets so please be careful when doing this.
The system control is analogue one. Three metal-coated knobs smooth to the touch are arranged in the bottom part of the speaker housing the amplifier. These knobs function as volume, high and low frequencies controls. Nearby is the headphones jack. It goes without saying that when it is plugged the speakers are immediately muted.
SVEN STREAM Light speakers controls
Installation of the system is rather faultless. STREAM Light speakers can be placed both on table and on special racks. Though the connection cable is all but standard one, this makes no inconvenience as its length is 2.5 m. Special four-pin connectors are used for connection with individual pair of wires (signal and common) for each speaker which helps to drastically reduce the sound distortion.
Design
Let it be remembered that all the products of STREAM lineup feature amplifiers built as a bi-amp circuit. This means that for every drive an individual channel is assigned to minimize the nonlinear distortions.
SVEN STREAM Light speaker system connectors
To implement this connection type the manufacturer had to take efforts to develop a rather complicated entry node in operating amplifiers where a preliminary frequency division of signals occurs. It is remarkable that this division is realized by 4-th order filters. This functional node is brought out on a separate circuit board fixed to three analog regulators.
Terminal amplifier is soldered on the second board screwed on to the back metal panel. Four TDA2030 microchips are used to ramp up the signal. These microchips give the freedom to build up a decent quality amplifier of 15-18 W per channel. Taking into account that each speaker operation is supported by two microchip assemblies at once, the announced output of 30 W can be qualified as trustworthy, especially considering distortion-free operation due to applied filters.
Design of boards, laying of cables and interior finish are faultless in our opinion. On the contrary, though everything is done in a simple way, this doesn’t affect the quality. The panels of the cabinets are ruggedized with additional MDF pieces and circuit boards are soldered in a reliable and clean way.
One of the boards of SVEN STREAM Light
Testing and Listening
For sound performance testing we shall use Behringer ECM8000 measuring microphone and ARTA software suite which helps to minimize the room impact. Generally speaking, the result was satisfying enough to us. The working band irregularity is as high as ±4 dB, which is an excellent performance for this class of speaker system. The lower frequency response limit settled on the level of about 60 Hz. Medium frequencies are of decent irregularity while the highs show a slight boost only to add liveliness to the sound.
SVEN STREAM Light speaker system under Test
Tone control operates rather unusually. This is due to the active preamplifier combining the functions of tone and volume controls. As a result, we obtain practically unchanged frequency response with more or less high level in extreme control knob positions. As a whole, this solution is no any novelty, and works well in this case according to subjective perception.
SVEN STREAM Light speaker system under Test
It would be great exaggeration to say that the speaker system under test performs stunningly, but it makes up for its price (about 2600 rubles) in full measure. Chief drawbacks are all arise from the modest size of the speakers: bass is a bit missing as the drivers touch only the tops of low-frequency band. To those who want to obtain a full-sized “bottom” frequencies rendering we still recommend to consider choosing a full-sized version such as SVEN STREAM Mega. Mid-frequencies are well-balanced and detailed giving the possibility not only to play music but also to edit music compositions at the beginner’s level. By the way, STREAM Light is positioned even by its manufacturer as a decent option for a low-end home studio. The highs are clear and transparent. In general, it creates a pleasant and uniform sound stage. The sound output is enough for any medium-sized room. With turning up the volume sound compression effects and blurs increase only slightly.
Conclusion
In general, SVEN STREAM Light performance we qualify as positive. With the system’s moderate price it easily provides a confident sound level and a normal output. Moreover, though this model is younger, but its exterior and workmanship deserve respect. As a whole, it is an excellent universal option for home use.