INTRODUCTION

   Strangely enough even though the market is filled with all sorts of PC speakers most people i know don't really care about audio quality and so they all use 2.0 or 2.1 budget oriented speaker systems. Well actually i too used to be the same way but not for long, as a matter of fact in the mid 90's i got a rather powerful professional 2.0 monitor system which a couple of years later i replaced with my very first 5.1 surround sound system. Fast forward to today and of course things are massively different so one doesn't need to have large or many speakers in order to get quality audio. Bose is one of the very first manufacturers (if not the very first one) to introduce small high output speakers in the home cinema "arena" back in the early 2000's and even though i never had one of their surround sound speaker systems at home i did have the opportunity to listen to a few of them where i was working back then. So, as you can certainly imagine when their Companion 50 Multimedia Speaker System arrived at the office/lab well over 1 month ago i was very excited to see what Bose had been up to all these years.

   Bose Corporation was founded in 1964 by Dr. Amar G. Bose, then a professor of electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Today, the company is driven by its founding principles, investing in long-term research to develop new technologies with real customer benefits. Bose innovations have spanned decades and industries, creating and transforming categories in audio and beyond. Bose products for the home, in the car, on the go, and in public spaces have become iconic, changing the way people listen to music. Bose Corporation is privately held. The company’s spirit of invention, passion for excellence, and commitment to extraordinary experiences can be found around the world — everywhere Bose does business.

   The Bose Companion 50 is an award winning 2.1 multimedia system (two satellite speakers complete with their own stands paired with an rather compact Acoustimass module/subwoofer) which was actually released back in 2015 as a replacement to their popular Companion 5 USB plug & play model which featured a built-in sound card. Because however many consumers wished to use it with their very own sound cards (which obviously surpassed what was built-in the Companion 5) Bose all but replaced it with the improved Companion 50 (TrueSpace technology with new DSP used) which thanks to its 3.5mm port could be used with virtually every device out there from PCs to smartphones, tablets and even music players. This move from Bose also resulted in reduced production costs (which in turn translated to a price cut) something which certainly also helped propel sales of the Companion 50 to new heights. As for specifications Bose shares almost nothing about their Companion 50 but after a bit of digging i was able to find out just its power output (300WRMS), number of channels (1 for each satellite speaker) and frequency response (up to 20.000Hz). So, let’s move with todays review and see whether or not the 6-year-old Companion 50 multimedia speaker by Bose is still worth getting.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

Two product pictures are located at the front of the box.

A very large product picture located at the rear of the box is used to showcase the main product features.

The entire system is wrapped inside plastic bags and placed between two thick pieces of foam.

Aside the two satellite speakers, Acoustimass module and the control pod inside the box you'll also find the power cable, 3.5mm cable, registration paper, safety instructions and the user manual.

THE COMPANION 50

The Bose Companion 50 is only available in a sliver/grey/black color combination which i happen to like (still an all-black version would be great to have as a choice).

Each of the two aluminum and plastic satellite speakers weighs a total of roughly 660g and measures 219mm in height, 139mm in width and 91mm in length/depth.

The black stand on which each speaker is placed on is made out of metal.

On the other hand, the Acoustimass module/subwoofer weighs just over 4640g and measures 218mm in height, 173mm in width and 348mm in length/depth.

The Acoustimass module is made out of MDF, plastic and aluminum.

Most ports are located at the rear of the Acoustimass module so aside being able to adjust its bass performance here you can connect both satellite speakers (L/R), your audio device (3.5mm), the audio control pod and the power.

The 175g heavy control pod has the company logo on top and stands just 31mm tall and 62mm in diameter.

At the front we find a 3.5mm input and headphones output ports.

Aside using the Bose Companion 50 with my Sound Blaster AE-9 audio card by Creative i also used it with the M15 music player by FiiO (do keep in mind that shortly after taking these pictures i swapped the bundled 3.5mm cable for something better - i recommend you do too).

CONCLUSION

   Why now, why after 6 plus years? This is something some of you might be asking yourselves and honestly somewhat so do i. 6 years is way too long but two things happened lately (more or less), 1st many readers came forward asking for this review since late 2019 and 2nd i was finally able to get this sample from Bose. Also, since this multimedia speaker set is still being sold all over the world (still availability in some places is far from ideal) i really wanted to check it out for myself. So just how well does the Companion 50 perform? As expected, this is strongly tied with the source so if you decide to use it with a motherboard onboard sound card the results might not blow you away. Out of pure curiosity i did use it with the onboard sound card of my X299 Aorus Gaming 9 and the detail gap between that and the AE-9 was significant to say the least. Of course, for the best possible results you should also consider investing on a better 3.5mm cable (gold plated, reinforced, shielded, the works) something which i did when using the M15 music player (and yes, the difference was noticeable). Overall, the Companion 50 satellite speakers reminded me of what i remember from 2005 when i first heard Bose’s compact 5.1 speaker system (had similar satellite speakers), they may be tiny but they do offer a punch without sacrificing clarity in the process. Bass levels are also very good, not quite what I’ve been used too with the 8/12inch subwoofers of my 5.1 surround systems but still surprisingly rich for such a compact model. My sole issue with Bose is that they don’t pay much attention in the PC market, as a matter of fact i don’t think they have released anything newer since the Companion 50 and that’s really unfortunate since many people seem to prefer their solutions.

   With 2 months left until we say goodbye to 2021 the Companion 50 Multimedia Speaker System retails for 340.99Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) a price tag which although far from affordable it’s not extreme for a Bose product. Price aside however this is indeed a very good 2.1 multimedia speaker system, especially for people with space restrictions. Yes, if you have no space restrictions you can probably find something more powerful at that price range, but whether or not that will offer the same quality is a whole different story. Audio performance, output power, build quality and size, the Companion 50 by Bose may already count 6+ years in the market but it’s still a very good product (as long as you pair it with an equally good source) and for that it clearly deserves the Golden Award.

PROS

- Crisp & Accurate Mids & Highs
- Rich Bass Levels
- Power Output (300WRMS)
- Build Quality
- Compact Size
- 3.5mm Input (Compatibility)

CONS

- USA Availability
- Price (For Some)