Audio Video News

Plasma, plasma, on the wall, who's the fairest speaker of them all? ("Fairest", of course, meaning "least visibly obnoxious while sitting next to one of those sleek, sexy, and usually silver-finish flat-panel TVs" with added elements of "gee, it'd be nice if it were easy to install - like maybe if the L, C, and R speakers were all one unit".) Boston Acoustics claims to have the answer with the new P400 slim theater speaker, a unique compound speaker unit that incorporates discrete left, center, and right front speakers in a single, thin chassis that's "designed to perfectly complement a 42-inch plasma or LCD television or monitor, a DLP rear-projection console, or a traditional screen."

Yes, Boston Acoustics knows all you plasma lovers out there hate speakers - or at least hate to look at speakers. (It's truly a love/hate relationship. You love to listen to good sound, but you hate to look at the speakers that are necessary to create it. My advice is that you should seek professional help about this, you know.)

The P400 is as versatile as it is unique. It can be wall-mounted above or below a flat-panel TV (using the included bracket that angles +/- 15 degrees), or you can set the P400 on top of your TV thanks to the supplied foot (no socks required). An optional stand is available for resting the P400 on a table or credenza. If you have your plasma/LCD TV mounted on a pivoting or swivel bracket, the P400 can even be set up to "share" (isn't that polite?) the bracket with your TV - a feature that not only makes for an extremely clean look but allows all three channels of the front sound stage to pivot/swivel with the TV.

Music and sound effects are reproduced "with a pure neutral tonal consistency that remains the same for all Boston Acoustics speakers." Such sonic performance from the P400 is the result of a trio of identical speaker arrays (one set of each for the left, center, and right) that each consist of a 4.5-inch bass driver, a 4.25-inch passive radiator, and a VR aluminum dome tweeter. The entire assembly is magnetically shielded to prevent the P400 from interfering with the TV image, and the chassis is constructed of extruded aluminum which helps eliminate unwanted resonances and vibrations.

Available in September with a suggested retail price of $1,500 each, the P400 will come with your choice of a black or a silver grille. For those who'd like to build their very own mock-up out of cardboard to see what a cardboard mock-up of the P400 would look like next to their TV, the P400 measures a mere 3 15/16 inches deep, 5 5/58 inches high, and 40 inches wide. (You'll just have to imagine the sound...or get a real one from an authorized Boston Acoustics dealer near you.)