M-Audio's AV 40 houses all its inputs and amplification in one of the speakers. This design risks slight discrepancies in the tone of the two speakers, but we struggled to spot any, and the payback is the convenience of a single power cable, volume knob, headphone socket and front-mounted mini-jack input. Phono and balanced ¼in jack inputs on the back cater for entertainment and recording studio setups.
The speakers exhibited a clarity that put them in a different league to Alesis's 320 USB entertainment-oriented speakers. The pricier studio speakers revealed more detail, but the difference was marginal. Bass was impressively full-bodied for such a compact design. A Bass Boost switch fills it out further if flattery is more important than accuracy.
The AV 40 offers around 95 per cent of the quality of ESI's superb nEar 05 for around half the price. They are a great choice for both music production and appreciation.
