Edifier R1850DB are ideal for computer setups, portable players, and various devices via digital interfaces. They feature a sleek black piano lacquer finish and come with necessary cables, although the rear knob placement can be inconvenient. The sound quality is robust with strong bass, but the midrange may lack presence and the bass might not suffice without a subwoofer.
Contents
Intro
Edifier can make quite good computer speakers, but their versatility often goes beyond just such narrow applications. Many people buy them for active audio systems in conjunction with some portable player, pair them via BT with phones, or connect to various devices via a digital interface. Until now, the R1600T and R1700BT models were very popular. Today, they have continued with the R1850DB, a new variant with an identical design, but not entirely identical as a whole.
Build Quality and Design
I will run quickly through this paragraph because there is not much to describe here due to the practically identical dimensions and appearance of the R1600 and R1700 but with a few differences.
Visually, the speakers were prepared in a black and elegant color scheme. Black front panels, black covers and the veneer imitating wood have been replaced with a black piano lacquer finish. In the set, we even get a cloth to wipe them off, as if anticipating that all fingerprints will be visible on them.
This time the controls were placed not to the side, but to the rear. We have comfortable and large knobs for bass and treble (scale -6 to +6) and a digital volume knob with the possibility of pressing and thus selecting the source. While this is a very cool and discreet change because the speakers resemble passive small monitors, it makes it difficult for us to use the speakers without a remote control.
Also, the arrangement of the knobs on the back could be done better. The volume knob will be the one we use the most, so it should be at the top, not the bottom. We will be reaching controls from the top of the speaker, not from the bottom.
Edifier R1850DB Remote Controller with double volume control buttons.
It’s better to use the remote control that comes with the set, which has duplicate volume buttons for easy use. The set includes all necessary cables except for the coaxial one: a 1.5m optical cable and 1.7m RCA-RCA and RCA-jack cables. These cables are basic but sufficient for initial use.
The rear panel features two RCA analog inputs, an optical input, and a coaxial input. The only output is for an active subwoofer via a mini-jack. There’s also a power switch and a fixed power cable.
The left satellite is the primary one, and the right satellite is secondary, connected by a 5m 4-pin DIN cable. This allows for flexible placement around large furniture or a TV and neat cable management in a PC setup.
The speaker quality is impressive, with no defects or fitting issues. Edifier clearly focuses on quality in its higher-priced products.
In my role as a reviewer, I have to be critical. I believe this is the right approach because while it’s easy to overlook small flaws if a product makes up for it with a good price or features, every manufacturer should aim to release the best product possible within a given budget. That way, we as consumers end up satisfied. Of course, this only applies if I don’t exaggerate with my criticism.
At this price point, I didn’t find any major quality issues that would force me to write an excessively long review covering every minor shortcoming. Maybe that’s even a shame, but on the other hand, this isn’t the only Edifier review out there, so I’m happy to spend time on future reviews instead.
In the end, I can also praise the overall quality of the work. The speakers don’t get too hot during use, with the warmest temperature around 97°F. They don’t make clicking noises when turning on or off, don’t cause any problems during regular use, and only produce self-noise at rest if you put your ear right next to the tweeter. At a normal listening distance of about 1 meter from each speaker, I can’t hear any noise except from my computer. I think a lot of people will be pleased with this.
Preparations for Sound Test
I used the speakers for about a month before doing my critical evaluation, so that I could detect all of their nuances, potential weaknesses, or technical issues. In terms of technical problems, everything was absolutely fine.
The tests were performed in three connection scenarios:
- S/PDIF (90%) via Asus Essence STX + Viablue H-Flex and AF Connector CX
- RCA (8%) via Pathos Converto MK2 + AF Signature One
- Bluetooth (2%) via Asus BT400
I was most interested in the scenario with the use of the built-in DAC chip and at the same time, I would recommend such a connection – next to Bluetooth – with the R1850DB. Why – about it later in the text.
Sound Quality
The R1850DB leaves quite a good impression at the start, but when I started my evaluation and comparing with the weaker/cheaper models, especially the R1700BT, it seems that the scale of similarities, or rather positive changes compared to the lower model, is not that stunning. And yet I do not remember that the R1700BT sounded so natural to me in the midrange and treble, nor do I associate such bass with it.
- DIGITAL / ANALOG INPUTS – RCA/Aux for PC, turntables, etc; Optical/Coaxial for lossless connection; Bluetooth for...
- BLUETOOTH V4.0 - Latest wireless technology for playing from phones, tablets or laptops
- TREBLE/BASS CONTROL, SUB-LINE OUT: Adjust bass, treble, volume and toggle inputs on rear panel. Need a little more...
- WIRELESS REMOTE – Handy compact remote control for input selection, volume adjustment and track control (Bluetooth).
- IMMERSIVE SOUND - Fill your space with rich, immersive audio, creating a captivating listening environment for music,...
Bass
Interestingly, I could only really discover the bass capabilities of the 1850s with a few settings that enhanced the bass from the room acoustics itself. This is the frustrating nature of audio equipment – this time, not an issue between the speakers themselves as I usually complain about, but with the speakers versus the room. I can make any speakers I get sound bass light because I have several bass-free zones as well as areas with amplified bass in my room. The trick is finding the right middle spot.
And suddenly, with the right setup, these tiny R1850DBs gave me a nice, even bass that was quite strong and impressive for their small size. It may not be at the level of the Solo29 out-of-the-box, but I’m amazed at how much bass I could get out of such compact speakers.
It’s also worth mentioning that I tested the speakers with the EQ knobs at neutral. So the bass wasn’t artificially boosted during my tests based on personal preference – that effect was achieved naturally. There’s also an output for adding a separate subwoofer, so if someone needs more bass or has room acoustics that cancels out the low frequencies, Edifier leaves quite a lot of room for expansion and makes these speakers a future-proof option. This versatility is a big plus worth highlighting.
Midrange
This is where there will be some conceptual differences between Mackie and Edifier. Mackie focuses on a close and lively midrange that aims to convey as much detail as possible. Edifier’s approach is “Okay, we’ll do it well, but we won’t exaggerate.” And that’s how I perceive the R1850DB. The midrange has a similar style to the R1700BT – focused on presenting it at an optimal point, not too far away and not too in-your-face, so you can hear a sense of distance while the bass and treble don’t cruelly dominate or kick it out. It comes down to personal preference whether you’ll feel unsatisfied or think it’s just right.
I’ve seen some users note a lack of midrange presence, but then they should choose different speakers if they prefer closer vocals, or potentially opt for a simple system with a dedicated center speaker for dialogue if using them for multimedia (though that will cost more). An alternative is speakers focused on midrange reproduction like the Mackie CR-3X monitors, but that comes at the expense of sacrificing some functionality.
The R1850DB is therefore more complete in this regard. But it’s also been noted that the Edifiers lack vocal prominence. As I wrote, the midrange is presented at an optimal point, and during my testing with lots of vocal-focused material, the Edifiers did a good job recreating it, even though I prefer closer, more tangible vocals myself. However, it’s impossible to please everyone, and if the manufacturer had to choose a specific midrange presentation to be most universally appealing, I think they made the right choice.
Treble
As a rule for speaker placement, with Edifier, the recommended setup is in a triangle with the listener. However, I have the impression that – at least compared to the R1700BT – the treble is somewhat smoothed on the R1850s. Perhaps this is due to the bass having slightly greater dominance, even when the overall tonal balance is still correct or even a bit bright. But based solely on memory, I would swear that the R1700s were brighter and had a more tonally flat response, meaning the transition between the different frequency ranges happened more coherently.
In the case of the R1850, I have the impression that the speakers put less emphasis on the connection between the midrange and treble, so they don’t have that same illuminated presence in that region, nor do they come across as overly hot or harsh in the high treble. The R1850 is halfway between a more musical lower treble tuning and the brighter upper treble of the cheaper model. Overall, the Edifier R1850DBs just sound more natural to me, making it easier for them to charm with different types of material.
Sound Stage
In my opinion, the manufacturer decided to leave an emphasis in the upper treble to maintain the good soundstage performance of these speakers. It can’t be said that the R1850s sounded like they had a small soundstage, but I remember the R1700s sounded more elliptical – stronger in width, less in depth. The comparison here will be very loose and please don’t take it too literally, since this isn’t that level of equipment, but the differences are similar to my ears as between the LCD-i3 and iSine 20 headphones.
The LCD-i3 gave more sonic magic, with greater depth and holography, but at the cost of soundstage width. The iSine 20 is the other way around: more width, but closer vocals and fewer three-dimensional effects. Both were great to listen to, just as I wouldn’t complain about the soundstage from either of these Edifier sets. Of course, I’m ignoring the fact that full-size speakers with dedicated soundstage designs can achieve capabilities far beyond what these affordable compact speakers can do. However, adjusting my expectations to suit inexpensive desktop systems is surprisingly easy for me, and Edifiers manage to meet those expectations at their price point.
Edifier S1850DB vs Edifier S1700BT
If I summarize very briefly the way the R1850 sounds, it cannot be done without reference to the previous iterations of these speakers, i.e. the R1700BT model, already mentioned several times here. Edifier R1850 is better in these areas:
- more bass
- greater depth of the stage,
- greater musicality and naturalness,
- a little smaller stage in width
- a bit darker contact between the midrange and the treble
- slightly more distant vocals
In terms of quality – again based on memory – in such a quite elementary dimension of purity and tonality, I would estimate the R1700 as sounding about 80% of how the R1850 could sound. With an assumption that the listening room has changed along the way and the reflected waves were different in both evaluation situations. Nevertheless, I am still very convinced of what I heard.
In any case, I have to admit that I enjoyed using these speakers and I had no special desire to switch to my old system. Mainly for economic reasons, because tiny Edifiers do not consume as much electricity as an 8-tube amplifier and large loudspeakers, and they do not need a separate DAC to work. Being aware of the price, Edifiers are most acceptable in this regard. I liked them very much after the optics, which I pulled comfortably from the Essence STX, and only because the only coaxial cable I had at the moment, i.e. my Connector CX, was only 3 m long and it simply would not reach these speakers. A reasonable option is also to listen via BT.
S/PDIF Sound Quality
Investing in the RCA circuit, in my opinion, is not necessary and required here, and I will say more: deeply optional. These connectors will be useful to us mainly when we do not have any digital outputs at hand, and listening to music via Bluetooth is not an option and is not worthy of the people of our format. I depreciate the analog inputs not from my own eyes, but because of the consequences of Edifier’s decisions when designing these speakers.
During tests and comparing the sound via bit-perfect, e.g. through an optical cable and my best RCA cables from the Signature series, as long as I felt a change in tonality (warmer) and a bit also in the scene (even greater depth and less deflection to the sides), this is how much the gain in elementary sound quality was no longer so obvious, not to say that sometimes it was hard to hear any difference in terms of overall quality. And this with a DAC for $1500 and cables that cost as much as the speakers themselves.
My impressions oscillated in terms of both tonality and quality. As the speakers themselves were already musical enough, in my opinion, I had the impression of a better subjective feeling when the source was Essence STX via the optics and also bit-perfect in the mentioned mode, i.e. in DD communication (only digital signal) and with DA conversion as the last stage signal transport. Here, however, I had the feeling that the speakers do not fully use the quality of the signal they receive.
This confirms the impressions published by one of the users on Amazon about the unnecessary AD + DA conversion in the R1850DB. As a rule, I am very cautious about any opinions published anonymously on such portals, but in this case, my observations turned out to be quite convergent, and, contrary to my original skeptical attitude, they coincided. What’s the problem? Well, the speakers most likely use Texas Instruments TAS5707 circuits, which operate on a digital signal. There would be nothing wrong with that if it wasn’t for the fact that they operate only on digital signals and were not designed to work with an analog signal, so they need an additional converter. Therefore, if we introduce the audio signal via RCA sockets, i.e. analog, we generate an unnecessary stage of signal conversion from analog to digital, so that it is converted to analog again and redirected to converters. That is why I emphasized at the beginning of my discussions that the RCA circuit is only optional here.
The author of the opinion wrote that it does not matter what card or DAC we use for the analog signal because we will get practically the same or similar sound, but I do not agree with this statement. It goes too far and in my opinion, it should be worded like this: special investment in the analog circuits for these speakers does not make sense.
- DIGITAL / ANALOG INPUTS – RCA/Aux for PC, turntables, etc; Optical/Coaxial for lossless connection; Bluetooth for...
- BLUETOOTH V4.0 - Latest wireless technology for playing from phones, tablets or laptops
- TREBLE/BASS CONTROL, SUB-LINE OUT: Adjust bass, treble, volume and toggle inputs on rear panel. Need a little more...
- WIRELESS REMOTE – Handy compact remote control for input selection, volume adjustment and track control (Bluetooth).
- IMMERSIVE SOUND - Fill your space with rich, immersive audio, creating a captivating listening environment for music,...
The difference will be audible but too small to justify the expense and not give us the fundamental thing, which is to improve the sound quality. If in my case a decent audio track with decent cables was used for more than 10 times the price of the speakers and I finally achieved such effects, it means that the investment limit had to be reached much earlier. It also means that the manufacturer decided to put the greatest emphasis on digital and BT inputs on these speakers, and not on analog ones. These will work, so that we have no doubts, and the speakers themselves will play without any problems, but their potential will not be fully used in this way.
Therefore, if we want to get the best results with the R1850DB, instead of investing in an RCA circuit, it is better to invest in a good S/PDIF circuit and buy anything that can be used as a digital transmitter, and invest in a more sensible cable. If for some reason, as I wrote, there is no desire to use BT mode, even a simple sound card, with optical, mini-Toslink, or coaxial output, will do the job for us. And it doesn’t have to be the old Xonar as in my case. In my opinion, this does not preclude the use or command of these speakers. Interestingly, even the author of the short review quoted above from Amazon gave the speakers 5/5 stars and described it as perfect for the price.
However, in some situations, it can be a limitation for people who do not have any digital output and do not want to use Bluetooth. However, I deeply doubt that these people would be interested in the R1850DB, and not, for example, in the older and cheaper R1600T or other simpler designs, to save money on an unnecessary digital section. Unless it is a spare purchase, even if we use a Bluetooth connection, it also gives the possibility to control playback via remote control, which we will not use in S/PDIF mode.
As far as I am concerned, I spent most of my time on them after the optics in the bit-perfect 24-bit/44.1 kHz mode, served directly by the native ASIO drivers from the mentioned Essence STX. It did not cause problems with the fact that I only have one S/PDIF combined socket and the Converto MK2 is also connected via this interface because Pathos has its drivers to work with ASIO via USB. Thus, when working with the new prototype braided cables for the LCD-i3, I had two separate ASIO drivers and two separate listening systems at my disposal, which I could control at will.
Edifier R1850DB Video Review
Edifier R1850DB Specifications
- Subwoofer: 4″ (116mm) 6ohm
- Total power output: RMS 16Wx2 + 19Wx2
- Signal-to-noise ratio: ⩾85dBA
- THD + N: 0.5%
- Input sensitivity: PC:700±50mV, AUX: 550±50mV
- Tweeter unit: Φ19mm silk dome, 6ohm
- Input type: AUX, RCA, Bluetooth, optical, coaxial
You can download & view the manual here->Edifier R1850DB Manual
Final Verdict
The Edifier R1850DB speakers present a compelling option in the realm of compact, powered desktop audio systems. Building upon the success of their predecessors, these speakers offer a well-rounded sound signature that impresses with its naturalness and balance. The bass response is surprisingly robust for speakers of this size, while the midrange and treble maintain a smooth, fatigue-free presentation. Although some users might prefer more forward vocals or brighter highs, the overall tonal balance strikes a commendable compromise that works well across various genres.
The R1850DB truly shines in its versatility and connectivity options. The inclusion of both digital (S/PDIF) and analog inputs, along with Bluetooth capability, makes these speakers adaptable to a wide range of setups. However, it’s worth noting that the digital inputs, particularly S/PDIF, tend to yield the best sound quality due to the speakers’ internal DAC design. The addition of a subwoofer output also provides room for future system expansion, adding to the speakers’ long-term value proposition.
For those in the market for a compact, feature-rich speaker system, the Edifier R1850DB comes highly recommended. While they may not represent a revolutionary leap from the R1700BT model, the refinements in sound quality and connectivity options justify their position in Edifier’s lineup. These speakers offer excellent performance and versatility for their price point, making them an attractive choice for desktop audio enthusiasts who prioritize a balance of sound quality, functionality, and value.
Crackling Sound was created to provide straightforward, unbiased reviews of audio products, catering to those who want excellent sound without delving into complex audiophile terms. I aim to simplify the decision-making process for my readers.
As an audio enthusiast and self-builder for over 20 years, I ensure my reviews are honest, highlighting both advantages and disadvantages. I conduct sound tests to deliver comprehensive and reliable information about various audio devices. My extensive experience in DIY projects, experimenting, installing, and using high-end audio gear helps me provide thorough and comparative reviews.