Customer Ratings & Reviews

I decided to get back into listening to music with speakers instead of headphones or earbuds for a change. After picking up a new receiver from Best Buy, I started researching bookshelf speakers, limiting my budget to under $500. I soon ran across several videos with online reviewers raving about these cheap speakers from Sony. So off I go to my local Best Buy and to my surprise, I found a pair of Sony SS-CS5 3-Way Bookshelf Speakers in Open Box-Excellent condition for under $100. Still a bit skeptical of speakers at such a low price. what I found inside the box was a pair of speakers that appeared absolutely new. I could tell by the foam wrap that the box had been opened at one point, otherwise everything was pristine and even the small rubber footpads were still in their wrap. I still needed speaker cables and quickly ordered some mid-range priced cables with banana plugs. Amazingly, the cables actually cost more than these speakers! The speakers themselves are the perfect size for my desktop and the build and feel is very solid. The design is simple but still attractive and clean. With the pads installed, they feel anchored solidly to the desk. I was pretty sure I would need a small 10" subwoofer to get some bottom end, but surprised to find these speakers have pretty decent bass. I am still glad I added the subwoofer, but honestly think these alone would have been absolutely fine. These are ported in the back which could be why they are capable of boosting some of the bass. The tweeter and super tweeter handle the higher frequencies and I was excited to hear how good the sound of guitar strings, brass, and cymbals comes across from these amazing speakers. The sound is crazy good and it only seems to get better as I wear them in. So, for well under $500, I was able to round out my desktop stereo with a pair of bookshelf speakers, a 10" subwoofer and good cables, and still have $100 left over. I have no desire to ever replace these speakers anytime soon, as I feel these can compete with speakers costing much more. As a person who appreciates listening to music but on a budget, I am more than satisfied with these Sony speakers, even if I had paid full price. Getting them on sale or even open-box only made the deal sweeter.

I saw the Sony speakers in the store and loved their look and sound. I wanted to purchase them there but they were more than I wanted to spend. I found the same speakers thru the Best Buy app that were advertised as "open box" . The description options were "good" or "excellent". I chose the excellent option and received the speakers and they were just like new and sound great! I liked the so much I went back and bought an Onkyo receiver to go with them. Both work great together !

Incredulously, I came across these speakers while attempting to upgrade the sound of my system. I felt adding a pair of high quality speakers might feel the voids I noticed in the present system. So, these speakers were purchased as an addition to my system. I did not anticipate the magnitude of improvement. I have been using a pair of Polk Audio T15s and a pair of off brand bass reflect speakers from years past. I was pretty sure I could do better. I put the Sony’s on the top shelf of my stereo stand and repositioned the Polks to the bottom shelf. They are just a few inches above the floor. To describe the sound with one word: Heavenly. The Polks had an immediate improvement especially with the bass. It was do much better, it was staggering. The base was clear and loud, without breaking up or drowning out the rest of the sound. But what amazed me the most, was the performance of the Sony’s. They provided excellent sound all along the frequency range. The bass was strong without being booming. It was easy to notice an individual bass guitar. And, the same could be said about the high range. Cymbals crashed without distortion. High end guitar cords were wonderfully reproduced. In wide orchestra pieces, I could swear I could pick up individual instruments. A good example is the drums booming over thenother instruments without overwhelming the music. I am sure they benefit from the 3 way speaker layout. They look really nice though not spectacular. They are boxed in an unimpressive non wood enclosure. It resembles smooth particle board. However the speakers look great as do the grills. One area that could concern me is that the speakers are not magnetically shielded as and this could effect sound from such items as a TV screen. But in all, these are excellent speakers. Highly recommend

I am definitely in love with these speakers. I use them in a 2.0 setup for movies and music. They do a great job in a near field setup. Prior to this, I was using a pair of mackie mr5mkii powered monitors. Those were about the same size but weighed a lot more and they occupied a separate outlet for each speaker. These sonys are great for a fraction of the price. I am powering them through a 15 year old harman kardon receiver and they sound great. Again for my near field setup, they have enough bass to fill a room without rattling and shaking it. They sound great for music and movies. I was really surprised by this entry level speaker and its abilities. The value of these are extremely high considering its entry level price.

I needed bookshelf speakers for a small room/office (11'x14') for under $500. Internet research led me to these Sony Core Series 3-ways as giant killers against the likes of Klipsch and Polk Audio. So I bought a pair of each to compare: Klipsch R-50-M II ($399.99) and the Polk Audio XT20 ($249.99), and the Sony SSCS5's ($199.99). The Klipsch and Polks are 2-ways; the Sonys are 3-ways. My amp/receiver is a Sony with 100RMS. I found the Klipsch were too harsh even with massaging EQ settings (need the addition of a sub-woofer), the Polks were okay with good overall balance, but lacked low frequency compared to the Sony 3-ways. All three pair handled higher volumes with no distortion but the Sony's midrange was more up front and the vocals "real" and warm. I feel like the Klipsch and Polks might do better in a home theater setup as front speakers than for pure audio media. And, for the price differential, the Sonys were the clear winner for my purposes. I'd highly recommend them to anyone looking for great balanced sound in a small package at an amazing value for $200.00. By the way, I did return the Klipsch and Polks to Best Buy with no problems - quick and easy! Thanks Best Buy!

I have owned these speakers for over two years now and I can honestly say that they are still some of the best speakers that I’ve owned. I’ve bought and sold many speakers at this point and currently have MartinLogan’s Motion XT series in my living room. Despite that, I still own these speaker and still listen to them daily. They are that good. They’re not on the same level as the Motions, as well they shouldn’t be. There’s a $4,300 difference, but I think it needs to be pointed out that I still use these despite owning those too. I think you definitely should wait until they go on sale. It does happen pretty often and it makes the value of them that much better. They’re also easy to drive and can pair well with pretty much any type of amplifier. I’ve had them paired with a Sony STR-DH590, a cheap ChiFi amp, a Marantz NR1711, and a Cinema 40. They sound great on all of them so rest assured that no matter what you pair with them, you’ll have a good time. I can’t say enough good things about these speakers. tbh they do need a sub tho

We bought a $600 pair of Elac DCB41 speakers based on great online reviews for bookshelf speakers. But... they just didn't cut it for bass tones and high end. They are 2-way 12" active speakers w no ability to adjust treble and a dinky bass boost feature. We realized that our ears needed more depth and breadth. We needed it to go through our old Pioneer receiver SX636. So we researched passive 3-way 12-16" bookshelf speakers. All reviews pointed us to these Sony SSCS5 speakers for $200. We checked Best Buy and they had one unit at our local store. I ordered online, picked it up and had them hooked up within an hour. They sound amazing! We saved $400, supported local retail, and got the sound we were searching for.

I'm using these SSCS5 speakers as main front speakers in a 3.1.2 Atmos setup in my 15x18 living room and I am thoroughly impressed - these speakers perform beyond expectations! I'm using these on 24" stands, along with the Sony Core Series Center and Atmos speakers, and a single Polk SW108 sub, with an Onkyo TX-SR393 Atmos receiver. These replaced their older, bigger brother SS-B3000's in that setup for a (mostly - except the sub) matched Sony Core setup. First of all, the SSCSE Atmos speakers are a perfect fit on top of these SSCS5 bookshelf speakers - same as the fit on the floor standing models. I wanted to call that out because I've seen it mentioned plenty of times how the Atmos speakers are matched to the floor speakers, without mention of the bookshelf versions. Rest assured they are a perfect match as well. While I was configuring them manually in my Atmos setup (after running the Onkyo auto calibration) and experimenting with different settings, I set them to "full" bandwidth just to see for kicks how they would sound with no output to the sub. Test material was an Imagine Dragons Vinyl LP. After setting them to receive the full bandwidth signal, I literally walked back to the sub multiple times to confirm there was zero output coming from it - and there wasn't. Yes, these speakers are that good in the bass department! Bass output was solid and powerful enough I could feel it thru the floor standing 15-20 feet away. Honestly, these are close to giving the B-3000's a run for their money. Yes the B3000's have more, deeper bass, but these SSCS5's are smoother and more balanced, making them sound overall better to my ears. I also have the Polk T-15's and there is no comparison - these simply blow the Polk's out of the water all around. Now when toggling back and forth between these alone and bringing the sub back in (80hz crossover level), can you hear a difference? Absolutely! And having the sub will definitely provided the needed deep punch for movies that the SSCS5's won't quite be able to produce. But for most music listening situations, I would say the bass output from the SSCS5's is more than adequate. Again, shockingly solid, tight and powerful considering their size and 5" drivers (and not boomy like the B3000's can tend to be). Mid's and Highs are smooth and well balanced with great overall depth of soundstage - even maintaining their composure when the volume was pushed high (compared again to the B3000's which begin sounding screechy at this point...). I bought the Polk T15's on sale half off and feel like I just got my money's worth with those. I bought these SSCS5's half off as well, and would have felt like I got a tremendous bargain even at full price. Half price, an absolute steal for what you get! Highly recommended!

Yeah, yeah, yeah... I know... "Get the Klipsch! Get the Polk Audio!" Well, those brands have some pretty darned tough competition with these Sony's. I listened to all of them in the store, and between that and the online reviews, I went with the Sony's. I have not been disappointed in the least. The 3 way design gives crisp, clean highs and the midrange speaker gives a decent amount of bass for every day listening. I will be adding a small subwoofer to the set up (I have them in my office and do not need anything to get crazy loud or window shaking) to round things out, but I am quite satisfied with just these two speakers hooked up to a 20 year old Sony 5.1 system. I think my favorite thing about them is the rich, warm sound. The Polks and Klipsch bookshelf speakers, to my ears (and everyone is different), were a little hollow and sometimes almost too one dimensional for me. These speakers are fantastic for what I listen to, which is not death metal or rap. LOL Put in some Bob Marley, Xavier Rudd, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Miles Davis, or even Cody Jinks and you will find a nice, balanced, rich sound with plenty of top end clarity and just enough bass to make yourself question whether you need a subwoofer or not. For the money, I seriously doubt you can find a better set of quality bookshelf speakers than these!

These speakers are awesome evey good sound for my AV reciever aost being a theater wathing a movie. cant wait to hook up my new SSCSE that was part of stereo I couldnt afford at the time now my reviever is complete ty BestBuy.

I purchased these nice small bookshelf speakers as my main speakers to replace my 19 y/old Panasonic 2-way set and pair them with my TEAC AG-V1050 Stereo Receiver and they sounds amazing! I got them for $74.99 (Holiday's Specials) even better! I'm an old school audiophile and I wanted to keep my music system pretty simple without spending a lot of money and after some research I found the Sony SSCS5 a perfect option. I play CDs, Vinyls and some mp3 tracks and all formats sounds great on the speakers. The highs are so crisp and the mids are pretty clear, the bass is NOT heavy but neither weak, it just required me to find the right positioning, about 2 feet from the floor and away from the wall so the air port in the back of the speakers have enough room to breathe, plus some eq adjustments to my amp to find the right balance and wow, I was surprised with the amazing sound of these little boys, they're pretty loud and clear and the bass is just perfect for my taste. Just keep in mind that if you're a shaking-booming bass lover, you will definitely need an extra powered subwoofer, not in my case. Another thing that I noticed is that the sound improves after a few days (a month) of use, probably needed to develop their maximum potential and performance. I'm so happy with my new Sony SSCS5 speakers!!

Used as 2.0.2 (matching Atmos, with AZ3000ES @ 4-OHMS) _____ sound is crystal clear. ***Will need to actually USE A SUBWOOFER*** (I just wish grill was built stronger = fabric is cheap @ too thin) ______ (FASTER, Even cheaper) buy on Sony's website with military discount = pickup @ BEST BUY (since rewards program is gone and no military discount)

I had some old AR speakers that died. These give out amazing sound, especially for their size. I was a little concerned about the bass but it came through loud and clear. Great separation too.

In no way do I consider myself an audiophile so take my review with a grain-of-salt! I was looking for a cheap speaker to listen to my albums from the 80's that have been in a box for decades. I have a Realistic STA-2150 receiver with a Pioneer PL-514 turntable that also had been collecting dust. The Realistic says to only use with speakers having an ohm rating of 8-16 and these speakers are 6, but I intend to play at a relatively low volume so hopefully it wont be an issue. The sound quality is good but the albums need to be cleaned up and I'm not sure about the age of the turntable needle so any "snap, crackle , pops" that I've heard I contribute to the input source. I've only listened to these speakers a couple of times since my purchase but so far they've done what I want which is to transfer sound from my albums to my ears without breaking the bank and they have succeeded in that. The reviews of the speakers that I've seen on-line don't list them as the best speakers on the market; but for "bang-for-buck" they are always near or at the top. At $82.99 (open-box) for me it was a no-brainer!

I own a recording studio and these speakers are amazing for the price you pay and the size. If you are in need of a small set of speakers for you home theater or stereo system, definitely check these out. The treble to bass frequencies are incredible at this price point.

I have had many high end speakers costing many thousands of dollars each. I wanted something for my computer desk. I bought a small class ab amp and bought these Sony speakers based on some reviews but I had serious doubt. The speakers are different than a $400 set of Elac for example, but So close to a $400 set of speakers it will make you question high end audio.. It is very loud for its size.. You will not be disappointed in these.

Great sound perfect size for book shelf. Will buy again when I add to my system .

I am not alone in saying this these Sony Core series speakers are awesome. Great bass mid and highs for 5" speakers. My application was a 40 year old Technics SL-D2 turntable running thru a new HiFi Stereo Bluetooth 5.0 Vacuum Tube Amplifier and I needed speakers for this Standalone system. Best Buy always has great deals on electronics but these speaker on "open box excellent condition" special were under a 100 dollars and sound perfect. Strongly recommend these Core 5"series 3-way speakers, they make my old vinyl records sound great.

I listened to the Sony Core Series 5" Speakers in the store and knew they would work well for the audio system we use with our TV. Sure enough, they do add great sound to the system and are small enough to sit at the sides of the TV. Being black, they are nearly unnoticeable on the TV stand. They have enough bass to add a little punch to the audio (not a sub-woofer punch) and help the otherwise anemic audio of the TV. The speakers are great-sounding for both TV and other audio sources.

Really good sounding speakers base hits harder for how much it was good for the price