Customer Ratings & Reviews

Some audio inputs were missing and were incompatible with the vinyl player I use.

Poor sound quality sound doesn’t fill the room do not recommend

I can't think this enough: I'm in love with these speakers. When I walked into Best Buy this morning I was going to get a soundbar product to boost my TV experience. I walked out with these two Sony floor speakers and a Denon receiver (also, an Excellent product for the price). I couldn't be happier either. With just the two speakers, every sound is fuller, every high is higher, and every low is lower. They even have enough bass with the subs in them to give enough boom to satisfy most people, without a separate sub woofer. I also decided to go this route because in the future I'd love to add 2 more shelf speakers and a center to fully complete my system. Probably a sub at some point too, but alas I'm rambling. This two speakers are great. I'd wholeheartedly recommend to anyone looking into improving their entertainment center to consider going receiver and speakers, rather than a simple soundbar. The experience is so much better. And these speakers are some of the best to build upon.

Great tower for the money. The mids to highs are excellent - great dynamic range and good snap response in that range. Lows at about 70hz and less compress and not as good, pair with a great subwoofer and you have a beautifully balanced system that really shows its value. These have more dynamic range than the Pio Andrew Jones, easily worth the extra money (180 on sale). In fact, not even in same category - these hold their own and then some even compared to the Klipsch r-26f's next to them that cost $100+ more per tower and easily the Sony core tower is the better value (move up a level on the Klipschs to the 28f's at about $500 per tower and you get finally get better quality). These aren't MartinLogans, but for the price they are arguably the best value in the store when on sale. Knocked a star off due to Sony quality control - one connector lead from posts on rear was clearly never connected on assembly. Took it apart and about 5 mins later was able to fish it out, crimp, and fix.

After months of frustration, I was finally able to hear these SSCS3 speakers along with the SSCS8 center channel and SACS9 subwoofer in a properly arranged setup with a good sound source at a local Best Buy. I opted not to include the excellent SSCS5 bookshelf/surround speakers, as I had heard them previously, and my audition with the other (tower, center, and sub) speakers was enough to convince me to buy them all for my home theater with the excellent new STR-DN1070 avr. I had been genuinely skeptical regarding other reviewers' comments that the bass extension of the SSCS3's is very good even without a subwoofer to fill out the middle and low end of bass. The small size of the woofer drivers surely would prevent really good extension into the bass frequencies, I thought. The Best Buy setup allowed me to finally hear for myself, and push the volume up on action and dialogue scenes from two good test movies, Oblivion and Pacific Rim. I also listened back and forth in 3.0 and 3.1, switching the sub in and out while listening from low to very loud volume levels. After cranking it up awhile, a BB salesperson walked up ready to intervene and end my fun. Too late. The high and mid levels of the towers, which I had previously heard in other sessions were still excellent, even better. The treble and midrange blended perfectly down to the bass frequencies. When the subwoofer was included, that even balance and blending continued nicely down further or deeper into fairly low bass, as one would want for the full effect from very low to very high frequencies of varied music and home theater. Even with the sub off, the towers still sounded great with solid and satisfying bass - just less deep than with the sub on. The bass was definitely deep from the towers without the sub. By the way, the SACS9 is an overachieving sleeper worthy of your serious considration. The center channel also did its job very well, providing seamless and clear dialogue and bridging loud action sounds between well-separated right and left channels. Dialogue was not overly forward or "boxy" and was not ever lost in the simultaneous mayhem. The overall effect was outstanding, given the limitations of Best Buy's "Speaker Canyon." Whatever BB has done to improve the source, signal, or connections to these Sony Core Series speakers since my previous auditions that left me uncertain of their true sound, I have now heard them produce some really excellent full range sound and am no longer a skeptic about them. I prefer them with the excellent and very capable SACS9 sub, especially for realistic explosions, etc. and powerful, low rumbling movie effects, but I now completely agree with many other reviewers that the SSCS3 towers do indeed have sufficient low end extension (per specs, down to 45 Hz +/- 3 db) to sound really great even without a subwoofer, e.g. would work well in apartments where subwoofers are problematic with neighbors or to suit more subdued and sublime musical tastes that tend to not require the lowest frequencies of a subwoofer to sound perfectly full and rich. These sound really nice - rich and powerful from low to high with great detail that is not boxy, harsh and forward. I highly recommend these for anything from a 2.0 to 7.2 or more setup. The prices are definitely great, especially during BB's frequent sales, and the level of quality sound these deliver is punching far above the regular and sales prices. I personally prefer the detailed yet rich and full range sound of these over comparable and very capable, but "differently flavored" Klipsch and Pioneer speakers, including the famed Andrew Jones Pioneer models, and am confident that other skeptical shoppers like me who need to hear good demos before buying will appreciate these Sony Core Series speakers when fairly auditioned in the limited but apparently new and improved BB "Speaker Canyon" setup that I finally experienced. Check these out on an even and proper playing field. The most glowing reviews are on the mark, in my personal opinion. Respectfully, perhaps some of the other reviewers with reservations or criticisms may be lacking something in their sources, hardware, connections, room acoustics, or simply prefer either more laid back or forward sound from their speakers. To each his own. If they sound really good to you, then they are really good. You be the final judge with your own ears and personal tastes versus someone else's ears and tastes that may just differ.

I was looking to replace my large vintage Mach I speakers with some smaller towers. After reading many positive professional and user online reviews, it looked like the Polk T50s would fit that sweet spot of price versus performance. I bought a pair on sale at Best Buy and connected them to my 80W receiver so I could do an A-B comparison with my current speakers. I fully expected that the Polk T50s may not sound as accurate as the Mach I speakers (15" woofer, multicellular mid horn, bullet tweeter) but was disappointed to find that the Polk T50s didn't even sound as good as some smaller bookshelf speakers I had, or even my desktop computer Altec system. I listen to vocal music and the Polks made the vocals sound hollow. Being an audio engineer, I measured the Polk T50s and found a nasty peak around 1kHz. Such a peak makes the vocals sound behind the music, as if the singer was singing through a hollow tube. To verify my "ears" and measurements, I asked my wife to listen to a few A-B comparisons and she easily found the Polk t50s to sound worse in each comparison. I went back to Best Buy and bought the Sony SSCS3 towers (almost twice the price of the Polks) and connected them to my system for a comparison. The Sony SSCS3 towers sounded much better than the Polk T50s and almost as good as my Mach 1 speakers. Vocals sound up front where they belong and the music is free of any peaks or coloration. To me, the Sony SSCS3 towers were well worth the difference in price. I kept the Sony SCCS3s and returned the Polk T50s. I wish Best Buy would set up the Sony, Klipsch and Polk speakers so you could do a direct comparison with the same source material. I found such a setup at one Best Buy, but it wasn't working correctly and didn't have the Sony towers hooked up. In all the other stores, they have separate displays for the three brands. Even better would be for Best Buy to include the Sony, Klkpsch and Polk speakers in their Magnolia rooms. Being able to properly audition speakers would have saved me the trouble of buying the Polks only to return them and get the Sony SSCS3 towers.

Bought an open box excellent one but recieved broken one without a box wrapped in bubblewrap , just returned waste of time and energy

Mids and highs are great lows are pretty decent I’m using these in a stereo setup and they are pretty sweet they sound pretty good with music not sure about movies but in a stereo setup for music I would definitely recommend i also have a 12 inch klipsch sub this setup is super sweet

They worked once and never worked again. I called in for help but none available without payments. So disappointed.

These speakers sound even better than they look, great highs and lows coming at you from the perfect height if you are seated. And they look amazing next to the entertainment center.

I would not recommend these speakers to anyone because they really suck the end they were the worst speakers ever.

Doesn’t come with wiring so you’d have to purchase that yourself. I took it back

I was not pleased with the overall sound of the speakers. Return them to the store for a refund.

I bought these to replace an aging but well serving set of bookshelf 10" speakers. The Sony set was not as punchy/crisp as the Klipsch next to them, but at almost $200 cheaper I settled for the Sonys. Im using a 700 watt Onkyo receiver with DTS and THX surround. The Sonys sound great as standalone pair with good high end response, midrange is good for vocal presence, bass is surprisingly good for 5 inch speakers. I wouldve rated them as a 5 if the.speakers could handle bass better. I had to reduce bass output on the receiver to reduce the pops that happened during heavy bass sounds either from.misic or from movie sound effects. Doing this reduced.the punch I desire when listening to rock music or jazz fusion wherr bass and drums are most prominent. I waited a year before reviewing so I could break them in and give fair.time for an accurate review. I just ordered . the Sony subwoofer which I am hoping will add the bottom end that the speakers cant handle. I will review the subwoofer when it comes in this Thursday. I dont like muddy / boomy bass, so I will get a better aense of performance versus the terrible in store.demo.

I decided to buy these open box during a sale, and was very happy with the condition of the speakers. Both arrived in original packaging, just re-taped. On to the speakers... I came from a HTIB(Home theater in a box) by pioneer that treated me well for 10 years. I have always appreciated good sound, and finally decided to up my sound game. I am glad I did. I watched Rogue One and every scene beautifully bathed me in sound. Even with night mode on receiver I was in bliss. I heard every detail and subdued dialogue scene with clarity and ease. My ears were not the least bit fatigue with this. It truly was a noticable change from little HTIB speakers. I felt every part of the movie and could feel the room fill up with sound, not just my ears. I paired them with the Sony STR-DH550 5.2 receiver and have been happy with that purchase as well. I connected the speakers via 12 AWG cables from amazon that were pre terminated with banana plugs. Able to hook up to receiver and speakers just fine. I am a noobie when it comes to floor standing speakers so I cannot tell how good they are compared to other floorstanders. Compared to any HTIB I would say no comparison, leagues ahead. Spent a good while comparing spec sheets for speakers in this range and decided the Sony's were the best for this range, so far I feel justified in this. Will update with any issues but none so far. Thanks Sony and Best Buy for this awesome addition to my home!

These are very good speakers, no questions asked. While I had some Definitive Technology speakers in the past (they were lent to me) - and these Sony's are not in the same league of price and capability, the Sony's sound great. These speakers provide a great range of sound (except for the deeper lows), but you are not going to get that from speakers without larger subs built in. The highs sound crisp and there's no volume I have found where these don't put out good sound. I'm not a legit audiophile, but have years of experience with different home and car audio setups and installations. These speakers hold their own and will give you good quality sound in the high and mid range - simply adding a good sub (or two) gives you a very nice system at an affordable price.

Both sounds and looks great. Very happy especially given the very reasonable price.

I upgraded my sound system to Atmos. Using the Sony speaker system was a great choice. First the price (50% off) was right and with all the speakers balanced it was a no brainer.

So I purchased the Sony strdn1080 reciever, the pair of core towers, the pair of core bookshelves for surrounds, the pair of atmos , and a center , and 2 core subwoofers.im usually buying klipsch or definitive tech or Polk. Usually Yamaha for receivers. Few yrs back I purchased a Sony 4k uhd tv. I am completely a Sony guy now. How Sony sells these core speakers so cheap and they actually sound better then many klipsch models. Just blown away. As for Sony tv. Lol , the best. So with this new theater setup and Sony 4k tv and Sony 4k Blu-ray . My friends and family are amazed. I recently just purchased this exact setup for my father inlaw. Keep it up Sony , keep stomping the Korean TVs, and the high priced audio companies. Sony always...

I was considering a pair of either these speakers or Polk T50 speakers. A Best Buy associate spent time explaining the differences between Polk and Sony. After listening to the speakers at Best Buy I felt that the Sony Speakers were better, The price for Sony was higher than I could afford until a half off Black Friday sale made then affordable.The Sony Speakers was a good choice to replace 14 years old speakers. I no longer have to raise and lower the volume while watching a movie for when voice is too low and other audio is to high and vice versa. I have set the volume on my receiver lower with consistent audio with out having to adjust the volume while watching a movie. The Audio is awesome and there is audio in previously viewed movies that I have never heard before.