We noticed that the rear speakers came with longer cables than the satellites used for the front, giving you ample room to position your rear speakers where you want them. Speaker inputs are color coded on the back of the Subwoofer and should match up with the colors used on your sound card. All of the satellite inputs are fed into the subwoofer enclosure which also houses the power supply and amp.
Included with the JBL Invader speaker system is a detailed manual as well as a quick setup guide. This will limit how you setup your rear surround speakers. Each satellite has to be positioned standing upright as there is no mounting hardware included with the system. The frequency response of the Invader speaker system ranges from 40 – 20kHz,īass and treble management controls are located on the subwoofer while the volume control can be found on the right front satellite speaker. The port on the subwoofer enclosure is front firing creating a technically directional sound. The subwoofer utilizes JBL’s APG Technology port design and Magnum Transducer to provide clean low bass. Total system power is a whopping 80-watts RMS, twice as much as the JBL Creature or Sound Sticks speaker systems.
The JBL Invader system features 4 satellite speakers each featuring dual Phoenix drivers outputting 12-watts RMS per satellite while the subwoofer outputs 32-watts RMS of power through the 185 mm Magnum powered subwoofer. Like the JBL Creatur e speakers, the Invaders have a radical design but get a power boost over their predecessor proving that you can have your cake and eat it too. This year, JBL is following suit with their new JBL Invader 4.1 speaker system manufactured by Harman Multimedia and available for both IBM compatible and Apple computer systems. The overall design of the Creature system was wild and unlike anything available at that time. Apple users in particular were quick to adopt the Creature system for its unique design, with styling similar to the Apple iMac line. Last year JBL introduced the Creature speaker system for the home computer market. In a competitive market, the JBL Invader speaker system stands above the rest. What JBL has created in the Invader 4.1 speaker system is an over the top design coupled with great sound. The JBL Invader 4.1 speaker system works well for 3d Gaming and surround sound movies and music reproduction is better than most speaker systems in this price range. We would have liked to have seen a power switch located on the satellite rather than the subwoofer as well as mounting options for the rear speakers. We feel that the JBL Invader system offers above average sound and build quality. The $100 – $199 price range is home to many options in the computer speaker market, but often compromises are made with what is offered.