Ferguson Hill FH007 + FH008: iPhone/iPod Accessory Review

iPhone/iPod Accessory Review: Ferguson Hill FH007 + FH008
Reviewed by: Cyprian Peters
-Official website
Price: FH007 Mini Speaker System – $499.99 CDN
FH008 Subwoofer – $249.99 CDN

With all the speaker systems out there on the market right now, it is really hard for speakers to stand out. Most of them sound similar and look about the same. Ferguson Hill has done something dramatically different and it definitely works in their favor. Not only does the system sound great, but it looks dramatically different from almost everything out there. In a sea of run-of-the-mill products, the FH007 speaker system really stands out.

In the past, I’ve used a few different desktop speaker systems, ranging from the low end to the high end, but I’ve never got so many comments before as I’ve gotten with the FH007. Most people don’t even know what they’re looking at when they first see them. “Those are speakers?!?!”, is what I hear all the time when they walk in the room. They’re really a great conversation starter.

The FH007 is slightly different than your conventional speaker system. Fergusson Hill has modeled them after their high end FH001, FH002, and FH003 combined system and made them affordable for us consumers. That’s not to say they’re cheap. They’ll run you a few hard earned bucks but you really do get a unique product.

I thought this system would be 5.1 originally but I was wrong. The FH007 consists of 4 speakers and a self-powered cube that they all plug into. Two of the speakers are rather large and have a horn design. This works well for broadcasting sound around the room as they push sound outwards very well. These are perhaps the most odd shaped speakers I’ve ever seen but they do work very well and sound great. The other two speakers are smaller and in the shape of a sphere. They are bass speakers and put out some of the lower frequencies. No vocals come through these speakers. They add a nice touch when used in conjunction with the horn speakers. All 4 speakers have three pointy metal feet on them and they each come with 3 rubber pads that the feet sit in. These are fairly essential I found as the spherical speakers tended to move around without them. They don’t move at all with them on though and in addition you won’t scratch the surface that they’re on.

The packaging for these speakers was quite unique as well. Each one came in a big cotton bag with the cord hanging out of it so as to not scratch the speakers. They even provided white gloves to unpack them with. This was appreciated as they do smudge easily, being clear and all. The bags are great to have around if you ever need to transport them as well. Wouldn’t want them to crack!

All the speakers have a 3.5mm headphone jack connection coming out of them that plugs into the main unit. The main unit itself is silver and has a very simple design. All there is on the front is a on/off light and a volume knob. One thing I would have liked to see is a remote. It is kind of frustrating to have to turn the knob, especially if the box is in an inconvenient location like the floor. I would have also liked to see the speaker cables slightly longer. I have mine on a wraparound desk and had to use an extension for one of them as it didn’t quite reach.

Fergusson Hill also sent me their matching FH008 subwoofer to accompany the speakers. If you think the speakers sound great without it, just wait till you get the sub in the mix. The bass speakers do a decent job of covering the low end but you really don’t know what you’re missing till you hook up the subwoofer. It is large and heavy and white and it puts out some great sound. It isn’t the kind of booming you’d find in a cheap car sound system, but instead it is very precise. In rock music it is not quite as noticeable but when you play some more bass-heavy music, it really shines. You can adjust the bass and the frequency on the rear of the subwoofer. If you want the best possible listening experience, you’ll pick up the sub as well.

This system works great with a computer, TV, or even just your iPhone. It has an AUX in on the back, letting you hook it up to whatever you want. I’ve been using it with my computer and iPhone and it works very well with both.

I’ve been very impressed with this speaker system over the past month I’ve been using it. It’s awesome for movies or just listening to music. If you keep it quiet it sounds great and if you want to crank it, it sounds even better. This could easily be used for a party and fill a big room easily! If only it had rear speakers, it would make for awesome surround sound! If you want speakers that look incredible with the sound to go with the look, look no further than Fergusson Hill. $750 for the complete package is fairly expensive but definitely in the ballpark for a system of this caliber! You can even purchase the FH007 and FH008 from Dell here in Canada!

Score:
9.5/10

Tags: Accessories, Accessory, app, Canada, iPhone, OS, review, UK

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