The Harman Kardon GLA-55 Desktop Speakers is an example of a beautiful marriage of technology and art. With the GLA-55 they took the transparent glass concept they had with the Harman Kardon Sound Sticks II to a completely different level! If you see these on display the speakers will just leave you breathless at the sleek and crystal-like design. It will definitely stand out compared to 95% of desktop speakers in the market today. However it’s probably one of the most expensive 2.0 desktop speakers at Php50,000 retail price. It’s definitely a premium item that is not for everyone. It’s for those who can afford luxury and can appreciate the stunning design just as much as the sound quality.

Here’s a quick summary if you don’t have time to read through the entire article:

Pros

• Outstanding sound quality.
• Unique crystal-like transparent glass design. Simply beautiful.

Cons

• Not affordable. Not for everyone.

Verdict

• If you can afford luxury, then go for it. If not, don’t.

Full Review
The Harman Kardon GLA-55 is composed of two pieces of 2.5 lbs. transparent glass speakers. It doesn’t come with subwoofers unlike the Sound Sticks II but you can still hook it up to one if you have a separate unit. It has a whopping 110-watt digital amplification that works wonderfully with soundstage. It also has dual 3-inch Atlas woofers and dome tweeters. What does this audio technical mumbo jumbo mean? If you listen to average speakers your audio tracks will actually sound flat and very 2-dimensional. The instruments aren’t clearly defined and separated and the bass is either weak or it breaks up when you crank up the volume. This isn’t the case with the Harman Kardon GLA-55. The sound quality is outstanding.

The Atlas woofers pump out punchy, powerful, and shaking bass. The dome tweeters will let you revel in phenomenal highs. You’ll hear all the distinct instruments and vocals. We tried this baby out on a variety of genres including orchestra, rock, music, love songs, and RNB. it delivered on all of them.

There was a tad bit too much reverb though when you crank up the volume to maximum. That’s probably my only complaint when it comes to SQ.

So what’s our final verdict? Like what we said above this product is clearly not for everyone. At this price point you can get basic home theater system set-ups with better SQ. You can also get the same sound quality for much less. The GLA-55 is truly a luxury speaker set for those who appreciate the effort put into crafting this as much as the engineering for the audio system.

If this tickles your fancy, check it out at JBL Sound Stage in Bonifacio High Street. Retails for Php50,000.