Altec Lansing VS262 2.1 Computer Speakers

Published May 8, 2011

We finally decided to upgrade the office a bit. After spending so much time in the home office; it makes sense to make it a bit more comfortable. In addition to very necessary equipment such as a laser printer, upgraded software and wireless headsets, we decided to add a flat-screen TV to the office (gotta keep abreast of what’s going on on CNN and the Financial networks).

The Samsung TV we bought works fine as an office TV (will review that later). The only problem with the TV is the sound. The sound is very thin. Granted, no one needs stereo sound when watching the CNN ticker tape running across the bottom of the screen, but on occasion, my co-worker makes the discovery that a playoff game is on and decides to switch the channel from CNN. That’s when the thin sound really becomes noticeable.

Improving the Sound with Altec Lansing Computer Speakers

Because the office isn’t large and neither is our budget, we decided to purchase computer speakers to improve the TV’s sound. Neither our budget nor the room could handle a full-fledged Bose sound system, so we decided to go with Altec Lansing.

About 10 or so years ago we purchased Altec Lansing speakers for a computer and the sound on those speakers was so robust we decided to stick with Altec Lansing. We didn’t need anything too powerful, just enough to add some depth to the TV sound.

We opted for the Altec Lansing VS2621 2.1 Channel Speaker System. It comes with a subwoofer and two speakers. The speakers look like something from the old 1960’s Star Trek series. They only cost $39.99 on Amazon and qualified for free shipping so we ordered them. We tried to get them at local office and electronics stores, but they didn’t carry them.

Setting up the Altec Lansing VS262 2.1 Speakers

Setup was a breeze. Connect the speakers to the subwoofer, plug the speakers into the appropriate “Sound Out” port on the TV and plug the speakers in. Turn on the TV, turn on the speakers and you’re good to go.

Altec Lansing Speakers Pros

• They’re small and they look great with the TV.

• The sound is adequate for our purposes. They add a little depth to the TV sound and are adequate for the size of our office.

Altec Lansing Speakers Cons

• The On/Off switch is located on the back of the subwoofer. Since we have the subwoofer on the floor, we have to go behind the speaker setup every time we want to turn the speakers on and off.

• The sound on these speakers is nowhere as robust as the sound on my older Altec Lansing speakers. I was a bit disappointed, but I realized the old system was their high-end model when I purchased it. The VS2621 2.1 speakers are not Altec Lansing’s current high-end model.

• There is one dial for treble/bass. Turn it to the right for bass and left for treble. In the middle, you get a balance of the two (sort of).

All in all, we’re happy with the purchase. For $40 we added sound depth to the office TV. When we turn the speakers on we’re reminded that this is an office and there is work to be done. If we had a better set of speakers, we might get caught up in the TV and forget to work.

Last Modified: 10 February 2023