PSB Alpha P5 Review

Canadian speaker manufacturer PSB is known for producing straightforward and affordable loudspeakers. If their slogan "Real Sound for Real People" is anything to go by, the Alpha P5 should offer performance that goes beyond the relatively modest price, right?

Design and Build Quality

The model we're reviewing here is the PSB P5 bookshelf speaker belonging to the Alpha series. It has a modest and unassuming design with straight lines and have what you could call a 'classic' look. There are two options when it comes to finishes - either Black Ash or Dark Walnut, both with black front - and the finish is quite good despite the relatively low price. The fronts are completely covered by magnetic grilles, but the loudspeakers still manages to stay aesthetically pleasing if you choose to remove them. They have a sort of understated sense of elegance to them and we see no problem fitting these into any modern home decor.

The P5 is equipped with a 5 ¼” woofer employing dual layer voice coils with powerful magnets and polypropylene cone for detail, low distortion and power handling. This is accompanied by a ¾” (19mm) tweeter that is ferrofluid cooled and features a Neodymium magnet for high sensitivity and power handling. The tweeter is placed in a wave guide to help it match the response near the crossover point with the woofer for a seamless transition. PSB have also opted to place the tweeter below the woofer, claiming that this "provides a uniform sound field whether the listener is seated or standing".

In the back we find a small bass reflex port, one pair of gold plated speaker wire terminals that will accept most types off connectors, and holes for those who wish to mount it to a wall.

According to PSB the P5 uses a complex Linkwitz-Riley acoustic filter in the crossover design to lower distortion and create a seamless soundscape in any type of two-channel setup or surround sound system. The frequency response is 55-21,000Hz with a nominal impedance of 8 Ohms and a minimum of 4 Ohms. The sensitivity is rated at 87dB (Anechoic Chamber) and 89dB (Typical Listening Room) and the recommended input power is 10-90 Watts.

Listening Test

Despite being relatively small bookshelf speakers, the P5's play with a decent amount of gravitas and conviction, and we wouldn't blame anyone if they believed they were listening to bigger speakers. This 'energy' translates to music feeling real and authentic. Vocals sound very natural and detailed with all the impact, color and character needed to convey whatever emotion the artist intended.

The frequency range is, despite the rolled off bass, very well balanced. Everything sounds neutral and natural. The sound is overall very homogeneous and there are no 'sore thumbs' that sticks out to pull you away from the musical happening.

The sense of detail and articulation will improve further if you use a high quality source and high resolution material, and even though it's detailed enough to allow you to hone in on any particular part of the music it always stays homogeneous and balanced to give you the 'whole picture'. The only time we noticed any limitations was when we played dense and highly dynamic music performed by a full symphony orchestra where we noticed the soundstage shrink a bit. Other than that, the P5's are definitely up for a challenge.

Bass heavy music is obviously affected by the physical size of both the woofer and the speaker cabinet, but even though it doesn't play the deepest sub bass it does a great job with the bass it can play. And it's a good thing that these speakers don't try to dig deeper than they are capable of but instead tries to do the best of the physical limitations they've been given. The bass is firm and agile, providing a solid foundation and giving the music a snappy momentum when needed.