Those awful speakers that come with most computers tend to be tinny, horrible, underpowered and too small. If you're looking for an inexpensive upgrade to that awful junk that's typically shipped with new computers, you simply can't go wrong with a pair of Bose Companion II speakers.

I got a set of these for the computer at my office at the local Sam's Club for $70. That, folks, is cheap as can be and these things just don't sound like a set of inexpensive speakers. At that price, this Bose set certainly represents a "best value." Heck, you'd be hard pressed to find anything out there that is both so compact and reproduces music so well.

The greatest feature of these speakers, really, is that they actually produce bass very well without a subwoofer. That's really saying something when you're talking about a set of speakers that weighs less than seven pounds. The bass isn't overpowering, of course, but it sounds great, particularly if you're listening to music through a player such as Winamp and have your bass setting fairly high through an equalizer. These speakers are ported for good bass response and that technique works flawlessly with these things.

Another great speaker is that they sound great at any level. Bose is always messing around with speaker technology and, this time around, the company has figured out how to compensate for low volume levels. Even when the speakers are set low enough to not drive everyone in your office crazy you've still got great bass response, high trebles and a respectable midrange. Frankly, I can't think of any speakers better for listening to in an office because it's only logical that you won't be blaring music at top volume in a place of business.

The sound utility on my computer is the Realtek HD Audio Manager and this set of speakers works very well with that program. I've got the equalizer disabled (I use Winamp for the equalizer) and have enabled Dolby Pro Logic II and the Dolby Virtual Speaker. The result of those settings is that the sound is very "wide" in spite of the fact the speakers are about two feet apart. While I don't exactly have the "surround sound" that the Dolby Virtual Speaker is supposed to produce, it sounds very expansive and everything is crystal clear.

This is a set of powered speakers and they get very loud, too. Once again, Bose has figured out how to get a lot of sound out of a tiny set of speakers. These are certainly loud enough for my office and would do just fine at home. Cables are included to attach both a 1/8" standard stereo plug and devices with RCA jacks. These are designed for a computer, of course, but they work just fine with an MP3 player and are portable enough to drag around about anywhere.

Bose, for years, has produced one top notch set of speakers after another. The Companion II product is no different in that regard and it's difficult to beat the price. I honestly can't find a thing wrong with these speakers considering the sheer "bang for the buck" value they represent.