Monoprice 9774

Bottom Line

The Monoprice 9774 is virtually identical to the Energy Take Classic 5.1 (*Est. $400) , offering the same excellence in performance, design and features for significantly less cost. The 9774 is easily the best value available among budget systems. The only catch: Little is known about the 9774 in terms of long-term quality and user satisfaction; also Klipsch (Energy's parent company) is suing Monoprice for patent infringement, so future availability is uncertain.

Performance

Excellent performance for reasonably sized rooms. Since the Monoprice 9774 is startlingly similar to the Energy Take Classic 5.1, it's no surprise that it provides an incredible sound for smaller- to moderately sized rooms. Dialogue is crisp and clear, and surround effects are placed accurately. Sound is great for movies; music is even better. Blending among the satellites, center-channel speakers and subwoofer is exceptional. Though many larger speaker systems sound better, the Monoprice 9774 greatly exceeds its low price tag.

Design

A mirror image, in a good way. When compared side by side, the Monoprice 9774 is a spitting image of the Take Classic 5.1 in almost everything but name -- and in some cases that as well; see CNET's side-by-side deconstruction of the two speakers for more information. Its piano-black finish looks glossy and just as stylish. The 9774's subwoofer looks bigger than the Take Classic 5.1's, but that's because it has larger plastic feet. It's not the smallest speaker system, but it's still petite enough to blend in to most rooms fairly well.

Build Quality

Speaker wires not included. The Monoprice 9774 uses the same tweeter and midbass driver setup in its four satellites and center-channel speaker as the Energy Take Classic 5.1; the subwoofer uses the same 8-inch down-firing driver. Unsurprisingly, the 9774 also mirrors the Take Classic 5.1 from the backside: high-quality binding posts and rear-side ports on the satellites, and basic connectivity options on the subwoofer. A complaint most-consistently found among Amazon.com contributors is that the system doesn't come with speaker wires, so users will have to buy their own.

Value

Ultimate value, but may be too good to be true. At face value, there's no doubt that the Monoprice 9774 is an irresistible value; it offers all-around excellent performance for small to moderately sized rooms, looks great and is bargain-priced. While CNET praises the system on these merits, editors note their ethical reservations about the Monoprice 9774, as it seems like a cheaper, counterfeit version of the Take Classic 5.1. The 9774 is not reviewed as extensively as the Take Classic 5.1, so long-term reliability is also unclear.