Syntax Olevia 30" LCD: Cheap, Robust and Exceptional

Sound Features

The Syntax Olevia is the first LCD that we have reviewed in our two years of LCD reviews that got the "speaker rule" correct; the speakers are not integrated. Although the two 10 watt speakers won't exactly give Swan a run for its money, they are superior in quality than anything that we have seen bundled with an LCD to date. Furthermore, they are completely detachable and wired externally along the back. Replacing the speakers with something a little more high end would be fairly easy. The unit comes with a subwoofer out and a left/right RCA output for a receiver.

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Four screws bolt each speaker onto the monitor. Removing these was not a challenge.

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Like other LCDs that we have seen, when the monitor goes on Standby (or Off), the computer stops any and all sound. We mentioned earlier that the unit did not come with a dedicated digital audio processor. While testing the unit, we were definitely aware of some audio processing occurring as the volume level would occasionally normalize during what should have been loud events. As expected though, the 10W speakers on the unit are not expected to replace a home audio, so what rudimentary processing exists inside the unit should be considered enough.