If you’ve spent any time on a desktop “battlestation” forum, you know the Edifier R1280T, by sight if not by name. It’s the go-to pick for high-quality bookshelf speakers on a budget, a mainstay of excessive desk setups across the internet and the real world. Including my excessive desk setup, where these bad boys have been a mainstay for over five years. A good deal at the standard price of $120, the R1280T set is just $84 today, which matches the low price for Amazon Prime Day this summer.
The R1280T is fairly old-fashioned as speakers go, with a 2.0 setup, two RCA inputs, some basic controls on the right, and an IR remote. But with four-inch primary drivers, 13mm tweeters, and 42 watts of power, it can absolutely blast even a large office full of high-quality sound. It even includes removable grilles for easy cleaning. This set has been sitting pretty in the #1 spot on Amazon’s bookshelf speaker section for years, and for good reason.
If you need more features, the R1280DBs set with Bluetooth and optical input is also available with a 30% discount. But for anyone with a standard desktop PC setup (or a laptop and/or dock with a headphone jack), this bookshelf set is all you need and then some. Get an order in quickly if you want it — the R1280T tends to go out of stock whenever it’s on sale, and orders made today should arrive before Christmas.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.