MidiLand is a name familiar to many PC audio users thanks to the critically acclaimed S2 speaker series (in particular the S2-4100) and now their S4 product lineup. Many may also be unaware that MidiLand services the entire multimedia audio market range with their product line. The range starts from entry to mid-level in the OEM focused MLi product line and originally with the S2 series under the MidiLand name carried on from mid to high end. In fact, for quite some time the S2-4100, which originally listed for $600, was considered by many to be the ultimate PC speaker system! For a number of reasons MidiLand decided to phase out the S2 line focus attention on their new S4 product line which was designed in-house.

In this review we are going to take a look at the 4.1 flagship of their MLi product line, the 490. This system’s official price is a bit hard to pin down. MidiLand’s own web site lists it at $149.99 but they say that the suggested market price is $100 and a quick search of C/Net Shopper showed a range of $80-$130 with all but one below $95. As such we will treat it as a system targeting the market somewhere between Creative’s FPS1000 and FPS2000. The FPS1800 might be the system right in its target market but we have not heard that system as of yet.

The system comes with 4 identical satellites using 3-inch drivers, a subwoofer using a 6.5 inch driver, a small power supply, the necessary speaker wires and cables. The total system is driven by 70 Watts and while it just a 4-channel system it offers a center channel input plus the unusual (for a 4-channel multimedia system) ability to operate as a true 4.1 system, that is it has an optional discrete subwoofer input. All of this adds up to deliver a system that based on it's specifications appears to be a worthy contender for the attention of your ears and dollars if you are shopping for a system in the $100 price range. Other contenders in this are include the Altec Lansing ACS56 and the Creative FPS1800 and FPS2000. In this review we set out to test the MLi490 in all configurations with a number of sound cards to see how those specs translate to real world performance.

Abit SP50

Altec Lansing ACS 56

Altec Lansing ACS 54

Altec Lansing ADA880 Dolby Digital

Altec Lansing ATP3

Boston Acoustics BA4800

Boston Acoustics BA7500

Cambridge Soundworks FPS1000

Cambridge SoundWorks FPS2000 digital

Cambridge SoundWorks 2.1 Digital

Cambridge SoundWorks DeskTop Theater 5.1 DTT2500

Cambridge SoundWorks DeskTop Theater 5.1 DTT3500

Cambridge SoundWorks MegaWorks 510D

Diamond Audio Technology ProMedia 3205

Klipsch ProMedia 2.1

Klipsch ProMedia 4.1

Klipsch ProMedia 5.1 Initial Review

Labtec APX 4620 Review

Labtec Edge-418 Flat Panel

Labtec's LCS-2514

Logitech SoundMan Xtrusio DSR-100

Logitech Z-560 Initial Review

MidiLand MLi-490

MidiLand S4-7100

MidiLand S4-7100 Plus

Monsoon MM-1000

Monsoon MM-2000

Philips MMS305 4.1 Initial Review

Polk Audio AMR-150

Polk Audio AMR-130

Videologic Sirocco

Videologic Sirocco Pro

Videologic DigiTheatre 5.1

VideoLogic DigiTheatre DTS

Videologic Sirocco Crossfire