Cyber Acoustics CA-2890 speaker bar: Surprisingly good for $25

If your needs match this speaker’s strengths, you won’t notice its weaknesses.

- ALAINA YEE

Inexpensive speakers don’t have to be hopelessly basic. So many models are though, including some very popular ones like those in the Amazon Basics line (fave.co/3K1ufjY).

The Cyber Acoustics CA-2890 (fave.co/3jTTytZ) skirts that edge of mediocrity. If this $25 speaker bar were instead a set of stereo speakers, its shortcomings would allow our current favorite, the similarly priced Creative Pebble (fave.co/3L39Egv), to steamroll over it. So what keeps it out of the reject pile? Primarily one standout feature— the ability to clip it to a monitor.

Anyone with a slim flat panel monitor (no more than about 0.75-in thick) can attach the Cyber Acoustics CA-2890 to the bottom of the panel. This model effectively reproduces an speaker bar accessory that Dell has long produced for its series of monitors, but with a universal mount. The benefit is that you don’t have to give up any desk space, making this Cyber Acoustics speaker ideal for tight spots or minimalist setups.

Of course, form factor alone wouldn’t be enough to save a truly dismal speaker. The Cyber Acoustics CA-2890 also offers decent sound, especially given its small size (2.75 x8.25 x 1.25 inches). Audio is clean and neutral, with fairly wide projection. High-frequency sounds (like the clash of cymbals) come through crisply too, without any harshness.