I tested these £99 bookshelf speakers that look like they stepped right out of the noughties

The Majority D80 bookshelf speakers are versatile speakers designed for varied multimedia consumption. Not only do they connect via aux and Bluetooth for music or gaming, they also have HDMI and optical outputs, so they can double up as TV speakers.

They won’t hold up against even the best cheap soundbars of course, but if you’re in need of a versatile, cheap pair of speakers, then the D80s could be a good option.

However, if you’re a serious music lover, the uneven bass, tinny mids, and distorted treble playback might put a spanner in the works. At this price point, you can’t expect perfection, but the music quality isn’t even half of the way there.

Still, is the versatility a big enough positive to make them some of the best desktop speakers around? Find out in this Majority D80 bookshelf speakers review.

Majority D80 review: Cheat sheet

• What are they? A pair of bookshelf speakers compatible with TV for movies, and the usual Bluetooth/aux fare for music
• What do they cost? £99
• Who are they for? Those who require versatility above everything else
• What should you use them for? Although they’re bookshelf speakers, they work best for TV
• What are their weaknesses? The music playback quality is majorly meh

Majority D80 review: Specs

Majority D80 review: Price & availability

The Majority D80 bookshelf speakers are currently only available in the U.K.. They’re £104 from Currys, their RRP of £99 on AV.com, and just £87 on Robert Dyas. The RRP of £99 makes them the same price as the Majority D40X, which are my current home bookshelf speakers.

Unlike the D80, the D40X has a yellow Kevlar woofer, which provides a deeper, more rounded bass.

At this price point, I’m not quite sure why you’d get the D80 when the D40X can do everything the D80s can do and more. Perhaps if you need a super compact speaker, the D80s would be superior.

If you wanted to get a really good pair of bookshelf speakers, I’d recommend the JBL 104 BT, which sound incredible, but will set you back £199.

Majority D80 review: Design

• Unremarkable appearance, which is both a good and bad thing
• Noughties-inspired vibe, with mesh casing and wobbly egg shape
• Pretty small — good for tight spaces

The D80 speakers are quite unremarkable to look at, and they’re much smaller than their cousins, the D40X, making them ideal for compact spaces. They’re active speakers, which means they don’t require a secondary amp — just what you’d want in small desktop speakers.

The front of the speakers house the 4-inch drivers and 1-inch tweeters, but unfortunately, there’s no woofer, likely due to the compact size. The D40X speakers by Majority have a lovely yellow woofer that you can physically see vibrate during bass-heavy songs.

As you might expect, this lack of woofer results in a lackluster bass performance, even with the bass EQ activated. I’ll discuss this more in the ‘Sound quality’ section below.

Despite the unremarkable appearance, the speakers are well-constructed, with smooth, polished plastic casing and grippy silicone feet to prevent movement.

While the slightly aged design is pretty unassuming, this doesn’t have to be a negative thing. They wouldn’t draw attention to themselves on a TV stand, entertainment unit, or desk, if that’s what you want from speakers.

However, if you want a particularly good-looking pair of speakers, these likely aren’t the ones for you. If you’re after an attractive speaker, I’d recommend the JBL 104 BT or the more budget-friendly Majority D40X.

In contrast, the D80s look like something I would’ve used in 2004 while playing the Harry Potter PC games on my family desktop computer.

If you want a basic-looking, ignorable speaker, then the D80 could be a good option. However, if your home is filled with other pieces of modern-looking tech, then they might be a skip.

Majority D80 review: Controls & connectivity

• HDMI connectivity for TV listening in lieu of soundbar
• Could be great for gaming too
• Bluetooth connection for cable-free playback

The D80 speakers have a range of connectivity modes. The speakers can connect via Bluetooth, aux, HDMI, optical, and USB. The HDMI connection could make these a good option for gaming setups, like a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X, and general TV watching.

There’s also an optical connection for older TVs and even a USB-A port — although I’m not sure how useful either of these connectivity options are for most people.

Despite having HDMI and optical connections, as I’ll discuss in the ‘Sound quality’ section below, the audio performance might let you down if you’re watching blockbuster movies.

The D80 speakers come with a little remote that takes 2 x AAA batteries. There’s nothing remarkable about the remote; it has tacky silicone buttons that attract dust like it’s going out of style and a semi-janky battery cover.

Still, it gets the job done with its range of controls: ‘Movie’, ‘music’, and ‘dialog’ EQ modes, connection selector buttons, and playback controls.

Majority D80 review: Sound quality

• TV playback pretty decent, but not good for blockbusters
• Treble can crackle and warp at even medium volumes
• Absolutely no bass

As I was impressed with the inclusion of an HDMI output, I watched TV with the D80s as my speaker-slash-soundbar first.

Watching TV via HDMI ARC in ‘Movie’ mode actually sounded pretty good. I watched ‘Modern Family’ on Disney+, and the difference between my TV speakers and the D80 was astounding. I wouldn’t recommend ‘dialog’ mode even for news and TV, as it was awfully tinny.

Still on movie mode, I switched to ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’. The soundtrack was a little tinny in the midrange, even in movie mode. However, dialogue was clear, and sound effects like helicopters, the water beasts, and water splashing sounded great.

Obviously the D80 wasn’t as good as a $99 soundbar — for example the Sony HT-S100F, which I was super impressed with — but if you want a versatile set of bookshelf speakers, they might do the trick.

To test music playback, I listened to tunes on both Spotify and Qobuz, our best streaming service. After the mostly positive TV experience, I was excited to get stuck in. However, as soon as I pressed play I was disappointed by the basically nonexistent bass.

I upped the bass on Spotify using the in-house EQ (which is known for being bad), which didn’t really increase the bass performance, just muffled the rest of the frequency range. I would recommend listening to these speakers on something other than Spotify — Qobuz has much higher-resolution music.

The end of ‘Decode’ by Paramore crackled, so I had to lower the bass which resulted in more of the aforementioned tinniness.

Then during ‘Leave Out All the Rest’ by Linkin Park, the vocals crackled and sounded warped. There wasn’t really a sweet spot: either bass that limped along with the vitality of an aged toad, or treble that spiked and pinched my ears.

I listened to the album ‘Brat’ by Charli XCX on Qobuz to test out the D80’s ability to play dancier, bassier tracks. The bass in ‘Von Dutch’ was almost nonexistent, and the treble in ‘Everything is romantic’ sounded warped and stretched.

The hi-hat in ‘Rewind’ was clearly audible in the soundscape, which proves that the D80s aren’t all bad — they can still translate high-frequency sounds, but there’s a definite power struggle within the frequency range.

I’m still unsure why you’d buy the D80s rather than the D40X: the former has mediocre sound quality across most of the frequency range, whereas the latter sounds awesome regardless of genre.

There’s nothing aggressively wrong with the D80s. The sound quality is fine, but it never reaches greatness. TV playback is good enough for everyday use, but won’t perform as well as a soundbar. With music, there’s no major warping or detortion, but there’s nothing to celebrate either. At this price point, just get the D40Xs.

Majority D80 review: Verdict

So, should you buy the Majority D80 speakers? I think the answer is very clear here: I would buy the Majority D40X speakers over the D80s. The D40Xs have great bass, clear, powerful mids, and electric treble that isn’t pinchy, and they look really cool on my desk.

There are only two reasons why I’d recommend the D80 speakers over the D40X: one, size, and two, HDMI and optical cables.

If you’ve a compact dorm room or studio apartment, these D80s might be all you can fit, and then I’d recommend them.

For TV, honestly, I’d recommend getting a separate soundbar for TV performance. You don’t even need to spend a lot — the Sony HT-S100F is just £99 and sounds marvellous.