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Shinjobi posted:So I'm interested in buying some speakers for my roommate this Christmas. Earlier in the year he got a Sony str dn1070, so I'm reading that the fancy Dolby stuff is not gonna happen, but I'm still kinda curious if there is a recommended speaker set for 7.1 capabilities. Get vintage speakers on Craigslist.
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Nov 14, 2017 10:55
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I've got a budget of $200 to get off of the crappy built in speakers on my new TV. I had been using a Klipsch Pro Media 2.1 PC speakers, but the new TV only has SPDIF out. My music consumption only happens on my PC, so this setup is really only for when I have people over to watch TV shows or movies. Any recommendations?
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Nov 15, 2017 00:01
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LASER BEAM DREAM posted:I've got a budget of $200 to get off of the crappy built in speakers on my new TV. I had been using a Klipsch Pro Media 2.1 PC speakers, but the new TV only has SPDIF out. My music consumption only happens on my PC, so this setup is really only for when I have people over to watch TV shows or movies. Any recommendations? BigFactory posted:Get vintage speakers on Craigslist. And a receiver too.
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Nov 15, 2017 01:22
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Are sound bars really that bad of a proposition? I was thinking there would be some decent sales coming up this month, and my use case is pretty straightforward.
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Nov 15, 2017 03:44
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They're not bad bad, they're just not very good value for money.
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Nov 15, 2017 06:53
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So I'm moving into my new place in a month or so and the current setup I have is pretty lackluster. Im looking for a 2.1 system to play music from my computer and when I watch tv (tv is acting as a third monitor). After some scrounging, I saw the Micca Mb42x come up a lot. I was thinking of getting a schiit stack (magni and modi Uber) or maybe the fulla would be enough. I know the magni can't amp the Micca, and while I don't need an amp for my ath m50, my next pair will probably need one. Not sure which amp to get for the Micca yet and for sub Im leaning towards the Dayton sub 1000. Just wondering about this setup and if you guys have any better suggestions
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Nov 15, 2017 17:48
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There's all in one headphone/speaker amps out there like the SMSL AD18. As far as the speakers go I don't think you'll do any better for that price but if you can stretch a bit maybe look at bigger Daytons, lower end Polks or the Sony SSCS5. There's a huge gap between what a 4" driver can do and where you want a subwoofer to pick up.
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Nov 15, 2017 19:11
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qirex posted:There's all in one headphone/speaker amps out there like the SMSL AD18. It's on Massdrop right now. https://www.massdrop.com/buy/smsl-ad18-bluetooth-stereo-and-usb-power-amplifier/talk?mode=guest_open
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Nov 15, 2017 22:43
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Cool that night be the way to go then in terms of amp. Too bad Micca is sold out amazon.ca
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Nov 15, 2017 22:56
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qirex posted:There's all in one headphone/speaker amps out there like the SMSL AD18. So that DAC the Micca pair of speakers seem to be a better alternative than the sound bar I was considering. How do subwoofers integrate into a system like that? Would the AD18 support one?
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Nov 16, 2017 01:06
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Looking for speaker recommendations for my folks. They want 3 pairs of *white* speakers, 4 L/R mains and 2 surrounds in the same line. Application being background music in large living room and kitchen/dining room, as well as casual TV/movie watching. A 5.1 kit recommendation with non-proprietary connections is fine as long as a second pair of acoustically/aesthetically identical L/Rs mains can be purchased as well. Although they could take or leave the subwoofer (it must be white if it were included) and the center channel is a hard no for *reasons* so I assume that eliminates any cost benefit of a kit. I took my dad to Fry's to have him listen to some options only to find they had basically nothing set up for listening. His hearing is pretty poor though so he won't complain as long as everything sounds the same, and the enclosures aren't obtrusively large. Realistically, that limits driver size to around 6" or less. They're also going to need a receiver to handle the 4 TV oriented speakers, 2 in the kitchen and 2 outdoors, 8 total for music. They have a 5.1 receiver with a 2-ch second zone; not knowing exactly what it is, I'm hoping it has line outs for the second zone as well as speaker outs. Would it make sense to add an external amplifier on the line outs extending the second zone to include the outdoor speakers? I'm not even sure its possible for the second zone line outs and speaker outs to be active concurrently. Should I look for 3 zone receivers or 4-ch amps instead? Their budget is flexible but being that they are not audiophiles I'd like to keep this bundle, 6 speakers and receiver/outboard gear to ~$1000. If that's unreasonable or there is a more elegant solution I'd love to hear it. Speaker locations are all wired in already so they're not interested in Sonos or other wireless multi-room systems.
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Nov 18, 2017 22:22
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:It's on Massdrop right now. anddd I missed the drop
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Nov 18, 2017 23:08
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Knowlue posted:anddd I missed the drop That sucks. It was actually $30 cheaper than amazon.
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Nov 18, 2017 23:19
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Crimpanzee posted:Looking for speaker recommendations for my folks. They want 3 pairs of *white* speakers, 4 L/R mains and 2 surrounds in the same line. Application being background music in large living room and kitchen/dining room, as well as casual TV/movie watching. A 5.1 kit recommendation with non-proprietary connections is fine as long as a second pair of acoustically/aesthetically identical L/Rs mains can be purchased as well. Although they could take or leave the subwoofer (it must be white if it were included) and the center channel is a hard no for *reasons* so I assume that eliminates any cost benefit of a kit. After some thought I'm leaning towards the following setup: White surround system https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-AEH5...nd+sound+system +1 Satellite https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-AESS...EF41AN4E87QP6DY Receiver https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/intdtr702/integra-dtr-70.2-9.2-ch-x-140-watts-thx-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html#!more That should let them do a 4.1 main zone for the tv, with kitchen stereo as zone 2 and deck stereo as zone 3 all for around ~$1000. Any glaring issues with this?
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Nov 19, 2017 00:38
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:That sucks. It was actually $30 cheaper than amazon. Well I went ahead and bought the swan d1010 instead
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Nov 20, 2017 19:04
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Crimpanzee posted:Any glaring issues with this? e: if you must get tiny speakers I'd trust these, they're at least form a well known speaker company. They have a whole range on ac4l including singles and the larger Minx 22. qirex fucked around with this message at 19:27 on Nov 20, 2017 |
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Nov 20, 2017 19:23
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If i was looking to spend ~$250 on sound for my TV, is it possible to get a sound system or would I have more luck looking for a soundbar I like during Black Friday.
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Nov 20, 2017 20:33
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The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Getting your first home audio system? Just don't buy a soundbar.
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Nov 20, 2017 20:37
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frest posted:It's that time again, the seasonal dump of Polk's cheap speaker series on Amazon (and subsequent ripple sales, silent price matches across Newegg etc). I'm not linking anything, this isn't affiliate bullshit, I'm just sharing my cheat sheet for what's a good price that you can get from Amazon or another comparable retailer. This info worked for me at getting people to have slightly better audio at very modest prices. Better than soundbars, that's for sure. Is the "slightly nicer" line of Polks a decent option if I want to spend ~1k or so on speakers? Where's the sweet spot of price/performance these days?
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Nov 20, 2017 20:48
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GnarlyCharlie4u posted:The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > Getting your first home audio system? Just don't buy a soundbar. This thread was pretty useless when I posted a few days ago asking pretty much the exact same question as the guy you’re replying to. I was told get a vintage speaker set and receiver from Craigslist. Great, I know next to nothing about home audio. How am I supposed to know what a good value is? Good brands? Good condition? How will a vintage receiver interface with the TV? Input switching? How do you put it all together and not make it into a rats nest or fire hazard? gently caress that noise, I need a decent speaker set, not a month long project. I picked up a Samsung MW550 soundbar from Amazon and it was exactly what I needed. Optical to my TV with it handling input switching, BT if I want to tether my phone. The wireless sub was a nice addition. Just dropped it next to my couch. The sound quality is great, at least as good as the Klipsch Pro Media 2.1 it replaced. LASER BEAM DREAM fucked around with this message at 21:29 on Nov 20, 2017 |
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Nov 20, 2017 21:20
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Yeah I think the biggest hurdle with requests like that in this thread is that the people you would expect to have the knowledge, don't because they know better than to waste money on the cheap option. I'm in the same boat actually. I need something for the living room and I've only got $300 to blow at the moment so I'm not going to. I and would rather save up and spring for a receiver in the $500-ish range that will handle everything I want it to do. Edit: to anyone considering a soundbar, why don't you look and see what self-powered speaker options you like on Amazon warehouse deals instead? GnarlyCharlie4u fucked around with this message at 21:43 on Nov 20, 2017 |
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Nov 20, 2017 21:39
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My standard "I want to be able to hear TV / Movies / Games better and only have $100 to spend" has been a pair of budget bookshelves and a t-amp. I've got 2 of those setups in my house, and they work pretty great.
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Nov 20, 2017 21:45
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Twerk from Home posted:My standard "I want to be able to hear TV / Movies / Games better and only have $100 to spend" has been a pair of budget bookshelves and a t-amp. I've got 2 of those setups in my house, and they work pretty great. Yup. $15 for a pair of Realistic Minimus 11 (from goodwill) and another $60 for an SMSL SA-50 has worked pretty drat well for me. I even managed to build a 24v power supply so I could take them camping. I'd say that's pretty much in the same suggestion as telling someone to "Check craigslist and get back to us" though, it's not repeatable and depends heavily on what's available. But you usually wind up with much better sound for the money.
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Nov 20, 2017 21:49
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LASER BEAM DREAM posted:This thread was pretty useless when I posted a few days ago asking pretty much the exact same question as the guy you’re replying to. I was told get a vintage speaker set and receiver from Craigslist. Great, I know next to nothing about home audio. How am I supposed to know what a good value is? Good brands? Good condition? How will a vintage receiver interface with the TV? Input switching? How do you put it all together and not make it into a rats nest or fire hazard? Nobody is going to spend 20 minutes writing a page of answers to questions you never asked. How the hell are we supposed to know you're too dumb to google "how do I hook a stereo up to my TV?" If you have a specific question, ask it and we'll answer you.
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Nov 20, 2017 21:55
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I actually got a Vizio soundbar in my kitchen and it's fantastic because it has Chromecast built in and it can hook up to my whole house group. Quality is better than I expecting and I didn't need much for that room.
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Nov 20, 2017 22:17
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For tight budgets, I'd always suggest used equipment. A nice brand 5.1 receiver with hdmi will run you under $100. A pair of good bookshelf speakers maybe $150. You're at a price of a soundbar with much better sound and expandability options.
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Nov 20, 2017 22:39
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Ads on craigslist are either like $10 off retail or cheap as hell. I've been selling off a lot of old stuff and it's weird, I sold my 2000 model year receiver in a day but my 2009 receiver which is better by every dimension sits there at $20 more. Anyone in the Bay Area want a good deal on a receiver? 
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Nov 20, 2017 22:52
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Yeah the "lol don't get a soudbar" rhetoric is tiring but I kinda see why. You can definitely get a traditional setup for at least 1/3 if not more the cost of a soundbar and their associated rears etc (just a total guess). A lot of these folks probably bought some lovely soundbar then a traditional setup for the same price and are blown away. You can absolutely get a full tower speaker used 5.1 setup for cheap. That said if you want a soundbar then gently caress it, get one. There's perfectly serviceable ones for $100-200. or you can sell a kidney like me and pay for the ease and convenience of a full house Sonos setup with a few "ones" that has alexa  things like Sonos just work and a lot of people forget that the layman isn't very home audio savvy and gets overwhelmed when they see speaker wire. Having speakers in every room and individually controllable is loving rad
Nostalgia4Dogges fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Nov 20, 2017 |
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Nov 20, 2017 23:00
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Nostalgia4Dogges posted:Yeah the "lol don't get a soudbar" rhetoric is tiring but I kinda see why. You can definitely get a traditional setup for at least 1/3 if not more the cost of a soundbar and their associated rears etc (just a total guess). A lot of these folks probably bought some lovely soundbar then a traditional setup for the same price and are blown away. You can absolutely get a full tower speaker used 5.1 setup for cheap. Yeah I have to say, if you can afford a Sonos, and like the idea of having a Sonos and like the look of a Sonos, the for gently caress's sake just get a Sonos! They're cool and good albeit pricey. I can't really say the same for soundbars though. But gently caress if you think I'm gonna argue with you on the internet trying to convince you that what you really want isn't a soundbar. I couldn't even convince my friend to not buy a soundbar that was probably worse than his TV speakers.
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Nov 20, 2017 23:04
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If anyone in this thread wants to link me to their local Craigslist I'll tell them what speakers to buy. It's literally my favorite thing in the whole world.
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Nov 21, 2017 01:03
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Scrapez posted:For tight budgets, I'd always suggest used equipment. A nice brand 5.1 receiver with hdmi will run you under $100. A pair of good bookshelf speakers maybe $150. Where should I be looking for an HDMI receiver that's less than $100? I've been driving a pair of 30 year old floor speakers with a stereo that's stuck in "x-bass" mode and would like to replace it sometime soon.
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Nov 21, 2017 01:50
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skull mask mcgee posted:Where should I be looking for an HDMI receiver that's less than $100? I've been driving a pair of 30 year old floor speakers with a stereo that's stuck in "x-bass" mode and would like to replace it sometime soon. Craigslist. You can find older (like 5 years old) ht receivers all the time for cheap.
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Nov 21, 2017 02:06
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skull mask mcgee posted:Where should I be looking for an HDMI receiver that's less than $100? I've been driving a pair of 30 year old floor speakers with a stereo that's stuck in "x-bass" mode and would like to replace it sometime soon. Craigslist, Offerup, LetGo, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay... Find one, Google it to look at specs and features, search that model on eBay with filter "sold listings" NOT "auction ended" to get a guide on what they go for. That's my general method for buying used electronics locally.
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Nov 21, 2017 02:57
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BigFactory posted:If anyone in this thread wants to link me to their local Craigslist I'll tell them what speakers to buy. It's literally my favorite thing in the whole world. https://phoenix.craigslist.org Looking to set up a 5.1 system. I was think floor standing for the front, bookshelves for the rears. And a center. I would prefer to get matching stuff, and am willing to fill in gaps. But I would prefer to keep the speakers under about $1800. That would leave me room for a sub and a receiver within my budget of about $3-3.5k. I already have a Sony X900E TV. I'm fine with buying a brand new receiver. I'm kind of buying all my home theater stuff within a few months of each other so once I'm set, I don't think I'll need to upgrade until something finally shits the bed.
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Nov 21, 2017 04:49
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MonkeyFit posted:https://phoenix.craigslist.org For the sub SVS has their SB-12 on sale for $400. One (or two) would slot nicely into that budget. https://www.svsound.com/pages/subwoofers#nsd-series
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Nov 21, 2017 06:57
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BigFactory posted:If anyone in this thread wants to link me to their local Craigslist I'll tell them what speakers to buy. It's literally my favorite thing in the whole world. Go wild bud: https://norfolk.craigslist.org/
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Nov 21, 2017 13:24
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Residency Evil posted:Is the "slightly nicer" line of Polks a decent option if I want to spend ~1k or so on speakers? Where's the sweet spot of price/performance these days? https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16882290202 I bought a similar discontinued model of these, and they're fantastic. They're huge (for bookshelf speakers), like a middle-ground option between floorstanding and single 5.25 bookshelf size? I use them as front L/R in a smaller room and love em. I don't have audiophile inclinations, and won't pretend to advise you on the relative 'performance' of these speakers. They sound good at low power, they sound good at high power. I wouldn't post about it if I thought they were a bad deal. That being said, I think BigFactory is right, that the absolute best value is going to be found buying used. A lot of consumer electronics age like milk. However, my Craiglist experiences have been really negative where I live (north jersey), and these come with free shipping (and free returns if somethings fucky). I wouldn't buy ANY of these speakers at MSRP, or even 25% off. I wait until this week and start scanning the email promotions or checking who is price-matching what.
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Nov 21, 2017 16:47
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Reddit's "budget audiophile" community is currently all about KEFs, but even on sale they're looking at like 250 to 300 bucks for bookshelves. I'm sure they are very nice. Are they 5x the price nice? That I cannot say. This stuff is consumer audio equipment, you're gonna have someone spill beer on it, or a child is going to tug a wire and knock it over. Me, I just don't feel comfortable spending quite that much on non-quantifiable gains for what is one component in a home theater set up. My gut tells me that the subjective nature of audio quality makes this market a "pro-sumer" trap. Going from my old college set of desktop PC speakers to an entry level Polk setup, I noticed a tremendous jump in sound quality. Having sat in a friend's audiophile listening room, I noticed that he had spent a tremendous sum of money. Maybe I just have a tin ear? 
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Nov 21, 2017 17:14
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There are sooooooooooooooooooooooooo many variables in a decent sound system and the major one isn't even related to anything you've bought for the sound system, it's the environment you put it in. Too many flat shiny surfaces for sound to bounce around off will make everything sound like sound reflection hell. Too many absorbent cushion surfaces will make everything sound dull. Room dimensions affect peaks and nulls in frequency response massively (hence subwoofer placement being 'wherever it sounds best to you' rather than an exact science of PUT IT IN THE CORNER) Hell, rooms with flimsy plasterboard walls will flex with bass effectively sucking it out, forcing your sub(s) to work harder than they want to. You can buy the most expensive sound system in the world but if the room you put it in is bad for sound then it's going to sound like complete poo poo.
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Nov 21, 2017 17:30
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The guys I know in real life that drop serious cheddar on audio systems are coincidentally 65+ year old retired men who attended a lot of hard rock concerts in the 1970s. In unrelated news, they often cannot hear me speak in a crowded restaurant or at a dinner table and their EQ settings are like a trip to the hell dimension.
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Nov 21, 2017 17:50
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