For your listening pleasure: The quick audio questions megathread!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > For your listening pleasure: The quick audio questions megathread!

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qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Has anybody heard the Orb Audio speakers that get advertised online so much? They have a serious following on AVS but so does everything.

# ¿ Aug 15, 2007 00:12

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# ¿ May 3, 2024 18:24

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

So I'm looking at finally getting off my rear end and hooking up my rear speakers again. This will involve ~30 feet of wire running along my baseboard. I've been looking into flat/tape style wire but it seems to come only in 18 or 16 gauge [or be outrageously expensive] and I have 4 ohm speakers so that might not cut it.

My current thinking is to run a single 4 conductor wire then split it at the back of the room. My question is how do I do this splitting? There's "distribution blocks" used in car audio, should I just use one of those? Or is there something else better? And where's a good selection in the US?

# ¿ May 29, 2008 02:43

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I'm a fan of Paradigm Atoms for small speakers, I just like their sound. There's a lot of internet-direct companies with good product like Axiom, Aperion, AV123 and the like you might want to check out as well.

# ¿ Jun 3, 2008 07:35

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I've heard good things about this thing but it takes 3 AAAs.

# ¿ Jul 17, 2008 22:24

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Puddleboy posted:

I have a room laid out similarly to the above diagram (pardon the terrible ascii!). The TVs show where the TV is, the C's are two couches -- any recommendations for speaker layout for a 6.1 surround system?

that corner between the couches pretty much makes 6.1 irrelevant/impossible since the 6th channel is a center rear.

code:

.              ______________
               |             |
               |             |
               |     BL      |
               |cccccccc     |
_______________|cccccccc     |
|           cc              L|
|           cc               |
|           cc              T|
|         BRcc          C TV |
|                       TV   |
|__________________R___T_____|

put the rears on stands behind each couch. If you haven't already spent the money you might just want to invest in better fronts and sub and skip rear speakers.

# ¿ Jul 23, 2008 22:49

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

3363 posted:

My speakers are powered, all I need are two optical inputs (PC and PS3) and 6xRCA or 3x1/8" outputs. Is a $400 receiver really necessary to do this?

You could try to get a used late 90s Dolby Digital preamp on craigslist or audiogon but those tended to be super high-end items when they were out so $400 might not be unrealistic.

A quick perusal of SF craigslist looks like $400-600 is about the going rate for stuff that isn't halo gear like Krell or Mackintosh.

# ¿ Jul 25, 2008 07:18

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

There's nothing wrong with building a system slowly. If you're used to TV or computer speakers a good 2.0 system can put out neighbor-annoying levels of bass pretty easily. If you spend $350 on a receiver and $400 on a pair of speakers you'll be in really good shape for when you do get a sub.

# ¿ Jul 27, 2008 03:23

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

At this point in consumer electronics any brand preferences are out of date since it pretty much seems to change model-to-model.

And this probably won't help the popular perception of me as a Sony fanboy but their midlevel receivers are miles ahead of where they were a couple years ago. If I was forced to buy a Sony receiver for myself I'd still spring for an ES but their other stuff isn't poo poo any more. Although getting rid of s-video inputs is kind of baffling.

# ¿ Aug 13, 2008 21:54

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

SpitoCrono posted:

I've got some old speakers that don't have a plug at the end, but just the wire split in two. (here's a picture in case you don't know what I'm talking about)

Is there a way to plug these into a normal plug hole on a keyboard I have?

Nope, you need an amplifier of some variety.

# ¿ Aug 14, 2008 15:21

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Think about the cost of each individual component in a $200 system and what you'll get for that money. You can get cheapo HTiB sets for that much but you will get what you pay for which is basically 5 of the same speaker that's in your TV and a farty sub

# ¿ Aug 27, 2008 17:51

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Peacebone posted:

I just got a Technics SL-1200 MKII. Now what's the cheapest way to get sound out of this thing. Do I need to buy a receiver or is there other options?

If your receiver doesn't have a phono input you need something like this.

# ¿ Sep 4, 2008 03:22

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Dominoes posted:

Sure, if you're listening to music with 2 channels, but games and DVDs are much better with 5.1.

Good 2.0 is better than crap 5.1 for any content.

# ¿ Sep 21, 2008 02:59

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Not using a center speaker is fine if your fronts are good speakers.

# ¿ Oct 2, 2008 17:06

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

fahrvergnugen posted:

True, but only if your surround-sound decoder can matrix a "phantom" center channel. Most can, but you have to be careful about this, because otherwise you'll get a situation where the receiver merrily decodes 5.1 and then you don't get any dialogue from your DVDs.

All Dolby Digital certified receivers are required to downmix to any speaker combination.

# ¿ Oct 2, 2008 23:18

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

There's a difference between a "phantom" center and a 2-channel mixdown. IMO not having the receiver try to do sneaky timing and echo tricks is preferable.

# ¿ Oct 3, 2008 19:45

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I think we're dealing with a vocabulary issue here. There's several ways to do it. The Dobly Digial standard way [which might be called "phantom"] is to split the center signal equally between the fronts with some kind of volume adjustment and in my experience sounds fine. There's also a lot of "virtual cinema" modes on receivers that try to emulate the experience of actually having a center and surround speakers and those in my experience tend to suck.

In any case if you're actually not getting the center channel audio at all you've set up your equipment wrong.

As far as going without, I've heard a lot of setups with a center that was either tonally different, too big or too small for the mains and it can range from being pretty unnoticeable to just plain annoying.

Also there are some DVDs that have a dedicated stereo mix, usually older ones. If you only have 2 speakers it's usually better to pick that one over the surround one.

qirex fucked around with this message at 21:52 on Oct 3, 2008

# ¿ Oct 3, 2008 21:50

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

There's these but they haven't been updated in a year
http://www.xiph.org/quicktime/download.html

# ¿ Oct 28, 2008 21:25

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

If you're going to build a system up I think the best way to start is to buy a receiver and 2 bookshelf speakers. That way you have a lot of flexibility moving forward. If it's not enough you can get fronts later and use the bookshelves as rear speakers, get a sub or center, etc.

I think you could do OK for $500-600 to start with, say $300 for a receiver and the rest on a pair of speakers.

# ¿ Oct 31, 2008 05:20

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

The main person you need to worry about in an apartment is whoever is underneath you, they'll get the worst of it.

# ¿ Nov 4, 2008 16:39

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

If you're using normal speakers with impedance in the 6-8 ohm area you don't really need anything thicker than 14awg. There's a good table and more information than you ever wanted here.

# ¿ Nov 9, 2008 05:53

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

aneurysm posted:

can I send HDMI-out from the BluRay to the TV, turn off the speakers there, and also send an optical out to the receiver for audio?

I haven't seen a blu-ray player that doesn't also have optical out.

# ¿ Nov 29, 2008 02:15

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Keshik posted:

For Christmas, my dad wants me to find a way to stream iTunes wirelessly from his WinXP laptop to his massive stereo system.

What would honestly work is a little device with some drivers to install on his machine that connects to his router, and runs an RCA cable into the back of the stereo. I can't think of anything or anywhere to find such a device, but that really is the ideal.

Any suggestions? Any good alternatives to getting an AppleTV?

Does he actually buy music from the iTunes store? If he does you're pretty much limited to Apple gear. If not a Squeezebox is a good option.

# ¿ Dec 1, 2008 16:48

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Pro Logic isn't really much like Dolby Digital, there's a lot of channel bleed and it's designed for dipole rears and stuff like that. I'd start saving up for a new receiver first.

# ¿ Jan 7, 2009 02:30

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

ASSTASTIC posted:

Retarded Newbie Question:

Can you use a 7.1 receiver in a 5.1 setup? Or is that just retarded?

Edit: gently caress it. Might as just build a 7.1 system with a 7.1 receiver. Thanks for suggesting the 606.

If you have a set amount of money to spend you're probably better off going 5.1 and buying slightly higher quality components.

# ¿ Jan 8, 2009 00:28

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

BusinessWallet posted:

eh..... I really just want something more compact I guess. I'm using it with a laptop in a small area.

Maybe the Audioengine A2?

# ¿ Feb 16, 2009 06:43

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

OldSenileGuy posted:

I'm looking for a cheap system that is basically just a speaker, iPod dock, line in, and bluetooth connection so I can listen to music from my Mac anywhere in the apartment.

Was this it?

# ¿ Mar 12, 2009 23:15

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

ace22b posted:

What AWG rating should I get for decently good speakers/amp (ie not HTIB stuff)?

If you have 8 ohm speakers 16 should be fine up to 50 foot runs, if you're all concerned or are going behind walls than maybe run 14. Don't bother with 12 unless you're getting 4 ohm speakers.

# ¿ May 11, 2009 02:46

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

check out this page if you want more detail than you ever thought necessary:
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm
There's a good chart there.

# ¿ May 11, 2009 03:28

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Rear speakers are not only supposed to be above the listening position they're supposed to be at the sides, not behind. I don't think for the money you'd really get a heck of a lot out of doing that. Maybe upgrade your fronts instead?

# ¿ May 13, 2009 18:42

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I'd get the speakers first and if you really feel like they need more punch look at subs.

# ¿ May 14, 2009 20:29

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

You could get a cheap mixer and a lot of plug adapters.

# ¿ May 18, 2009 22:46

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Phillyt posted:

Will there be diminishing audio quality if I use a lot of Y splitters?

Ugh, don't do that. Can you at least afford something like this?

# ¿ May 20, 2009 06:29

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Glottis posted:

Quoting my own post but I found this amp that seems to do what I want. Does anyone have any thoughts about it?

http://www.amazon.com/Pyle-PTA2-2x40W-Stereo-Amplifier/dp/B0013CDZDI/

If you have sensitive speakers like say 90dB or above it might be worth a shot. From what I've read about these they're just a little more powerful than a T-Amp.

# ¿ May 29, 2009 22:11

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

In general surround sound is designed to be listened to on identical speakers with identical amps. At the vary least you'd want the 3 front speakers to be amped identically. If you're looking to save somewhere definitely do it on the surrounds.

Personally I'm not convinced that 7.1 is even worth it, at least not versus taking that money and getting a better 5.1 system with it.

# ¿ Jul 20, 2009 18:46

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

If you use your system for music a lot and don't want to deal with it I think that's a great idea. You will have to buy a surround receiver since to my knowledge there's no stereo receivers that do nice things like HDMI switching.

# ¿ Jul 22, 2009 02:10

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I personally wouldn't bother with surround sound in a dorm room, there's just too many pieces and wires to deal with and also you have to move it twice a year.

# ¿ Jul 31, 2009 16:05

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

I do screw-on banana plugs on the receiver end of my speaker wire so I can more easily pull the receiver out for cleaning and such. Plus I'm using 12awg wire and it gets crowded trying to screw them all down.

# ¿ Aug 13, 2009 17:50

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

Isn't av123 teetering on the brink of insolvency? Even if not there's typically a 3-6 month wait for anything they sell.

# ¿ Aug 20, 2009 00:27

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

TenementFunster posted:

the "anti-audiophile" sciencey types at head-fi

Unless you're referring to some tiny subsection of that site far away from the "double-blind testing is banned" folks.

qirex fucked around with this message at 21:24 on Aug 25, 2009

# ¿ Aug 25, 2009 20:18

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# ¿ May 3, 2024 18:24

qirex: Feb 15, 2001

domn posted:

Are there internet prices for B&W or Paradigm speakers that I just can't find? how much luck am I going to have getting a local shop to come down to a reasonable % above invoice?

Not really. B&W especially has internet distribution pretty locked down and I think anywhere that sells their stuff online shows MSRP.

Fancy speakers are expensive.

# ¿ Aug 25, 2009 21:26

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Inspect Your Gadgets > For your listening pleasure: The quick audio questions megathread!

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