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MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland
Update: I picked up some Klipsch promedia 2.1's thanks for all the recommendations.

So my ~6 year old Altec Lansing MX5021 2.1 speakers have finally given up the ghost I think. They've been cutting out intermittently for a while now and I have a feeling it's just some lose solder or something on the input jack since I used to be able to wiggle it and they'd come back on but now I can't get anything out of them.

I do most of my music listening in the living room with my home theater and I have some decent headphones so I'm not looking for anything extreme but I would appreciate having something decent for the times I'm watching videos at my PC or playing an FPS or what not.

I'm hoping someone can recommend me some decent 2.1 speakers or even just 2 channel if it's something like studio monitors that have decent bass response. Price range is $50-150. I'm also not opposed to just scouring craigslist if someone can recommend me some quality PC speaker brands I should keep an eye out for. I've owned Altec's for a while now and have been fairly happy with them but I think my loyalty is more to what the brand name used to be back when they made pro audio stuff so I'm open to whatever sounds best.

The one thing I liked about these is that they have a separate desktop volume knob and headphone and aux jack. I love having a headphone jack right next to my keyboard but not a deal breaker.

Thanks in advance.

These are the Altec's I have, if anyone is in the Portland area and an electrician I'd be happy to give you a good deal on them ;)

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MMD3 fucked around with this message at 18:22 on Jan 11, 2012

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Bunk Rogers
Mar 14, 2002

M-Audio Studiophile AV40 Powered Monitor Speakers

These are awesome.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland

Bunk Rogers posted:

M-Audio Studiophile AV40 Powered Monitor Speakers

These are awesome.

hmmm, come to think of it I probably don't want monitors because monitors would have a flat response. for games and video watching I'd want something with a little more bass emphasis. maybe I should just stick to PC speakers for now.

_aaron
Jul 24, 2007
The underscore is silent.
Creative T20

I've got these (had them a couple months now), and I've been pretty happy with them. Bass is good for a 2.0 system, and they get pretty loud before distorting. There's no "remote" head-phone jack, but there is one on the right speaker, which is nice. And the price occasionally drops down to like $70.

Enos Cabell
Nov 3, 2004


PC speakers suck. I'd grab something like this Pyle amp and these Pioneer speakers

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland

_aaron posted:

Creative T20

I've got these (had them a couple months now), and I've been pretty happy with them. Bass is good for a 2.0 system, and they get pretty loud before distorting. There's no "remote" head-phone jack, but there is one on the right speaker, which is nice. And the price occasionally drops down to like $70.

awesome, I was definitely checking those out, and also the T40's... hopefully I can find a place to go listen to them in a store. so long as there's a headphone jack on the desktop I don't really care if it's on the speakers or on a satellite thing so much.

Goldmund posted:

PC speakers suck. I'd grab something like this Pyle amp and these Pioneer speakers

I've already got the home theater downstairs with some high end speakers and amp... really not looking to have a giant amp and giant bookshelf speakers sitting on my computer desk. Thanks though.

qirex
Feb 15, 2001

Nobody really makes 3-way monitors; which if you're at all concerned about size you shouldn't be looking at anyway, nobody bothers on any speaker with under 8" woofers.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland

qirex posted:

Nobody really makes 3-way monitors; which if you're at all concerned about size you shouldn't be looking at anyway, nobody bothers on any speaker with under 8" woofers.

yeah, I gave up on monitors as soon as I realized I don't want a flat response for watching videos and playing PC games. I'm thinking I just need a 2.0 or 2.1 system with moderate bass now, nothing terribly fancy just don't want to maximize the quality if I'm going to spend ~$100 on them.

Stevie Lee
Oct 8, 2007
The AV40s have plenty of bass. There's also a bass boost switch on the back that's really not even necessary. I wouldn't write them off, they're probably the best-value PC speakers on the market.

TenaciousTomato
Jul 17, 2007

Interworld and the New Innocence
Klipcsh Pro Media 2.1s. Scored a brand new pair on eBay for like $85. They sound/look amazing, crisp, lots of bass, THX certified. Played a few FLAC albums and could not believe I only spent ~90 on them.

RIP Paul Walker
Feb 26, 2004

I live in Portland, and have a set of M-Audio Studiophiles you can play some games with to to see if you like the "flat" frequency response. (I picked them up for $150 used, but they are definitely not for sale). I play games/watch movies/etc, and the flat frequency response means things sound the way the creator intended.

necrobobsledder
Mar 21, 2005
Lay down your soul to the gods rock 'n roll
Nap Ghost
I wound up selling my Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers on Craigslist for $40 after I listed mine on SA Mart for a while at like $70 but nobody wanted them :( But I did get them for like $80 off eBay 3 years ago so I guess it's alright. It's an amusing situation when I'm selling speakers to a shady looking guy that puts them in the trunk of his car.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland
well I listened to the Klipsch's in a Best Buy and they sounded pretty great, unfortunately no Best Buy's in town actually have them in stock. Then I checked Amazon since I have Prime but it doesn't look like they have them in stock either... are these things being discontinued or something?

I'll keep looking for some online.

TenaciousTomato
Jul 17, 2007

Interworld and the New Innocence
ebay!

TenementFunster
Feb 20, 2003

The Cooler King
I'm in the market for some powered speakers as well. I was looking at the AV40s, but what do you guys think about the Audioengine A2s and the A5+s? Any other solid options around those price points? Wireless options (as with the Audioengine models) is a big plus.

signalnoise
Mar 7, 2008

i was told my old av was distracting
Are the AV40s worth 30 bucks over the AV30s? Amazon has them at 120 and 90 respectively, and I'd rather not spend a third more if it isn't significant.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland
just won a set of the Klipsch 2.1 Pro Media's on ebay for $80... will see how these sound. Thanks for the recommendations guys, I'll look into monitors if/when I ever start doing music production.

Vintersorg
Mar 3, 2004

President of
the Brendan Fraser
Fan Club



I switched over to the AV40's and at first it was odd coming from the giant Logitech Z5500 setup but overtime I liked the clarity and it's plenty loud. Games sound so much better too. One of my better PC purchases.

angryhampster
Oct 21, 2005

MMD3 posted:

just won a set of the Klipsch 2.1 Pro Media's on ebay for $80... will see how these sound. Thanks for the recommendations guys, I'll look into monitors if/when I ever start doing music production.

I'm a bit late to this thread, but I think you'll be very satisfied with them if you're looking for a bass-heavy setup for gaming and movies. I have Promedias (also scored on ebay for about $80) and LOVE them. Tons of power, and the clarity is absolutely brilliant.

Bunk Rogers
Mar 14, 2002

Vintersorg posted:

I switched over to the AV40's and at first it was odd coming from the giant Logitech Z5500 setup but overtime I liked the clarity and it's plenty loud. Games sound so much better too. One of my better PC purchases.

I did the same thing but kept the lovely sub.

qirex
Feb 15, 2001

I've been supremely unimpressed with the ProMedias, there's a gap between the satellites range and the sub and it's really boomy I think because of the small driver and maybe port noise. Plus they're noisy, I think they spend more money on the THX sticker than the amplifier.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland

qirex posted:

I've been supremely unimpressed with the ProMedias, there's a gap between the satellites range and the sub and it's really boomy I think because of the small driver and maybe port noise. Plus they're noisy, I think they spend more money on the THX sticker than the amplifier.

something that would have been useful to know like 3 days ago :colbert:

qirex
Feb 15, 2001

Hey man plenty of people like them but I got converted to normal speakers + receiver in college and I've never looked back. If I was going to get powered stuff I'd save up and get something like the Audioengine A5+ or Kanto iPair but that's me.

There's lots of folks who like ProMedias as evidenced by this thread and I freely admit I'm way more picky than most.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland

qirex posted:

Hey man plenty of people like them but I got converted to normal speakers + receiver in college and I've never looked back. If I was going to get powered stuff I'd save up and get something like the Audioengine A5+ or Kanto iPair but that's me.

There's lots of folks who like ProMedias as evidenced by this thread and I freely admit I'm way more picky than most.

yeah, I'm not too worried, they should be an upgrade at any rate... and yeah, I've got receiver + aperion audio bookshelf speakers + velodyne sub downstairs so I'm set for high fidelity when I'm in the living room, I don't usually watch movies at my computer, more for playing games and watching youtube or whatever.

powderific
May 13, 2004

Grimey Drawer
I really like the audioengine a2's for small computer speakers. Despite the teensy little woofers they have satisfying bass. They're also much nicer looking/feeling than MAudio's low end monitors.

The a2's were actually my replacement for a klipsch 5.1 promedia set that died. The promedias obviously destroyed the a2's in sheer desk shaking bass power, but the a2's overall sound is much nicer, especially for music.

edit: TenementFunster, AudioEngine's wireless dongle things work with any speaker, not just AudioEngine stuff. I love AudioEngine, but if you like something else better, just pick up the wireless set and use it with that instead.

powderific fucked around with this message at 22:19 on Nov 12, 2011

On Unicornback
Oct 17, 2004

Anybody know of an easy way to mount Av30s under a shelf? I was thinking to get some brackets from monoprice, but the speakers themselves do not appear to have a keyhole or other mounting points.

Would it be ok to reuse some of the screws on the back?

Applebees Appetizer
Jan 23, 2006

MMD3 posted:

hmmm, come to think of it I probably don't want monitors because monitors would have a flat response. for games and video watching I'd want something with a little more bass emphasis. maybe I should just stick to PC speakers for now.

I have the AV40's with a Polk 10" powered sub I got from Newegg for 80 bucks. Between the monitors and sub there's a lot of adjustability to get it the way you want, but keep in mind you would also need a DAC if you don't have one already. So all in all you'd be looking at about 300 total with a DAC. Totally worth it though, my setup blows away any made for computer 2.1 systems I've heard.

ChadSexington
Aug 12, 2004
I am so not competitive. In fact, I am the least non-competitive. So I win.

powderific posted:

I really like the audioengine a2's for small computer speakers. Despite the teensy little woofers they have satisfying bass. They're also much nicer looking/feeling than MAudio's low end monitors.

The a2's were actually my replacement for a klipsch 5.1 promedia set that died. The promedias obviously destroyed the a2's in sheer desk shaking bass power, but the a2's overall sound is much nicer, especially for music.

edit: TenementFunster, AudioEngine's wireless dongle things work with any speaker, not just AudioEngine stuff. I love AudioEngine, but if you like something else better, just pick up the wireless set and use it with that instead.

I was just thinking about getting these. I'm tired of listening to music on my laptop's crappy built-in speakers, and my current desk has limited space on it, so the small form factor is attractive as well. I just want nice sound quality and don't need BIG BASS, so this sounds perfect. Are they worth dropping $200 on?

powderific
May 13, 2004

Grimey Drawer
I feel like they're well worth the $200 and I have quite a few different speakers. Besides the sound, which I think is quite fantastic, they feel like $200. They're heavy, the finish is beautiful, etc. I haven't personally seen/heard anything in the price range that has the same combo of sound quality + aesthetic pleasingness.

Only thing I'd suggest is that you might try to get them off the surface of the desk a bit. They can sound a little boomy from being on a big flat surface. This is true of any speaker, but you don't notice it with sub/sat systems where the low end is all coming from a sub on the floor. I just put mine on a couple little stacks of books. If your desk has a hutch that'd probably work to.

Also: search for coupons before you buy, they ALWAYS have 10% off somewhere.

TheFrailNinja
Jun 28, 2008
CAN'T SEE SCHOOL BUS, INSISTS HE'S AN EXCELLENT DRIVER

GET OFF THE ROAD SON

APPARENTLY SUCKS AT POSTING TOO

TenaciousTomato posted:

ebay!

Yeah for cheap cheap my family has always gotten Cyber Acoustics brand computer speakers and they sound pretty good to me. They're loud enough that I've thrown smaller parties in my house and I can bump them and they sound pretty good ;)

e: I swear they were called "California Acoustics", apparently it's "Cyber Acoustics" or just CA

vicpro
Jul 24, 2009
Someone gave me 5 Kenwood speakers from an home theater setup, they're 100w but I don't have a receiver/amp and I also don't have a subwoofer (well I have a 12in Clarion PXW1252 laying around but, only the sub, no enclosure and I'm not sure if it would be ok for a pc audio setup)
Would it be worth it to buy all the stuff needed or should I just buy something else?

Applebees Appetizer
Jan 23, 2006

No. Just get a DAC and some powered monitors/speakers.

ChadSexington
Aug 12, 2004
I am so not competitive. In fact, I am the least non-competitive. So I win.

powderific posted:

I feel like they're well worth the $200 and I have quite a few different speakers. Besides the sound, which I think is quite fantastic, they feel like $200. They're heavy, the finish is beautiful, etc. I haven't personally seen/heard anything in the price range that has the same combo of sound quality + aesthetic pleasingness.

Only thing I'd suggest is that you might try to get them off the surface of the desk a bit. They can sound a little boomy from being on a big flat surface. This is true of any speaker, but you don't notice it with sub/sat systems where the low end is all coming from a sub on the floor. I just put mine on a couple little stacks of books. If your desk has a hutch that'd probably work to.

Also: search for coupons before you buy, they ALWAYS have 10% off somewhere.

Just wanted to say thanks for the advice; I decided to pull the trigger on the A2s (and I had a gift card at Amazon I had to burn anyway). They sound great - lots of power behind these guys and it's amazing how much more detail I can hear versus my crappy laptop speaker.

Calculon
Mar 19, 2006

WAKE UP AMERICA
I bought these a year ago and they're definitely the best PC speakers I've ever owned.

Ser Pounce
Feb 9, 2010

In this world the weak are always victims of the strong
I've had some HK Soundsticks II for an age now and they are quality 2.1s.
Never sound buzzy on the bass even cranked right up, still surprised by the tiny tweeters producing so much mid range. They don't have a separate vol/headphone dongle but they do look like a deep sea jellyfish glowing soft blue on my desktop.

MacDeuce
Oct 23, 2010
Corsair 2.1 PC Gaming Audio Series SP2500 Speaker System

http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=41_535&item_id=035933

They're 135$ starting on the 26th, are these a good deal if I want a 2.1 desktop setup? or is this a lovely system?

powderific
May 13, 2004

Grimey Drawer
I've never heard them myself, but I remember reading a couple favorable reviews when they came out--though most suggested that where they really shine is high volume listening. $135 sounds like a good deal to me.

MMD3
May 16, 2006

Montmartre -> Portland
can anyone who owns the Klipsch Pro Media 2.1's tell me why sometimes I'll go to turn the volume down on the speaker and turning it all the way to what should be off will still have sound at medium volume? it's like the speaker volume knob isn't calibrated correctly or something. really frustrating since I typically reach for the knob to turn the sound down quickly when I'm in a game or something and it's not very reliable. wondering if there's some setting I need to configure in sound panel.

Presumable
Nov 23, 2011

by T. Fine
The Sony B3000s have flat response studio monitor quality, until you get to the deepest of deep bass. But for that you can just get a separate subwoofer.

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ShamrockShake
Sep 8, 2011

by Y Kant Ozma Post

MMD3 posted:

can anyone who owns the Klipsch Pro Media 2.1's tell me why sometimes I'll go to turn the volume down on the speaker and turning it all the way to what should be off will still have sound at medium volume? it's like the speaker volume knob isn't calibrated correctly or something. really frustrating since I typically reach for the knob to turn the sound down quickly when I'm in a game or something and it's not very reliable. wondering if there's some setting I need to configure in sound panel.

I dont own them, but I've spent the last hour reading up on them in advance of buying the set. What I've found is an awful lot of complaints about build quality. I'd imagine Klipsch has farmed out the partial manufactuer or assembly to a 3rd party and they are cutting every corner possible. When I see ebay repair services for very specific issues with the Promedia 2.1's, such as this:

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/REPAIR-ONLY-...=item19cb14b66f

I usually presume that to be the kiss of death for a product, like a dell inspiron laptop whose power connector breaks off inside the laptop, every time. So my non-owner very inexpert opinion is that your control pod is in the early stages of breaking, but there is hope for you when it breaks all the way. I'm sorrry to tell you this, I was really hoping to buy these, my current PC speakers are a $10 pair of absolute poo poo Altec Lansing VS-2120's so I have nothing to gloat about.

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