|
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 
MMD3 fucked around with this message at 18:22 on Jan 11, 2012 |
#
¿
Oct 19, 2011 03:31
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 28, 2024 23:12 |
|
|
Bunk Rogers posted:M-Audio Studiophile AV40 Powered Monitor Speakers 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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 20, 2011 00:09
|
|
|
_aaron posted:Creative T20 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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 20, 2011 22:37
|
|
|
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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 20, 2011 23:32
|
|
|
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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 25, 2011 17:28
|
|
|
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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 29, 2011 07:01
|
|
|
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 
|
|
#
¿
Oct 31, 2011 19:24
|
|
|
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. 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.
|
|
#
¿
Oct 31, 2011 22:42
|
|
|
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.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 11, 2012 17:43
|
|
|
Do any of you guys with passive speakers run tripath amps? I'm looking at this Dayton DTA-100a to power some speakers in my bedroom and just thought I should get some opinions. http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-383
|
|
#
¿
Mar 21, 2012 07:53
|
|
|
Hob_Gadling posted:As long as you have sensitive speakers and don't expect high volumes you're fine. What speakers do you have? Do you know their tech specs? This is probably the wrong thread for this but since I started it I don't feel too bad about a mini-hijack. no particular model, and it'd likely be a variety of speakers. the house I moved into has speakers wired up in almost every room of the house, living room, dining room, and kitchen have 2 speakers each all coming out of a panel in the living room where my entertainment center is. Upstairs has speakers in the master bedroom and the bathroom. The speakers I own which are in the living room in a 2.1 configuration are Aperion Intimus 5B's but they're powered by my Pioneer VSX-1020-K. The configuration of the speakers in the living room makes them worthless for using in any kind of surround sound setup but I was going to see if I could set the LR/DR/Kitchen speakers up as a 2nd zone for general music listening when we have people over... just not sure if it's possible to do 6 channel audio on the 2nd zone guessing not. So my plan was to use the tripath in the upstairs for listening to music in the bedroom. The speakers are some old philips magnavox bookshelves and they're probably crappy but I don't need anything very loud, just thought it'd be nice to listen to spotify and books on tape and such in the bedroom on occasion. I didn't have any particular reason for picking the dayton other than dayton stuff comes pretty well recommended and is really reasonably priced. Also the DTA-100A looks a lot better than the DTA-10. I thought maybe at some point if I ever move up to floorstanding speakers in my home theater I could use it to power my Aperion 5B's. let me know if I'm heading down the right path or sound like an idiot. this is what the philips' in the bedroom look like.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 23, 2012 04:16
|
|
|
Factory Factory posted:Well, you could get a small t-amp if you don't need too many Watts per channel. I don't have any recommendations because I went the self-powered monitor route, but that's what was recommended to me when I was considering bookshelf speakers. I picked up a T-Amp from Part's Express recently that I'm pretty happy with. I got the DTA-100a and have been really happy with it but the DTA-1 is supposed to be pretty solid too and is like half the price.
|
|
#
¿
May 10, 2012 15:19
|
|
|
Hob_Gadling posted:T-amp route is the el cheapo route where you have ~$100 or less total, have a pair of old cheap speakers lying around and/or are strapped for space. Separate volume knob and headphone plug are handy. it'd be difficult convincing the girlfriend that a full-sized receiver deserved a place on our nightstand. I ordered the T-Amp as much for it's compact footprint and portability as I did for anything. So far it's doing a great job at the job I picked it up for. I can't see someone wanting a full-sized receiver on their computer desk either but maybe that's just me.
|
|
#
¿
May 10, 2012 22:26
|
|
|
FWIW I've been really happy with my ProMedia 2.1's since buying them after starting this thread. They sound great, take up a small footprint on my desk, have volume knob on the front and a headphone jack on the side. They're the best "PC speakers" I've ever owned but who knows how long they'll last. I'm sure I could get better sound going with powered studio monitors and a receiver but I don't want something that big on my computer desk and don't have a place to put a receiver next to it. The funny thing is I haven't really heard anyone recommending anything other than the AE A2's and the ProMedia 2.1's in this thread.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 28, 2012 17:33
|
|
|
SO I picked up some tower's to replace my bookshelf's I was using in my living room. eventually the bookshelf's will be rear satellite's but for now they're just sitting around unused. I'm thinking about putting them on my desk for my computer but they're unpowered so I'd have to figure out some kind of amp... I suppose I could try a T-Amp but I'm thinking they may need a little more juice to be sufficiently powered. These are the speakers if anyone has a recommendation on how to make them work efficiently w/ my PC: http://www.aperionaudio.com/speakers/intimus-home-theater-speakers/intimus-5b-bookshelf-speaker
|
|
#
¿
May 13, 2013 07:51
|
|
|
KingKapalone posted:It seems like people are still getting non-surround speakers for gaming. Shouldn't surround speakers be pretty important for that? the only type of gaming where surround sound gives you any kind of advantage is FPS, which while large, isn't the only type of PC gaming that's out there. I've never found surround speakers to be necessary personally. If I want a more immersive experience I've got my headphones for that. My PC speakers are primarily for watching videos and listening to music.
|
|
#
¿
May 20, 2013 22:48
|
|
|
qirex posted:These are a 7" cube: is that $250 amp those guys sell just a T-amp in a shiny housing?
|
|
#
¿
May 29, 2013 22:35
|
|
|
okay, I've got some questions going in the general audio question thread AND have been reading the headphone thread but maybe I should consolidate here. Initially I was looking to shop for a way to make my headphones sound better and I realized the way that I have my Klipsch Pro Media 2.1's connected through my onboard audio is NOT ideal (same speakers that I started this thread about). So the problems are:
So what would be the best solution(s) if I wanted to:
I have a pair of Aperion 5B bookshelf speakers that are sitting unused, they might look a little too big sitting on a desk but if they would save me some money in the short term I could try to make them work. So if the Audio Engine A2+'s have a built in DAC then I wouldn't need a breakout DAC or new soundcard for speakers, but there's no volume control on the speakers so I'd just need to retrain myself to change the volume w/ my keyboard... not a problem, just prefer having a volume knob. But then I'd still need a Headphone DAC/amp because the A2+'s don't have a way to plug headphones in, so I could pick up an Audio Engine DAC which has a builtin headphone amp, or I could look at another brand's DAC... then I'd have a volume control for my headphones but not for my speakers. Does that sound correct? I was also looking at the Kanto Yumi's but they're more comparable to the A5's and I dunno that I want to pay $400 on just speakers unless I'm getting some kind of all-in-one solve that also powers my headphones.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 00:48
|
|
|
Should also ask if a simpler solution might be finding a soundcard w/ a built-in dac, or sticking with my Klipsch ProMedia's for the time being and just plugging them into a breakout DAC. I have an X-Fi Xtreme Music soundcard that is in my PC but not currently being used too... I feel like I got just as much interference when I was using it as I do w/ my onboard audio.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 00:59
|
|
|
Flipperwaldt posted:AudInst HUD-mx1 seems like a pleasing DAC to combine with the regular A2s to me. Offers the right amount of control in a not too obtrusive package. can't seem to find a price for it, looks to be discontinued maybe? What would it have over say a Fiio E10 or an AudioEngine D1 DAC?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 01:22
|
|
|
Flipperwaldt posted:For the price, just click through to 'store' on the link I gave you. I'm seeing $179 there. I thought it was going to be something like $149 or something. Ahh, I missed the switch, that would definitely be handy!
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 02:06
|
|
|
Electric Bugaloo posted:It's nice but it's only got 10 WPC, which seems low for me. The N22 is twice as expensive and doesn't have a built-in DAC, but it's got 22 WPC RMS/40W Dynamic, which makes me more comfortable. well see... I've also got this turntable over here that I need to power w/ something since I'll probably be splitting it up from my regular home theater receiver. I'll be casually looking for a pretty 70's receiver anyway most likely, but that's probably a discussion for another thread, I need to know which brands and criteria to keep an eye out for Also though if I find a receiver for my turntable then I won't have my bookshelves to use with it so THEN I HAVE TO GO FIND VINTAGE SPEAKERS FOR MY RECORDS. slippery slope indeed. So the N22 + a USB DAC seems like the way to go, if I were to pick up a DAC like the Modi first would I be able to use it to pass a cleaner signal to my current Klipsch ProMedia 2.1's to hold me over until I can get an N22 and put my overly large bookshelves on my desk?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 07:37
|
|
|
forgive me if this is a dumb question too but why do a decent amount of headphone amps come with remote controls: http://www.asus.com/Sound_Cards_and_DigitaltoAnalog_Converters/Essence_III if you're wearing headphones isn't it implied that you're sitting within arms reach of the thing the headphones are plugged into?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 10, 2014 07:43
|
|
|
Flipperwaldt posted:Yes, but you'll probably need this. This works because the Modi has its output at line level and that's exactly the sort of thing powered speakers like the Klipsch Promedia (or other powered speakers, or amplifiers) expect. Despite the difference in connector. mind explaining to me what the alternative to line level output would be? I take it you mean like I wouldn't want to plug the klipsch's into an amp as they have their own built-in amp in the subwoofer? If I plugged my klipsch's into a DAC like the Modi and then plugged my Grado's into my Klipsch's I can't expect to get a better/richer sound from my Grado's, just less/no interference correct? Flipperwaldt posted:You can also connect powered speakers to them or an amplifier, in which case you wouldn't need to be within arm's reach all the time. For headphone amps that don't also provide a line level signal, a remote control would generally be pretty useless. Although some headphones might have pretty long cords, so who knows. okay, I suppose that makes more sense... I didn't realize people plugged powered speakers into headphone amps but I guess if they have DAC's built in they get the benefit of that.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 11, 2014 00:07
|
|
|
Electric Bugaloo posted:Alternative to line-level? What, you mean amplified? Your Klipsch PC speakers have an amp in them that powers them. Line-level is the standard signal strength that input devices (CD players/game consoles, turntable preamps, etc.) output at to an amplifier/receiver. The alternative is plugging into something like a headphone jack which outputs a signal that's already amplified. That can cause noise and excess gain and other issues which impact sound quality (and can damage expensive or particularly sensitive equipment) which is one of the reasons why a lot of us prefer to use a DAC as our output device for digital stuff. It's all starting to make more sense, thanks for your patience I literally have no idea how I've gone so long w/out knowing/caring about headphone amps or preamps. I've probably owned these SR80's for like 4 years, before that some ATH-M40's and I've also got a pair of HD25-1 ii's that I mostly keep at the office... I've never amped any of them  I have been plugging my grado's into my klipsch's ever since I got the klipsch's and have always thought the sound was poor, probably why my Grado's have been severely underused the past couple of years, the reason I did this was primarily because it was easier plugging my headphones in on my desk than it was trying to reach behind my computer to plug them in. and hey, the klipsch's have a headphone jack on them so why wouldn't you do that. Flipperwaldt posted:You linked an ASUS device that you refer to as a headphone amp. Except it's a DAC/preamp, exactly like the Modi with on top of that a headphone amp built in. This is the title of the page you linked: Essence III - Preamplifier, USB DAC and headphone amplifier. Gotcha, all super helpful, not patronizing at all. I had figured out most of those already but just never understood the interplay between DAC's/headphone amps/pre-amps until now. I always sort of assumed headphone amps were primarily intended for audiophile spergs and my soundcard was good enough. So now I'm wondering... if I want to use my klipsch's for another 6 months or so until I'm prepared to purchase something like the n22 and move my large-ish bookshelf speakers onto my desk. I'd probably be better served picking up a headphone amp like the AE D1 that has a level knob rather than a straight DAC like the Modi. That or I get the Magni + Modi and then sell/repurpose the Magni when I pick up an N22. Does that make sense?
|
|
#
¿
Jan 11, 2014 20:05
|
|
|
so A2+ paired with D1, the D1 line level knob will control the A2's if the A2's are run through it right? or does that not make any sense at that point? better to go for A2's + D1? still deciding if I want to try to use my bookshelves as PC speakers or if I just put them in another room and go for powered speakers + dac/headphone amp
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2014 07:31
|
|
|
well this is certainly interesting... the locally designed (if you're in the Portland area) direct-sale speaker company. Aperion Audio seems to be entering the powered bookshelf market. It looks like this could be a compelling competitor to the AudioEngine 5's. http://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/aperion-audios-allaire-bluetooth-speakers-nail-every-feature-sound-spectacular/
|
|
#
¿
Jan 23, 2014 20:29
|
|
|
powderific posted:Really like the combination of inputs there. Bluetooth isn't amazing for quality but it's really convenient. For certain things, like watching a youtube or listening to a podcast, the quality is more than good enough. Yeah, I have a bose soundlink bluetooth speaker that I use as a portable around the house radio for spotify & audible books on tape... bluetooth w/ apple airplay is just super convenient, to have it built into bookshelf speakers is just a big added bonus. Bluetooth is also great for f'ing around with music apps on iPad from across the room. It looks like these speakers support a pretty good bluetooth codec as well, don't know that I have any devices that use the codec though. MMD3 fucked around with this message at 21:50 on Jan 23, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Jan 23, 2014 21:35
|
|
|
I'm not sure if this thread or the headphone thread is the best place to post this but I'll try here first... I picked up the Audioengine D1 last week and have been really enjoying it once I finally figured out it wasn't going to work with the USB extension cable I had and just plugged it in using the provided 2' long USB cable. In the hopes of getting the DAC/volume knob over to the other side of my desk I went ahead and purchased a 6' USB cable on Amazon (probably only need a 4' but the 6' was cheapest). Apparently this thing is really finicky about the length of cable or something because using that cable I get a "USB device not recognized" error. Is using a longer USB cable just completely out of the question or am I just missing something? It's kind of frustrating to think that I could be limited to only using a 2' cable.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 30, 2014 05:10
|
|
|
Flipperwaldt posted:I've had things not work properly with usb extension cables when the total power draw (pulled through a passive hub at the end of the extension) was bordering on too high. Shouldn't happen with only one device per port, but then not all usb ports are 100% up to spec, especially if we're talking about a laptop(?). It's a desktop, not sure exactly how bus power works but I am using every USB port on the back of my mobo at the moment so if it has something to do with load balancing maybe that's a contributor. I'll try to pick up a powered hub and give that a try, that would even allow me to just use the provided cable, should I look for a usb3 hub? Thanks for the suggestions!
|
|
#
¿
Jan 30, 2014 18:03
|
|
|
powderific posted:Actually, before buying anything it'd probably be worth sending an email to AudioEngine support. They've been very good in the past when I've had to have stuff in for service and they might have a better answer. smart. I emailed audioengine support and will let you guys know what they have to say.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 30, 2014 20:52
|
|
|
MMD3 posted:smart. audioengine support posted:Thanks for emailing and for supporting Audioengine. Different computers act differently to bus powered devices. With that said, check your power settings in the control panel and make sure that they are set for high performance. Many times this can up the power USB ports provide. You can also go into the bios on some machines and it will give you the option to enable high performance USB power (while off or on). Ultimately, with bus powered devices, the shorter the USB cable the better the connection. A USB hub would also be a viable option. I hope this helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 31, 2014 02:35
|
|
|
Well, I'm tempted to go pick up those aperion allaire's from their shop so I can audition them. I just wish I could find a review or two comparing them to the audioengine A5+ before I decide. Doesn't look like that will happen anytime soon though.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 25, 2014 16:12
|
|
|
You want to be able to sync them all? Would it mainly be for listening to music? I'm thinking you want something along the lines of a series Sonos 1 speakers if you want to keep things simple and not have to mess with/pay for installation.
|
|
#
¿
Mar 25, 2014 20:07
|
|
|
Hashtag Banterzone posted:Anyone have any experience with Dayton Audio's DTA-120 T-Amp? Not sure if you already pulled the trigger on something but I may have one of these for sale that has been sitting unused. It did a good job for what I needed it for but after I moved into a place with speakers in less rooms I haven't been making good use of it. Need to confirm I don't have a use for it when I get home but I think in probably good to let it go Edit: mine is a DTA-100a, but I only bought it 1.5 years ago so it's one of the later ones. MMD3 fucked around with this message at 02:28 on Apr 29, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Apr 29, 2014 01:32
|
|
|
vaginal cramps posted:Hey guys, I'm looking to upgrade from my Logitech Z-2300 to a quality 5.1 setup for games and music. Let me be the first to say... $300 for desktop stereo speakers + $200 for headphones I don't know anyone that games in 5.1 anymore. If you want immersion put some good headphones on.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 28, 2014 19:16
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 28, 2024 23:12 |
|
|
vaginal cramps posted:I have some Beyerdynamic DT990s so I'm good on headphones. And I have a decent soundcard in the Xonar STX. So if you're playing say an FPS with friends and you have 5.1, and they're sitting in the same room but you guys are looking different directions in the game... how does that work for positioning? I would think it'd be best to have a spare set of headphones or two for when friends come over... or tell them to bring their own? Unless you're not playing FPS at all...
|
|
#
¿
Jul 28, 2014 20:43
|
|