Audiophiles...I need your suggestions please

[StrangeRanger]

I'm looking for quality speaker suggestions. And if I see the names klipsch, midiland etc. again i'm gonna shot someone. i've heard them, don't like them. maybe if i was a teeny-bopper drivin' around in my ford explorer listenin' to rap crap and having the bass push the hat off my head then ya, but .... i enjoy crisp, well ranged music. i would wire up my pc and home system together but they are too far apart etc. is there no such thing as nice audio speakers for the pc? please give me some ideas. thnx,
j

 

[Workin']

<< is there no such thing as nice audio speakers for the pc? >>

Not really. To get exceptional sound you pretty much have to go through your stereo or else use good headphones. Otherwise about the best you can do is get some of the higher-priced &quot;multimedia/PC&quot; speakers from (in alphabetical order, not to imply endorsement) Altec, Boston, Cambridge, JBL, Klipsch, or another well-known manufacturer of quality home stereo gear.

 

[gplracer]

I have the klipsch and I am very happy with them. Of course I realize that someone real picky may not be. The midrange could be better I guess. Look for a some of the post here on klipsch. There is another brand some people were referring to that does not have as much power but has a better sound.

 

[ragiepew]

From what Ive heard, the BA4800 (boston acoustics) seem to have a richer sound but not as much bass. I dont have either of these speakers so take this w/ a grain of salt, but thats the impressions i have been getting from people around here...

 

[ArkAoss]

yeah i used to work at a compusa, and the boston's always seemed nice, i don't know though if bose makes any sets of pc speakers but i think i have seen a set, but what do you have against the klipsch??

 

[Suki]

i found this site very useful for this kind of question. They have reviews, by consumer, of all kinds of speaker, tv, av receiver and many more.

this site helps me a lot building my home theater.

 

[Insane3D]

StrangeRanger, I would suggest you give the BA4800's a try...they sound like they might be right up your alley. They have less bass than the Klipsch's, but they reproduce midrange better than the Klipsch. If the horn tweeter on the Klipsch bothers you, the BA4800's might sound better to you. Also, there are some high-end Klipsch speakers...the Quintet system I believe...but they are at least $500. Also, the Videologic Crossfires are highly rated, but they are also $500 or so. Check out this site...

3D Soundsurge Reviews

 

[Muadib]

I'm a bit lost by your post. Are you asking for options for pc speakers, or for your audio system?

 

[Noriaki]

I don't know if I quality as an Audiophile...but here goes:

The BA4800 are in my view the best speakers by far in their price range (and several above them, Klispch, Midiland, DTT2500/3500 etc) they have far better sound reproudction than the Promedias, clearer and crisper. Some people love the exagerated bass and shrilly highs of the Promedias and that's fine more power to them they are entitled to their opinions. Personally I don't like the promedias much.

Also Video logic's higher end sets are very good for sound clarity on all ranges. The Sirocco crossfires for 4.1 or DigiTheatre DTS for 5.1 with Dolby digital and DTS decoding.

BA4800 or Sirocco Crossfires for 4.1
BA DPS5.1 or DigiTheatre DTS for 5.1 (unfortunately neither of these have 4 analog inputs so your SOL for gaming...but movies they will be some sweet sheet)

VideoLogic is better but more expensive in both cases.

None of these sets are going to sound as good as a well put together home theatre setup though. But they will be far better than the exagerated bass on Altec Lansing or Klipsch, and much better than the overpriced overhyped underpowered Creative spakers. I've never heard anything from midiland so I can't make a comparision there.

 

[AndrewR]

$500 for computer speakers???? You can buy an Infinity home theater system for that amount with a 75 watt sub (actually less if you shop online -- Infinity HTS10)!! I'm happy with my Yamaha YST50's which were a comfortable $120 new though I only paid $30 thanks to Value America and Yamaha's rebate.

If you are buying for gaming, just go with a four speaker system with a sub. If you are looking for movie audio, invest in a home theater system -- the quality will easily blow away any computer setup. Plus, a home theater system (with some lucky pricing, I'm paying about $750 for mine including Dolby/DTS support with DVD/CD player, receiver and Infinity HTS20 speakers) gives you a much better audio system for music, not just movies, and will retain its value better than computer equipment.

 

[outlamd]

Another name to throw out there is Monsoon. I've personally never heard them, but I've heard some firsthand testimonials which were positive. You could give them a listen anyway.

 

[divinemartyr]

No question about it, the BA4800's are what you need. They sound warm, rich, and extremely accurate. These are the speakers you want if you're listening to music. I can't rate another multimedia system higher. Been an audiophile for 7 years now and Boston definitely makes the top of the line speaker solution for multimedia applications. I still recommend going through your receiver but since that isn't an option, get these.

divinemartyr

 

[StrangeRanger]

OK, first off sorry if i pushed anyone's buttons with my comments in my first post. i wasn't crappin' on the Klipsch or anything, it's just that i've heard them, didn't like them, and that's all i ever see on these boards. ugghhh.
And no, i don't care about 5.1 set ups. that's what a real home theatre system is for. i have no desire to watch movies on my little 17&quot; monitor i want the speakers for listening to music and the occasional gaming adventre. so yes i want the rear channels too. i've had the chance to hear almost every thing that has mentioned except for the BA's. hmm...worth looking into for sure. thnx all,
j

 

[Bill]

This is an easy one. Get the speakers that have won so many awards that they have been &quot;banned&quot; because they always win: The Altec Lansing ACS-48's. Speakers with tweeters and a real differential toroidal power supply. Geez, what a concept...

Bill

 

[tjdavis1138]

I have BA for my home theater and they rock. If the computer speakers are even close you will be happy.

 

[Rigoletto]

Well, I have some serious hi-fi but not on my computer. I have hifi separates and JBL control1 little speakers that do remarkably well. I have Audio Technica AT900 headphones. I analyse music so I have to hear the various lines properly.
I use on my PC the MS DSS80 speakers and, on the USB connection at least, they come out quite favourably. The sub/sat arrangement actually works well! The plastic crammed with shielding doesn't resonate in the sats (but then it shouldn't logically). And that subwoofer is just super for a computer speaker, special tech- I assumed they were all shiit. Of course the sound is a little idiosyncratic because it isn't strict hifi, but I like it and it was £100 originally.

 

[MADCAP]

What I would recommend is buying a reciever(lower-end) and auditioning some shielded bookshelf speakers. These you can use for front and rear. I would buy smaller(cheaper) ones for rear, but you can match them all if you prefer. And you can add a sub also.

I do not use computer speakers as they all sound like sh*t. This setup will slaughter anything made for the comp.

Listen for what you think sounds good, and fits in your budget. If you want the best sounding speakers for the price look into Paradigm. You can also(when you know what you are looking for) go on egay and pick up some great deals on speakers and audio grear.

Good luck. I'm a cheapass but I love great sound. And the two don't have to exclude each other if you know where and what to look for. If you post a budget I can maybe give some better suggestions.

 

[MADCAP]

Damn double post.

 

[StrangeRanger]

madcap...i've been toying w/ the idea of going out to an amp and then to some nice shielded bookshelf series speakers...but i'm not sure how it would work out when i do wanna play games. i'm thinking that i could not afford an amp that has 4+ analog inputs to get signals front and rear. or....hmmm...maybe just using the spdif out would work? but then again i'm thinking a receiver/amp that handles the spdif input could be pretty $$$ too. Oh what a quandry...
j

 

[divinemartyr]

Strangeranger:

Get an audio card with a coaxial digital out or an optical digital out. I happen to own the Aopen AW744Pro which has an optical out. More impressed with the accuracy and quality than that of the soundblaster 5.1 cards, and since 5.1 is unimportant to you (and this card does not support it) it's a great solution. The card cost me $25.95 from here, plus shipping, brought my total to $33.50 or so. Not a bad price for a card I like better than the more expensive Creative cards. The optical out makes this card well worth the money. Any decent quality receiver will have an optical input, and Denon receivers have a nice 5-channel stereo mode which allows you to make any stereo signal into a 5 channel signal, outputting from all channels equally.

divinemartyr

 

[MADCAP]

I myself use poweramps as I need a flat response for audio mixing, which I do on my computer. You could get away with a receiver and it should be better for you. As far as the receiver/s that is best for you, I don't know about all of their inputs and outputs.

I just had a thought and this would be perfect. If you bought an amp or receiver and two shielded bookshelf mains. And then two of the self-powered Roland monitors for the rear. Then you would not need another amp and the sound is pure for the rear channels. Musician's friend has these for $89 for the pair. They come in black and white. These are professional monitors and can be seen on tv in studios and television production. This is cheap and acurate as hell. The perfect solution for rears.

null<a target=new href="http://


I don't know your budget, please post it so I'll have more to go on. But I recommend the Paradigm sheilded Titans for the mains. These sound great, are very accurate, and have a lot of bass for small speakers. I use these for my mains and am very impressed. These go for around $200-225 for the pair new. You can use any amp or reciever to power them, just buy something cheap if you can't afford it. But the speakers are more important. Hell a bestbuy $79 special reciever would work.

[L=null]http://www.paradigm.ca/Website/welcometoparadigm.html">null</a>


Later on you could always add a sub. This system will kick major ass and be easy to setup.

 

[MADCAP]

I don't know your budget, please post it so I'll have more to go on. But I recommend the Paradigm sheilded Titans for the mains. These sound great, are very accurate, and have a lot of bass for small speakers. I use these for my mains and am very impressed. These go for around $200-225 for the pair new. You can use any amp or reciever to power them, just buy something cheap if you can't afford it. But the speakers are more important. Hell a bestbuy $79 special reciever would work.

This setup will kick ass, and you could add a sub later.

I don't know what happened but it won't let me put the links in right. And it lost this part in the other post.

The two &quot;null&quot;s at the bottom of the above post are links. The first is for the Roland monitors, and the second is the Paradigm site.

 

[GTaudiophile]

I'll put it this way. I bought the Klipsch Pro-Medias, got rid of them, and I will probably never buy from Klipsch again. I bought the Boston BA635s, then the BA4800s, and I will be a Boston customer for life!

 

[MrMole]

BAH!

5 channel stereo, isn't that an oxymoron?


What are you going to be listening too?
I also have the AWW744pro, great card for the price and fits my needs...
if its mp3's at 128, the brand of speakers won't much matter...


If I want Bach or REO Speedwagon, I will turn on my Sunfire componets

 

[jamarno]

The best cheap set up is a pair of conventional speakers about 2 cubic feet each, driven by a conventional hi-fi stereo amp or receiver (A good 40-70W/channel receiver costs only $100-$150). Generalizations about brands aren't reliable, and it's best to go by objective test reports that use instrument readings. Ignore test reports done that compare only a few different models together or that rely mostly on subjective opinions, especially if those opinions aren't by musicians or audio engineers but instead by computer reviewers. The latter two groups want flat response and low distortion, but other people often think that muddy 60 Hz bass is a sign of good, deep bass, and treble sounds best when it's turned up too much.