best gaming speakers

[argoldst]

I need to get a set of gaming speakers. Any ideas?

It is really only going to be used for gaming as I have another system for music and movies.

I do not really have a price range and I do not care about the appearence of the speakers.

I am only concered with sound quality.

What do you guys recommend?

 

[argoldst]

I should add I am obvsiouly looking for a full sound sound system.

 

[Taejin]

I don't have personal experience, but most people seem to agree with the Klipsch Promedia 5.1 set.

 

[teesdale48]

Klipsch are always a favorite

 

[akira34]

Don't rule out Logitech or Cambridge SoundWorks either... Both brands are excellent price to feature/quality lines...

 

[argoldst]

Let me elaborate as maybe you guys can narrow it down for me.

I am NOT looking to shake the entire house or piss off my neighbors.

I want a nice clean sound that works well in surround sound. For example, I want to clealy hear when someone is sneaking up behind me in battlefield vietnam.

I don't mind "feeling" the explosions and gunfire but NOT at the expense of hearing the smaller nuances of what is going on.

I prefer clarity over volume.

The klipsh look real nice but I think it is a little overkill based on what I said here.

 

[Rhin0]

Originally posted by: argoldst
Let me elaborate as maybe you guys can narrow it down for me.

I am NOT looking to shake the entire house or piss off my neighbors.

I want a nice clean sound that works well in surround sound. For example, I want to clealy hear when someone is sneaking up behind me in battlefield vietnam.

I don't mind "feeling" the explosions and gunfire but NOT at the expense of hearing the smaller nuances of what is going on.

I prefer clarity over volume.

The klipsh look real nice but I think it is a little overkill based on what I said here.

The Klipsch Ultra 5.1 is the best, STILL... It works so good in games

 

[DarkKnight]

Originally posted by: teesdale48
Klipsch are always a favorite

 

[Zap Brannigan]

I like my MC-300's. I have 5.1 Megaworks Cambirdge SoundWorks THX 550's and swapped out the fron stats with the MC-300's.

 

[blackinches]

the klipsch systems always have a nice balanced sound. not to bassy and clean mids and highs. if the ultras are overkill you should look into the klipsch gmx line. it's 5.1 but it's a lot cheaper. logitech speakers are also nice and decently priced. their higher end ones tend to be bassier than the klipsch.

 

[argoldst]

what about the s750 from creative (7.1).

You guys think it is worth the money and up there with the z-5500, z-680, and klipsh?

 

[Zero Plasma]

Well,you have no price range so this is what I use.
But you could just buy new computor in stead.


Here

 

[Waylay00]

For a good $150 set, you can get the Logitech Z-5300e's. Very good quality. But as said before, the numero uno speakers are the Klipsch 5.1's.

 

[kindest]

Originally posted by: DarkKnight

Originally posted by: teesdale48
Klipsch are always a favorite

yip

 

[DVad3r]

I got Klipsch speakers and they are the absolute best speakers I have heard (I did not hear much except for a few altec lansings, and the logitech 680's). My first time hearing them the sound was beautifully crisp and booming. I have always wanted a pair since grade 8, and 6 years later my dream has come true!!! I highly recommend them to anyone. Be warned, they are super loud, and the woofer will take down your drywall !!! Gaming is crazy with them, World of Warcraft sounds beautiful, and half life 2 is just gg. They are not cheap but worth every penny.

 

[orangat]

Klipsch is the best all-round if you don't have time to research. Try looking up Boston Acoustics if you have time, I used to have the 4800 set and it was damn good for the price - very nice for music/gaming. There is a higher end model but I've not heard it.

 

[Zap Brannigan]

Originally posted by: Waylay00
For a good $150 set, you can get the Logitech Z-5300e's. Very good quality. But as said before, the numero uno speakers are the Klipsch 5.1's.

I disagree. They are amoung the best PC speakers but not the best. I've heard their 5.1 and owned the 4.1 set. To my ears the Cambridge Soundworks are better.

 

[bytor33]

Don't go with the gigaworks S700 or S750, they have some really bad quality control issues right now. Before I learned of this reading on the creative forums I bought myself an S700 set and after I got everything hooked up and was ready to be amazed there was no sound at all, nada. I triple checked everything and they were just simply dead on arrival. I went with the klipsch 5.1 ultras and have never looked back. They are truly awesome for counterstrike: source, you can hear every nuance of the sound effects.

 

[Zap Brannigan]

Quality Control can never be 100%. No matter what you purchase it's a good rule of thumb to save your reciept.

That said if you are looking for a more neutral sound replication go with Cambridge Soundworks higher end systems.

 

[Wuzup101]

I personally like the z-5500s over the ultras but that's just me. Both are top of the line systems... but for the price I feel that the z-5500s are a bit better than the ultras. Cambridge also makes pretty good stuff but I don't have much experience with them. My neighbor has the Ultras and I own a pair of z-5500s after hearing them at another friend's place. I get to listen to both regularly and I'd say to with the z-5500s if you're going to be spending in that class anyway. The z-5300s are a good deal and IMHO are devinitely a better buy than the lower end klipsch systems. Don't get me wrong... the Ultras are FAR FAR FAR from a bad set of speakers... I don't want to sound like I'm bashing them!

 

[bytor33]

The problem with the logitechs is their exaggerated bass and lack of a tweeter. If you like tons of bass go with logitech. If you want fidelity with your bass go with the klipschs. The gigaworks S700/750 do have slightly better sounding satellites than the ultras, but the ultras sub is definitely the best in the multimedia market. It even rivals many home theater stand alone subs and has a pretty flat frequency response down to 25 hz.

 

[Zap Brannigan]

I have a Megaworks THX 550 sub and to my ears it sounds nicer than the Klipsch subwoofer. At least the 4.1 sub. It is a very nice subwoofer though.

 

[The J]

Originally posted by: Zap Brannigan
I have a Megaworks THX 550 sub and to my ears it sounds nicer than the Klipsch subwoofer. At least the 4.1 sub. It is a very nice subwoofer though.

I have the MegaWorks 550 THX also, but I'm using the standard MC-50 satellites that come with them. My brother has the Klipch ProMedia 4.1s. I can't tell the difference between their satellites (my hearing isn't great, though), but his subwoofer is more powerful. That could be because he seems to like it exaggerated a little and because he has his Audigy play music through all 4 speakers (that greatly amplifies the bass) whereas I play the music only through the front speakers (I have an Audigy 2 ZS with CMSS off).

My other brother has an Audigy 2 ZS and the Logitech Z-5300s. Those are good speakers also, but I think that the MegaWorks and the ProMedias are noticeably better (again, they're still very good speakers).

I think that the subwoofer on my MegaWorks sounds smoother, giving the MegaWorks a more balanced sound which I really enjoy. I'm not suggesting that the ProMedia's sub sounds bad, just the opposite really if you tune it to be balanced. The ProMedias also can get much louder than the MegaWorks, though. Also, while the MegaWorks sub is smooth and not boomy, it can thump and rumble the ground when it needs to (the "Blade II" DVD shows this).

Zap, how do you like those MC-300s? Do they make a huge difference in the sound quality? I don't think I'd upgrade to something quite like that as I'm very happy with my MegaWorks as they are now, but I'm just curious.

In short, I'm very happy with my MegaWorks and think that the satellites compare to those of the ProMedia 4.1s and the subwoofer is not as powerful, but is better balanced at default settings.

Also, when you get new speakers, you should break them in by starting them at a lower volume and letting them play for a few hours. Every few hours, turn them up a little bit. Repeat this process until you have them playing slightly above your normal listening level. With the MegaWorks, I noticed that the air coming from the bass reflex port was hot when I first got the set. I started the volume a little lower than default and began the breakin process. After a few hours, I'd notice that not only would the air from the subwoofer cool down, but that the speakers were louder and clearer even though I hadn't yet changed the volume. Breaking them in can help prevent blowing speakers or amps out, also.

I got my MegaWorks set from Newgg for $200US. I haven't seen them there for a while so they might have been discontinued. You can look around on PriceGrabber for them.

 

[Zap Brannigan]

I found the MC 50's superior to the ProMedia sats over all. The area I heard the MC-50's lacking was in the highs. Other than that they are a great speaker with a very smooth midrange that I quite liked.

To answer your question about how I like my MC-300's; well I am still amazed at how good they sound. I can easily tell the difference between a well produced album and a poorly produced album. The soundstage is amazing and to my ears these speakers are flawless no matter what kind of music is played through them. Classical and Jazz sound amazing. It's like I was hearing my CD's for the first time with this pair of speakers.

As far as games go; some sound better and some sound worse. HL2 and UT 2004 sound very good. I find it depends on the quality of the sound put into the game itself. For instance I have a game that uses .wav files for sound effects. Now they never sounded all that great, but with the MC-300's the game sound is much worse because it allows you to hear the flaws. I'll put it this way; I would not want to hear a poorly recorded MP3 on this system.

The Megaworks Subwoofer I like and still use in conjunction with the MC-300 sats in a 2.1 setup. I also have headphones if I want a true surround environment. I find headphones are great for FPS games.

 

[The J]

According to Cambridge's website, the MC50s have a frequency range of 100Hz to 16KHz (I think the crossover point for the MegaWorks is around 150Hz). That seems amazing for one 3.5" driver (.5" larger than the ProMedia driver, which could explain the great midrange the MegaWorks have). I can't judge the ProMedia satellites that well since their overshadowed by my brother's love of killing small animals with his subwoofer (I'm exaggerating that, but not far from the truth). All I know is that 128kbps mp3s sound pretty bad to me now (192kbps wma is pretty good, though).

Anyway, have you decided on a new set of speakers OP? I guess I shouldn't completely take over your topic.