Recommend some speakers to me

[Azndude51]

I'm looking for some new speakers, right not I haven't decided if I want 2.1 or 5.1. I would like to have surround, but idk if I want to deal with the extra speakers/wires. I would prefer to spend $50-75, but I am willing to push to $100 max.

So far I am considering these:
Logitech Z-4
Logitech X-530
Logitech Z-2300

Yeah, they're all Logitech, but I don't know which other brands' mid/low end models are good. Any other suggestions?


EDIT: BTW, I have an Audigy2 Value.

 

[Howard]

How about headphones?

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: Howard
How about headphones?

I don't really like using headphones, but I already have a Sennheiser PC150 headset, I only use it for gaming to talk and so the sounds don't bother people around me.

 

[imported_Imp]

I personally have hte Z-2300s and they are a great for the price. The bass is a bit boomy and mid is a bit low, but that goes for most speakers (especially logitechs). The X-530s should be ok if you MUST have surround sound, but the Z-2300s and probably Z-4s (newer 2300s?) would be good given your budget. Otherwise, headphones wouldn't be a bad idea if you don't mind them.

I should add that the X-530s are pretty budget and ok for the price, but of lower quality and accuracy compared to the others.

 

[Azndude51]

bumpage

 

[leigh6]

If you are going to buy Logitech. Here is the place to buy them. They claim to be refurbished but I have bought 6 sets of speakers from them and all have been brand new just in brown, oem, boxes.

http://justdeals.stores.yahoo.net/

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: leigh6
If you are going to buy Logitech. Here is the place to buy them. They claim to be refurbished but I have bought 6 sets of speakers from them and all have been brand new just in brown, oem, boxes.

http://justdeals.stores.yahoo.net/

Hell no, I don't ever buy refurbished and I would never buy from Just Deals based on their ebay feedback. 98.0% isn't bad, but I don't usually buy form anyone below 99.0% and if y ou look at their feedback, there are a lot of people who receive defective/broken products.

 

[CreepieDeCrapper]

i'd hit up your local guitar center and look for some self-powered monitors that have magnetic shielding for use near a pc (i'm sure they all do since most audio recording is done on hard disk these days)... i'm using the Roland MA-8's (mine are black) and while no longer available (unless you're shopping ebay), there should be others similar to these

bass, treble, volume with headphones out and mic-in plus a couple different inputs on the back for hooking them up... they're simple and to the point, but sound nice and full and well balanced (iow, you actually get mids out of 'em)... of course, i'm a stereo nazi and prefer it over the rediculous speaker configurations common to most setups these days

 

[Nextman916]

The Z-2300's is really over $100 due to its extremely heavy sub which costs alot to ship the whole package. For me i decided on the Z-4's because they serve my purposes best, i live in a 2,500sqft. house, and they fill my computer room very well, actually more than just that. If cranked it can easily be heard in the whole house, gaming and music is excellent, the sattelites are very very crisp, amazing how much better they are than the previous Z-3's, sub punches pretty well. The 2300's would just be WAY overkill for me, 40wx2+120w thats insane, it would blow my windows if turned all the way up. Many reviews say that max they ever put it was half way, but was left at 25% most of the time. How much of a waste is that? The Z-2300's shipped, is more like $120+ if i were to spend that i would go with some klipsh 2.1 instead. Sure the Z-2300's are more bang/buck but why spend more than you need? For 40w the Z-4 beats out all the competitors in its price range. All creatives lack in midrange, and treble, after reading reviews there werent any negative reviews on the Z-4's, so i got em. Depends on your needs, if your house is like mine, get them, but if you need massive power z-2300 is the way to go.

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: Nextman916
The Z-2300's is really over $100 due to its extremely heavy sub which costs alot to ship the whole package. For me i decided on the Z-4's because they serve my purposes best, i live in a 2,500sqft. house, and they fill my computer room very well, actually more than just that. If cranked it can easily be heard in the whole house, gaming and music is excellent, the sattelites are very very crisp, amazing how much better they are than the previous Z-3's, sub punches pretty well. The 2300's would just be WAY overkill for me, 40wx2+120w thats insane, it would blow my windows if turned all the way up. Many reviews say that max they ever put it was half way, but was left at 25% most of the time. How much of a waste is that? The Z-2300's shipped, is more like $120+ if i were to spend that i would go with some klipsh 2.1 instead. Sure the Z-2300's are more bang/buck but why spend more than you need? For 40w the Z-4 beats out all the competitors in its price range. All creatives lack in midrange, and treble, after reading reviews there werent any negative reviews on the Z-4's, so i got em. Depends on your needs, if your house is like mine, get them, but if you need massive power z-2300 is the way to go.

Thanks for the input. You're right, I forgot about how huge the Z-2300's sub is and how it would cost $25-30 to ship depending on retailer. I definitely wouldn't need the Z2300's power since I live in a 2 person dorm room most of the year and my room at home is not much bigger.

 

[v0id]

Altec Lansing ADA885 $39 + S&H

AnandTech review of ADA890 (same model, different color)
IGN review of of ADA890

I got mine for $60 shipped (these speakers weigh 33lbs). So far they seem awesome. Yes, they are only a 4.1 system, but I don't have a problem with that. In fact, the sattelites connect/stack to make a tower 2.1 configuration which I'm currently using. Those reviews compare these speakers favorably to Klipsch Promedias. Apparently these sold for $300+ originally.

 

[77Pat]

I have the z-2300 and they are really good. You can sometimes find them for $50 after rebates. Right now Zipzoomfly has them for $103 with free shipping http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=360409

I would also consider the Altec Lansing ADA885. Even though they are older, I just got a set and they sound clearer than the z-2300, but not as loud overall. They still have plenty of power though. They can be used as 2.1 or 4.1. Both Directron and Axiontech have them for $39, but they charge different amounts for shipping.
http://directron.com/ada885.html
http://axiontech.com/prdt.php?item=75531
Reviews from when they first came out
http://gear.ign.com/articles/306/306313p1.html
http://www.anandtech.com/multimedia/showdoc.aspx?i=1523&p=1

 

[Zepper]

The Altec 4121 2.1 set is on sale at Best Buy starting tomorrow at $49. Very good speakers at that price especially for music.

.bh.

 

[TWills2]

I have z-5300's I got off newegg for $80 after the $50 rebate. That's deal has since expired so

 

[LittleNemoNES]

Originally posted by: Azndude51
I'm looking for some new speakers, right not I haven't decided if I want 2.1 or 5.1. I would like to have surround, but idk if I want to deal with the extra speakers/wires. I would prefer to spend $50-75, but I am willing to push to $100 max.

So far I am considering these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121130
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121118
Logitech Z-2300

Yeah, they're all Logitech, but I don't know which other brands' mid/low end models are good. Any other suggestions?


EDIT: BTW, I have an Audigy2 Value.

Your links are backwards. Your link is the product name and you put the link as the product name

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: gersson

Originally posted by: Azndude51
I'm looking for some new speakers, right not I haven't decided if I want 2.1 or 5.1. I would like to have surround, but idk if I want to deal with the extra speakers/wires. I would prefer to spend $50-75, but I am willing to push to $100 max.

So far I am considering these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121130
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121118
Logitech Z-2300

Yeah, they're all Logitech, but I don't know which other brands' mid/low end models are good. Any other suggestions?


EDIT: BTW, I have an Audigy2 Value.

Your links are backwards. Your link is the product name and you put the link as the product name

lol, after 2000+ posts, you would think I would know better, I've never made that mistake before I'm surpised you're the first one to say something about it.

 

[Nextman916]

The X-530 are real crap, decent for gaming but when just using it for normal music listening it disabled 3 spkrs and just uses a 2.1 setup. The only plus is if you want surround, but its a cheap solution that is decent at most. I still say get the Z-4, but its up to you.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Originally posted by: Azndude51

Originally posted by: leigh6
If you are going to buy Logitech. Here is the place to buy them. They claim to be refurbished but I have bought 6 sets of speakers from them and all have been brand new just in brown, oem, boxes.

http://justdeals.stores.yahoo.net/

Hell no, I don't ever buy refurbished and I would never buy from Just Deals based on their ebay feedback. 98.0% isn't bad, but I don't usually buy form anyone below 99.0% and if y ou look at their feedback, there are a lot of people who receive defective/broken products.

Look at their reseller ratings. It sucks. It's terrible.

I got my Z-2300 for $69 or 59 on Amazon back during Thanksgiving.

It's decent, and I think their satellites beat the X-530, Z-4, etc.. but the Z-2300 lacks in midrange. Some songs sound terrible.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Uhh I recommend the Z-2300 once again. Your concern was price, but look at this hot deal..

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=40&threadid=1875028&enterthread=y

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: DLeRium
Uhh I recommend the Z-2300 once again. Your concern was price, but look at this hot deal..

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=40&threadid=1875028&enterthread=y

That's not hot enough to convince me to get it since I would still have to pay $28 shipping. it's about $96 shipped, I can get it from ZipZoom for $103 shipped anytime.

The Z-4s are $68 shipped at buy.com.



So far, my top choice is the Z-4, does anyone know how good the Creative I-trigue series speakers are?

 

[Nextman916]

I guess I-trigues are okay, but from what ive read, and like i stated before they lack in good treble and mid-range. I was looking at this deal last week- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836116179 . Its very hot for its price now compared to previously, reviews state that it is the only 2.1 system with a wireless remote, so if only that is a plus to you, but it doesnt outperform other speakers in its range. But that was only because they were comparing it to high end 2.1 setups like the X2300's, due to its previous high price. I dont have the time to find the review right now, but its there so google it up. I think its very stylish but again so are the Z-4's....they compliment my setup very well. I think the Z-4's are only slightly weak in treble but at all levels sound great, ESPECIALLY mid range, which i use.

Edit: i just did the math the L3800's still come out to $88.33 shipped, forget that. You can also find the Z-4's at club-it which features the cheapest price on the market at 66.99- http://clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=CA5147011&nav=1 . But if you have an account at buy.com already then of course 2 dollars is nothing.

 

[Azndude51]

Originally posted by: Nextman916
I guess I-trigues are okay, but from what ive read, and like i stated before they lack in good treble and mid-range. I was looking at this deal last week- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836116179 . Its very hot for its price now compared to previously, reviews state that it is the only 2.1 system with a wireless remote, so if only that is a plus to you, but it doesnt outperform other speakers in its range. But that was only because they were comparing it to high end 2.1 setups like the X2300's, due to its previous high price. I dont have the time to find the review right now, but its there so google it up. I think its very stylish but again so are the Z-4's....they compliment my setup very well. I think the Z-4's are only slightly weak in treble but at all levels sound great, ESPECIALLY mid range, which i use.

Edit: i just did the math the L3800's still come out to $88.33 shipped, forget that. You can also find the Z-4's at club-it which features the cheapest price on the market at 66.99- http://clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=CA5147011&nav=1 . But if you have an account at buy.com already then of course 2 dollars is nothing.

Thanks for letting me know about Clubit's lower price. I have ordered from buy.com before, but they take so damned long to ship. ClubIT has a better price and a MUCH better Resellerratings score, I will likely order from them.


I was at Circuit City today and I was looking at their speakers, they had Z-5300, z-2300, Z-4, x-530, l3800, l3300, l3400 and a couple other ones. I could listen to each speaker set, but their audio setup was really sh!tty. I really liked the speaker designs of the l3400s, they look so much better than the Z-4s. Also, the Z-4s are huge (9" tall) compared to all the other speakers.

 

[Nextman916]

Yah the 3400's are attractive...if going by looks, actually the 3600's(newer model)look a heck of alot better to me. Size i guess is a pretty valid issue but if you have the space the Z-4's arent really THAT big. Read some reviews on the 3400 if you prefer the design, i havent read much on them but there not very popular.

 

[ed21x]

i would suggest getting the factory direct Refurbs from Klipsch for the 2.1 promedias. I'm still running the original 4.1's, and have yet to really see any other set of PC speakers to match it in SQ.

 

[Dritnul]

i have the x530 system i use it at college too if u use onboard audio u can turn them all the way up and they wont blow out or sound like ****** but since u have a sound card u can make them sound like ****** if you max out the eqilizers or something stupid like that like that but for the price they're more than loud enough
i lived in the dorm with all the kids who like rock music(my college sepreates mostly based on perfered music) and had a cool RA so every one on my floor just played their music as loud as they wanted and nobody ever complained so i couldn't tell you if they'd piss off your neighbors, but who cares about them
as a bounus they're surround sound unlike the other 2
they dont turn off the middle and rear speakers for music if u click the right options. i just use WMP10 and my sound comes through all 5 speakers and the sub when im listening i dunno what the hell nextman916 is talking bout

only thing i dont like about them is if u plug in headphones the volume knob doesnt affect the headphone volume-since u stated u dont like headphones i dont see that being a problem for you though