My ancient Logitechs broke, need new speakers

[Valicious]

<p> I am on the hunt for new speakers. &nbsp;My 8 year-old Logitechs half-broke, and now it is painful to listen to. &nbsp;I'm wanting to go the passive speaker+receiver route, and I am quite lost. &nbsp;I have an old RCA receiver that I'll link below. &nbsp;I need you guys to tell me if I need to get a new one to run the speakers or not. &nbsp;I'm running an Asus Xonar STX in my computer if that makes any difference. &nbsp;</p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> Here's a list of the ones I'm considering. &nbsp;Feel free to make other suggestions, just try to stick to &lt;$300 for the pair.</p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> <a href="http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSCS26IIB/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-CS26-Classic-II-Bookshelf-Speaker-Each-Black/1.html"><span id="brand" style="font-size: 11px; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">BOSTON ACOUSTICS</span><span style="font-size: 11px; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px;">&nbsp;</span><span id="model" style="font-size: 11px; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">CS26 Classic II Bookshelf Speaker Each Black</span></a></p><p> $64.99 each</p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> &nbsp;</p><h4 style="border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 11px; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px;"> <a href="http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSHS225MDNT/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-HS225-2-way-LCR-Speaker-Each-Black/1.html"><span id="brand" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">BOSTON ACOUSTICS</span>&nbsp;<span id="model" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">HS225 2-way LCR Speaker Each Black</span></a></h4><p> <span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">$89.99 each</span></p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> &nbsp;</p><h4 style="border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 11px; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px;"> <a href="http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/TEACLSH265/TEAC-LS-H265-2-Way-5-1/4-in.-Bookshellf-Speakers/1.html"><span id="brand" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">TEAC</span>&nbsp;<span id="model" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">LS-H265 2-Way 5-1/4 in. Bookshellf Speakers</span></a></h4><p> <span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">$89.99/pair</span></p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> &nbsp;</p><h4 style="border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 11px; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px;"> <a href="http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/KEFC3BLK/KEF-C3-Two-Way-5-Bookshelf-Speakers-Pair-Black/1.html"><span id="brand" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">KEF</span>&nbsp;<span id="model" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">C3 Two Way 5¼" Bookshelf Speakers Pair Black</span></a></h4><p> <span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">$199.99/pair</span></p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> &nbsp;</p><h4 style="border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 11px; vertical-align: baseline; color: rgb(109, 109, 109); font-family: tahoma, verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18.65625px;"> <a href="http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSRS260GB/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-RS260-Reflection-Series-Bookshelf-Speaker-Each-Black/1.html"><span id="brand" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">BOSTON ACOUSTICS</span>&nbsp;<span id="model" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">RS260 Reflection Series Bookshelf Speaker Each Black</span></a></h4><p> <span style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">$159.99/each &nbsp;(a bit higher than I'd like to go, last resort)</span></p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> All I care about is music for these. &nbsp;Is there a benefit to getting floor standing over bookshelf for a 2.0 music setup? &nbsp;There are a TON of both bookshelf and floorstanding on Newegg that are discounted, and some of the open-box ones are being sold for really cheap. &nbsp;Any suggestions on Newegg ones would be great.</p><p> &nbsp;</p><p> Here's the receiver I have:</p><p> &nbsp;</p><h1 class="parseasinTitle " style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 1.7em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; line-height: normal;"> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/RCA-RT2300-Home-Theater-System/dp/B00000J07I"><span id="btAsinTitle">RCA RT2300 Home Theater System</span></a></h1>

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

So I assume you have up to $300 budget and want best sound for music?
Choosing ac4l is good choice and your speakers selection is ok, that said,
I would highly recommend you to dump that old piece of crap rca and find a decent used receiver on CL or Pawn broker. almost any big brand will do as long as they support dolby digital and dts and have at-least one digital input
You should be able to purchase such for about $50

Now to Speakers:
How loud to do listen? Do you intend to play these at parties ? Do you listen to a lot bass heavy music? and finally - how big is your room?

btw: You might want to consider active monitors or at-least active speakers at this point... like Behringer 1030a or Audioengine A5. You wont need to get a receiver for these, but much harder to build a full 5.1 system later on...

Audioengine A5 Black (Pr.) 2-way Powered Speaker System is IN STOCK at OneCall.com
Behringer Truth B1030A | Sweetwater.com

 

[ImcLoud]

What are you hooking the receiver to? Is this for a PC? Do you have RCA out or headphone out?
What is your budget?

Is this for a pc?

My brother put together this system for his desk, and I was really amazed at the result... {he used the emotiva mini x for an amp, but I think the apa150 is a better choice and less money...

Amazon.com: Dayton Audio APA150 150W Power Amplifier: Electronics

$80 this sub Dayton Audio SUB-800 8" 80 Watt Powered Subwoofer 300-627 I know its small but it is very fast and sounds great with music, for a small 2.1 pc system this is a great sub...

$111 BIC Venturi DV62si Bl 6-1/2" 2-Way Bookshelf Speaker Pair 303-402

The system really plays music and video games well, and for just a shade over $300 you get a sub, bookshelfs, and an a/b amplifier....

I own a few of these amps they are well made, low noise, small, and powerfull, the bookshelfs, I only heard when my brother got them, and they sound really clean, not bright at all {3/4 poly tweet}, and the sub is fast and low, pleanty loud for most rooms playing music...

Im not sure if this is what you are looking for , but I know my brother is happy with it and he is picky... There are other bookshelfs out there, it just depends on you preference... The pioneer series 2's are nice too... but much smaller driver I believe...

I apologize if I misunderstood what you were looking to accomplish..

 

[bikemig]

Since you want this only for music, why not pick up an inexpensive stereo receiver like this refurbished Onkyo for $120, Onkyo TX-8255 50 watts 2 channel Stereo Receiver | Accessories4less Although frankly if your budget can take the hit, I'd seriously consider the Onkyo 8050 at $220 because of its networking features, digital inputs and direct digital input for an iPod: Onkyo TX-8050 2-Channel Network Stereo Receiver | Accessories4less

Insofar as speakers are concerned, you typically get more bang for the buck when you buy bookshelf speakers. The corresponding towers for most bookshelf speakers run quite a bit more. So given your budget for speakers (which appears to be around $200), I'd stick to bookshelf speakers. You give up some low end but a good pair of bookshelf speakers will work really well for music.

Insofar as the speakers you picked out are concerned, the KEF C3 speakers are front ported which might make a difference if you plan on shoving these things near a wall.

These might be out of your budget range but I'd consider the Cambridge S30 speakers as well which run $220: Amazon.com: Cambridge S30-N Speakers, Black (Pair): Electronics.

Edit: Btw, I think that BSA's recommendations on powered speakers are spot on if you are not stuck on going the passive speaker/receiver route. There are trade-offs either way but powered speakers are designed to play nicely with a computer as a source.

Edit: on Newegg, I'd seriously consider these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882117406. The Pioneer SP-BS41 have gotten some really good reviews on the web. if you google around, you can read up about them.

 

[Valicious]

Thanks for the suggestions

These are meant to be hooked up to my pc. I'm using an Asus Xonar STX soundcard.
Newegg.com - ASUS Xonar Essence STX Virtual 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Express x1 Interface 124 dB SNR / Headphone AMP Card

I know my receiver is old and crap, but it still works. Same with my old Logitech sub. I was going to dump my entire budget of $300 into speakers right now, then upgrade the receiver or sub separately later.
My thinking behind this is to decrease the amount of small, expensive incremental upgrades I'll be doing. Does this make sense? Upgrade in concentrated bursts with a sizable leap to one component, rather than a small leap spread out across everything.

So it sounds like bookshelves are the way to go. My room isn't that big, but they might be used occasionally for music for the whole 2000+ sq ft house. A good sub influences behavior at high volumes right? I'll worry about that later. Mine works, let's just focus on speakers for now.

 

[ImcLoud]

If you just want bookshelfs easy- Ascend acoustics {as long as you dont care about looks, the are square and vinyl covered, no fancy wood work, but quality sound for sure...

CBM-170 SE High Performance Bookshelf Loudspeaker huge sound for a bookshelf, I use them in my pc system, hardly ever turn the sub on...

Nothing under $700 compares in sound quality, warm, nuetral, loud, and defined.. they do it all, you can not pull them apart like most medium cost bookshelfs...

 

[Valicious]

Well, I'm not absolutely convinced on bookshelves. I really don't know enough. I have a bit unorthodox desktop arrangement. My speakers will most likely be used while I'm not directly in front of them though. (Exercising, around the house, listening with other people) If I'm just sitting directly in front of my computer, I'll probably use my headphones. (Grado 325is)
I listen to a lot of rock, metal, punk, etc

 

[ImcLoud]

The problem is this, your budget.. You can get a real nice sounding set of bookshelfs for under $400 or a low end pair of towers, so when using a sub I prefer to cross my bookshelfs at 80 and let the sub do its job anyway... In your price range, I can not think of any towers that sound as good as the cbm170's

 

[bikemig]

For $300, check out the PSB Alpha B-1 speakers. There are plenty of good speaker companies out there but I really like PSB speakers.

Also you should really try to listen to as many speakers as possible.

 

[IamEvilOne]

Im an Altec fan. But they have not made good sets lately

 

[zieglj01]

I agree get a new receiver - Also, I second the reccomendation
for the Cambridge Audio S30 speakers. Also, they do have good
bass response - then save for a decent sub.

If going with Pioneer, I would choose the BS22 - their frequency
response and overall measurements are better than the BS41 >
they also have good bass response -

However, the Cambridge is still my first choice.

Edit:
The only one that I would choose off your origional list, would be
the Boston RS260.

 

[zieglj01]

There are other bookshelfs out there, it just depends on you preference... The pioneer series 2's are nice too... but much smaller driver I believe...

The BS22 smaller driver to some - was measured -3db at 63 hz,
and -6db at 59 hz >> a good showing.

 

[Valicious]

So that's a no-go on any of the speakers I listed? I thought the KEF ones or the Boston ones were a steal at that price. Shows how much I know.

 

[zieglj01]

So that's a no-go on any of the speakers I listed? I thought the KEF ones or the Boston ones were a steal at that price. Shows how much I know.

I stated above (edit), that I would take the Boston RS260 speakers.

 

[zieglj01]

I stated above (edit), that I would take the Boston RS260 speakers.

Originally Posted by Valicious
So that's a no-go on any of the speakers I listed? I thought the KEF ones or the Boston ones were a steal at that price.
Shows how much I know.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

However the Boston CS26, will pancake the Logitech speakers.

 

[Valicious]

Upon further testing, my RCA receiver doesn't even work at all.

 

[zieglj01]

Upon further testing, my RCA receiver doesn't even work at all.

Look at the Denon here >
DENON AVR-1612 5.1 Channel A/V Home Theater Receiver | Accessories4less