Who makes the best PC speaker set?

[ellover009]

I am not sure If I posted this one the right section of the forums. My quesion is I have been upgrading my pc who makes the best pc speaker bundle?
Logitech 5500, Creative Labs S750, and Klipsch promedia 5.1 ultra. My thoughts are I don't consider the 5500 built in codec an advantage over the other cards because the set will only be strapped to the PC nothing else, got a new sound card x-fi plat and they codecs for pc games are better, I find the S750 have the best satelites but the subwoofer is lazy, does not pick up till soud is really pulling aka action movie, the sub does not assist the satelites much, the klipsch have a nice blend but they have a tendency of dying (could attempt to buy a cooled set wich upgrades some components and moves some hot items away from each other). Thanks for responce, the set wil be used for music, movies and mostly games. I am willing to invest in any of these set as long as they provide great quality.

 

[ichigo]

Seems like you've already answered most of the important points. I personally would go for the S750 in your shoes, given the opportunity cost of having a failing Klipsch 5.1.

Another option, given the weakness of PC center channels (making dialogue often hard to hear), is to put together a pair of iFis running in 4.2 and letting movies downmix the center to the better iFi side channels. Of course, this will cost you $400, but will give you a ton of very deep and neutral bass, not to mention probably more intelligible dialogue during movies. This is, I am assuming you are talking about DVD movies and not encoded ones like divx or mpeg format. In that case, you will have only stereo sound (unless upmixed with CMSS, which doesn't sound so hot) anyways.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

I'm sure you saw this - 4th review down:
http://www.pricegrabber.com/rating_getprodrev.php/masterid=1672761/id_type=masterid

I don't think you can go wrong with Klipsch, other than keeping some restraint on volume. They pack a powerful mini amp on the back of the sub - probably a little too much for the satellites to handle. As long as you keep the satellites distortion free, I don't think you'll blow them.

Altec Lancing used to sell some nice sounding pc speakers, but as of late, they don't offer much as far as higher end speakers. Some say Logitech lacks midrange and the bass is bloaty, but Sheep who owns a set says eq software cleans them up nicely.

My suggestion (if you have enough credit) is get your two favorites systems in your house, and see which sounds better. It's a lot of money to spend on sound, and you really don't know until you get it set up in your room. CC and BB have a 30 day return policy. I say take advantage of it, then order online if you are a price shopper (or give BB/CC the opportunity to match the price before you return).

 

[ellover009]

The S750 are as bad as the klipsch when it comes to dying, why? They both use
B.A.S.H amps. I have seen on ebay someone who mods the klipsch so that theyre cooled with some fans and he moves some components to prevent heat buildup from bad placement of internal components. If I where to open them up between the s750 and klipsch the klipsch is easier to work on. It's a tough tradeoff life or quality. I don't wanna get an receiver/speaker combo because when you stap you pc to an receiver you loose 5.1 sound and what you get is more of a simulated 2.1 through all speakers, I do a lot of FPS and it helps bein able to tell where enemy is coming from.

 

[Sheep]

Use headphones.

They work much better then surround speakers(CS player right here ).

I've never liked the sound of Klipsch speakers, ever. And I own a pair of Logitechs (Z2200) and while they are loud, they need lots of TLC to become decent MUSIC speakers. As far as GAMING is concerned, they're some of the best out there. The boomy bass and in-your-face highs are perfect for the gaming experience.

Asking this question here is not such a great idea (not this section, this forum). Everyone assumes that gaming should sound just like HT and music, but really, it needs to sound TOTALLY different.

If you're primairily gaming, I would go Logitech. If you have a significant amount of music, go Creative.

As far as Creative reliability, that is 1 online review out of a billion. Take it with a grain of salt. He's probly some idiot blaring sound at max volume for hours.

SheepStar

 

[ellover009]

I tried headphones for a while, they can get a bit expensive and then you got the annoying little wire that lets you get only so far away. I used to have a set of KOSS headphones and slowly the wire would eventually get loose and it would go bad, used to love em they had the cushy leather like material that kept sound in not out, paid $20 for em went through 3 of em over the last 6yrs then decided to stop buying em. I'm afraid that if I invest in an expensive set of headphones I will mess up the wires specially when you have family visiting (I don't like when ppl use my computer specially for chatting I think it's degrading for my pc's power), using normal speakers will probably save your hearing because when your young like me and you know you won't hear complains you will turn headphones up damaging you ears slowly. This is just my oppinion, so if you disagree with me don't take it personally.

 

[BEACHDUD110]

A couple points

Degrading your Pc's power?

I doubt it , unless your power supply is bad, most computers can last for years without and have a long mtbf time.

The best Computer speakers are probably the AUDIOENGINE 5 reviwed on audioholics?, Why?

They are designed for music that is digital and played on computers(digital refferring to mp3's and the like).

The audioengine 5's won't make a good 6.1 or 7.1 setup because you would need adapters and the like to set it up.

However using 3 sets of audioengine's attached to your creative labs sound card is a great idea. Each audioengine plugs into one input on the sound card whether its the audigy or x-fi.

The only problem is the SUbwoofer, for the last output you may want to get a splitter.

The gigaworks s750 is a great system but I have read stories that the amp blows after a year and since its only 1 year warranty, it may not be a great idea.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

The S750 are as bad as the klipsch when it comes to dying, why? They both use
B.A.S.H amps.

That's interesting, as SVS uses BASH amps. Dayton Audio sells BASH amps. They are touted as some of the better bass amps that stay cool, as opposed to class a/b amps. All I can imagine is that the impedance is extremely low on these pc speakers, protecting the drivers from damage. If a class D amp is getting that hot, powering tiny 3" full range speakers and a compact 10" driver, then the design/engineering team really missed the boat.

Sounds to me like it's time to order a set of Swan M200's with an HSU STF-1 for the PC.

 

[Craig234]

Speakers

I have an old 2.1 set from brand "Audiophile" who is out of business now, little wood cabinets, and liked the sound, but they are no longer in business.

For 5.1 I upgraded to the Klipsch 5.1 Ultra based on reviews; I did not compare the sound so can't comment on Creative speakers.

The Klipsch are 'good'; decent sound, no problem with any reasonable volume; they don't seem better than I'd expect though.

I've had them about a year+ (on but not playing sound 24 hours a day) and no problems.

 

[WmAx]

I am not sure If I posted this one the right section of the forums. My quesion is I have been upgrading my pc who makes the best pc speaker bundle?
Logitech 5500, Creative Labs S750, and Klipsch promedia 5.1 ultra.

How about none of the above? For something that will probably outperform any of the computer speakers(by a huge margin), get a pair of Infinity Primus 150(these measure better than anything else around the price range) two way bookshelf speakers plus a Dayton 10" or 12" subwoofer from Parts Express. Get a 50 watt/channel used receiver for cheap from local thrift or pawn shop to power the bookshelf speakers. Assuming you have a modern sound card from Creative or similar, you probably have bass management built-in to the card and you can use this as the required active crossover to route satellite and sub woofer signals accordingly.

Headphones, as Sheep suggested, are another option. If you are worried about durability; many more expensive headphones have far better wires/plugs as compared to what is used on cheaper units. A Sony MDR-7506(also known as MDR-V6) has extremely high durability construction designed for abusive professional applications.

-Chris

 

[Blundaar]

Look at high-end Altec-Lansings (MX-5021 or 6021) . Musically, Klipsch and Creative can't touch them. My PC room can't properly support a 5.1 set-up without some major construction, but 2.1 suits me fine.

 

[Sheep]

Look at high-end Altec-Lansings (MX-5021 or 6021) . Musically, Klipsch and Creative can't touch them. My PC room can't properly support a 5.1 set-up without some major construction, but 2.1 suits me fine.

Altec? Is that the company that doesn't use crossovers between mids and tweeters?

Altec doesn't make a high-end speaker system anymore. The 621s and 641s were the best, and they're gone.

SheepStar

 

[Hi Ho]

I personally like the Klipsch speakers best out of all the other PC speakers. If I were using my PC speakers for music, I would definetly have Klipsch. I'm not a fan of one-way drivers like Logitech uses.

With that said, I own a Logitech Z-640 system and it gets the job done for games. It was cheap and the 6.5" subwoofer puts out an amazing amount of bass for it's tiny size. I don't use it for music. There isn't much in the way of high end or midrange clarity.

The ultimate PC speaker system wouldn't be a PC system at all. Something like the SVS speaker package and a Yamaha 5860 would do the trick.

 

[ichigo]

Altec? Is that the company that doesn't use crossovers between mids and tweeters?

Altec doesn't make a high-end speaker system anymore. The 621s and 641s were the best, and they're gone.

SheepStar

Hehe. Yeah, the 621s/641s were something else. The MX5021/6021s aren't bad...tho I wouldn't go so far as to say a Klipsch iFi ($200 at Costco) with $260/pair RSX-3 satellites and a RW-series based 8" cerametallic driver sub...not being able to "touch" them.

 

[Blundaar]

Hehe. Yeah, the 621s/641s were something else. The MX5021/6021s aren't bad...tho I wouldn't go so far as to say a Klipsch iFi ($200 at Costco) with $260/pair RSX-3 satellites and a RW-series based 8" cerametallic driver sub...not being able to "touch" them.

OK, OK... they can "touch" them I'd like to give those a listen. Until then, I still have to believe that it comes down to what you listen to on them. Without a doubt, I love Klipsch's for gaming (great subwoofers) and own a pair of promedia's myself. I also think that for music, the A-L's mentioned sound BETTER (used to own the 5021's). Needed more punch for movies and games, though.

 

[Sheep]

I heard those Klipsch speakers everyday when I was working at BestBuy.

Nothing special.

If you're after music, get a Receiver and bookshelfs.

If you want to game, save your money and buy some Logi's. Best Gaming speakers.

SheepStar

 

[ichigo]

I heard those Klipsch speakers everyday when I was working at BestBuy.

Nothing special.

If you're after music, get a Receiver and bookshelfs.

If you want to game, save your money and buy some Logi's. Best Gaming speakers.

SheepStar

Which are "those" Klipsch speakers?

 

[InTheIndustry]

Two questions....... 1. Do you have attic access above the room your pc is in? 2. Does your sound card have toslink or 5.1 outputs?

 

[Hi Ho]

Does your sound card have toslink or 5.1 outputs?

He has a Sound Blaster X-Fi. That has both digital and analog outputs. The analog outputs are better because otherwise, through the digital output, he would get nothing more than two channel stereo when playing games.

 

[Sheep]

Which are "those" Klipsch speakers?

The ifi's.

SheepStar