What's the best 7.1 pc speakers available right now?

No clue, they're usually crappy. A decent pair of headphones is optimal for computer gaming.
 
Get 7 emotiva monoblocks
Most expensive Denon receiver
And order 7 Magnepan 20.7 speakers from www.Magnepan.com
Finally, get 2 HSU VTF-3 subs.
 
Sorry OP. 7.1 multimedia speakers are no longer made. The closest you can get to it is a 7.1 home theater in a box deal which usually runs in the $200-$400 range. The downside there is that you won't have any way to get the 7.1 to those smaller systems.

The only way you can get 7.1 out of your sound card is to have a more expensive receiver with multichannel inputs and then speakers.
 
Okay, back to reality.

If you can settle for 5.1, I'd get these - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Set-of-Bost...54?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item3a85b9c47a

The subwoofer is pretty powerful and should satisfy in all but the largest rooms.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Creative-Gi...4?pt=US_Computer_Speakers&hash=item3cd6d1167c

Another good one. I have less experience with the GigaWorks, but these are similar to the BA7900.

Reviews for both are plenty around the web.

If you have the space and budget - try to get home theater equipment. Worry not, you don't have to spend $5000 to get great sound.
 
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Btw I should add....I was not trying to be funny with my preamp recommendation. That is actually the cheapest 7.1 preamp with balanced outputs I could find
 
People robbing a banks this days is not easy. :)
But it looks like that 7.1 PC systems are dead and the alternatives are overpriced. :(
 
People robbing a banks this days is not easy. :)
But it looks like that 7.1 PC systems are dead and the alternatives are overpriced. :(

TBH even before none of the 7.1 or 5.1 PC speaker setups were that good or worth the money anyway. The cabling was shitty. The non bass channels sounded tinny. And the pathetic excuse for a subwoofer sounded imprecise and muddy/thuddy. They were all fairly goddamn awful.

Hop on Craigslist. It is quite easy to put together a 5.1 or 7.1 AVR and speaker system used affordably....and it would knock the pants off any PC speaker setup. The AVR system I have in my sig rig I put together for less than $150USD.
 
TBH even before none of the 7.1 or 5.1 PC speaker setups were that good or worth the money anyway. The cabling was shitty. The non bass channels sounded tinny. And the pathetic excuse for a subwoofer sounded imprecise and muddy/thuddy. They were all fairly goddamn awful.

Hop on Craigslist. It is quite easy to put together a 5.1 or 7.1 AVR and speaker system used affordably....and it would knock the pants off any PC speaker setup. The AVR system I have in my sig rig I put together for less than $150USD.

I second this, 99% of the PC speaker systems are for the most part crappy and limited in some way or from.

go with a something like the above (small AV receiver and speaker set) it's much better and gives you much more to go with.

I use a Sony 5.1 AVR with 5 Klipsch promedia ultra sat speakers and a small Yamaha sub.

got it all used for about $140
 
I had a setup like this in my head.
But can i do a 7 speaker setup without a separate subwoofer? I'm trying to find speakers that have a subwoofer built-in. What AVR and Speakers would you guys recommend?
 
Why you need a 7.1 for PC? I originally started with Logitech X-530 5.1 many years ago, and then I felt that the two extra rear surround speakers were not necessary so I went with a 2.1 configuration with the Logitech X-530.

Couple months ago I switched to studio speakers, particularly the Cerwin Vega XD3. It sounds a lot better than my Logitech X-530 so may I suggest studio speakers from M-Audio or Cerwin Vega. I heard good things about M-Audio AV40. I also recommend Cerwin Vega XD3 as well since that's what I am using. I got mine for about $50 bucks on Ebay couple months ago.
 
I had a setup like this in my head.
But can i do a 7 speaker setup without a separate subwoofer? I'm trying to find speakers that have a subwoofer built-in. What AVR and Speakers would you guys recommend?

Subwoofer is a separate speaker. You just want speakers with large woofers.

We need:
Budget
Room Dimensions
Room Sketch with your proposed layout would be ideal (paint works)
 
Budget: Best price/performance
Room Dimensions: 3 square meters
Room Sketch:
,,,__________
,,,|::::::::B:::::::|
W.::::::::::::::::.D
,,,|:::::::::::::::::|

For now small speakers would be good but i'm also buying new furnitures in 6 months so i could also use larger speakers if that improves the sound quality.
 
Last edited:
Budget: Best price/performance
Room Dimensions: 3 square meters
Room Sketch:
,,,__________
,,,|::::::::B:::::::|
W.::::::::::::::::.D
,,,|:::::::::::::::::|

For now small speakers would be good but i'm also buying new furnitures in 6 months so i could also use larger speakers if that improves the sound quality.

Budget needs to be more concrete. Is $500 too much? $1000? $2000?

Room dimensions should be in Length x Width x Height, you specified area.

What's B, D, and W?
 
I would say $400 is the limit for me.
And my room dimensions is 4m Width, 3,5m Long and 3m Height
B = Office Desk, D = Door, W = Window
 
1. Are you in the US?
2. 7.1 makes no sense for the room. Stick to 5.1.
3. Are you okay with buying used gear?
4. Computer specs? (list full specs)
5. Do you have any existing speakers?
 
Last edited:
1. I life in Central EU.
2. If i switch my old 7.1 system to 5.1 then i hear the difference it's then like a half surround feeling. :)
3. I'm okay to buy used gear at a good price.
4. I will get a new computer at the end of next month with this components -> Prozessor: Intel Core i7-4770 / RAM: 16GB / SSD: 256GB / HDD: 2x 3TB / Mainboard & Sound Card (SupremeFX Formula): Maximus VI Formula.
5. The Speakers i use now are "Creative Gigaworks S750".
 
You basically have the best 7.1 PC speakers in existence.

I can't help you too much since I don't live in the EU and prices are very difference from my US prices.

So I take it that you actually have 400 euros to spend, right?
 
Yes i could spend 400 euros, but i have the feeling that it is hard to get 7 good speakers for 400 euros.
 
Yes i could spend 400 euros, but i have the feeling that it is hard to get 7 good speakers for 400 euros.

You'll need to be thrifty in shopping used. I don't know what the used audio market is in the EU...but in the USA there's almost always someone locally selling off lots of audio gear cheap.

Main thing will be finding a sub channel. Speakers like Dayton B652s are cheap retail (in the USA $50USD for a pair shipped) but are better than any PC speakers. Then find a used AVR that does 7.1 and has the hookups you want to interface your computer with. These days everyone is purging their non-HDMI AVRs, so you can find lots of those cheap as the demand is for HDMI gear. But for the same amount of money you'll get much better gear buying used AVRs than buying new.

Another take is to shop for used home-theatre-in-a-box setups. That is dangerous though as some companies use bizzarro speakers that require non-standard resistance out of the amp, in addition to them using a passive woofer channel. So whatever you buy you're stuck with and unable to upgrade piecemeal.
 
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Stick with what you have. For the money, you aren't getting anything better. Also 7.1 isn't popular for PC speakers these days. All the PC speakers I know of are 5.1 (or 2.0/2.1). If you want 7.1 these days you have to go home theater speakers and you need a bigger budget than that.

Also remember speaker technology hasn't advanced much, it isn't like many computer things where buying newer stuff means it is automatically an upgrade.

My advice is stick with what you have. If you want to upgrade in the long run, look at moving to a home theater system. What you could do is buy yourself a receiver and subwoofer, and then hook in the gigaworks satellites as speakers. Then, as you got more money, upgrade those speakers to something better.

However even that will probably run you more than $400 to get a decent receiver and sub. Also that would be much of an upgrade, until you had more to replace some of the speakers.
 
hmmmm...just came out with an idea

it's very likely that your sound-card already has a 5.1 output (bonus points if you have a good soundcard like a x-fi or z)

so just get some active studio monitors:

for example you can get 4 of those:
http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

and add later this sub:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-monitor/m-audio-sbx10-actieve-studio-subwoofer/product-details.html

----

or get this 2.1 and add later:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...m-audio-sbx10-monitorset/product-details.html


----

or go with the 8in for front:
http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

and add:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

with this last setup the 8in have enough bass that a sub is not as necessary


not sure where in the EU you are so I posted a dutch site

There are other cheap active monitor options like behringer in this price range

Honestly, this way, you will get way better quality than some cheapo crappy 5.1/7.1 all in one solution or some crummy cheap av receiver/speakers
 
hmmmm...just came out with an idea

it's very likely that your sound-card already has a 5.1 output (bonus points if you have a good soundcard like a x-fi or z)

so just get some active studio monitors:

for example you can get 4 of those:
http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

and add later this sub:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-monitor/m-audio-sbx10-actieve-studio-subwoofer/product-details.html

----

or get this 2.1 and add later:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...m-audio-sbx10-monitorset/product-details.html


----

or go with the 8in for front:
http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

and add:

http://www.bax-shop.nl/dj-studio-mo...studio-monitor-set-van-2/product-details.html

with this last setup the 8in have enough bass that a sub is not as necessary


not sure where in the EU you are so I posted a dutch site

There are other cheap active monitor options like behringer in this price range

Honestly, this way, you will get way better quality than some cheapo crappy 5.1/7.1 all in one solution or some crummy cheap av receiver/speakers

That last part ENTIRELY depends on your taste. True near-field monitors should be neutral in output and not flatter the signal additionally, in other words they're honest about how the signal sounds. Whether you like that sound or not is VERY much personal opinion.

Further many near-field "monitor" speakers aren't really flat. They're just labeled "reference" or "monitor" just to crank up the price.
 
That last part ENTIRELY depends on your taste. True near-field monitors should be neutral in output and not flatter the signal additionally, in other words they're honest about how the signal sounds. Whether you like that sound or not is VERY much personal opinion.

Further many near-field "monitor" speakers aren't really flat. They're just labeled "reference" or "monitor" just to crank up the price.


I disagree ... in this price range ~500 EUR (excluding any super deals on used gear) all he can get is crummy all in ones or ultra low end receiver + speakers. All will sound far worse than what I posted IMO

if he starts with just a 2.0 he can even fit in some Adams
 
I disagree ... in this price range ~500 EUR (excluding any super deals on used gear) all he can get is crummy all in ones or ultra low end receiver + speakers. All will sound far worse than what I posted IMO

if he starts with just a 2.0 he can even fit in some Adams

If he buys used he can very much get a mid-range AVR cheap and still have budget for cabinets. Like I said sound is a personal taste, and unless you have a real need for flat-response...odds are you won't like it compared to less-neutral sounding gear. Especially if you don't have a dedicated woofer channel.

As someone who works in audio, most people have ears made of green wood and are half-deaf before they're 20 anyway these days. Further cabinets like the B652s are a bit tinny, but most people do not listen to musical genres where that matters much. And so long as the lower-end is (ridiculously) loud, won't notice what it actually sounds like. A while ago I worked a Hootie/Big Head show where the subs cabinets themselves were malfunctioning and not putting out anything due to a voltage switch set wrong on the backs of the sub cabinets....it was so loud otherwise that no one in the hall cared, because it was loud "enough" that their internal organs were vibrating anyway.
 
What i posted was strictly new equipment...i even mentioned this in my second post

IMO it's apples to oranges when you compare used gear...we don't know how good his local market is for used gear...also used might mean no warranty and trusting the seller


If he can get a sweet deal on used gear then good for him....all I can recommend is new gear since again I do not know his used audio gear market

I stand by my statement for NEW gear around 500 EUR i do not think he can do better than what i posted
 
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