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*another* recommendation thread =/

S

Sage Osaka

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Messages
422
sorry to add to the recommendation threads that've been popping up a lot recently, but none of them are close enough to what i'm looking for.

I'm looking to buy some decent non multimedia speakers for my pc. the past year or so Ive done with just my e7/e9 combo with hd650's but there've been times i dont feel like wearing headphones or just want some ambient music playing while im doing something else. after a lot of looking, i'm mostly looking at some powered speakers in the 150-200 dollar range.

I've mostly narrowed it down to the audioengine a2's or the m-audio studiophile av40's... but i'm also considering the bookshelf speakers on monoprice, (although i think i'd need to get a separate amp because i don't think my e9 would power bookshelves).

can anyone with knowledge of any of these three systems give some insight on them? or how the connectivity would do with my e7/e9? that's also another major issue for me that i'm not sure of.
 
I'm assuming you want a pair of extended range L/R speakers as opposed to 2.1 offerings like the Logitech Z623 to avoid boominess, right?
 
yeah, i have previously owned a pair of logitech z2300's, and i actually use it now on my television. but these would mostly be for music, and i would like to avoid having to buy a separate sub if possible, as i don't really know how to work with the interconnectivity, and also just price wise.

most music I listen to is electronic music (I know, the one genre that having boomy bass actually somewhat helps) metal, classical, and some pop and rap. but i'd prefer higher quality audio which is why i said that i want non multi-media speakers.
 
There's better values around than either of those (A2/AV40) IMO, regardless of whether you're looking at powered speakers or passives and a small desk amp... If you're really looking to spend up to $200 anyway. Sometimes people say they wanna spend between Y and Z but they really mean X... :p Any reason you're leaning towards powered speakers more so than passives? It's generally easier to add a sub down the line with the latter (or re-use them in other configs).

The AV40 are ok for closer to $100 IMO, I've heard them but haven't owned them, been reading about a lot of QC issues with them tho. There's plenty more powered speakers out there to consider. The A2 are nice for their size if you really need something that compact, otherwise you can do much better for the money. I think both are starting to border on overrated tbh.
 
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so i have a couple suggestions 1 within you budget range


these are $100 and seem to get pretty good reviews and blah blah...blah .. I haven't heard them personally..so ...


http://www.amazon.com/Akai-RPM3-Production-Monitors-Interface/dp/B004LU9HEA



now on the otherhand (going quite a bit over budget...go to guitar center if there is one by you and listen for yourself..cause these things are f***ing awesome monitors)

Tannoy Reveal 501a about $179 (EACH)

putting x2 about $358 however you can get $40 off at muscian's friend on orders over $349 right now..

but ya over ur stated budget

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/tannoy-reveal-501a-studio-monitor?src=3WWRWXGP


i've heard most of the things mentioned so far and those Tannoy's (to my ears) slaughter all of them.
 
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thanks for all the recommendations guys. probably will be looking into either the Akai RPM3's or the Mackie's. Leaning more towards the Mackies, I would be willing to pay a bit more as long as I know they'll sound awesome.

Will I have to buy a separate dac for any of them? I havent ever used any of the pre-amp or alternate outputs on my e7/e9, not sure how it'd work. can anyone who knows its interface give a little insight?
 
as long as whatever you get has unbalanced (RCA) inputs you should be could w/ line out or pre out from you E9

I have line out on my E9 to my vintage Pioneer SA-710 it sound fine no probs no issues

I have also you the pre out to a power amp


however...what does kinda suck (noise floor issues) if you get something that only has balanced inputs /outputs and have to use something like a TS to RCA cable

the Makie's have RCA inputs so... you should be good to go.

i know they are expensive but i'm telling you those Tannoy's are f***ing awesome sounding... I was temped to sell some of my vintage stuff and get those when I heard them at Guitar Center. But the Mackie MR5Mk2 are pretty awesome also.

if possible you should try to give a listen before buying cause it is a pretty subjective thing ... you might agree w/ me when you hear something or you may think i must have been high.. (i wasn't ;)) you know what i mean.
 
Aren't the Mackie's kinda over his budget? (nevermind the Tannoy's) There's a lot of passive speakers he could pair with a cheap little Lepai amp (or even something more expensive) that I would think could easily best the 3" woofer Akais and still come in within budget... Granted those are technically under budget anyway. I haven't heard those either to be honest, I've heard the Samson MediaOne 3a (very similar) and I thought they easilytraded blows with the AV40, they're about the same as the Akai tho, $100.

Anyway, as far as passives, you could pair a $25 Lepai amp with something like the Pioneer BS41 ($100/pair when on sale, which is like every month) or Polk Monitor 30 (about the same) and you'd still be well within budget, under it even, but they'll be pretty close to some of the mid size monitors like the Mackies, easily much better than something like those Akai or the Samson I mentioned. Plus if you ever do decide to add a sub it'll be easier to integrate, and you can always use them in a 5.1 setup or whatever.

You could buy a better amp that'll go louder and still be well within budget (Topping), or you could get somewhat better speakers (Infinity Primus P153/163 for $120-150 when on sale, they're front firing which also makes placement easier). You can still hook up the amp plus any passives the same way you would the powered monitors. Fluance makes some nice budget speakers too, there's seriously a ton of choices out there.

I'm sure there's some powered speaker options right within your budget too (something in KRK's Rokit line maybe?), tho at most given price ranges there's usually more variety of passive choices... I definitely think that given your favorite genres you're better of with some of those larger passives (or something like the Mackie's) than with something with 3" woofers, particularly if you won't be able to add a sub for the time being.

Edit: Sorry for the lack of links, I'm on my tablet... Amazon or Newegg would carry any of the speakers I mentioned, and Amazon or Parts Express would carry the amps.
 
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have you EVAR seen a thread where people stayed on budget ;)


I prefaced it with they are over budget... the op seems willing to go mackie monies if not the Tannoy's

I mentioned them because i was just at guitar center and demo'd about every monitor there and those Reveal 501a monitors just are fantastic ... I listened to some Yamaha's that are $800 a pair and they sounded like ass compared to the 501a's i thought.
 
Well, I figured he'd appreciate something within his budget since nothing like so had even been suggested to begin with. ;) If he's got a pair of HD650 he's obviously not gonna balk at any of the higher end suggestions tho, but's always worth exploring every option before diving in. Pretty much anything mentioned is gonna be a big departure from z2300's tho.
 
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I have the Pioneer BS41 with the Lepai amp and I am very happy with it.

I am using it for my semi-portable system for playing music on my deck. If it sounds good out there, I bet it would sound even better inside a room and not out in the open.
 
I think i'm leaning towards the Pioneer BS41's now, with the Lepai lp 2020a+, i've been doing a lot of reading the past day or two. my only concern is the inter-connectivity between the amp and my e7/e9. can I effectively pre-amp output the dac'd signal from it to the t-amp? I may in the future get around to getting a better sound card like the xonar stx, which i believe has outputs to make it easier, but in the meantime my source is the e7/e9 (as stated earlier Ive only been using my hd650's for the past year or so since ive gotten rid of the z2300's.)

thanks again in advance for all the input :)
 
Sage Osaka said:
I think i'm leaning towards the Pioneer BS41's now, with the Lepai lp 2020a+, i've been doing a lot of reading the past day or two. my only concern is the inter-connectivity between the amp and my e7/e9. can I effectively pre-amp output the dac'd signal from it to the t-amp? I may in the future get around to getting a better sound card like the xonar stx, which i believe has outputs to make it easier, but in the meantime my source is the e7/e9 (as stated earlier Ive only been using my hd650's for the past year or so since ive gotten rid of the z2300's.)

thanks again in advance for all the input :)
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Ya, the e9 has a RCA line-out.
 
thanks for the quick reply. i've been doing a bit more reading, and have a couple more questions. are the RCA outputs on the back of the e9 pre amped? im reading something about fixed line level output from them versus variable with the 3.5mm pre output; how will this fare with sending the dac'd signal from the e7/e9 to another amp?

how does the e7/e9 deal with having 2 outputs? (aka my headphones from the 6.5mm jack in the front and then the RCA outputs to the lepai amp and the speakers?)

ultimately im asking these questions because i don't want deteriorating sound quality from what is seemingly a janky setup here. if all is well and good with using this and there will be no sound quality deterioration, i definitely want to bite on the amp and bs41's.

once again, thanks again for all the help, it is much appreciated.
 
I have owned krk rp6 and swan m50ws. Same $...300, but i prefer the swans for convenience. If you can deal without a control pod and have room, the krks sound amazing. Def a huge step up from maudio that u were looking @.
 
hey so if you haven't bought speakers yet and if you have a fry's near you

i was there today (needed thermal paste.... woot??) whatever they had these for $53~ ea


infinity P163

http://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Primus-Two-way-Bookshelf-Satellite/dp/B0045NCB32



and it is up to you...but I would totally spend a bit more and get a beefier / better built t-amp personally.

I have a SMSL SA-S3 (25wpc /13.5wpc 8ohms) t-amp i got off ebay $60 shipped (took awhile to get here from china...lol.) but anyways looks sharp sounds great and volume pot is quite good.

anyways there are a ton of t-amps on ebay or PE has the Topping ones or dayton DTA-100a

I think from a longevity / overall quality stand point it would be money well spent to go with a better t-amp than those lepias up to you... but I would and did.

i'm very please with my SMSL amp.

this is the one and the seller i bought mine from they seem to have good feedback and i know my purchase was fine going thru them.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SMSL-SA-S3-..._Audio_Amplifiers_Preamps&hash=item19ca6a1930


but it did take (i think??? can't remember about 2weeks or something to get here ...slow boat apparently :D)
 
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i have used the 3.5 out (pre amp) and the RCA (line-level) on my E9 both sound fine with no (apparent to my ears) noticeable signal loss /issues.

I'd rather probably use the RCA (line level) outputs given the choice

the pre and line level outputs seem to both mute when you have headphones plugged into the E9 btw.
 
Sage Osaka said:
thanks for the quick reply. i've been doing a bit more reading, and have a couple more questions. are the RCA outputs on the back of the e9 pre amped? im reading something about fixed line level output from them versus variable with the 3.5mm pre output; how will this fare with sending the dac'd signal from the e7/e9 to another amp?

how does the e7/e9 deal with having 2 outputs? (aka my headphones from the 6.5mm jack in the front and then the RCA outputs to the lepai amp and the speakers?)

ultimately im asking these questions because i don't want deteriorating sound quality from what is seemingly a janky setup here. if all is well and good with using this and there will be no sound quality deterioration, i definitely want to bite on the amp and bs41's.

once again, thanks again for all the help, it is much appreciated.
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Variable just means the volume is adjustable from the DAC's knob, whereas fixed means the opposite obviously (but your speaker amp will have it's own volume control so it's irrelevant). Either pre-amp output will be fine, you're sending it to an amp, that's exactly their purpose. Nothing janky about it IMO. I believe your speaker output on the E7/E9 is muted automatically when headphones are plugged in btw (pretty common for that kinda DAC/amp).

Edit: Oops, just saw your question was mostly answered above... Oh well. That's a really good price on the P163 btw, Newegg had the smaller P153 for $55 sometimes, and I've seen the P163 for $75/each elsewhere, but I don't think I've seen them quite that low. They're pretty beefy tho, if you're considering them make sure you measure out your space first. I think they're a bit deeper than some of the other bookshelves in the same price range.
 
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Impulse said:
Variable just means the volume is adjustable from the DAC's knob, whereas fixed means the opposite obviously (but your speaker amp will have it's own volume control so it's irrelevant). Either pre-amp output will be fine, you're sending it to an amp, that's exactly their purpose. Nothing janky about it IMO. I believe your speaker output on the E7/E9 is muted automatically when headphones are plugged in btw (pretty common for that kinda DAC/amp).

Edit: Oops, just saw your question was mostly answered above... Oh well. That's a really good price on the P163 btw, Newegg had the smaller P153 for $55 sometimes, and I've seen the P163 for $75/each elsewhere, but I don't think I've seen them quite that low. They're pretty beefy tho, if you're considering them make sure you measure out your space first. I think they're a bit deeper than some of the other bookshelves in the same price range.
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ah ok, was just trying to make sure that they were both truly pre-amp, the wording of one of them having voltage on the signal kinda made me think that it was amped someway. to the other guy that suggested the infinity's, they look like a good deal but the nearest frys is like 2 hours away and my car is sorta unreliable going that distance (usually ride my motorcycle far distances)

so it's looking like the BS41's and the amp... does anyone else think that the lepai that i linked earlier isnt good enough to power the speakers? that i should upgrade to a more beefy amp as he suggested?

edit: damn looks like the BS41's bumped up in price from 113 dollars to 150 dollars. I think i'll wait for the price to hopefully fluctuate back down to sub 130 or 125. at least i'll have more time to discuss with you guys.
 
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bump. can anyone add some input about the amp issue? I don't want to go overboard but I want to make sure that i get an amp that can comfortably drive the bs41's.
 
It can drive them comfortably, other amps would do a better job at higher volumes but it's not that Lepai is a huge investment.
 
thanks for all the help Impulse you've contributed a lot, i appreciate it. can you recommend a (still relatively cheap preferably) suitable amp to drive the bs41's moderately?
 
I use this Lepai with my bs41s and it works fine:
Lepai LP-2020A+

I also only listen at moderate levels and for that it works well. I've never really tried cranking it up to see what it can do.
 
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y'all want to be careful cranking most of these little t-amps... some of them are really only capable realistically of a few watts @ 8ohms

anyways if you "crank" them without care you could probably pretty easy start clipping ..and damage your speakers


I tried my SA-S3 and I got mine pretty loud with my M30s I got the volume knob to maybe 1oclock.... it didn't appear to be clipping at that point but I decided that was probably far enough.

it is actually easier to damage speaker with a amp that is too small than with one that has more watts.

the t-amps should probably be used by grown ups with some idea how to use them :D if your kids (assuming you have gets) get a hold of the set up and decide to roll the volume knob all the way over you may well have problems.
 
after reading about how these speakers respond a lot better to quality amplification, ive been considering bumping the cap on my amp. after getting into the 50-60-70 dollar range, im almost thinking about just spending another 30'ish and getting a low end receiver like

http://www.amazon.com/Sherwood-RX-4...=sr_1_15?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1347792034&sr=1-15

or

http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-8255...ef=sr_1_8?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1347792034&sr=1-8

not that i really have room for a receiver on my desk (dont even really have room for the speakers to be honest) but seems like a waste to spend 60-70 dollars on a sub par single input amp when i can spend 110 and get a (seemingly) quality receiver. does anyone have any experience or information on either of these amps? preferably the sherwood, 110 seems almost out of my budget already.

does it have a good DAC in it? (or one at all) and would i be able to bypass my e7/e9 if i went with a receiver such as that one? or are there no inputs on it that are capable to receive directly from a computer. i don't know much about receivers and their connectivity with computers so any input is greatly appreciated :)

edit: possibly someone can also recommend an equally cheap but quality amp or receiver in my extended price range if that were the case.
 
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The Pioneer speakers are 6 ohm nominal impedance, so I would imagine that a small T-amp would have a hard time driving them without distortion. Either of those receivers would be much better than a Lepai. If the Sherwood is all you can afford that's just fine. That unit weighs ~20lbs so the amp definitely has some heft to it, and that's more than some 5 channel receivers. Neither of these units have any digital COAX or Toslink inputs so they don't have DACs inside them. You can just use the RCA analog out from the e9 to any of the RCA analog inputs on the receiver. You'll be much much better off going this route. Enjoy!
 
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If you don't really want a huge receiver on your desk there's some really nice class A/B amps from Emotiva and Audioengine out there which are more compact (AE's N22 in particular) and also have pre amp outputs which will come in handy should you ever add a sub. They 're pricier still tho, closer to $200... But they're probably as good or better than any budget Sherwood or Onkyo, where you're not just paying for the amp but also for input switching, remote functionality, and other stuff you might not need.

I still think if not the Lepai then a higher rated Topping t-amp would be fine (sub-$100), unless you intend to throw a party with this setup or something...
 
I guess i'll keep looking for a good receiver, possibly on craigslist or something, if not i'll just get the cheaper of the two when im done looking. I live in modesto california if anyone is bored enough to help me look lol.

how would the Fiio A1 fare with the bs41's? I forgot that fiio made a desktop amp.
 
it depends on what condition it is in but there is a Sanyo JCX2600K on your local CL right now $100


http://modesto.craigslist.org/ele/3180121877.html


if it is in decent physical condition and works that would actually be a kick ass receiver ...it would be rather large and weigh in around 43~lbs :)


I am rocking my computer speakers (JBL L1 bookshelfs) using a 65WPC Pioneer SA-710 65WPC from about 1979~.... it has much power vintage watts more bigger than modern watts

however vintage is not without it pitfalls this stuff is 30+ years old so you have to be a bit careful with it..and you have to be warry when buying to check and see if stuff works. ( i currently have two broken Intergrated amps... a Scott 440A and SAE Two A7 (both look great..and don't work right :( ) need to fix them or sell them soon.

of course you could probably find used more modern stuff ...on CL my personal fascination is vintage however

I have the aforementioned Pioneer SA-710, and
Pioneer
SA-410
SX-780
SX-450

and a Sansui 350A (very nice little 25WPC reciever) good size and awesome sound)

as well as the broken Scott and SAE Two.


but if that Sanyo is in ok shape /works for $100 it would kick ass... assuming you could find a spot for it and deal with it's 40lbs weight
 
is the DAC in this receiver better than my e7/e9? reason i ask is because i'm buying speaker wire and toslink wire for pc to receiver, and wanting to know if i need to buy RCA wire for line out from e9 to receiver or not.

thanks again for all the input by the way guys, much appreciated :)
 
Sage Osaka said:
is the DAC in this receiver better than my e7/e9? reason i ask is because i'm buying speaker wire and toslink wire for pc to receiver, and wanting to know if i need to buy RCA wire for line out from e9 to receiver or not.

thanks again for all the input by the way guys, much appreciated :)
Click to expand...

Ultimately, there is no way of really telling unless you listen to each of them side by side. RCA cables are dirt cheap btw.
 
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