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LiQuId StEeL
Weaksauce
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2005
- Messages
- 80
My audio sucks, currently: Logitech x230... absolute garbage, but they were cheap [and I had a BB gift card for $40]. I'm sick of them, I've been sick of them since I got them, but oh well.
I don't like the sound of the usual suspects (Klipsch, Logitech) for computer audio, so I've decided to throw down a bit more money and get something that actually sounds good. Since I'm still in a dorm (and will be for the next five or six months), I'm not going to bother buying a sub at this point in time; I get bitched at by the RA's enough for these crappy x230's. I know it will sound less-than-stellar, but it can't be worse than these turds.
Budget: as low as possible, yet still retain some quality. I don't want something that is only good for audio and useless for if I buy a TV down the road. I'd like to keep it under 400, but obviously the lower the better.
Connections: I'll be hooking up my desktop (with Audigy2 ZS) and my laptop (Asus G1S) for inputs. I may bring my PS2, but that is irrelevant. Whatever reciever I get doesn't necessarily need to have video, but I would like to have the option to hook it up to a HDTV and have acceptable performance.
On to my thoughts...
for Reciever, I was initially thinking an Onkyo tx8222, but the lack of inputs sort of scared me off. Next I saw the Harmon Kardon AVR146, and it looks a lot better. For $200 HK has the refurbed (and BB has it on sale periodically, I saw) version. I like the input selection, and despite the HDMI not processing audio, it is a nice feature in my eyes. Unless I have overlooked some other option (or fatal flaw), I will probably pick this up.
Speaker options:
Cheap: Insignia 6.5in from BB. I've heard they are actually quite good, especially when the price is factored in.
Medium: Polk R150. Seems to be a normal recommendation for lower-end setups.
'High' (still cheap, I know): av123.com X Series - They seem to be the best option under $200, and a recommendation everywhere I look.
I'm not sure on the speakers. The cheap bastard inside me says to get the Insignia, but I really don't know. Would the difference between the three be significant enough to tell the difference [and justify the price difference]? I'm guessing yes, but I figured I'd check before I spend the money. I'm leaning towards the X series; buy the best [for the money] now, and not really worry about quality.
Whatever I get will be primarily used for music (links to artists and such), with movies as a close second (my current roomate is a tool, so I try and watch movies in other peoples' rooms rather than mine
). I'll probably pick up some decent headphones sometime as well (Grado SR60 come to mind), but again, that seems irrelevant in the decision of what to get.
Any suggestions/input? Will the 2.0 be tolerable enough until I'm not in a dorm?
I don't like the sound of the usual suspects (Klipsch, Logitech) for computer audio, so I've decided to throw down a bit more money and get something that actually sounds good. Since I'm still in a dorm (and will be for the next five or six months), I'm not going to bother buying a sub at this point in time; I get bitched at by the RA's enough for these crappy x230's. I know it will sound less-than-stellar, but it can't be worse than these turds.
Budget: as low as possible, yet still retain some quality. I don't want something that is only good for audio and useless for if I buy a TV down the road. I'd like to keep it under 400, but obviously the lower the better.
Connections: I'll be hooking up my desktop (with Audigy2 ZS) and my laptop (Asus G1S) for inputs. I may bring my PS2, but that is irrelevant. Whatever reciever I get doesn't necessarily need to have video, but I would like to have the option to hook it up to a HDTV and have acceptable performance.
On to my thoughts...
for Reciever, I was initially thinking an Onkyo tx8222, but the lack of inputs sort of scared me off. Next I saw the Harmon Kardon AVR146, and it looks a lot better. For $200 HK has the refurbed (and BB has it on sale periodically, I saw) version. I like the input selection, and despite the HDMI not processing audio, it is a nice feature in my eyes. Unless I have overlooked some other option (or fatal flaw), I will probably pick this up.
Speaker options:
Cheap: Insignia 6.5in from BB. I've heard they are actually quite good, especially when the price is factored in.
Medium: Polk R150. Seems to be a normal recommendation for lower-end setups.
'High' (still cheap, I know): av123.com X Series - They seem to be the best option under $200, and a recommendation everywhere I look.
I'm not sure on the speakers. The cheap bastard inside me says to get the Insignia, but I really don't know. Would the difference between the three be significant enough to tell the difference [and justify the price difference]? I'm guessing yes, but I figured I'd check before I spend the money. I'm leaning towards the X series; buy the best [for the money] now, and not really worry about quality.
Whatever I get will be primarily used for music (links to artists and such), with movies as a close second (my current roomate is a tool, so I try and watch movies in other peoples' rooms rather than mine
). I'll probably pick up some decent headphones sometime as well (Grado SR60 come to mind), but again, that seems irrelevant in the decision of what to get.Any suggestions/input? Will the 2.0 be tolerable enough until I'm not in a dorm?