HiFi PC speakers

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digifred

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Jul 8, 2010
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I've tried different pc speaker setups the last couple of months without finding anything I really enjoyed. I've had different 2.0 / 2.1 speaker systems to listen to music and I decided to give up on the typical brands like Logitech and Creative. I'm looking now at more expensive options like the axiom from audiobyte, the audioengine and maybe some HiFi seperates. My setup will be used for music only and I sit about 1.5 feet away from the speakers. Right now I have the Gigaworks T3 which are at best mediocre and before that I had a Teufel 2.0 audio solution which wasn't bad but had no good bass response from my listening position.
I need some guidance in my next steps which basically is founding out what is doable. Some questions come to mind like can you have descent bass from a stereo setup at my seating distance or is a subwoofer required (I don't need to go very low). Also can you use hifi seperates that weren't specifically designed for desktop use and still get good results? I listen to various genres and would like something that sounds natural and clear.

Here is a short list of candidates, feel free to add to it as long as the product is available in Europe:

-Audiobyte v3 from axiom with subwoofer
-AudioEngine serie
-Small amp + pair of bookshelves speakers like the Q acoustics 2010

Any idea? Thanks for helping!
 
Definitely not one to be giving advice in this area, but when looking around the Swan M200MKIII came up a fair amount.
 
I will look into those suggestions.
Do you also happen to know if monitors or near-field speakers produce descent bass at short listening distance?
Thanks already!
 
I have a final question, i sit about 60 cm away from the speakers, is that going to work or is it just not enough?
 
Should be fine, though it's a little on the short side. Seriously consider quality headphones instead of speakers if you really want great sound without a lot of bullshit sitting that close.
 
silent-circuit said:
Should be fine, though it's a little on the short side. Seriously consider quality headphones instead of speakers if you really want great sound without a lot of bullshit sitting that close.
Click to expand...

I never really enjoyed listening with headphones, I just think it's not the same as with speakers.

SpeedyVV said:
How about a pair of M-Audios?

Studiophile BX5a Deluxe
70-watt Bi-amplified Studio Reference Monitors
USD 399.95

Or for something cheaper:

Studiophile AV 40
Desktop Speaker System
USD 229.00

I have the BX5a and I think they are great for the price.

Good luck.

EDIT: Those are MSRP, u can find them cheaper: http://www.pricegrabber.com/bx5a/products.html/form_keyword=bx5a
Click to expand...

The BX5a Deluxe look good. Is there a reason everybody keeps recommending monitors over typical speakers?
I think the studiophile look ugly and bulky though.
On a practical level is it possible to mount monitors high on the wall? If I understand there are various cables to connect and I think most of them have their power/volume switches at the back.
 
digifred said:
I never really enjoyed listening with headphones, I just think it's not the same as with speakers.



The BX5a Deluxe look good. Is there a reason everybody keeps recommending monitors over typical speakers?
I think the studiophile look ugly and bulky though.
On a practical level is it possible to mount monitors high on the wall? If I understand there are various cables to connect and I think most of them have their power/volume switches at the back.
Click to expand...

I like powered monitors for a couple of reasons, one they are powered so i dont need an amplifier to get solid loud music, second they tend to be more neutral, so they are good for my hobby music recording\playback.

You will have 2 cables to each monitor. power and sound. and you just set the volume once and use the PC to set the volume.

Oh yeah, I also connect the power cables to a switched power bar to turn on\off.
 
Thanks for clarifying this.
I'm going to a music shop and demo a couple of monitors and see if it suits me.
 
My .02 goes for the Swan D1080MkII. These speakers are absolutely amazing. You would be hard pressed to find another set of speakers that kick this much under the $200 price range.
 
Another vote for the Swans!

I read an article which basically doesn't encourage the use of monitors to playback music stating that they are not built for that purpose:
"When you're going to choose studio monitors for your recording studio it's important to know that these monitors are not supposed to provide a rich audio experience, as you would expect from a hi-fi music system.
These studio monitor speakers are designed to provide an accurate image of whatever sound source you are listening to, so you can hear exactly what is going on in your production. When you hear the phrases "flat frequency response" or "uncolored sound", this is what they mean. The speakers tell the "cold hard truth" about your mix."

I really need to try this for myself now. I will take a cd with me and go to a specialist.
 
That's kind of misleading about monitors. When you buy speakers in the high end, you also use an RTA to tune to your room as you want the response to be as flat as possible. You also can get into worrying about distortion properties and that kind of stuff.

You don't want wildly different response as it'll make the source material sound like something the engineer didn't intend.

A lot of the stuff people recommend here has a bit of a bump in the midbass, like the Polks everyone buys for cheap but that's to give the impression of bass. Without that, you have to really give them the stick to get any real bass response. I have front-ported monitors somewhere with 8" drivers and they still don't really kick up much bass until you're listening at reference levels. My home theater speakers have a much thicker response in the midbass region to make listening at lower levels more pleasing. The result, however is somewhat unnatural bass reproduction at higher volumes.

edit: High end consumer gear will make a bad mix sound just as bad as high end studio monitors.
 
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There's too many generalizations I think being made about studio monitors and passive speakers. The one constant in studio monitors is that they use soft dome tweeters with rolled off off-axis treble response to lower hearing fatigue, because the user is expected to be listening to the speakers for hours on end at very close quarters.
 
I made a trip to a music store and auditioned a couple of monitors.
I like the KRK VXT serie which has a wide sound range, the Dynaudio BM5A MKII was also good and to some degree some of the Tannoy Reveal series. I listened to various brands and I have to say there is much choice so I skipped to what I knew and to my budget. I'm now wondering how they would sound at my place. I'm leaning towards the VXT 6 which can be wall mounted and sound pretty good.
 
never get powered speakers with drivers smaller than 8" unless have a sub out (like the audioengine 5s)
 
8"? Are powered monitors that bad in bass response? And where is this 8" powered monitor you refer to at this price range?
 
There are no 8" powered monitors in this price range. That's kind of the point.
 
audioengine doesn't make monitors... but yeah you can get audible bass at 40hz with them if you max out the gain.
 
One other PC speaker that may be worth looking at are the M00 by NHT.

http://www.nhthifi.com/NHT-M-00-230V?sc=12&category=3781

Though I have not heard this, they seem to get decent reviews.

http://www.onhifi.com/product/nht_m00.htm
http://reviews.cnet.com/separate-speakers/nht-m-00/1707-7869_7-30422854.html

And NHT seem to be a nice little speaker company. The M00 have softdome tweeters unlike their other speakers that have metallic tweeters. Overall they seem to be designed around their popular Super and Absolute Zero passive bookshelves.

Don't know if they sell in Europe but I would expect so since they have a 230V version.
 
digifred said:
Is there a reason everybody keeps recommending monitors over typical speakers?
Click to expand...

While I think the term "monitor" is much more marketing than anything else, I did pick up a pair of speakers that are sold as monitors (adam a7)

I'm in no position to say if they are flat or hyped or whatever - God knows what my room is doing to the actual sound, but the stereo imaging is kind of spooky. If you came and sat in my chair, you would swear I had a center channel speaker hidden behind my (computer) monitor. If something is panned in the middle of your source, it will REALLY sound like it is in the middle of your source. With every other set of speakers I've used - if something is center panned, it just sounds like it's coming out of both speakers equally. With these "monitors", it sounds like there is some hidden, phantom speaker suspended between them! :eek: I haven't the slightest clue of how to really explain. I've never experienced anything else like it - not with other speakers - not with headphones - not with earbuds.

....not sure if it's all "monitors" or high end/expensive speakers...or if the adams are special...I don't know...but it's pretty f'in cool.

Edit: My point in all of this was...if all monitors have this type of stereo response/image, that alone would be reason enough for me. I feel cheated when I listen to other speakers (like the POS pioneers I have in my living room :( )
 
Monitors are regular speakers.

Passive ones are called stand-mount monitors (colloquially referred to as bookshelf speakers).

Powered ones are called studio monitors.

:D
 
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