M-Audio AV40 or Klipsch Promedia 2.1

rayman2k2

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I'm going to use the speakers for movies, video games and movie listening - evenly distributed for the most part.

Space isn't really a concern and both are within my budget (roughly 150). Any recommendations?
 
I'll admit I haven't heard the AV40s, but I have read quite a bit about them. That being said, I'll still cast my recommendation for the ProMedias because they are some of the best multimedia speakers ever made IMO. There are speakers that are arguably better for music, but with movies and video games in the mix I think the sub will be a welcome addition.
 
If you got a best buy or Guitar Center check out the AV40's. 30 day returns. I am personally enjoying the AV40's. They give a fair amount of bass, but eventually I'll add a decent sub think I'll put in some car speakers and buy a laptop since near in they are very good and at high volumes at farther distances they are ok. You can also check out the Swan D1080MkII08 or the Behringer MS40's
 
The AV40 will be better for music but the ProMedia 2.1 isn't bad. The ProMedia 2.1 will shine in games and movies due to the subwoofer however. I personally would probably go with the ProMedia 2.1s if movie and games are the majority of things you plan on doing,
 
games are definitely a priority for me. So ProMedia 2.1's it is, it seems.


How hard is it to add a sub to the AV40?
 
Promedias are pretty directional, much more than normal speakers because of the compress driver design, so you should probably wall mount or prop them up with some textbooks if it's on your desk.
 
I have a pair of AV40's and was surprised at the quality of the sound compared to my previous setup. But now I see all the holes in the sound stage as I have a pair of Rockit 8's that are AMAZING.
 
I own both the M-Audio AV40's and a set of Klipsch Ultra 5.1's.

I originally had the Klipsch setup, but I grew tired of the wires all over the place and went looking for something more compact (I'm a college student...who moves). I know this comparison isn't exactly what you are looking for, but I hope it helps.

Where the Klipsch provided me with excellent sound reproduction, the crisp sound of my AV40's is amazing. You can hear the lack of detail in poor quality audio compared to high definition sound. However, Klipsch have the benefit of producing a much more aggressive base profile due to the dedicated base module, but I don't miss it. I would also add that the AV40's are much more directional than the Klipsch -- fine for me listening to music while seated at the computer. The Klipsch provide the ability to fill a room with sound very nicely for movie watching or throwing a party. The AV40's have a VERY blue ring around volume that might be annoying to you if you leave them on in the dark. Also, as with most amplified systems they buzz if you have a poorly grounded electrical system or any interference (AV40's tend to do this when left on more noticeably). Might want to find a shielded cable? (don't know if they exist for 1/8" audio).

One last thing I would like to note about both systems that I have noticed. They have the amplifier built into a compartment within the speaker (AV40's) or the Base module (Klipsch). Due to either manufacturing reasons or lack of foresight, these can overheat from lack of airflow. I recommend putting these speakers where air can circulate over them and not buried inside of cabinets to give them long life.

Also, the AV40's utilize a RCA connection on the back with auxiliary 1/8" jacks on the front for headphone bypass and Aux Stereo input.

Cheers.
 
Ground loop noise either needs a cheater plug or (more destructive) a 60 Hz ground loop remover which will effect the sound quality. AC noise rejection devices exist but obviously if you could afford those you wouldn't be using AV40s.
 
Promedia 2.1.

The av40s are not made for listening to music. They are made for people who want to start making mixes but aren't very serious about it and don't want to spend a lot of money to get started.

The promedias ARE for listening to music.
 
Where the Klipsch provided me with excellent sound reproduction, the crisp sound of my AV40's is amazing. You can hear the lack of detail in poor quality audio compared to high definition sound. However, Klipsch have the benefit of producing a much more aggressive base profile due to the dedicated base module, but I don't miss it.
Cheers.

What you are hearing with the Klipsches is not an "aggressive bass profile." A better description would be "the production of bass frequencies." Even if you have managed to habituate yourself to hearing music without bass, the fact remains that you're not hearing all of the music anymore.
 
Promedia 2.1.

The av40s are not made for listening to music. They are made for people who want to start making mixes but aren't very serious about it and don't want to spend a lot of money to get started.

The promedias ARE for listening to music.

I don't know about this, but since this is subjective I would have to say I enjoy listening to music on my AV40's more than my friends Pro Media, just need to buy a subwoofer and I'll be golden.
 
Promedia 2.1.

The av40s are not made for listening to music. They are made for people who want to start making mixes but aren't very serious about it and don't want to spend a lot of money to get started.

The promedias ARE for listening to music.

hahahaha
 
Not sure who would actually use AV40s to mix music...I have never listened to the AV40s myself, but the Promedia 2.1s do have their limitations, especially the bass is hollow and the horns are very directional. You really need to wall mount them to get proper performance. The iFi is a step up and I would look for it on FleaBay. It pops up once in a while.
 
Promedia 2.1.

The av40s are not made for listening to music. They are made for people who want to start making mixes but aren't very serious about it and don't want to spend a lot of money to get started.

The promedias ARE for listening to music.

You're nuts. I listen to nothing but music on my AV40s, and they sound great. I get no listening fatigue, even after hours of listening. And for me the bass response is more than enough (I know some people can't live without thumping bass, but most of us can).
 
I'm thinking now that if I do play games, it'll be with headphones (DT770's). So primarily, this is for music and movies.

I'm leaning heavily towards the AV40's. I dont like the idea of wall-mounting but then again, the AV40's are studio monitors and do need to be placed correctly. I take it they have to be raised for optimal quality?
 
I'm thinking now that if I do play games, it'll be with headphones (DT770's). So primarily, this is for music and movies.

I'm leaning heavily towards the AV40's. I dont like the idea of wall-mounting but then again, the AV40's are studio monitors and do need to be placed correctly. I take it they have to be raised for optimal quality?

The are designed to be a few feet from your ears, in a typical desktop PC configuration. The speakers should be at ear-level, and angled so they point at your ears.

Also, why did you want to wall mount these speakers, and how were you planning on doing it? Are you just going to mount them flush with the wall, or are you going to mount them on arms? You don't want to install the AV40s flush against the wall because they have a rear-firing bass port. You get the best acoustics from a rear-firing port if the speakers are at least a foot away from the wall. You might be better-off mounting them on speaker stands.
 
I wont be wall mounting, I'll be in an apartment for a year and unfortunately can't wall mount :(

Ideally, these would be on my desk.
 
I wont be wall mounting, I'll be in an apartment for a year and unfortunately can't wall mount :(

Ideally, these would be on my desk.

Oh, then the AV40s would be great for you. That's what they're designed for.

As for raising them up to ear level - I cheap out and use CD-R spindles.
 
Just some of my experience. The bass when sitting at your computer is excellent, but it drops off real quick when sitting further away.
 
Not sure who would actually use AV40s to mix music...I have never listened to the AV40s myself, but the Promedia 2.1s do have their limitations, especially the bass is hollow and the horns are very directional. You really need to wall mount them to get proper performance. The iFi is a step up and I would look for it on FleaBay. It pops up once in a while.

I guess it's all subjective. I don't find the bass hollow, and I've never had to wall mount them to enjoy their sound. They do have their limitations, but so do the AV40s or just about any other set of speakers for that matter.
 
Promedia 2.1.

The av40s are not made for listening to music. They are made for people who want to start making mixes but aren't very serious about it and don't want to spend a lot of money to get started.

The promedias ARE for listening to music.

:rolleyes: ignore this guy

AV40 > Promedia 2.1 for Music anyday, it's not even comparable
 
ive had my AV40's for about 2 weeks now and limme tell ya i dont mind dishing out a benjamin and a half for em. Theyr fantastic speakers for listening to music and gaming, they have a bass boost feature which you can toggle on the back of the left speaker if you want more bass and even at stock settings these babies will pump out enough bass for you unless your a bass junkie or sumtin or one of those people that like to shake their walls. The only con i have for these speakers is that you need to put a fan on the back of the left speaker so that it doesnt overheat and damage the amp. Allot of people have been reporting that their A40's didnt last long but its all because they didnt keep the left speaker cool. The amp gets REALLY hot like no kidding youll fry your hands and you can prolly cook a meal on it so i advice u get a fan running behind the left speaker for as long as its on.
 
ive had my AV40's for about 2 weeks now and limme tell ya i dont mind dishing out a benjamin and a half for em. Theyr fantastic speakers for listening to music and gaming, they have a bass boost feature which you can toggle on the back of the left speaker if you want more bass and even at stock settings these babies will pump out enough bass for you unless your a bass junkie or sumtin or one of those people that like to shake their walls. The only con i have for these speakers is that you need to put a fan on the back of the left speaker so that it doesnt overheat and damage the amp. Allot of people have been reporting that their A40's didnt last long but its all because they didnt keep the left speaker cool. The amp gets REALLY hot like no kidding youll fry your hands and you can prolly cook a meal on it so i advice u get a fan running behind the left speaker for as long as its on.



Yeah, I've been hearing that all over and to be honest, I don't know if I want to deal with that. My original intent was to use the speakers as my alarm clock but I wouldnt want them running all night...
 
I bought the AV30 back in March for the primary purpose of listening to (rock) music. As far as I know, the sound reproduction should be very similar to the AV40 with a bit less bass.

The verdict? Fair to meddling. The only reason I kept them is because I just moved into a third-floor apartment and absolutely couldn't do a sub, and I figure I'm not going to find a better 2.0 set under $150.

Bass isn't the issue for me at all. Hell, I find the exaggerated mid-bass (which I believe is intentional to compensate for the lack of sub frequencies) so annoying that I stuffed an old sock in each speaker's port, and I'd never even consider using the "Bass Boost" switch.

The disappointment for me was the high end. That's the area where I think the ProMedia shine, just based on a few listens at Best Buy. Now, I understand the ProMedia are not "audiophile" material and would not have as flat a response across the spectrum. And the AV30/40 probably have a better mid-range than any consumer computer speaker system, which is nice for guitars. But personally, I just really like a crisp high end that has some presence in the mix, and I don't feel I'm getting that from the tiny tweeters on the AV30. In fact, I've set the EQ in foobar to several dB higher for everything above ~5 kHZ, which helps some. But the simple fact that I'm still using software EQ after purchasing what are advertised as "flat response/audiophile" speakers is fairly agitating.

Oh, and for anyone who does go with the AV40, make sure to elevate them off your desk such that the tweeters are around ear-level. The high-end was practically nonexistent until I did this.
 
how long have you had your AV30's for?

oh lol ima dumbass i didnt see march on your post till i re read it lol
 
Hmm I think I may increase my budget a bit more to about 350 and grab a pair of Klipsch B2's and a Pioneer VSX-520-K...that may heavily dominate my desk though so I'm going tomorrow to take a look as to what my desk actually looks like at where I'm moving to.
 
mmm desk is rather smallish, i'm now just tempted to grab the AV40's and call it a day. are they really THAT hot that I need to worry about them?
 
yes theyr REALLY THAT HOT lol just put a small fan on the back of the left speaker, after an hour or so you prolly cant even put your hand on the back plate for mroe than 2 or 3 seconds
 
Is this just for the AV40's or most m-audio speakers? I was thinkign about jumping up to the BX5a's
 
I've read about amp failures in the BX8a, but the Amazon reviews for the BX5a look good. People seem to love them when they work, but that's one reason I shied away from M-Audio and went with AudioEngine A5s instead.
 
I'll have to check the amp on my wife's AV40's when I get home. I doubt it gets that hot when idle.

We haven't had any problems with them for 18 months.
 
The amp is a little warm. I wouldn't call it hot though. I certainly wouldn't worry about it.
 
thats weird cuz mine makes this low frequency thump when i turn my AV40's off... mhmm
 
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