Orb Audio Classic Two

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persisting1

Gawd
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Feb 19, 2008
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I've had my Logitech Z-5500 for years now and they've served me well, but I"m looking to go 2.1. I'm trying to cut down on the clutter.

I'm considering the Orb Audio Classic Two with the Super Eight sub in copper.
http://www.orbaudio.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=38

Paired with either the Yamaha RX-V463 or the Onkyo TX-SR605.
http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=567576&CTID=5000300
http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=TX-SR605&class=Receiver&p=f

At the moment all sound runs through my Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic. I will be using this setup for music/movies/gaming. All my music is saved in FLAC and iTunes Lossless.

Looking for comments or suggestions on this setup. Might just stick with the Logitechs.
 
The Onkyo 604 has served me well, and it's much the same beast as the 605. You'll find better DACs, but not likely in a receiver and in that price range.

Those Orbs are...umm...interesting. o_O

I don't know anything specific about the Orbs, but I tend to assume anything both that small and that cheap is probably not very good. Using a sub will offset this somewhat, since it's the low end that tends to suffer most from small speakers, but I would be worried that the mids would be bad (high frequency...well...tweeters are tiny anyway). Can you audition the Orbs before buying them to see how you like them?
 
don't know anything specific about the Orbs, but I tend to assume anything both that small and that cheap is probably not very good. Using a sub will offset this somewhat, since it's the low end that tends to suffer most from small speakers, but I would be worried that the mids would be bad (high frequency...well...tweeters are tiny anyway). Can you audition the Orbs before buying them to see how you like them?
Click to expand...

I thought the same thing until I searched for reviews on Orb Audio. They seem intriguing. Try it and let me know what you think.

Here's a few...
http:
//reviews.digitaltrends.com/review/2297/orb-audio-classic-two-review

http:
//www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/satellite/orb-audio-mod2

http://www.avrev.com/home-theater-loudspeakers/speaker-systems/orb-audio-mod2-speaker-system.html
 
The first and third reviews are kinda meh...in fact, the DT review makes a point of comparing it to Bose. Bose! :eek:

The AH review has great information on the sub construction and shows that the lows covered by the sub and the highs are both very good. However:

So, the sub hits respectable lows and the satellites aren't rolling off the highs. What are the problems? Let's face it, you are just not going to get the detail out of a 3" one way speaker design that you will from a speaker with more drivers. It's asking a lot for a 3" driver to reproduce all those frequencies at the same time. When I stuck in the Blue Man Group: The Complex , it became readily apparent that something was missing.
Click to expand...

Basically, it's respectable, particularly in the areas I mentioned it probably would be. The sub in particular is very well built. But you could probably do much better with a normal 2-way speaker for the sats if you're not set on these.
 
I think Orb is trying to go after the Bose market with these speakers. Since they advertise their speakers heavily and are similar in size.

Yeah with Orbs you'll have to sacrifice some sound due to the size, but I am looking for something small.

Do you have any recommendations with a similar setup? Under a thousand USD and small form factor.
 
I'm about to hit the sack so not researching anything particular tonight, but you can definitely do worlds better than sticking with the Logitech for that budget.

How were you looking to use the Orbs? I noticed there were pictures of a tower-esque configuration on some pole stands. If you want something bookshelf speaker sized it's different from if you want something that just has a small footprint (thus towers would be fair game), and I want to make sure I have clear what you want. Fits on the desk, right?
 
I've heard them, and I'd recommend them, as long as you understand what you're getting. Orb is Bose for people that are smart enough to know Bose is crap. You get Bose form factor with better than Bose sound and cheaper than Bose price. For a living room entertainment system I wouldn't really recommend them unless anything bigger was just absolutely out of the question, but for a PC system with "light duty" movies and music I think they're very solid. If I was ever in a position where I didn't have room for my (admittedly bulky) X-LS 5.1 computer system I'd switch to the Orbs and never look back.
 
Don't worry about is ashmedai. Anyone that quotes Tsiolkovsky is a fan in my books (I'm a Parsons fan).

I was going to wall mount these speakers so no need for the stands.

I know the Orbs are only 4 ohm, which was some concern to me, but they will be used in a small place.

I am also considering a set of Paradigm Cinema 220 or Definitive Tech Mythos Gem. These are much larger than the Orbs so I'll have to see if the Ms. will agree.

Thanks
 
Nicolaskl's summary seems very accurate, especially in inferring the design goals for the Orbs.

Those are both what are often referred to as "mini monitors" or more rarely "compact loudspeakers" (if you weren't already using these to search). There's a certain degree of tradeoff compared to larger speakers like what we were discussing with the Orbs, but the larger interior volume will probably help them a lot. Assuming similar driver technology - stiffer cone material, for one, can offset other factors...there's a lot of optimization that goes on.

The Epos ELS3 look interesting if you want a mini monitor setup. They should also be well under $1k (around $300/pair, according to the review). Note that they do use different driver materials, aluminium dome tweeter & polypropylene cone woofer, which helps improve the sound despite the smaller size.


For some reason, speakers seem to be low impedance ~10 ohms, while headphones seem to range from the low decades (30-40ish) up to the mid-hundreds and in rare cases nearly to 1k ohm. I think it's just a matter of the desired current. Applying Ohm's law, V = IR, shows that for a lower resistance at a given voltage you will receive an increase in current.
 
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