$150 or Less for Speakers (Thinking Swan M20w)

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deiden26

Junior Member
May 24, 2011
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am going to college next year, and I'm looking for some nice speakers for my laptop. I will mainly be using the speakers for listening to music and watching movies. As I might watch movies with others on a couch or something, they will not always be listened to from an extremely close range. I mostly listen to classic rock, jam bands, and "chill" music (ie Jack Johnson, James Taylor, and John Mayer), but I also like many other genres like classical, jazz, and some rap. I like accurate, clean sound, but strong bass is also very important to me. It would be nice if the speakers I got could be cranked to a fairly high volume incase I ever need them for entertaining.

I am able to get the Swan M20w for $150 plus shipping, but I was wondering if there was a way I could get more bang for my buck. I really didn't want to go over $150, so the Swan 20W and shipping is pushing it as is.

I've also heard a lot about how the quality of bookshelf speakers will beat any computer speaker set up. Is there a pair of bookshelf speakers and an amp that I could buy and hookup to my computer that would have better sound quality and bass than the M20w?

A quick search lead me to this combo:
Sony SS-B1000
Dayton Audio DTA-100a

Anyway, Thanks for all of the help!

~Dan
 
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hans030390

Diamond Member
Feb 3, 2005
7,326
2
76
If you don't mind some easy DIY, go with the Dayton BR-1 kit from Parts Express. You have put in the sound dampening material, put in and connect the drivers, and solder the crossovers together. The crossover is easy to do. The crossover board is ready to go. You just drop the components in and solder them on the bottom.
 
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deiden26

Junior Member
May 24, 2011
16
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0
Thanks for the input on the bookshelf speakers. I am, however, looking for the full setup to be within the absolute price limit of $150. That means that I would need to buy the speakers and an amp for $150 or less. Is there an amp you can recommend that can power the Pioneer - 4" 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers that sells for $50 or less?
 
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hans030390

Diamond Member
Feb 3, 2005
7,326
2
76
deiden26 said:
Thanks for the input on the bookshelf speakers. I am, however, looking for the full setup to be within the absolute price limit of $150. That means that I would need to buy the speakers and an amp for $150 or less. Is there an amp you can recommend that can power the Pioneer - 4" 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers that sells for $50 or less?
Click to expand...

Check Craiglist or a pawn shop. It will be very hard to fit this all in a $150 budget if you aren't buying used.
 
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deiden26

Junior Member
May 24, 2011
16
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Well, I found the pioneer speakers for $65 used on ebay from a top rated seller. I am a bit nervous about the pioneers though because I can't find too much info on them. Still, I would appreciate any budget amp recommendations.
 
The Stigenator

The Stigenator

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
15,216
3
81
I'd suggest getting
1. Insignia Reflex Bookshelf speakers (90 bucks)
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Insignia...&skuId=7705307

2. A small T-class amp from partsexpress or something like this.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=310-2002

You can upgrade your amp to something else later. The speakers sound great otherwise. The amp to initially start will be enough to provide you sound. Yes its 1% THD but its not like you get any better with amps for most computer speakers anycase.

Later on you can buy yourself a good stereo receiver or something. I see even cheap stereo receivers go for 99 and have 0.05% THD at channel rating. So it might be worth the extra bucks later on or something. The Insigina 2.0 stereo amp comes to mind, but thats one cheap option.
 
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deiden26

Junior Member
May 24, 2011
16
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0
Also, I am considering the Insignia NS B2111 speakers which are just a bit cheeper. Can anyone help me compare the two?
 
The Stigenator

The Stigenator

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
15,216
3
81
Dan, I've heard the Insignias and the Pioneer. You wont go wrong with either.
The Insignia's have a good balanced sound and has quite a bit of bass (larger speakers) and since you want some low level sound, thats why i offered it to you.

The Insignia's are cheaper.

If I were you - I'd buy the insignia and then look around for a cheap stereo amp / receiver. You can always connect your laptop to the receiver by using a 3.5" to RCA cable. If you want new, the Insignia 99$ stereo receiver will work. Its got plenty of power. I like the older sherwood stereo amps they are about teh same price or cheaper.

http://www.amazon.com/Sherwood-RX410...cmu_pg__header

http://www.amazon.com/Sherwood-RX-41.../ref=pd_cp_e_1

edit:

Check craigslist near by for stereo receivers. You may find a older used stereo or multi channel amp for 50 bucks that will sound much better than the T-class amps
 
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Rifter

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,522
751
126
hans030390 said:
If you don't mind some easy DIY, go with the Dayton BR-1 kit from Parts Express. You have put in the sound dampening material, put in and connect the drivers, and solder the crossovers together. The crossover is easy to do. The crossover board is ready to go. You just drop the components in and solder them on the bottom.
Click to expand...

This is the best option, i have the BR-1's on my compter and they sound AWESOME. Much better than other bookshelfs i listened to up to about the $300-400 dollar range. You get great bang for the buck with the BR-1's. Im using a Dayton APA-150 to power them.
 
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hans030390

Diamond Member
Feb 3, 2005
7,326
2
76
Rifterut said:
This is the best option, i have the BR-1's on my compter and they sound AWESOME. Much better than other bookshelfs i listened to up to about the $300-400 dollar range. You get great bang for the buck with the BR-1's. Im using a Dayton APA-150 to power them.
Click to expand...

I do wonder how these Pioneers compare, though. I'm talking the 4", 5", and the floor speakers.
 
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deiden26

Junior Member
May 24, 2011
16
0
0
How does the bass on the Pioneer speakers compare to the Insignia speakers? What about the volume?
 
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Rifter

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,522
751
126
hans030390 said:
I do wonder how these Pioneers compare, though. I'm talking the 4", 5", and the floor speakers.
Click to expand...

Are they sealed or ported? IMO the port on the BR-1's gives them bass you just dont get out of most 5" or 6" driver sealed bookshelf speakers, and most speakers with such small drivers are not ported. I was lucky in that i had a buddy with the BR-1's already so knew what they sounded like, then I went to audio/video(local store) and listed to every bookshelf speaker they had in the store and untill you hit the higher end Klipsch and Cerwin Vega's($300-400+) nothing was as good. And nothing had anywhere near the bass these things can crank out. The only downfall to the BR-1's ported design is they need some power behind them to shine. I returned a T amp(20W channel) and then went to the APA 150(A real class A/B amp with 75W a channel) for a amp and it was like they were completely different speakers.

And putting them together is not hard, took me 30 min including soldering together both crossovers. Im listening to them right now :)
 
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