5.1 Speakers suggestions?

[JaiKnight]

Hello,

I'm not sure how many audiophiles there are here on the board, but I'm definitely not one of them right now, I'm just wondering what the best set of speakers would be for the computer right now, 5.1 for the SB Live! I listen to music as well as play games on the PC. I'll probably be watching DVD movies as well once I get a DVD-ROM player.

1) I've heard that Klipsch, AL, and Cambridge are good brands, what is the reason for this and which is the best?

2) Also, is there any advantage to getting HUGE home theatre type speakers for the computer or are they so overkill that they won't do a good job for PC sounds? eg. I've heard my friend's Cerwin-Vega's hooked into his comp and he uses them purely for pumping out loud bass, but I don't know how that would be for games, or quality for music.

3) If I were to get home theatre type speakers, how do I know what type of amp I need? And is there a quality difference between those little cube speakers I see at places like Sony and the big box type speakers?

4) Currently I have Altec Lansing ACS-48 speakers, does the quality get a lot better than these? (even though they're only 2.1 speakers right now)

5) What are 6.1 speakers? 2 centers doesn't make sense I think?

If you could answer any of these questions at all I'd really appreciate it! Thanks!

 

[blurredvisionx]

I'd have to say the Cambridge SoundWorks FPS 2500, but only because these are the only speakers I have had any play time with, and they ROCK!

 

[BlueAidan]

Klipsch Promedia's all the way........ *drool*

BlueAidan

 

[Mutilator]

Go with the Klipsh Promedias... I got them 2 weeks ago from outpost.com w/free overnight shipping... you won't be sorry.
They literally are THE BEST pc speakers in their ($250) price range.

 

[Soccerman]

well first of all, do you want some REAL quality? if so, you have to go stereo components.

Klipsh AFAIK, doesn't make 5.1 channel speakers for your computer, just 4 channels with a sub. therefor DVD movies will probably not have full surround on them with Klipsh, which BTW, have the best sound quality out of all the "PC SPEAKER" sets out there.

which is why it's still best to just connect your computer to a good reciever and couple it with a good set of speakers (all of which gives you the choice of components, rather then having to go for Cambridge low power yet pretty good quality sound for 5.1.

of course, if you want to get good quality for as low a price as possible, you'll have to ask the real audiophiles around here, I just know the basics, not the specifics!

 

[shabby]

Check out 3D Sound Surge, they got tons of speaker reviews.

 

[JaiKnight]

Thanks for the link SHABBY, those AR-208V's sound like they're pretty good, I wonder if I could find them somewhere nearby to listen to...
Does anybody know what kind of receiver would go well with those? What makes a good receiver? Is an amp required?
If I were to get 2 pairs of AR-208V's, a receiver, what would be a good choice for a center?

 

[Becks2k]

I have some midiland 8200s which IMO sound great, 5.1 $300 at buy.com, well worth it i think. I went from using my Senneheiser HD580s and soundquality of the speakers is fine. The remote is pretty useful actually heh, i'm an lazy ass. I'd take them over the creatives which someoen across the hall has. Klipsh arn't 5.1 which sucks so I ruled them out.

 

[flood]

Some advice from an audiophile...

Paradigm is the way to go unless you have exorbent amounts of money to spend.
A good amp/reviever would bea yamaha or a NAD.
Klipsch is very good for the money, and you could get 4 KSB1.1's and a sub, but you'd proabably be happier with a paradigm package. Just dont get the micros.

6.1 is where you have a center channel in the back, between the surrounds. This is also known as Surround EX. Starwars Episode 1 uses this channel, along with lots of others.

 

[flood]

and for those of you who say computer speakers "rock"
you dont know what it means to "rock" until you've heard (and felt) a REL sub.

 

[Madcowz]

Flood you seem very knowledgable on this subject... you think you could whip me up a good system in the $300-500 range (yea I know, I'm poor ) minus rear and rear center speaker? I already have a set of shelf speakers - 2 front (or rear) and a center... they are kind of old but they sound pretty decent. I would use them as rear speakers since they don't have magnetic shielding and the center speaker would KILL my monitor. My Live! Platinum 5.1 is coming in tommorrow so maybe I don't need a receiver? Yes, no? If I went that route though, all the speakers would need to be powered, hmm, I guess I can forget that.

 

[slpaulson]

5.1 is only better than a 4.1 for dvds. Software dvd players will downsample the center channel for a 4.1 setup also. Unless you are sitting quite a ways away from your monitor/tv the center speaker really will not make much of a difference for you.
I own the klipsch promedias and I couldn't be happier.
If you don't want to spend a lot and need the 5.1 setup with decoder go with the creative labs DT or if you have a bit more to spend go with the midiland 8200.

 

[JaiKnight]

Thanks for all the tips, actually I've read even more now and I just went to a Future Shop nearby to look at receivers, I saw one in a decent price range Pioneer VSX-409D I think, around $400CDN, anybody have any comments on this? Also are Acoustic Research speakers even available in Canada?

 

[flood]

Madcowz-
hrm
try out 4 klipsch KSB 1.1's you can get them for about $120 shipped per pair
thats $240

if you can get to a place that sells paradigm, listen to a pair of atoms. They are $180 per pair. that would be $360

Paradigm makes a decent subwoofer for $270 its the pdr8.
You should try it without the sub first and see how you like it.

And yes, you will need a reciever. You can probably get a cheap one for $150-$250. I think sony makes some in that range. Just make sure it can interface wiht your sound card through a digital connection

Both paradigms and klipsch's magnetically shielded.

I highly recommend getting all of the speakers the same brand. Then they'll all sound the same. (its called tonal matching i think)

You can ditch the center channel by using "phantom" mode in the reviever. It mixes the center channel into the front L and R.

 

[flood]

If youre in canada, you can get insane deals on Paradigm speakers.
Try out Mini Monitors or Monitor 3's for the fronts.

 

[JaiKnight]

Are Paradigm speakers better than the AR-208V's? I just got a price quote from accessories4less and it will cost around $285US to ship 2 Pairs of AR-208Vs and 1 AR-225 Center speaker up to Canada.

 

[flood]

try 4 pairs of atoms and the center channel that uses the same drivers as the atoms.
You sould get a comparable price.