Any good recommendations for 5.1 computer speakers?

[fffblackmage]

Hopefully I'm in the right place. This sub-forum seems more geared towards home theater stuff, but it seems like the closest to what I'm looking for.

So I'm looking for a new set of speakers for my computer. I'm in no hurry though.

It seems like the Logitech Z-5500 has been pretty popular for high-end 5.1 speakers, but I'm just wondering if there's any other alternatives.

 

[simonizor]

Those speakers go for almost $400 on newegg.. You could easily get a home theater in a box system that would sound the same if not better for less than that.

 

[ChaoZ]

It can had for ~$200 during a sale. He said he's not in a hurry...

 

[kalrith]

It really depends on your budget and your usage for the speakers. If you'll mainly be using them for music, then you might be better served with a couple powered bookshelf speakers or unpowered bookshelf speakers + an amp or receiver.

If you definitely want the 5.1 and want to spend $200 or less, then the Z-5500 might be your best bet. If you can spend a bit more, then the Energy Take 5 speakers go for $130 on Newegg at times, and you could add $250-300 for a budget sub and receiver. That would put you around $400 for a system that should be markedly better than the Logitechs.

 

[melchoir]

At this point it's really hard to match the capabilities of the Z5500 series (or z680 series) to anything within it's price point. For $349 you get hardware decoding, 6 channel analog (+ 2.0 analog inputs), digital coax and digital optical inputs.

They have the power output to fill a typical home office sized room to levels of probable ear damage.

I don't think that there's a HTIB that can match it's SQ/Output/Decoding for the same price.

For gaming or watching movies, or even playing music in a office I think you'll be pretty pleased. They aren't going to come near the SQ of a true high end home theater, but they also aren't coming near the cost.

I own both a Z680 set and a Z5500 set and have been pleased with both purchases.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

Keep in mind that you're talking about tweeters and maybe some 3-4" speakers. These little 5.1 setups for PC's make little to no sense, honestly. I just bought a used $50 pair of Sony floorstanding speakers that could spank any hot tub out there. If you want a thin soundstage and minimal bass (i.e. you live with your parents or in an apartment with jerk neighbors) then the PC surround sound systems should be fine. I liked mine for awhile but there is nothing like a full range of sound and higher quality drivers.

 

[sdifox]

newegg has some speakers on sale from their latest email...

 

[melchoir]

Keep in mind that you're talking about tweeters and maybe some 3-4" speakers. These little 5.1 setups for PC's make little to no sense, honestly. I just bought a used $50 pair of Sony floorstanding speakers that could spank any hot tub out there. If you want a thin soundstage and minimal bass (i.e. you live with your parents or in an apartment with jerk neighbors) then the PC surround sound systems should be fine. I liked mine for awhile but there is nothing like a full range of sound and higher quality drivers.

You probably haven't looked much into the speakers in question. Any of the Z680, Z5500, Klipsch Promedia 5.1 Ultra, Creative Gigaworks systems will rival any entry level HTIB, Even those costing a fair amount more.

 

[jdjbuffalo]

You probably haven't looked much into the speakers in question. Any of the Z680, Z5500, Klipsch Promedia 5.1 Ultra, Creative Gigaworks systems will rival any entry level HTIB, Even those costing a fair amount more.

Most of those aren't sold anymore. The Z5500 is still being sold but they are probably only worth it if you get them on sale. Not the $400+ I've seen them most places.

OP, I just went through this myself when my Klipsch Promedia 5.1 receiver/sub died. If you want to see what I ended up doing then take a look at this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2041794

 

[fffblackmage]

Most of those aren't sold anymore. The Z5500 is still being sold but they are probably only worth it if you get them on sale. Not the $400+ I've seen them most places.

OP, I just went through this myself when my Klipsch Promedia 5.1 receiver/sub died. If you want to see what I ended up doing then take a look at this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2041794

Ooo, awesome, very helpful.

Although maybe the rear channels aren't really worth getting a new $200-ish receiver, or even a $200-ish Z-5500? My current receiver (Kenwood KR-V8080) has rear speaker output, but no digital or optical inputs. I could easily find a set of rear speakers to duplicate the front channels (my dad probably can spare me a couple speakers).

 

[alcoholbob]

At this point it's really hard to match the capabilities of the Z5500 series (or z680 series) to anything within it's price point. For $349 you get hardware decoding, 6 channel analog (+ 2.0 analog inputs), digital coax and digital optical inputs.

I don't think that there's a HTIB that can match it's SQ/Output/Decoding for the same price.

The Onkyo HT-3200 disagrees with you. For $299 it provides more inputs, more DSP options (numerous compression modes), better front speakers, Audessy EQ, hdmi inputs (which means Dolby TrueHD/DTS-Master if you have a LPCM source), and hdmi audio passthrough, more robust amplification, 5-way binding posts, and industry standard connections instead of the Z-5500s proprietary DIN cable.

The Z-5500s are worth $200 maybe. When they were first released, on opening week 6 years ago, Dell and multiple retailers were selling them for $230. That tells you what their true production costs were at day one, the price where they could make a profit that could pay off their initial marketing and design costs. Today's pricing reflects low stock for a product they no longer actively manufacture due a market that other companies have left.

 

[unfalliblekrutch]

The Onkyo HT-3200 disagrees with you. For $299 it provides more inputs, more DSP options (numerous compression modes), better front speakers, Audessy EQ, hdmi inputs (which means Dolby TrueHD/DTS-Master if you have a LPCM source), and hdmi audio passthrough, more robust amplification, 5-way binding posts, and industry standard connections instead of the Z-5500s proprietary DIN cable.

The Z-5500s are worth $200 maybe. When they were first released, on opening week 6 years ago, Dell and multiple retailers were selling them for $230. That tells you what their true production costs were at day one, the price where they could make a profit that could pay off their initial marketing and design costs. Today's pricing reflects low stock for a product they no longer actively manufacture.

Basically correct. It will be a better investment to get receiver + speakers or an HTIB. For example, sometimes, the Energy Take 5 will go on sale for $150 or less. Combine that with a sub and receiver and you will blow the z5500 out of the water. Otherwise, getting an onkyo HTIB is a great choice for even less money.

 

[Pia]

It's weird other companies aren't stepping in, especially given how old the Z-5500 design is. With video gaming at an all-time high, you'd think there was a lot of demand for a compact, low-cost surround decoder one could use with either cheap or expensive active 5.1 sets. I mean, it's just some electronics. Some Taiwanese company could make them dirt cheap.

Off topic:
I personally don't understand the point of a separate amplifier-speaker system, since those have to be matched for good results anyway, and the speaker "knows" best what it needs. Nor do I understand packaging unchanging functionality (amplification) with rapidly developing functionality (home theater stuff). Why hasn't the market gravitated towards active speakers and AV preprocessors in home use? Current prices seem to be a result of the situation, not an explanation.

 

[sdifox]

Off topic:
I personally don't understand the point of a separate amplifier-speaker system, since those have to be matched for good results anyway, and the speaker "knows" best what it needs. Nor do I understand packaging unchanging functionality (amplification) with rapidly developing functionality (home theater stuff). Why hasn't the market gravitated towards active speakers and AV preprocessors in home use? Current prices seem to be a result of the situation, not an explanation.

Active speakers would require power socket near the speaker, which may not be easily done.

Separating the pre/pro and the amp is the way to go, except it cost a lot more and everything is in the cost down model so not going to happen. For most people, receivers are fine. They are not going to replace it so the flexibility of separates are lost on them.

 

[Pia]

Active speakers would require power socket near the speaker, which may not be easily done.

Not at the low end, where people can use the type of system where the amplification is in the sub or in one stereo speaker of a pair. You can get started with just the speakers plugged into the source - nothing can be easier than that, right? When you are unhappy with the built-in DACs, have more sources, or want surround sound out of something that doesn't have a bunch of analog outputs, buy a $100 or so small and neat preprocessor/DAC with switching. When you want better SQ and/or more sound, you simply go get a better set of speakers. At some point you'll cross the line where all speakers will have their own power, true, but that can happen at a much higher pricepoint than the Z-5500's (no reason someone can't make a system with similar layout that is good value at $600 or more) and there's no real drawback to having long power lines AFAIK.

Then, if you have a really nice speaker system, you might want to upgrade your preprocessor, but this is not a realistic concern for 95% of people because speaker quality and room acoustics are that much more important.

Separating the pre/pro and the amp is the way to go, except it cost a lot more

My point is they don't. You can see from the Z-5500 that surround decoding, some input switching and an IR remote control can be done, profitably, at something like $50. $100 would give you sound quality that goes way beyond budget AV receivers. Obviously it must be a lot cheaper to do just this than the same thing plus amplification for speakers plus extra amplification (because you can't know what the speakers need exactly) plus a great big case for cooling. As a bonus, you have a much smaller and unintrusive footprint to deal with.

Creative made a bare-bones decoder component like this, but the only company still making such a thing (AFAIK) is Teufel with their Decoderstation. That the price is high is just a question of volume and lack of competition.

Having the end user be responsible for matching amplifiers, speakers and subs with each other seems not unlike like a driver having to match pistons and engine blocks when all he really cares about is usable power out of the engine. (Yeah, at the high end it makes sense to pick speakers and subs separately, but that capability is still there in the active system.)