Can't blast my speakers

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,795
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actually they are sh*tty speakers;)
altec lansing isn't known for making quality computer speakers. you dont get somethin for nothing, and with drivers like that built for looks rather than sound i'm not surprised it sounds like garbage.
 

AndroidVageta

Banned
Mar 22, 2008
2,421
0
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First you need to make sure that its not your sound card or the drivers...if its not then its the speakers. I mean, they may look good, they may ever sound good, but that doesnt mean that you can "blast" them and they should sound fine...you get what you pay for, and by the looks of it they are some cheap speakers...the drivers are those single speaker like 1 inch domes...not made to blast lol!
 

alcoholbob

Diamond Member
May 24, 2005
6,387
465
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The Altec Lansing VS4121 are pretty average speakers for $50. Altec Lansing is not known for their multimedia speakers.

I've owned quite a few of their speakers and I would say they are not competitive with Logitech or Klipsch at any price point. The brand is hyped; they made their name on the 641s and I'm not sure they've released anything that great since, except maybe the 5100s but they've been discontinued. The Eagle Arion 504s blow them away at the same price point.
 
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unfalliblekrutch

Golden Member
May 2, 2005
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Those are not good speakers. Sorry they're not loud enough, but if you want loud, you'll have to shell some more money
 

sivart

Golden Member
Oct 20, 2000
1,786
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If you want loud, a dedicated NAD receiver with it's own amp and some nice B&W's should do the job ;)

Oh, never mind, you said loud, not quality....
 

Soundmanred

Lifer
Oct 26, 2006
10,780
6
81
Like others have said, "good" does not adequately describe these speakers (or most computer speakers actually).
You'll need something better to get loud enough for your tastes.
I suggest moving to a cheap amp and speaker setup.
 

vshah

Lifer
Sep 20, 2003
19,003
24
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those have a couple of 1" tweeters and a 2.5" down firing woofer IIRC.

100-150 bucks should set you up with a better pair of bookshelves and an old receiver that you can "blast"

If you want loud, a dedicated NAD receiver with it's own amp and some nice B&W's should do the job ;)

Oh, never mind, you said loud, not quality....

i grew up listening to my dad's 802s on a nad pre/pro. one day soon i will have my own :D
 

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,795
84
91
The Altec Lansing VS4121 are pretty average speakers for $50. Altec Lansing is not known for their multimedia speakers.

I've owned quite a few of their speakers and I would say they are not competitive with Logitech or Klipsch at any price point. The brand is hyped; they made their name on the 641s and I'm not sure they've released anything that great since, except maybe the 5100s but they've been discontinued. The Eagle Arion 504s blow them away at the same price point.

yea they've been garbage since the early days. i remember back when they were competing against not much besides cambridge soundworks. the soundworks had a mdf wood sub and decent sats while the altecs almost always had a cheesy plastic cased sub at the same price. their reputation hasn't changed since. the basics of reproducing good sound haven't changed all that much in a long time. for decent midrange you need a decent sized midrange cone. only using 1" drivers for looks creates an engineering problem you have to over come, it is fundamentally bad for the sound, and there certainly isn't the money at that price point to over come such a self cripple design.
 

kalrith

Diamond Member
Aug 22, 2005
6,628
7
81
The first two posts in this thread remind me of a scene from Elf:

Just reach out in front of you and and take a sip.
Don't look. There you go.
Well?
It tastes like a crappy cup of coffee.
[Chuckles] No.
It is a crappy cup of coffee.
No, it's the world's best cup of coffee.
 

Dominato3r

Diamond Member
Aug 15, 2008
5,109
1
0
I can digitally increase the volume ( go into sound setting/itunes etc ), but when i turn the analog knob i cant past half way before i start hearing a low farting sound from my sub and a high pitch sound from the 2 side speakers. Kind of fail, i remember me turning the knob all the way and being able to hear them across my house =/


Do you guys know of any programs that could digitally increase4 the volume?
 
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YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,205
45
91
If you turn the volume down on your computer and turn the volume up on the speakers, do you still run into the issue at the same place in the volume knob, even though the speakers are much quieter since the computer's volume is turned down?

If the above procedure resulted in the same place on the volume knob causing the problem, then:

If the main issue is static, it may be that there is dust / dirt in the volume control apparatus. One way to try to clean it out is (with the computer speakers turned off), twist the knob all the way on and off several times quickly to try to clean off the contacts. There are special cleaning products you can use to help you with this.
 

Dominato3r

Diamond Member
Aug 15, 2008
5,109
1
0
If you turn the volume down on your computer and turn the volume up on the speakers, do you still run into the issue at the same place in the volume knob, even though the speakers are much quieter since the computer's volume is turned down?


Yes!

This is exactly what happens. No matter how high or low the volume is on the computer, the static will occur at the same place on the knob.
 

Gunbuster

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
6,852
23
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You are not going to do any "blasting" with anemic 1 inch drivers and a single midrange under the desk pretending to be a sub-woofer.
 

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,205
45
91
To all the guys saying these speakers only have 1" tweeters and a sub...

The satellite speakers have a downfiring midrange in their bases. So it's two 28mm tweeters, two 3" midrange, and a 6.5" woofer.

The OP is also describing a problem that doesn't seem like he's meeting the limits of the speaker's inherent output limitations.

Sure, it's not going to make any pictures fall off the walls, but I've used an Altec Lansing 4121 set twice (old roommate had one, and then I used one as a makeshift sound system for a portable projector setup one weekend a year or two ago) and they will get reasonably loud.
 

Dominato3r

Diamond Member
Aug 15, 2008
5,109
1
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Mhm, I know I wont be shaking pictures ( Not my intent). They just aren't loud enough to have a decent listen, I end up resorting to my headphones ( Which aren't bad) but I'd like to have a listen through my speakers.