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Getting 5.1 surround sound

thecoffeeguy

thecoffeeguy

Senior member
Going to go with a 5.1 speaker setup. I was going to go with headphones, but my ears are very sensitive to this type, which is making me go to speakers...its cool.

I have it narrowed down to:

Logitechs:

Z-5500
or
Z-5300e

About $150 difference between the two. Other than a few things on the Z-5500 including a HUGE woofer, I don't really see why I should go that way, unless something pivotal is mentioned here.

Anyway, for the back channel speakers, I was going to use stands.
Does anyone know if these stands will work?

http://www.omnimount.com/consumer/produ...416f-8512-f2a1a9a6eee4&CurrentId=6.2.2

The next question would be, what if the cables are to short to run from the back channels to the woofer? Can I extend them some how?

Thanks,

TCG
 
my z-5500 cables are long enough to go around the walls to the back of my 14/12 room.

on some models of the 5500's i think the cables are attacked to the speakers. on mine they are not. if they arnt then you can just get longer cables and plug them in.

the sub is rather large (2x2x2?), but puts out nice bass in movies or games (not so good for certain types of music) and it's very durable. bonus is the built in DD and DTS decoding so you can just keep your integrated card and get good decoding!

i dont know anything about the 5300e's though...
 
Originally posted by: acole1
my z-5500 cables are long enough to go around the walls to the back of my 14/12 room.

on some models of the 5500's i think the cables are attacked to the speakers. on mine they are not. if they arnt then you can just get longer cables and plug them in.

the sub is rather large (2x2x2?), but puts out nice bass in movies or games (not so good for certain types of music) and it's very durable. bonus is the built in DD and DTS decoding so you can just keep your integrated card and get good decoding!

i dont know anything about the 5300e's though...
Click to expand...


thanks.
Do you think the rear speakers would fit on those speaker stands?
I am trying to find a nice set of speaker stands that would work for these (i would assume that the Z-5500 are very similiar to the Z-5300e speakers)
 
Originally posted by: thecoffeeguy
Originally posted by: acole1
my z-5500 cables are long enough to go around the walls to the back of my 14/12 room.

on some models of the 5500's i think the cables are attacked to the speakers. on mine they are not. if they arnt then you can just get longer cables and plug them in.

the sub is rather large (2x2x2?), but puts out nice bass in movies or games (not so good for certain types of music) and it's very durable. bonus is the built in DD and DTS decoding so you can just keep your integrated card and get good decoding!

i dont know anything about the 5300e's though...
Click to expand...


thanks.
Do you think the rear speakers would fit on those speaker stands?
I am trying to find a nice set of speaker stands that would work for these (i would assume that the Z-5500 are very similiar to the Z-5300e speakers)
Click to expand...


Well the base on the example stand is meant for a flat speaker bottoms. the bottoms of the 5500's have leg things(?) that are not detachable

they might work, but i couldn't guarantee it.

yes the 5300e's are similar
 
Originally posted by: acole1
my z-5500 cables are long enough to go around the walls to the back of my 14/12 room.

on some models of the 5500's i think the cables are attacked to the speakers. on mine they are not. if they arnt then you can just get longer cables and plug them in.

the sub is rather large (2x2x2?), but puts out nice bass in movies or games (not so good for certain types of music) and it's very durable. bonus is the built in DD and DTS decoding so you can just keep your integrated card and get good decoding!

i dont know anything about the 5300e's though...
Click to expand...

:laugh: I think you're overestimating the size of the 5500 sub a bit.

My old SVS PB10 was only 15" x 19" x 21"
This is the z-560 sub on top of the PB10 to give you a rough idea of scale.
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/spmclaughlin/web/Random/Log_vs_SVS.JPG

If you buy a new set of z-5500s, I think you're almost certain to get a speaker wire version. I think the RCA connection versions were phased out.



 
I've seen the Z-5500 sub at a store once. It was pretty big, an inch or two wider than the Z-2300's I had. Then looking at REAL subwoofer... I laugh at it's size. Oh, and Z-5300e's are supposedly slightly worse in quality than the Z-5500s. They 55s also have a built in decoder that is useless if your sound card is worth more than 5 cents, so you pay for something pretty useless. Overall, I'd still go for the 55s in terms of value. Or you can go the bookshelf past that burned a hole in my wallet a month ago, and might burn another one if a certain sub goes on sale for slightly less....
 
Just out of curiosity, anyone ever hooked up their PC to a home theatre system?

I was thinking, why not just buy a HT system and hook it up to my PC. There are some pretty good ones for $200 bucks and I would think they would give even better 5.1 sound, shouldn't they?

I really don't want a big subwoofer and would prefer something that is a little smaller.

The only question is, how do you hook up your PC to a HT system?

Just as an example, here is a system for $120:

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Specific...ccd/productDetailSpecification.do#tabs

Nothing spectacular, but it would work and should give good results.

Thoughts?
 
Originally posted by: thecoffeeguy
Just out of curiosity, anyone ever hooked up their PC to a home theatre system?

I was thinking, why not just buy a HT system and hook it up to my PC. There are some pretty good ones for $200 bucks and I would think they would give even better 5.1 sound, shouldn't they?

I really don't want a big subwoofer and would prefer something that is a little smaller.

The only question is, how do you hook up your PC to a HT system?

Just as an example, here is a system for $120:

http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Specific...ccd/productDetailSpecification.do#tabs

Nothing spectacular, but it would work and should give good results.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

🙂 I just did a month ago. All you need are RCA 3.5mm Y-splitter (???) cables. They are about ~$15 a pop here, but in the US I've seen stores carry them for $8. You need 1 per pair of speakers (i.e. 1 for fronts, 1 surrounds, etc.). All of this connects to a receiver.
I'm slowly upgrading my 2.0 system, and they brought new lift to all my albums and movies. Just because it's an HTS doesn't make it good. Some may be worse than the Z-5500s. I have doubts about those Zenith's. I'm using a Pioneer receiver with Paradigm Atoms which is about $400 US just for 2.0.

Y-Adapter - This should be it

As for the sub, there really aren't "small" subs. If a Z-5500 is too big, I doubt you'd like the size of other quality ones, though you might find a good one. You could just go 4.0 or 5.0 with a receiver. You'd need good bookshelves to cover the bass region though.
 
Originally posted by: Imp

🙂 I just did a month ago. All you need are RCA 3.5mm Y-splitter (???) cables. They are about ~$15 a pop here, but in the US I've seen stores carry them for $8. You need 1 per pair of speakers (i.e. 1 for fronts, 1 surrounds, etc.). All of this connects to a receiver.
I'm slowly upgrading my 2.0 system, and they brought new lift to all my albums and movies.

Y-Adapter - This should be it

As for the sub, there really aren't "small" subs. If a Z-5500 is too big, I doubt you'd like the size of other quality ones, though you might find a good one. You could just go 4.0 or 5.0 with a receiver. You'd need good bookshelves to cover the bass region though.
Click to expand...

As far as big, I meant in size.
One of the things I liked about the HT route is that I could interchange the woofer. With logitech, everything plugs into the woofer so you are bound to it. That is something I was thinking of.

Doesn't sound to difficult.
I don't need a top of the line system. I have a HT for my usual watching activities. I was thinking this would be for mostly gaming and some music listening to.

How do you like your setup?

Did you go with a home theater package?

What should I look for? What about the one I listed?
Don't need a DVD Player right now, but might.

Thanks,

TCG
 
That would sort of work, but you're probably better off going with Logitech or Klipsch at this pricepoint than these really cheap HTIB routes.

I have my computer hooked up to a HT set, but I spent a lot more on mine. I don't think I'd recommend going HTIB route unless you're up in the ~$400 range and can get something like the Onkyo 790 set.

A basic HTIB set like the one you linked to is not a good idea. That one in particular only has one stereo analog input I think. You're not going to be able to hook up your X-Fi to that for 5.1 in games.

If you go the HT route, you'd want to get a set (or a receiver and pick out speakers) that has a 5.1 (or higher) analog input. Then you can follow Imp's method of hooking up three Y-adapters. You don't tend to see that on budget equipment though.
 
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
That would sort of work, but you're probably better off going with Logitech or Klipsch at this pricepoint than these really cheap HTIB routes.

I have my computer hooked up to a HT set, but I spent a lot more on mine. I don't think I'd recommend going HTIB route unless you're up in the ~$400 range and can get something like the Onkyo 790 set.

A basic HTIB set like the one you linked to is not a good idea. That one in particular only has one stereo analog input I think. You're not going to be able to hook up your X-Fi to that for 5.1 in games.

If you go the HT route, you'd want to get a set (or a receiver and pick out speakers) that has a 5.1 (or higher) analog input. Then you can follow Imp's method of hooking up three Y-adapters. You don't tend to see that on budget equipment though.
Click to expand...


Got it.
So in my case, since this would be primarily for gaming, it would be best to just stick with the logitech setup, right?

If I want to spend some extra cash, get the Klipsch set then?

Appreciate the feedback and suggestions.

TCG

EDIT: One last thing. Do you know of any speaker stands that would work with the Klipsch or Logitech speakers? I need some stands for the rear speakers. I've seen a couple, but not sure if they would work. Thanks again
 
Yeah, Logitech of Klipsch on this budget makes sense.

If you want to do HTIB on a budget, this lower end Onkyo set still comes with a 5.1 analog input I think.
http://www.circuitcity.com/ssm/Onkyo-Ho...atOid/-12954/rpem/ccd/productDetail.do

I think the receiver in that set is basically an Onkyo 304, which has the input. I'd look up the manual on Onkyo's site to make sure before you get serious about considering it though.

If you think in the future that you might want to put more money into your sound system and make some upgrades, getting a HTIB like this one could be a very good option. You'd have a decent Onkyo receiver as a starting point so you could upgrade your front three speakers and move the default speakers to surround duty only. You could also upgrade the sub.

Just kind of depends on what you want to do.

I'm not sure on speaker stands for the Logitechs since their bases are kind of goofy. I think Klipsch links directly to some compatable stands on their page though.
 
Should have emphasized the priceyness of a Hi-fi setup. You should definately rethink your current and future uses for any new speakers you want. For gaming, you really do NOT need the accuracy and "theaterness" of something that expensive. As good as my $500 (setup) is for games, I still kind of like the Z-2300s I had more due to the hueg sub. However, I came to my decision to blow half a grand as the whole reason I wanted a speaker upgrade was for music. It was really the 'surround' music that sold me originally on the 55s; I actually filled out the order sheet at staples and dell a few times, even submitted them except staples was out of stock and dell was screwy (added 4 units to my order:roll: ). Then one day I suddenly said, why the hell not get something amazing? (Thanks a lot you Hi-Fi pushers here, at sharky and toms...). So here I am, and ready to blow another couple hundred on a sub and couldn't be happier. If you're buying speakers just for games, stick with the Z-5500s, they're plenty good for the price at everything. If you are crazy about having great music reproduction and movies, put some more thought into a real Hi-fi setup.
 
Z5500 are the ones to go for.

They literally are the best PC speakers ever tbh 😛
Also, all the newer models dont have cables attached to the speakers.

They have seperate red/black wire cable attachments that are super long.
 
First off: I am not an audiophile. (YoYo knows this to be true.)

Second: I have the 5300's and they are excellent. YoYo says there is a major difference in sound quality between the two but I cant hear it.
For me, the only advantage the 5500's have is the Dolby Digital and the higher power. The DD means nothing to me because I use the 5300's on my game system. The higher power is pointless because I live in an apartment and I cant even come close to maxing out the volume without irritating the neighbors.

Third and most important: The 5300's can be had for 115 bucks and thats an AWESOME deal for a THX certified system. If you are on a budget I highly recommend them.
If money is no object and you want pristine quality, forget multimedia speakers.
Do like the others suggested and get a Home Theater system.
People who call themselves audiophiles can appreciate the difference. Yes, the big ass amp can be a problem if your computer is in a small bedroom and you have a little desk. But your ears will thank you.
Many times I have considered giving up my TV and just using the audio system for my game computer. Havent done it yet though.
 
Hey I'm no audiophile either. I like to think that the kind of quality differences I like to hear are ones that most people could hear if they were given the chance 😀

Audiophiles are the kind of guys who post their systems over here 😉
http://cgim.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/glb.pl

I don't deny that the z-5300s are a solid buy for a little over $100.
 
Originally posted by: PurdueRy
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Hey I'm no audiophile either. I like to think that the kind of quality differences I like to hear are ones that most people could hear if they were given the chance 😀

Audiophiles are the kind of guys who post their systems over here 😉
http://cgim.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/glb.pl

I don't deny that the z-5300s are a solid buy for a little over $100.
Click to expand...

http://cgim.audiogon.com/i/vs/s/f/1098912888.jpg

LOL CABLE RISERS!!!! YES!!!
Click to expand...

I like that they went to the trouble of getting cable risers and then had another cable draped right over the isolated one :laugh:
 
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Originally posted by: PurdueRy
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Hey I'm no audiophile either. I like to think that the kind of quality differences I like to hear are ones that most people could hear if they were given the chance 😀

Audiophiles are the kind of guys who post their systems over here 😉
http://cgim.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/glb.pl

I don't deny that the z-5300s are a solid buy for a little over $100.
Click to expand...

http://cgim.audiogon.com/i/vs/s/f/1098912888.jpg

LOL CABLE RISERS!!!! YES!!!
Click to expand...

I like that they went to the trouble of getting cable risers and then had another cable draped right over the isolated one :laugh:
Click to expand...

Hey now don't knock cable risers. It makes sense to me! Dirty floor = Dirty sound. Do you want your cables touching a dirty floor and picking up all that noise?
 
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