High Quality Speakers

[w33bo]

First off, id like to say i love this site and it has been very helpful, i hope the forums will be as great, this is my first post here, i have made one computer before and am in the process of building a new computer and I am at the issue of sound as my previous computer had less than adequate sound for gaming and music.

I am considering:
-Creative Labs S750 7.1 *digital decoder free* *remote included* 540 after shipping (i have to get it from their retail site to get the free decoder, i can find it for about 460 anywhere else but the decoder is about 100-150$ so its a little bit better deal) *500 watts*
-Logitech z-680 5.1 *their top of the line* *remote included* *decoder included* ~190@newegg *500 watts*
-Klipsch 5.1 ultra Pro-Media 5.1 *no remote?* *decoder i think* *~470 watts* ~360
-any others in this range?

anyways, watts are not really an issue here, i just want the best speakers, and 100 or so dollars difference isnt a huge issue... creative labs i know will have good wall mounts and stuff, will the two others???

also, i will need a good sound card,
i am looking at

-creative labs audigy 2 gamer @150, it has halo included, which i will buy anyways, and a few other games, it looks like a good deal, is it a good sound card?
- m-audio, have heard a lot about it, should i consider it next to creative labs???
-any others???

any chance on anandtech or tom's hardware doing a comparative in depth review?

also....any suggestions for a great pair of headphones? ive been looking a little at zalman, skullcrushers?
any other very good ones?, it can be with or without mike, a mike would be preferred, and big/quality earpeices, that either cover completely and cup your ears or big ones that just cover them well.

thanks a lot

 

[onelin]

I love my M-audio card and will never buy creative.

No real pref on the speakers, are the creative labs ones still made by cambridge soundworks? If so, they're probably pretty darn good.

 

[Zelmo3]

I have the Logitech Z-680 speakers, and they rock. They allow for a variety of input options and have tons of flexibility with the output (treble/bass control, speaker selection, balance/fade, center channel width, surround delay, etc.). They easily have the best sound of anything else I've ever had, whether on the computer or otherwise.
As far as sound cards, I always buy Creative because of their solid history of software support and they come with a few nice apps.

 

[MDE]

If you want the absolute best quality, look at an nForce2 based motherboard with SoundStorm (Abit NF7-S and Asus A7N8X Deluxe are two examples) and hook it up to an external reciever. SoundStorm is the only PC sound solution that can encode into Dolby 5.1 in realtime (meaning that you get Dolby sound in games as well as DVDs, etc.). You can get an NF7-S for about $100-110, so you can save a bit of money there and put it towards a reciever. From what I've read, any reciever that can take a digital input and do Dolby decoding will get the job done, so you don't have to spend a fortune there.

 

[Jmmsbnd007]

Originally posted by: MonkeyDriveExpress
If you want the absolute best quality, look at an nForce2 based motherboard with SoundStorm (Abit NF7-S and Asus A7N8X Deluxe are two examples) and hook it up to an external reciever. SoundStorm is the only PC sound solution that can encode into Dolby 5.1 in realtime (meaning that you get Dolby sound in games as well as DVDs, etc.). You can get an NF7-S for about $100-110, so you can save a bit of money there and put it towards a reciever. From what I've read, any reciever that can take a digital input and do Dolby decoding will get the job done, so you don't have to spend a fortune there.

Concur. The S/PDIF output from a Soundstorm mobo is nothing short of supreme.

 

[w33bo]

so your saying just get a MOBO with onboard sound (those are actually my two choices for MOBOS) and get an external receiver? (like a decoder?, like the creative labs one?) im a little confused...

what kind of receiver do you mean?

is it the kind i can put a tv input onto also? that would be excellent because i was planning on getting one of those too...

thanks

 

[Darien]

I have a terratec DMX6Fire LT. It's quite good (though I don't really game much. I'm sure the audigy 2 can easily best it in gaming).

 

[bigshooter]

This mainly depends if this computer is going to be used as a standalone machine which you will play games and watch movies on, or if you are going to hook it into a home theater system.

I have always liked Creative (Cambridge) speakers for computer speakers. I'm about to buy the Megaworks 550D's because they are cheap (compared to Klipsch) and sound great. I have also heard the Klipsch Promedia 5.1 (not ultras) which are very good as well. I also had the unfortunate experience of briefly owning the Logitech Z-680s. Whatever you do, do not buy these. The bass goes from off to lets shake the whole apartment. While I enjoy loud bass, I like to control it especially at night. I also like it clean. The Logitechs offer neither of these. In fact they will probably just piss off your neighbors (if you are in a dorm/apartment) while sounding lousy. I still don't think they have fixed the center channel hiss. I know they hadn't about 6 months ago when I bought some from Dell.

Now that I'm done with that rant, I would recommend either getting the Klipsch's or the Creative S700s. The S700's seem to be the same as the S750's except it is 5.1 instead of 7.1. There really isn't a need for 7.1 systems since you will rarely even find material for a 6.1 setup. If this is going in a bedroom/office, you will also probably not even be able to differentiate all the different channels. You need a pretty big room for anything over 5.1 to really make a difference. I had a 6.1 setup in my living room, and it wasn't even big enough for it.

If you are going to play games, get the Audigy 2 NX/ZX/whatever the high end one is called these days. Creative still has the best support for games. You can also ditch that DD/DTS decoder unless you are going to hook a PS2/Xbox up to your speakers. For movies and anything that has already been encoded your soundcard will decode it for you. That is why you have all the seperate outputs on the card, because the signal is already decoded and being sent to the appropriate speakers. The Nforce2 solution would be good if you were going directly into a receiver and want to use a digital output to the receiver.

The moral of this story is stay away from Logitech speakers and maybe go 5.1 instead of 7.1.

 

[w33bo]

what kind of receive are you talking about?

 

[blazerazor]

Wow! the audigy 2 gamer is like buying great must have games and getting a sound card for FREE! Halo, SplinterC, Jedi K, newest tombRaider game. The speakers is a hard choice. I've heard to many mixed conflicting opinions.

Can you buy that card and add the cool front input that comes with the platinum later?

 

[MDE]

Originally posted by: w33bo
what kind of receive are you talking about?

I'm talking about a home stereo reciever, like what you'd find in a component system (remember those?). This is the cheapest Dolby decoding one I saw at first glance at BB. You could probably pick up a used one for $50 if you look around.