HTPC

[AustinMatherne]

I was reading on here a while back about not getting computer speakers for a HTPC.
I?m just wondering exactly what is the alternative???

 

[beatle]

Use a receiver and full-size home theater speakers.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: beatle
Use a receiver and full-size home theater speakers.

yup (it's fun 🙂)

 

[Zepper]

Ditto the above. Comuter speakers are for near-field use. IOW, the listener is supposed to be relatively close to the speakers.
. Real Home Theater audio equipment does a much better job when you're trying to fill a good sized room. And the equipment can empty your wallet MUCH quicker than computer audio equipment. 😉 After all, there are ways to spend 25-30 grand just on HT speakers... :shocked: And those won't even have amplifiers built in...

.bh.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Ditto the above. Comuter speakers are for near-field use. IOW, the listener is supposed to be relatively close to the speakers.
. Real Home Theater audio equipment does a much better job when you're trying to fill a good sized room. And the equipment can empty your wallet MUCH quicker than computer audio equipment. 😉 After all, there are ways to spend 25-30 grand just on HT speakers... :shocked: And those won't even have amplifiers built in...

.bh.

The wallet part is hitting home for me this week :Q

 

[Muse]

It WILL cost you more to get a receiver and 5.1 speakers. But you can do it for not much more than really good computer audio is what I discovered when I was looking into this. So, wanting a quality HT experience, I got an AV receiver for around $400 and 5.1 speakers for around $400. Sounds very impressive when I watch movies. Does FM really well, too. Gonna hook up my turntable. It's basically a media room now, computer, music, home theater. And I have my computer converted to an HTPC - added an HDTV card, got a heatpipe for my video card to quiet it down (it's fanless), a high definition video projector I can drive from my computer or a standalone DVD player (which upscales to high definition output).

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

A couple entry level sets to look at are

The onkyo 770s

and

Rocket tykes

 

[Liver]

Read posts at any of the popular AV sites (avsforum comes to mind). People are going nuts over the digital amplifiers.

I bought a $245 Panasonic XR45 and then I sold BOTH of my $2000 Pioneer Elites.

They are good.

Then I hooked up some acclaimed "theater in a box" speakers to it and the sound is better than any computer system (i.e. logitech or promedia, whatever) could ever be.

With the cost of the receiver and speakers it was actually a tad (less than 10%) more expensive. I already had the sub.

This is the kicker. You will have to get a dolby digital ENCODING sound card to play GAMES in true surround. I bought the xmystique card. The Panasonics have analog inputs, but they sound kinda bad. These digital receivers do great with the digital domain, but drop the ball with analog.

Added benefit, if you get a receiver with Dolby Headphone, then you can play while preserving the peace. It is a believable setup with headphones, but with inherent limitations. Kinda immersive though.

I have gone through it all if you need any direction.

Liver

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: Liver
Read posts at any of the popular AV sites (avsforum comes to mind). People are going nuts over the digital amplifiers.

I bought a $245 Panasonic XR45 and then I sold BOTH of my $2000 Pioneer Elites.

They are good.

Then I hooked up some acclaimed "theater in a box" speakers to it and the sound is better than any computer system (i.e. logitech or promedia, whatever) could ever be.

With the cost of the receiver and speakers it was actually a tad (less than 10%) more expensive. I already had the sub.

This is the kicker. You will have to get a dolby digital ENCODING sound card to play GAMES in true surround. I bought the xmystique card. The Panasonics have analog inputs, but they sound kinda bad. These digital receivers do great with the digital domain, but drop the ball with analog.

Added benefit, if you get a receiver with Dolby Headphone, then you can play while preserving the peace. It is a believable setup with headphones, but with inherent limitations. Kinda immersive though.

I have gone through it all if you need any direction.

Liver

I don't know about that Panasonic receiver, but you could think about the Kenwood VR-9070, currently selling at Costco. There's at least one thread about it at AVSforums.com (I posted in it, same username as here). I have an earlier one, the VR-6070. The 9070's probably around $300, just guessing. I think the analog inputs are probably pretty decent, and it has digital too. Most soundcards don't output games in digital 5.1, so to ge that you'd need the analog outputs or maybe do as Liver did and get the xmystique or similar, if you can find one. I'm really glad I didn't settle for Klipsch or Logitech or another computer type 5.1 speaker setup. It really would have limited my setup.

 

[Liver]

The panasonic xr45 was the older model, but now a "collectors" item as many feel it is superior to the xr50. I have not been keeping track but I believe the xr70 may be out. This way you can get a true home theater with quality speakers. Some of the very nice computer speakers rival the entry level speakers (from good manufacturers), but then they cost quite a bit. Any moderate quality home theater speakers will be several steps above dedicated PC speakers. Its a one time investment (unless you upgrade . . .)


Liver

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Liver
The panasonic xr45 was the older model, but now a "collectors" item as many feel it is superior to the xr50. I have not been keeping track but I believe the xr70 may be out. This way you can get a true home theater with quality speakers. Some of the very nice computer speakers rival the entry level speakers (from good manufacturers), but then they cost quite a bit. Any moderate quality home theater speakers will be several steps above dedicated PC speakers. Its a one time investment (unless you upgrade . . .)


Liver

xr-70 has been out for quite a while.

I was looking at for an xr-50 for a friend to consider a while ago and it seemed like the xr models other than the 70 were a lot harder to find anymore. I'm not sure if I'm just not looking at the right places though.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: Liver
The panasonic xr45 was the older model, but now a "collectors" item as many feel it is superior to the xr50. I have not been keeping track but I believe the xr70 may be out. This way you can get a true home theater with quality speakers. Some of the very nice computer speakers rival the entry level speakers (from good manufacturers), but then they cost quite a bit. Any moderate quality home theater speakers will be several steps above dedicated PC speakers. Its a one time investment (unless you upgrade . . .)


Liver

Absolutely. I tend to keep speakers forever. I guess some speakers have a life expectancy, but I've not noticed problems with any of my speaker sets. I don't drive them too loud, look at them from time to time to see if they look OK. Considering that most computer equipment becomes obsolete pretty quick, an investment in a really satisfactory sound solution seems like a smart thing - it keeps giving and giving.