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Logitech Z-5500 200$ AR FREE SHIP

EliteRetard

EliteRetard

Diamond Member
Zoink!

Simple enough...I just got one with the payapl promo at 196$ shipped. Coulda saved me six bucks.

Oddly enough though I dont find it anywhere near as ungodly kickarse as everyone keeps saying. Its O.K. but you have no control, balance, equalizers, or anything (O.K. so you can control the volume) and I have yet to figure out how to get it to actually do "surround" no matter which "setting" I have it on (I wanna hear people sneaking up on me from behind and hear stuff drive by ect). Still for 200$ it is better than any home theater Ive played with (in that price range). Another oddity is that you get a lot of bass and yet you dont get to "feel" the music like you think you should. I dunno, you get a rattly thudding but no feel to it. I honestly think the stock infinty sound in my car is better even when playing a "crappy" radio signal. So I dunno...comparitively good for the money and yet dissapointing at the same time. I thought it would be better. Doesnt touch my 20 year old analog system...but its just falling apart so this is what I ended up with. My .02$
 
Not bad @ all, nice find. Egg's got them for $242.99 AR + $30.64 for shipping.

I have the Logitech Z-2300 and for a 2.1 speaker system they rock socks. The base is nice and solid, the highs don't crackle out, nice and crisp even full volume.
 
Originally posted by: iamme
anyone know how these compare to Logitech Z-680's?
Click to expand...

From what I understand, this would be a mostly lateral move.

The sub may be slightly better while the sats may be slightly worse.

If you're looking for an upgrade from 680s, make it a bigger step.
 
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Originally posted by: iamme
anyone know how these compare to Logitech Z-680's?
Click to expand...

From what I understand, this would be a mostly lateral move.

The sub may be slightly better while the sats may be slightly worse.

If you're looking for an upgrade from 680s, make it a bigger step.
Click to expand...

thanks yoyo
 
looks like a pretty good deal to me. Yoyo Jello...

what is considered a BIGGER STEP with computer speakers?

I still have my old logitech 560s? Sound awesome...but they are only 4.1 I would not mind a center channel
 
Originally posted by: Chunkee
looks like a pretty good deal to me. Yoyo Jello...

what is considered a BIGGER STEP with computer speakers?

I still have my old logitech 560s? Sound awesome...but they are only 4.1 I would not mind a center channel
Click to expand...

A bigger step up would involve moving away from "computer speaker" setups since they all have some very similar drawbacks.

The main drawback to these sets is the compromises they make having very small satellite speakers and then having the subwoofer try to make up for those small speakers rather than having large enough speakers to handle enough of the frequency range so that the subwoofer can be free to truely be a "subwoofer" rather than filling in frequencies in higher frequency bass that can be localized.

The speakers also tend to be fairly directional which is fine for near field listening of only one person, but some people try to use these sets to fill up a room as a HT type set would do, and it's not ideal.

For the $200-$300 range, these kinds of setups do pretty well for themselves vs. what else is out there, but if you already have one of the upper end computer speakers setups, you'd be better served making a leap up into another price bracket and getting some real audio equipment rather than shelling out another $200-$300 into a system that's going to have the same general design flaws.

There are some advantages to these sort of sets that make them convenient to use with computers in terms of connectivity and space usage. If you can get around those two items though, then you have a lot more options open to you.

It is going to cost you to get something that's a significant upgrade from the z-560s, but that's not to say that it isn't worth it.
I've come a long way from my z-560 days
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/sp...om/Log%20vs%20Rock.JPG
https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/sp.../Random/Log_vs_SVS.JPG

If you're interested in finding out some different options for yourself, I have a general audio thread here
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=67&threadid=2099593

Besides some modifications I'd make to connectivity issues and some considerations on how you'd be setting things up in terms of distance from the speakers and such (if it's a desk environment rather than trying to fill a whole room), many of the topics still apply quite well.

For example you could use your z-560 system to integrate into a new system. You could add a basic receiver and three front speakers of your choice. The z-560 satellite speakers could be used for surround/rear duty to get yourself up to 7.0 and you could continue to use the subwoofer with an adapter to connect it up to your receiver to make it 7.1
As time went on, you could replace the subwoofer with a more robust one and then buy new surround/rear speakers or you could upgrade the fronts once again and move the first upgraded set to surround duty.

There are a lot of different paths you could take to getting yourself a very good system in the end, but moving from one upper level computer speaker system to another wouldn't be the best route to take imo.
 
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
How do you have the set connected to your computer OP?

(could be a setup problem that's causing the lack of surround effects)
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...1=digital+audio+thread
Click to expand...

Connected via the 3 audio jacks that came with the set. Im using the on board sound from my MSI K8N MOBO (old 939). I have 5.1 setup in the control panel and have tested the system with several movies (DVDs) and games like farcry and quake 4. Tried all the "settings" direct sound and the DTS Movie/Music setting thingie. No neato effects, just stereo sound (all speakers the same). I wonder if this set even discerns between the speakers, like does the sub know its a sub or does it try to play all frequencies like the satellites? Im thinking that may be why it sounds kinda retarded and I cant get any real bass or feel out of it.

Yes it rattles...but you cant feel the vibration and deep sound of explosions when gaming, the twang of a guitar when listening to rock, or the deep boom of a drum when listening to classical etc. Just aint got the feel to, it if anyone knows what Im talking about. My old ass analog system I had hooked up to just one out and used a splitter and converter to get it to connect and it sounded much better. But its like 20 years old now and the rubber surround got dried out and started falling apart on some of the speakers so I was getting allot of static. Tossed the two boxes that were worn out and now I only have two speaker boxes left and it didnt have any fancy surround sound or anything like that.

Thats why I figured Id "upgrade" but at this point I get "no feel" sound and no features so...meh...thats why Im kinda disappointed. And it doesnt even have a graphic equalizer...like WTF? My old system did and it worked very well, had a series of lever things (I think there are 8) to adjust all the frequencies. And it played the bass only outa the bass and mid sized speakers and the highs from the little tweaters...so the sounds didnt get all muddled up and it really did allow you to feel the music. I really like that. And Im not talking about just blasting the noise at ear bleeding levels...actually I hate that, I want to be able to have it at normal levels and still feel the rumble.

Am I rambling yet? I got a chance to borrow a computer (vs my cell) with the internet and a real keyboard so typing is allot easier and faster...I get a little carried away.
 
I ordered a set. It should be a big step up from my Z-540's. The biggest draw is DTS decoding through SPDIF without the need for a external decoder. I can feed the digital audio from either Xbox360 or PS3 directly to it without routing it to a expensive receiver or a computer. I think it's a great system unless you're dying to have a top-notch HT setup.
 
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
How do you have the set connected to your computer OP?

(could be a setup problem that's causing the lack of surround effects)
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...1=digital+audio+thread
Click to expand...

You def your sound card/built in sound. I'm using these speakers with my audigy2 zs and they sound amazing with great surround sound effects. The sub basically has a built-in mini receiver so if your passing it the right connections it should split up the sound without problem.
 
I have the Z-5450's (wireless back speakers), used for my HT.

If these sound as good or better, this is a very good deal for very solid performance.
 
Originally posted by: EliteRetard
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
How do you have the set connected to your computer OP?

(could be a setup problem that's causing the lack of surround effects)
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...1=digital+audio+thread
Click to expand...

Connected via the 3 audio jacks that came with the set. Im using the on board sound from my MSI K8N MOBO (old 939). I have 5.1 setup in the control panel and have tested the system with several movies (DVDs) and games like farcry and quake 4. Tried all the "settings" direct sound and the DTS Movie/Music setting thingie. No neato effects, just stereo sound (all speakers the same). I wonder if this set even discerns between the speakers, like does the sub know its a sub or does it try to play all frequencies like the satellites? Im thinking that may be why it sounds kinda retarded and I cant get any real bass or feel out of it.

Yes it rattles...but you cant feel the vibration and deep sound of explosions when gaming, the twang of a guitar when listening to rock, or the deep boom of a drum when listening to classical etc. Just aint got the feel to, it if anyone knows what Im talking about. My old ass analog system I had hooked up to just one out and used a splitter and converter to get it to connect and it sounded much better. But its like 20 years old now and the rubber surround got dried out and started falling apart on some of the speakers so I was getting allot of static. Tossed the two boxes that were worn out and now I only have two speaker boxes left and it didnt have any fancy surround sound or anything like that.

Thats why I figured Id "upgrade" but at this point I get "no feel" sound and no features so...meh...thats why Im kinda disappointed. And it doesnt even have a graphic equalizer...like WTF? My old system did and it worked very well, had a series of lever things (I think there are 8) to adjust all the frequencies. And it played the bass only outa the bass and mid sized speakers and the highs from the little tweaters...so the sounds didnt get all muddled up and it really did allow you to feel the music. I really like that. And Im not talking about just blasting the noise at ear bleeding levels...actually I hate that, I want to be able to have it at normal levels and still feel the rumble.

Am I rambling yet? I got a chance to borrow a computer (vs my cell) with the internet and a real keyboard so typing is allot easier and faster...I get a little carried away.
Click to expand...

Do you have the integrated sound set up correctly as well as window's sound panel?

6 channel Direct is what you should have it on iirc

The system has a built in crossover that sends the low frequencies to the sub and the sats get everything above ~120-150Hz or something. I don't remember which crossover frequency they used.

To troubleshoot you should try to plug in an MP3 player or something into the black connection (surround L / surround R) to see if just the sub and the two surround speakers play.

If that works, then it's something on your soundcard end that's not sending the right signals out. If you have something like "stereo surround" selected for your onboard sound program, that would cause this problem.

You can get refoaming kits to repair your old speakers.

The Logitech sub doesn't have the impact of a "real" sub and the sats are too small to really move much air.

Yeah, your old 3-way speakers had two crossovers and the Logitech has one crossover point.

Rather than adjusting the equalizer on the speaker end, you might have controls for that on the soundcard end of things if you want to fvck with the frequency response.
 
Originally posted by: TheAdvocate
I have the Z-5450's (wireless back speakers), used for my HT.

If these sound as good or better, this is a very good deal for very solid performance.
Click to expand...

Yeah, these are better. The z-5450 set is similar to the z-5300 set with the decoder and the "wireless" speakers while the z-5500 is bred from the z-560/z-680 sort of heritage.
 
If Z-5450 weren't so hard to get (much less at a deal price), I would've gotten that. It has 2 optical input, so I can hook up a 360 and a PS3 and not have to do cable swapping every time I change consoles.
 
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