Question about: Need recommendations for new speakers?

[Wyldstyle]

I have a quick question about your desktop monitor speakers. I currently
have a Klipsch Promedia 4.1 setup which has served me well the last 10+
years. But like any device, over time these are starting to show their wear
and are in need of replacement. I have noticed the PC industry has or is
moving further away from high end PC speakers and more toward headphones for
gaming and other multimedia which leaves most gamers who like having 2.1 or
4.1 to build component speakers sets.

After years of having arguably one of the best 4.1 speakers for Multimedia,
I am stuck in finding a replacement. Seeing how I like great sound for music
and games but not needing the functionality of "Studio Monitors". All things
considered, I would like to replace my aged 4.1 setup with a 2.1. (Granted I may have to purchase a subwoofer at a later date) I am considering the following desktop monitors:

Presonus Eris E4.5 and Eris 5 Link: http://www.presonus.com/products/Eris
JBL LSR305 5" Link: http://www.jblpro.com/www/products/reco ... ies/lsr305
Audioengine A5+ Link: http://audioengineusa.com/Store/Powered ... d-Speakers
Mackie CR4 Link: http://cr.mackie.com/

Additional recommendations are appreciated and your thoughts/choice of the above selections. I think I might be leaning toward the jbls.

Thanks.

Current PC

Case: Corsair 600T
PSU: PC P& Cooling 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI
Mobo: ASUS P8P67 Deluxe
CPU: Intel Core i7 2600k
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws 16GB DDR3 1600
Video Card #1: EVGA GTX 570
Video Card #2:

HDD #1: Samsung 1TB 7200RPM 32mb
HDD #2: Samsung 1TB 7200RPM 32mb
SSD #1: Samsung 840 EVO 500GB

Optical #1: Plextor PX755SA
Optical #2: Samsung SH-S183L/BSBN
Sound Card: Onboard Sound

Monitor #1: Dell 24 WFP2408
Monitor #2: Dell UltraSharp U2713HM
Keyboard: Microsoft Natural 4000
Speakers: Kilpsch 4.1
OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate 64

 

[MongGrel]

Studio monitors probably still the best way to go for what you're doing I'd think.

Throw this up there just as a lot of things to look at.

http://www.sweetwater.com/shop/studio/studio-monitors/

but are other things too.

 

[MongGrel]

JBL 305s are basically studio monitors, aren't they ?

 

[Daxwax]

I own the audioengine A5+.
I'm very satisfied for what it's worth, I believe they are among the best active 2.0 speakers you can get.
I don't have a basis for comparison however, as they were a huge upgrade from my previous speakers (I prefer good headphones over speakers).

 

[AmyTorro]

M-Audio BX series (BX5/BX8) are reasonably inexpensive but good active speakers/monitors.

I have BX8 model for more than 2 years now and they sound very good.

 

[plonk420]

are 6.5" bookshelves out of the question? i reeeeeeeeally love my Infinity Primus P160s. amazing bass even with a weak sub turned off. i used to have them hooked up to a wood paneled Sansui QRX-3500 (15 watts RMS per channel of pure powah! (or "180 watts of music power", lol)), but now have them hooked up to a decent but unnotable amp so i can hook the Sansui to some in wall speakers i discovered in the current rental house x)

outside of that, AudioEngines are good, but i'm not sure how powerful they are as i don't think the high end store i listened to them in would have appreciated very high volumes.

haven't heard the others, but a highschool friend that was doing some amateur dabbling in music production got some JBL monitors that he absolutely loved. not sure the woofer size, tho.

 

[OlyAR15]

If you want to go fairly high-end 5.1 system, this is my setup:

Speakers: Paradigm MilleniaOne plus Millenia Sub http://paradigm.com/products-current/series=millenia

I had an older Pioneer Elite AV receiver that used to be part of my home theater system, but it doesn't have HDMI ports. So when I upgraded to a newer receiver, I had this left over which I then used to power these speakers. I connected it to my computer via Toslink cable.

Sound card: Used a Creative Labs Soundblaster Z in my old computer mainly because it had DD Live/DTS Connect which encodes multichannel sound in real time. In my new computer I used an Asus motherboard that had DTS Connect built in.

Of course, shortly after I had everything set up, my Pioneer receiver started dying on me. Ended up getting a Marantz slim receiver to replace it. http://www.nhthifi.com/Marantz-NR1504-Networking-5-1-Channel-Home-Theater-Receiver

This setup sounds really good. Better than any media/computer speakers I have heard before, including the Kipsch Promedia (used to have those) or the Logitech Z5500. The major downside is the price: the speakers alone will likely run you a couple of thousand dollars, but IMO are worth it. The sub is amazingly compact yet has incredible bass for its size. Also, they require a separate amp/receiver to power them.

Now if that is a bit too much, Paradigm makes the MilleniaCT
http://paradigm.com/products-current/series=millenia/type=system-powered
These are self-powered 2.1 speakers, similar but not as powerful.

 

[plonk420]

Klipsch ProMedias were/are sooooooo good.

if an artist mixes/equalizes their music better than average, the ProMedias will make it come alive. their frequency overlap/tuning/whatever between speakers and sub are sublime... i wish i could do that for my cheap sub in software somehow...