Question about PC Speakers

[chr6]

It's about time to upgrade my speakers. 6 year old altec lansing 2.1 setup.

I am thinking of getting a chaintech av-710 with a logitech z-5500 set

anyone have experience with this setup? i hear good things, and the price is right for both (250$) are there better sound cards that have optical out?

the whole optical thing is confusing me a bit. will i get better sound using optical on an av-710 versus using an audigy2 zs or x-fi card?

 

[InlineFour]

that's a great combination. i used to own the z5500 with an audigy 2 zs sound card.

by using an optical connection, you're using the z5500's DAC. on the other hand, with analog cables, you're using the av-710's DAC. the av-710's DAC will be better than the z5500's, that's why you're buying a sound card. basically, the analog connection is superior to the digital connection.

 

[FP]

Use the analog connection from the soundcard to the speakers.

Then use the optical input on the speakers for a PS2, DVD player or some other device that doesn't do digital decoding natively.

 

[chr6]

the speakers are strictly for computer use, the ps2, dvd player, etc are in a totally different room. im a little confused now.

i currently own an audigy2 zs, but was going to switch to the av-710 because i thought optical was better than analog. but from what you say, it seems im better off not getting the av-710, and using analog with my audigy2 zs. please reply, thanks for the input.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: chr6
the speakers are strictly for computer use, the ps2, dvd player, etc are in a totally different room. im a little confused now.

i currently own an audigy2 zs, but was going to switch to the av-710 because i thought optical was better than analog. but from what you say, it seems im better off not getting the av-710, and using analog with my audigy2 zs. please reply, thanks for the input.

You are correct the Audigy is better. The analog connection if the only connection you can use with either of those cards to get surround sound in games.

Any digital device can be hooked to the Z-5500 speaker set along with your computer if you wanted to connect something else. That is all they were saying

 

[InlineFour]

i wouldn't switch to the av-710, stick with the audigy.

be sure to use analog connection so you're using the audigy's DAC.

if you want better sound, you're probably better off upgrading to better speakers.

 

[chr6]

got it. i will cancel the order for the chaintech av-710, and go with the audigy2 zs + logitech z-5500 combination ftw!

 

[chr6]

thanks everyone btw

 

[FP]

Originally posted by: chr6
the speakers are strictly for computer use, the ps2, dvd player, etc are in a totally different room. im a little confused now.

i currently own an audigy2 zs, but was going to switch to the av-710 because i thought optical was better than analog. but from what you say, it seems im better off not getting the av-710, and using analog with my audigy2 zs. please reply, thanks for the input.

Comparing optical to analog is comparing apples to oranges.

The optical signal will the be exact same from the Audigy and the AV-710. It is the DAC that translates the optical signal.

I think your Audigy2 has optical out as well (I could be wrong it may be coax).

In any case, you should use the analog out from your current Audigy card. I have the exact same setup and couldn't be happier.

Oh and clear out a lot of room for the sub... It is massive.

 

[ChiSoxFan]

I bought a set of Z5500's a month ago to go with my X-Fi and the quality is incredible, way better than I was expecting. Definately use the analog connectors to your computer though. Make sure you have room for the subwoofer though because it's very big. I got mine for $215 at buy.com with free shipping so maybe check them out there if they're still on sale.

 

[InlineFour]

Originally posted by: binister

Originally posted by: chr6
the speakers are strictly for computer use, the ps2, dvd player, etc are in a totally different room. im a little confused now.

i currently own an audigy2 zs, but was going to switch to the av-710 because i thought optical was better than analog. but from what you say, it seems im better off not getting the av-710, and using analog with my audigy2 zs. please reply, thanks for the input.

Comparing optical to analog is comparing apples to oranges.

The optical signal will the be exact same from the Audigy and the AV-710. It is the DAC that translates the optical signal.

I think your Audigy2 has optical out as well (I could be wrong it may be coax).

In any case, you should use the analog out from your current Audigy card. I have the exact same setup and couldn't be happier.

Oh and clear out a lot of room for the sub... It is massive.

the audigy 2 zs has a mini coax and you'll need an adapter for it, which is a pain in the ass and not worth the effort.

 

[chr6]

analog on the audigy it is

 

[chr6]

got it up and running. using an rca cable into the coax from the digital out on my audigy2 zs. are there any other settings i need to change or tinker with? any way i can get music to play from all speakers? i notice when i play music it only plays from the front speakers. thanks

 

[FP]

Originally posted by: chr6
got it up and running. using an rca cable into the coax from the digital out on my audigy2 zs. are there any other settings i need to change or tinker with? any way i can get music to play from all speakers? i notice when i play music it only plays from the front speakers. thanks

Huh? You should be using the supplied 3-plug RCA cable and run it from the 3 soundcard outputs to the 5500's 3 6-channel direct inputs on the control pod. You shouldn't be using any digital out anywhere.

As far as getting the music to play out of more than 2 speakers, hit the 'effect' button on the remote or pod while you have 'Direct' selected as the input. There are multiple options, but I prefer ProLogicII Music when listening to music.

 

[chr6]

got it. sounds great. im hearing stuff in movies i havent heard before. and the music is gonna piss off the neighbors. i love them.

 

[FP]

Cool. I love mine too.

Question for you, how high do you have to turn yours up for the music/movies to be loud enough for you to hear comfortably?

I have my wave output set to 85%, my master set to 65% and the pod set to 8 bars.

When I first received the speakers I thought they were going to be louder than they were but I still love them.

 

[mikeford]

How loud it is depends on the room size, my son and I have EXACTLY the same sound setup, but my system is in a large livingroom, and his is in a small dining area off the kitchen. His sounds LOUD, loud enough to make a teenager smile, mine is barely loud enough to annoy my wife.

$200 and up and its time to leave PC speakers behind, and get a nice low end hifi. Buying the best PC speakers is like bragging you eat only the finest dog food.

 

[InlineFour]

Originally posted by: mikeford

$200 and up and its time to leave PC speakers behind, and get a nice low end hifi. Buying the best PC speakers is like bragging you eat only the finest dog food.

lol, agreed. may i suggest the panasonic xr55?