Hi there.
I have both a desktop and a laptop system and a wireless router currently set up for internet purposes. I also have a large mp3 collection I'd like to listen to on the porch (which from the desktop's room is about 35 to 45 feet away and one floor down with 3 thin walls in between - however there is a line of sight to the porch through two doorways and one window). I figure if the interference is bad, I can take the laptop closer to the porch and transmit from there. The goal is to have the music for small to mid-sized gatherings, so volume does not have to be able to pump out over a crowd in a club, but it should be able to pump out over maybe 25 tipsy people? and still have a nice lower range for when we're just playing poker or something.
I realize "wireless" speakers usually require an AC plug for power, so they are not entirely "less" the wires. My problem isn't a power outlet though, I have those. It's wanting to listen to my collection and not drag my desktop system and speakers/sub down to the porch and still have better sound quality and/or volume than my laptop speakers can produce. (I'm running on a stock Toshiba Satellite A105-S2071 if anyone cares. I've actually used it for gatherings up to about 15 people before and gotten compliments, but it just doesn't have the volume for anything more, and hardly even for that.)
I rent, by the way - and running cabling is not going to fly with the landlord. My budget is under $150, preferably closer to $100. I also don't currently own any decent mid to high-end speakers other than the bulky ones attached to my desktop, so I'm looking for hopefully a lower mid-range wireless speaker, not just a receiver, as then I'd still need to go out and purchase additional speakers. If you adamantly think this is the way to go though, please tell me and I can think about it.
But right now I'm pretty decided on one of these "wireless speakers." I was hoping someone, somewhere has done some sort of comparison of quality between some of the models out there (kind of like Anandtech or TomsHardware reviews electronics by comparison) - but I haven't been able to track something comparable down. Failing that, I saw that people tend to ask about wireless speakers here half-way often, so I was hoping someone here might have an idea of comparative audio / connection or signal quality.
I've been looking at:
- Saitek A-250 Wireless 2.1 Speaker System
- Cables Unlimited Wireless Speakers with Remote (SPK-VELO-001)
- Acoustic Research AW-871 Wireless Stereo Speakers
A friend of mine also mentioned he's heard good things about a speaker by Panasonic, but he couldn't remember the name and I haven't been able to find anything. Maybe he was mistaken? Or am I just not finding it? **EDIT: I've found some wireless "home theater" type systems from Panasonic, but these seem like they are more than I need - maybe this is what he was thinking of?**
The Saitek seems pretty solid feature-wise. It has an option to run on batteries instead of AC, and also takes wired input from external sources, like MP3 players (iPod, Zune...). I don't have anything like this, but it's nice to have the option if someone brings theirs to a party. Also, the price is half decent at a little over $100. It also has a small LCD with rudimentary controls to the desktop's music application (forward/back/pause). No remote. I've seen nothing but good in the reviews for this, but nothing else seems to have been reviewed to the same level of thoroughness, for comparisons sake, unfortunately.
The Cables Unlimited seems like it's meant for heavier-duty tasks. It's supposed to be usable in wet or humid environments, and looks pretty damn sturdy. From what I've read the audio quality is pretty good, but there are some design peculiarities that makes this annoying to use in some situations (ex. it can sometimes power down on very quiet music and go into standby mode). The price is roughly comparably to the Saitek.
The Acoustic Research I haven't found too much information on, but have seen several people make references to it. I didn't know if this was less popular, or maybe just newer? From what I see it might be a little more expensive than the other two, but still under $150.
So basically, if you couldn't tell, I'm leaning towards the Saitek. Really, that's mostly because it's something I've found the most info on, and the info has mostly been from OK to GOOD. But does anyone have any personal experience with any of these systems? Would you recommend them? Have you used something I haven't mentioned - or is there something like this you know about I should definitely look into?
Thanks for any help in this endeavor ; )
I have both a desktop and a laptop system and a wireless router currently set up for internet purposes. I also have a large mp3 collection I'd like to listen to on the porch (which from the desktop's room is about 35 to 45 feet away and one floor down with 3 thin walls in between - however there is a line of sight to the porch through two doorways and one window). I figure if the interference is bad, I can take the laptop closer to the porch and transmit from there. The goal is to have the music for small to mid-sized gatherings, so volume does not have to be able to pump out over a crowd in a club, but it should be able to pump out over maybe 25 tipsy people? and still have a nice lower range for when we're just playing poker or something.
I realize "wireless" speakers usually require an AC plug for power, so they are not entirely "less" the wires. My problem isn't a power outlet though, I have those. It's wanting to listen to my collection and not drag my desktop system and speakers/sub down to the porch and still have better sound quality and/or volume than my laptop speakers can produce. (I'm running on a stock Toshiba Satellite A105-S2071 if anyone cares. I've actually used it for gatherings up to about 15 people before and gotten compliments, but it just doesn't have the volume for anything more, and hardly even for that.)
I rent, by the way - and running cabling is not going to fly with the landlord. My budget is under $150, preferably closer to $100. I also don't currently own any decent mid to high-end speakers other than the bulky ones attached to my desktop, so I'm looking for hopefully a lower mid-range wireless speaker, not just a receiver, as then I'd still need to go out and purchase additional speakers. If you adamantly think this is the way to go though, please tell me and I can think about it.
But right now I'm pretty decided on one of these "wireless speakers." I was hoping someone, somewhere has done some sort of comparison of quality between some of the models out there (kind of like Anandtech or TomsHardware reviews electronics by comparison) - but I haven't been able to track something comparable down. Failing that, I saw that people tend to ask about wireless speakers here half-way often, so I was hoping someone here might have an idea of comparative audio / connection or signal quality.
I've been looking at:
- Saitek A-250 Wireless 2.1 Speaker System
- Cables Unlimited Wireless Speakers with Remote (SPK-VELO-001)
- Acoustic Research AW-871 Wireless Stereo Speakers
A friend of mine also mentioned he's heard good things about a speaker by Panasonic, but he couldn't remember the name and I haven't been able to find anything. Maybe he was mistaken? Or am I just not finding it? **EDIT: I've found some wireless "home theater" type systems from Panasonic, but these seem like they are more than I need - maybe this is what he was thinking of?**
The Saitek seems pretty solid feature-wise. It has an option to run on batteries instead of AC, and also takes wired input from external sources, like MP3 players (iPod, Zune...). I don't have anything like this, but it's nice to have the option if someone brings theirs to a party. Also, the price is half decent at a little over $100. It also has a small LCD with rudimentary controls to the desktop's music application (forward/back/pause). No remote. I've seen nothing but good in the reviews for this, but nothing else seems to have been reviewed to the same level of thoroughness, for comparisons sake, unfortunately.
The Cables Unlimited seems like it's meant for heavier-duty tasks. It's supposed to be usable in wet or humid environments, and looks pretty damn sturdy. From what I've read the audio quality is pretty good, but there are some design peculiarities that makes this annoying to use in some situations (ex. it can sometimes power down on very quiet music and go into standby mode). The price is roughly comparably to the Saitek.
The Acoustic Research I haven't found too much information on, but have seen several people make references to it. I didn't know if this was less popular, or maybe just newer? From what I see it might be a little more expensive than the other two, but still under $150.
So basically, if you couldn't tell, I'm leaning towards the Saitek. Really, that's mostly because it's something I've found the most info on, and the info has mostly been from OK to GOOD. But does anyone have any personal experience with any of these systems? Would you recommend them? Have you used something I haven't mentioned - or is there something like this you know about I should definitely look into?
Thanks for any help in this endeavor ; )
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