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Might want to consider the iLoud Micro Monitor : IK Multimedia iLoud Micro Monitor Review
Speakers for PC and movies
I am looking for a 2.0 speakers which would serve well for standard PC sound 44.1Khz/16Bit and uncompressed LPCM 48KHz/16bit which is on original Blurays i have.
Outputs are either onboard soundcard based on Realtek ALC 1220, and the circuitry inside is not even that bad, SPDIF or HDMI 2.2.
I was considering Yamaha YAS-107 - it does everything i need, however its bit too big for a PC soundbar. Placement will be most likely table, under the display. Also i looked for active speakers by Kliptsch which look like an overkill.
Currently i have Bose Computer Music Monitor:
www.bose.com
Main reason to buy those was portability and fact that they are made of metal. Sometimes I help with festivals and my equipment (old Samsung projector 800x600 and those speakers) serve as a small portable backups for the presentations.
Outputs are either onboard soundcard based on Realtek ALC 1220, and the circuitry inside is not even that bad, SPDIF or HDMI 2.2.
I was considering Yamaha YAS-107 - it does everything i need, however its bit too big for a PC soundbar. Placement will be most likely table, under the display. Also i looked for active speakers by Kliptsch which look like an overkill.
Currently i have Bose Computer Music Monitor:
Computer MusicMonitor®
Discover product support for your Computer MusicMonitor®. Learn how to operate your product through helpful tips, technical support information and product manuals. Purchase parts and accessories.
www.bose.com
Main reason to buy those was portability and fact that they are made of metal. Sometimes I help with festivals and my equipment (old Samsung projector 800x600 and those speakers) serve as a small portable backups for the presentations.
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not sure how much trolling it is, anyway... looking for something between "total garbage" and "audiophile".
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If you want maximum value for your money, then the best thing you can get are cheap studio monitors. Something like Mackies, KRKs, Presonus Eris speakers. All are decent for price. Here's something that you may like:
They are nice looking, well performing speakers for reasonable cost and without "audiophile" nonsense features like requirement of separate power cables or some odd audio connector that nobody uses. I would expect them to be better than Creative or Logitech speakers, just don't expect very deep and powerful bass out of them.
I wouldn't recommend soundbar for PC, that form factor just isn't optimal for audio. Classical bookshelfs don't change much, because that's just a simple construction that works well for decent price. And pretty much all soundbars are quite a bit overpriced.
If you want absolutely best quality for your money, then you will have to hunt used speakers. Speakers age very slowly and can't really become obsolete, so you can find a kit from 70s that sounds really good and don't cost much, but going this route will most likely yield you with quite big speakers, which is something that you stated you don't want. And finding any reviews of speakers that old is pretty much impossible, so ears will be your only judge.
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Been looking for slightly better. Now it will be used for PC, but i might move those to another room with home theather system within few years.
Monitor Active 2000
www.magnat.de
or
HiFi maniacs around me would go for something at least 2x that expensive, but to not use PC as a primary source.
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What?
If you want something larger, these are about the best speakers you can get for $300 a set :
JBL 305P MkII 5-inch Powered Studio Monitor
82W Powered 2-way Studio Reference Monitors with 5" Woofer, 1" Tweeter, and Magnetic Shielding (each)
www.sweetwater.com
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The review page "noaudiophile" looks quite sarcasticWhat?
If you want something larger, these are about the best speakers you can get for $300 a set :
JBL 305P MkII 5-inch Powered Studio Monitor
82W Powered 2-way Studio Reference Monitors with 5" Woofer, 1" Tweeter, and Magnetic Shielding (each)
.
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Ahh, well the conclusion was that they're quite impressive for their size. They use DSP to get a very flat frequency response.The review page "noaudiophile" looks quite sarcastic
Here's another set of measurements from : iLoud Micro Monitors measurements and quasi-anechoic spinorama
I have a buddy who uses them and he was very pleased with the sound. He also has the same JBL 305's that I have, which makes a solid reference point.
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Man, i took me years until i found some data bout my current Bose Computer MusicMonitor.
Bose MusicMonitors | Grimshaw Audio
www.grimshawaudio.com
Finally someone posted a graph so i can compare them. The blog post sums it all. Small, portable speakers with enough presence for a notebook listener or a room of a size of a school class.
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That's a lot better than I expected for some Bose computer speakers. Pretty impressive for a single 2" driverMan, i took me years until i found some data bout my current Bose Computer MusicMonitor.
Bose MusicMonitors | Grimshaw Audio
Finally someone posted a graph so i can compare them. The blog post sums it all. Small, portable speakers with enough presence for a notebook listener or a room of a size of a school class.
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Since i realized that audio on my Blurays is lossless, i am considering the upgrade. Under 120Hz it turns the signal to Mono and above 15KHz it does not make any sound.
And it seems to be quite problematic.
"Its a computer - either get a great headphones with amp, or 5.1 set."
I really get that, but i would like to have some midrange stereo speakers, maybe even with amp.
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I've never liked headphones as much as a good set of stereo speakers, and surround sound is a gimmick afaic.
Those JBL 305's replaced my Mirage OM-7 towers, amp and turntable. They would be great speakers at $500 a set, but at 2-300 they're a steal. Only downside that I've found is a slight hiss in the tweeters, but It's only perceptible in a dead quiet room when you're a couple feet away.
EDIT: It's good to have some space between the back of the speaker and the wall since it's rear ported.
There's also the Kali LP-6 which has a front port. Slightly larger than the JBL 305 but Sweetwater and Amazon have them on sale for $150 a piece currently
Kali LP-6 Review: Studio Monitor
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Kali Audio LP-6 powered monitor (speaker). I purchased it for testing I think back in February or March. There has been a lot of requests to test it so I thought I do it before the year is over! The LP-6 costs US $149 on Amazon including Prime...
www.audiosciencereview.com
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That is actually impressive, however the price (158 euro here) is for single speaker.There's also the Kali LP-6 which has a front port. Slightly larger than the JBL 305 but Sweetwater and Amazon have them on sale for $150 a piece currently
Kali LP-6 Review: Studio Monitor
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Kali Audio LP-6 powered monitor (speaker). I purchased it for testing I think back in February or March. There has been a lot of requests to test it so I thought I do it before the year is over! The LP-6 costs US $149 on Amazon including Prime...
Most of time i am looking at younger brother of Magnat Monitor Active 2000:
Magnat Multi Monitor 220
Německý Magnat patří mezi pevně etablovaná jména v oboru výroby reprosoustav, mírně na okraji svého výrobního katalogu má ale také zajímavou elektroniku, kterou neradno zatracovat. Své know-how z obou těchto segmentů spojil u dostupných lifestyle reprosoustavách Multi Monitor 220.
Review is in czech, look at the frequency chart. Yet, i dont have chart neither from Audiosciencereview, nor for the Monitor Active 2000. (and to make it more complicated, Magnat has larger speakers labeled "2000".
What i found interesting is that it has standard analog 3,5mm stereo jack, and SPDIF. Currently its for 287 eur for the set.
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Does Thomann Music ship to your location? I've found great prices on gear through them.That is actually impressive, however the price (158 euro here) is for single speaker.
Most of time i am looking at younger brother of Magnat Monitor Active 2000:
Magnat Multi Monitor 220
Německý Magnat patří mezi pevně etablovaná jména v oboru výroby reprosoustav, mírně na okraji svého výrobního katalogu má ale také zajímavou elektroniku, kterou neradno zatracovat. Své know-how z obou těchto segmentů spojil u dostupných lifestyle reprosoustavách Multi Monitor 220.www.hifi-voice.com
Review is in czech, look at the frequency chart. Yet, i dont have chart neither from Audiosciencereview, nor for the Monitor Active 2000. (and to make it more complicated, Magnat has larger speakers labeled "2000".
What i found interesting is that it has standard analog 3,5mm stereo jack, and SPDIF. Currently its for 287 eur for the set.
I don't think I've heard of Magnat speakers, but based on that FR graph I think you can probably find something better for about the same price, but maybe not with an integrated DAC.
If you like measurements, I narrowed the ASR speaker reviews down to bookshelf and powered monitors, recommended by Amir (the dude who runs ASR), and under $300 each :
It's not a huge selection unfortunately, and idk how many will be available where you are.
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Wow... well i can have a pair of Elac DBR62 for 430 euro. (like 516 dollars)
Elac Debut Reference DBR62 Wooden Black - Muziker
Elac Debut Reference DBR62 Wooden Black, Hi-Fi Regálový reproduktor, DEBUT-REF-DBR62-BK-WOOD, 2-pásmové, pasívne regálové reproduktory s bassreflexom.
www.muziker.sk
I would not have guessed those are the best in that list. But then i got stuck on AMP
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Those do look pretty sweet! Bit of a step up in price, but that could be an "end game" setup for a reasonable person. 😄Wow... well i can have a pair of Elac DBR62 for 430 euro. (like 516 dollars)
Elac Debut Reference DBR62 Wooden Black - Muziker
Elac Debut Reference DBR62 Wooden Black, Hi-Fi Regálový reproduktor, DEBUT-REF-DBR62-BK-WOOD, 2-pásmové, pasívne regálové reproduktory s bassreflexom.
I would not have guessed those are the best in that list. But then i got stuck on AMP
I wouldn't put too much emphasis on the score though, the LSR 305 is only a 4.6 but it's a fantastic speaker.
Can't recommend any amps off the top of my head, I'd have to dig through ASR reviews for a bit. lol
If you get an amp, you'll probably want a decent DAC too, so there's another $100-150.
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Got through the list. Active speakers which were good enough were studio monitors with single 6,5mm mono jack input (all by Kali and JBL).
From the passives are the Elacs DBR62s still my top pick, but i have to look for the DAC/AMP. Unfortunately more than one reviewers mentioned that those "budget" speakers got better with more expensive amps, and from the czech review i read, there are reasons for that.
Current sound source is integrated soundcard with 3,5mm stereo jacks, SPDIF possibly HDMI. The soundcard isnt half that bad.
ASRock X399M Taichi (just scroll down to audio).
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So...i narrowed it down to two options.
Option A: Elac Debut DBR62 + Denon HEOS AMP HS2 SRE2
Overall for about 1200 dollars. Stereo with support for subwoofer, aux, TOSLINK network, USB inputs...
Option B: pair of active speakers - Magnat Active 2000 for under 300 dollars.
Option A: Elac Debut DBR62 + Denon HEOS AMP HS2 SRE2
Overall for about 1200 dollars. Stereo with support for subwoofer, aux, TOSLINK network, USB inputs...
Option B: pair of active speakers - Magnat Active 2000 for under 300 dollars.
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