Spec me new Speakers - £100

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Hey all,

I've been using a second TV monitor as "computer speakers" for far too long :p So I'm in the market for some new speakers.

I've previously had the Aego M speakers which I found were great - But it's been a while since I've had them and so I thought I'd open this thread incase anyone had some other suggestions.

I've seen the sequel to the Aego Ms, but I can't justify spending £200 on speakers - Especially after hearing that they hiss when there is no sound coming through...

£100 is my "there-abouts" budget - I'm happy to spend a little more for quality speakers if necessary.

My main use will be for Gaming, YouTube and Spotify.

So... any recommendations? :)

Thanks,
Marky
 
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£75 looks like a very good price on the jungle site. Most other places I see have them at £115 or more.

They do look like very nice speakers, but OP must be aware they are sold singly, so from the jungle site it will be £150 for a pair.

I suppose the question is; is it worth spending £50 over the budget on a good pair of studio monitor speakers, if the main use is gaming?

For music certainly, for gaming though? Well, it's not something I would do if I were looking to get some speakers mainly for gaming.

I guess it comes down to how much music the OP listens to.

AE are selling refurbished Aego M speakers on their eBay site for £100, so that's an option. They wont match the 402 and other good studio monitor speakers for music though.
 
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That speaker looks sweet, but also looks very advanced for what I need/understand...

Note that I only have my motherboard to connect to (I.e. no sound card). I would also, as noted above, need to buy two for Stereo sound.

I think I'm looking for a 2.0/2.1 setup - Unless I look into how to wire this bad boy up (It's using input/outputs that I've never seen before :p).
 
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^^^^ why would you use high level inputs on the sub when the sub has line-level pass through? :confused:

there is no lfe channel, so wont it use the subs crossover to do the frequency filtering from the high level signal?

Also don't forget if you have a student account, like me, you get 20% off a certain site, hinted in this thread, warehouse section (cust returns/damaged box).

I like the Roth Oli RA1's, very pretty and excellent reviews, pair them with a DAC amp for the win.

Or how about some Creative T40's (got these, bloody brilliant, paired with my old Kef PSW2000 sub), can be had cheap, used, from a certain high street & online trade in place.
 
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Soldato
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there is no lfe channel, so wont it use the subs crossover to do the frequency filtering from the high level signal?

that plate amp in the picture has low level input and output. Unless im mistaken, the output is unfiltered so if you feed the low level input with a full range signal then you'll get the same full range signal from the output. the intention is to go DAC >> low level >> Sub >> low level >> Speakers. Always preferable to using high level inputs which will be affected by the whatever amp is powering them. in that pic above, if you change the bass on the stereo amp it will affect the input of the sub (not always wanted!), plus the high level inputs will be affected by any extra distortion and phase shift in the stereo amps high level outputs.

there is no lfe channel, so wont it use the subs crossover to do the frequency filtering from the high level signal?

that plate amp in the picture has low level input and output. Unless im mistaken, the output is unfiltered so if you feed the low level input with a full range signal then you'll get the same full range signal from the output. the intention is to go DAC >> low level >> Sub >> low level >> Speakers. Always preferable to using high level inputs which will be affected by the whatever amp is powering them. in that pic above, if you change the bass on the stereo amp it will affect the input of the sub (not always wanted!), plus the high level inputs will be affected by any extra distortion and phase shift in the stereo amps high level outputs.


This is the dayton SA100, not quite the same amp as the one in the picture about but very similar:
http://www.daytonaudio.com/media/resources/300-802-dayton-audio-sa100-user-manual.pdf

INPUT/OUTPUT CONNECTIONS
1.) Low-Level Inputs (Left/Right)
RCA style jacks that will accept standard line level inputs from a pre-amp level source. They will accept a stereo signal and internally
combine it into mono. (Note: Both left and right input jacks must be connected to the source in order to drive the amplifier
to full output).
2.) Low-Level Outputs (Left/Right)
This output allows the low level input signal to be daisy chained to other amplifiers. The low level input is simply passed through
with no alteration (EQ) to the original signal.

3.) High-Level Inputs
Speaker level inputs using binding post type jacks to permit connection with banana plugs or bare wire. Allows the user to connect
the speaker level output of a full range amplifier to the input of the subwoofer amp using standard speaker wire. A mono signal
is derived from the stereo input, which then feeds the subwoofer amplifier crossover input.
4.) High-Level Outputs
Speaker level passthrough outputs using spring clip type jacks to permit connection with bare wire. Used to connect from the
subwoofer amp to pass signal from the full range amp on to the main L/R speakers. Signal is only present on this output if the
high level input is also used. The signal to the L/R speakers is shaped by an internal 6 dB/octave 125 Hz high pass filter. The
impedance “seen” by the full-range source amplifier will be that of the connected speakers only

Of course if you go low level then you'll need a volumn control of some type that will control both the amp and the sub. I get round this with my desk setup as my little SMSL A2 has a 'sub out' which is really just a mono preout , so i personally go DAC >> low level >> Amp >> volumn controlled preout >> Sub, all low level, with the amp also controlling the volume of the sub.
 
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Soldato
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Apologies for bringing up an old thread, but I'm still researching and still need to choose some speakers :p

I've upped my budget to £150, and am currently looking at some Presonus Eris E4.5 speakers - Does anyone have any opinions on them?

The look is perfect for my setup, and the sound is meant to be great also :p
 
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Where do you live out of interest?

RS have a really good deal on a MONITOR AUDIO MA100 system. That is if you want to stretch to £170 and live near Bath, Chiswick, Liverpool, Nottingham, Plymouth or Solihull. Not many left. :D
 
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Where do you live out of interest?

RS have a really good deal on a MONITOR AUDIO MA100 system. That is if you want to stretch to £170 and live near Bath, Chiswick, Liverpool, Nottingham, Plymouth or Solihull. Not many left. :D

Just googled them... they don't look good to me :p Looks like a melted Xbox 360 :p

I just went for it and ordered the Personus Eris E4.5! Ordered it for £135 (For a pair).

They're coming on Friday, however I just got a delivery confirmation... it's coming from the Netherlands :confused:, and comes with a Euro to UK power adapter... Should I worry? Could that effect the sound at all? I seem to remember my dad buying a speaker system from the US once and it makes a really high pitch noice all the time it was plugged in (and I wondered if it was because it was originally built for US power).

Really strange... the place I ordered from is in Kent - No idea why I'm being sent a speaker system from Europe :/
 
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Maybe they don't make these specifically for the UK market, just Europe and the place you got them from, imports them. There's a voltage selector on the back of the main speaker, so the same product is made for US and Europe. They'll almost certainly be set to 230-240V, but do make sure, because if for some reason they are set to 110V; you'll be in for a nasty surprise.

You can either chop the Euro plug off the lead and fit a UK one, or just buy a 2 pin UK power lead.

US uses 110V and Europe is 230-240V. Whatever your dad bought from the US, must have had a voltage selector, because otherwise you would need a voltage step down convertor for it to work with Europe voltage. Without either of those, it would just fry.
 
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I would have got the Tannoy reveals...like my suggestion in post 2

Well that ship had already sailed by the time the OP decided to up his budget, so he need not worry too much about making the wrong choice. :p

Jungle site themselves don't have them any more, only other sellers. They're up to about £120 a speaker now. Which is quite a lot more than the OP was willing to spend.
 
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I would have got the Tannoy reveals...like my suggestion in post 2

Have you heard the Personus Eris E4.5's then?

I kept my eye on the Tannoys as I was making my decision - they were about £75ea at one point I think - However, they've increased a lot since...

I saw reviews that mentioned a buzz or hiss also - And I know that that would drive me up the wall.

I also didn't see much mention of them on other forums etc. So I decided to go for the Presonus. As you can probably tell, I'm no expert when it comes to audio, and so I'm not looking to have the best of the best. They look great and hopefully will sound great - and that's all I need :D

Maybe they don't make these specifically for the UK market, just Europe and the place you got them from, imports them. There's a voltage selector on the back of the main speaker, so the same product is made for US and Europe. They'll almost certainly be set to 230-240V, but do make sure, because if for some reason they are set to 110V; you'll be in for a nasty surprise.

You can either chop the Euro plug off the lead and fit a UK one, or just buy a 2 pin UK power lead.

US uses 110V and Europe is 230-240V. Whatever your dad bought from the US, must have had a voltage selector, because otherwise you would need a voltage step down convertor for it to work with Europe voltage. Without either of those, it would just fry.

Hmm yeah I'll have to check that out, I never really thought about it - I think he still has them aswell! I'll take a look :p

I guess with Europe using the same power configs as us Brits, then I hopefully should be fine - I may just cut the cord and fit my own 13A plug once I've decided I'm happy with them...

Free returns and 60 day no hassle money back guarantee - So I'm hoping I'm fully covered if something's amiss :)

Well that ship had already sailed by the time the OP decided to up his budget, so he need not worry too much about making the wrong choice. :p

Jungle site themselves don't have them any more, only other sellers. They're up to about £120 a speaker now. Which is quite a lot more than the OP was willing to spend.

Yeah I missed the boat on the decent price really - When I started this thread, I didn't really know about the world of "Bookshelf Speakers", so I was hesitant :p
 
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