7.1 Speaker system, with optical in

Combat squirrel

Combat squirrel

Combat squirrel

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Hey all iv got about ~£240 for an awesome amazing speaker system (not silly levels of amazingness that costs thousands mind)

Iv got it down to the Logitech Z-5500 THX or the Creative GigaWorks 7.1 S750 THX

I REALLY want optical connection though, which means the logitech, but I also REALLY want 7.1, iv already got 5.1, 7.1 seems like the logical jump, but the creative is only analogue :rolleyes:

Is there ever going to be a speaker system that comes out soon like the creatives that also allows me to connect via optical ?

EDIT: Just found out the x-fi is a non standard optical connection cable, :confused: what do i need 2 make it work then ? if its something stupid,maybe just go for the 7.1 analogue as it would be easier setup? what you guys think?
 
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IMO, just go analogue. Gigaworks + X-Fi is a good pairing.

Digital does not necessarily better quality (could be better, could be worse).
 
i'm using the 5500's coupled with a x-mystique all digital via optical (spdif).
i cant compare it with the x-fi as ive never used the card

but using analogue or digital with the above setup there is a noticable difference in quality between the 2.
 
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Hmmm more research reveales that optical out will only work for stuff thats been encoded for it, not 'just any sound' coming out of the PC


Some guy of logitech forums said:
Just got the 5450's Speakers but Im a bit of a novice when it comes to audio stuff and Im just realizing that as great as digital sound is for movies (which support it of course), that unless a games specifically supports Dolby or dts digital output (which most do not), Ive got to switch back to using an analog connection.

The two annoyances Im left with whenever I need to switch from analog to digital (or vice versa) is swap 1 cable on the sound card (between a coax digital and the "front channel" plug of the analog 3-set plug) and Ive got to change the output setting on my sound card to enable/disable the "Digital Output Only" setting.
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Can ANYONE clear this up for me ? Also the above question if not to much trouble :) if the above is the case im thinking of going with the Creative system, I just want to be able to plug it in and leave it, not fiddle with settings every 4 seconds, would the creative be reasonable if I also got some úber cabling to try and reduce hiss as much as poss? Any ideas from ocuk's audiophiles?
 
you can pipe any sound you want down an optical cable. BUT to have surround sound (dolby digital, or DTS) you need the sound to be encoded first so your amp or variant can decode it. The x-mystique and X-plosion both do this, as well as the montego turtle beach and soundstorm.

if you just used your x-fi you'd get decent quality stereo sound for music etc but not surroundsound. with dvds and other content that have allready been encoded into 5.1, you'll get surroundsound (just like an spdif passthrough, the x-fi will just pass on the encoded signal to your amp etc) providing you have something that can decode it on the other end
 
ah I see, interesting, so whats the 'non standard' optical on the x-fi ? I assume I carnt just get an 'optical audio' cable and it will work ? The other cards sound interesting, but im also a keen gamer where the x-fi would be needed, would high quality analogue connection to the 7.1 system be good? (assuming I use super high quality 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable ~£10/15 for 3 metres)
 
dont think an x-fi is needed for gaming but then its all down to personal preference. i myself prefere playin games in dolby digital with the x-mystique than using EAX. positioning of things just generally seems to sound better to me, but then i am used to it cos i went from soundstorm to an x-mystique so been usin dolby digital for a few years now.

as far as i know you'll need that add on thing for hte x-fi to get the spdif out. from there as long as you have somethin that can decode a digital signal either via optical toslink or analogue spdif then should work fine.

however using some quality 3.5mm cables fromt he anaolgue connections shoudl also do a decent job :)
 
yeah thinkin úber quality gold plated jobbys would be good, im really likin the look of 7.1 ya see :D, also less hassle than digital, and also whats point in digital as the speakers are connected via 'analogue' to the sub anyways :confused:

7.1 creative system with x-fi music tis, any more input from anyone before i splash down all that moolla? £$£$£
 
I want to be clear here. 7.1 is kinda gimmicky. Not everything support native 7.1, although the built in upmixer on the Gigaworks does a decent work.

I recommend the Gigaworks because I consider them better speakers than the Z-5500's predecessor, the Z-680. Not sure if the Z-5500 has improved much on the Z680 (someone on another thread mentioned they are still similar), and unless the Z-5500 improved the sats significantly, I would still recommend the 5.1 Gigaworks running through analogue.

On a side note, for music, unless you do DVD-A (that the X-Fi series support) or SACD, you won't get surround..... although popular players probably have an option/plug-in for virtual surround. So you -could- technically get as much 6 speakers + sub (I think the front speaker stays muted) working for music. Although of course, it is gravy. Higher fidelity? Nah, but nevertheless fun once in a while (actually, thats how I listen to music on my speakers, at other time, I just use stereo headphones).

Enjoy your new system ;)
 
TooNice said:
I want to be clear here. 7.1 is kinda gimmicky. Not everything support native 7.1, although the built in upmixer on the Gigaworks does a decent work.

I recommend the Gigaworks because I consider them better speakers than the Z-5500's predecessor, the Z-680. Not sure if the Z-5500 has improved much on the Z680 (someone on another thread mentioned they are still similar), and unless the Z-5500 improved the sats significantly, I would still recommend the 5.1 Gigaworks running through analogue.

On a side note, for music, unless you do DVD-A (that the X-Fi series support) or SACD, you won't get surround..... although popular players probably have an option/plug-in for virtual surround. So you -could- technically get as much 6 speakers + sub (I think the front speaker stays muted) working for music. Although of course, it is gravy. Higher fidelity? Nah, but nevertheless fun once in a while (actually, thats how I listen to music on my speakers, at other time, I just use stereo headphones).

Enjoy your new system ;)
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Cheers TooNice, some good info there, so yes I think ill go with creatives speakers and an X-FI music card, should be Schweeet :D Now can anyone recommend me some AMAZING 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio leads for it ? need to be very well shielded as well, thanks again :)
 
I was going to get the 5.1 gigaworks, but after reading some reviews I changed my mind. In reviews the 5.1 gigaworks did quite poorly in the sound tests and cant match the z-680/z-5500 for sound quality..
 
speedy2004 said:
I was going to get the 5.1 gigaworks, but after reading some reviews I changed my mind. In reviews the 5.1 gigaworks did quite poorly in the sound tests and cant match the z-680/z-5500 for sound quality..
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Hmm interesting again, all the reviews (of the 7.1 set mind) says give and take the creative -just- beats the z-680, but isnt on par with 5500 for music playback
 
Combat squirrel said:
Hmm interesting again, all the reviews (of the 7.1 set mind) says give and take the creative -just- beats the z-680, but isnt on par with 5500 for music playback
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Your right the gigaworks 7.1 has better sound quality then the 680/5500 cos the 7.1 has tweeters, With the 680/5500 theres no tweeters, but the 5500 can go louder then the gigaworks 7.1. People cant tell any diff in sound quality between the 680 and 5500, but the 5500 can go louder and has a few more features then the z-680

But speakers in the gigaworks 5.1 are different then the 7.1 version with no tweeters... Basically dont go for these if your after superb sound quality, go for the 7.1 version or the logitech z-680 or z-5500.
 
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Just one more question to anyone that owns the 7.1 creative system, how long is the cable from the sub to the sound card? I want to put the sub at least 3 or 4 feet away from my PC, are they long enough ?
 
no,, think there about 1.5meters. just buy 4 single "3.5mm stereo jack to stereo jack" 3 meter leads..

Oh yeah remember that the volume control lead isnt very long,, but you might be able to extend that with a PS2 extension lead
 
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doh yeah was thinking that, actually been looking into some very high quality 3.5mm to 3.5mm leads for better sound, found some in local music shop at a tenner a peice, 3 metre, gold plated and sheilded.

PS2 extension lead? that the same connector I assume as the control box?
 
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