Bookshelf Speakers?

Gilbert89

Gilbert89

Gilbert89

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Like most people I love my music and it deserves a decent set of speakers, Currently have a 5.1 System 80Watts I believe, 30 Sub 5x5w Speakers. Now these fill my room perfectly even 3/4 onto full they get the floor shaking the light fittings shaking and cupboards downstairs vibrating, On various songs they do lack the quality sound factor.

Hoping to get some bookshelf speakers for less clutter, better quality sound etc. These will be used through an iMac, and also wirelessly my query is do bookshelf speakers require an amp? If so how do I route that up to my computer Im sure it's pretty simple but Im by no means an expert in sound systems.

And last of all I wouldn't say I have a 'budget' but not wanting to go other the top, wanting a decent all rounder with some good bass, now what would I be looking at for an decent amp if required and also I will set a budget of 100-180 for some bookshelf speakers? No matter if slightly over I can obviously make a decision when I see the responses.

I will appreciate any helpful input.


Edit - Picture my room, Large Desk - Wood, Black Leather Chair, Piano Black Hd TV, iMac, MacBook Pro, Black Xbox, Black Sky HD..
Hopefully they will look pretty neat and fit in, but thats not a requirement.. Just maybe it could be taken into consideration!

 
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Most speakers will need an amp and getting the pc into the amp is as simple as getting a 3.5mm jack to RCA cable. Mordaunt Short do some nice bookshelf speakers in your price range, check out Richer Sounds.

I'm out of the loop on current amps and speakers, really. Hopefully someone more up to speed will be along with ideas.
 
Cutshaw said:
Most speakers will need an amp and getting the pc into the amp is as simple as getting a 3.5mm jack to RCA cable. Mordaunt Short do some nice bookshelf speakers in your price range, check out Richer Sounds.

I'm out of the loop on current amps and speakers, really. Hopefully someone more up to speed will be along with ideas.
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Thanks a lot for your response, ill keep an eye on this thread, but Ill definitely check Richer Sounds there is one not far from me.
 
Some decent bookshelf or stand mount speakers will provide much better sound quality than PC 2.1/5.1 speakers.

They will not have the quantity of bass you are used to with your 5.1 speakers, although what there is will be of much better quality.

PC speakers are crap for bass, at least if you are looking for any kind of quality. A lot of people get quality confused with quantity. For a fair number of people who are used to PC speakers with a subwoofer, it's about how much bass there is, not how good it is.

That's not to say that decent sized stand mount speakers, won't have sufficient bass. It really depends on the listener. Some people like bloated boomy bass, others prefer bass to be tighter and more musical. For people looking for the same quantity of bass, that PC 2.1/5.1 speakers provide, a subwoofer will be needed as well.

I remember some guy, quite a while back made a similar thread. He wanted to move to separate speakers, from his 2.1 PC speakers. After a few recommendations, he went to a local dealer and bought a pair of bookshelf speakers and a stereo integrated amplifier.

He was disappointed with his purchase, and said his £40 2.1 speakers sounded better. The superior sound quality of the separates went over his head, just because those smallish speakers could not put out the boomy bass he was used to from his 2.1 PC speakers.

I think he ended up buying a subwoofer as well. I don't think he was pleased having to spend the extra money on a subwoofer. Seems some people expect too much from smallish speakers, when it comes to bass.

Judging by your post, you are looking for that quantity of bass, from any speakers you end up buying. Would that be a correct assumption?

As Cutshaw said, most speakers need an amp. Well all do, otherwise there will be little to no volume. They need power to drive them. Even the ones that do not need a separate amp, have one built in. 2.1/5.1 PC speakers have the amp in the sub unit.

If you can get to your local RS, ask for a quick demo, just so you can get in idea of what sound you will get from reasonably sized speakers. You will get some idea of whether you will be looking to buy a subwoofer as well.
 
I couldn't agree more with Marsman! A good quality bookshelf/studio monitors gives you good quality sound and should have a flat response which means you don't get the "boomy" bass which rattles everything which in my opinion is horrible, but it might be exactly what your looking for! If this is the case then I suggest you stick to a 2.1 setup or add a sub to a pair of bookshelf speakers and use a crossover on an amp to adjust the (belive it or not) crossover between the sub and speakers. THis will allow you to have good quality highs and mids and a thumping ground shaking bass that you might be looking for!!!
 
Try to audition the Dali Zensor 1 speakers if you can. These have lots of detail and a very high quality sound. They also look good. The cost is £166 delivered. I think they beat all other speakers in their price range and many costing a lot more. Check out the reviews on Amazon and What Hifi? to see what i mean.

A 2020 T-amp will go well with the speakers. These are small amps with very high quality sound output. Perfect for a small room. They cost from £15 to £65.
 
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Just to add to Marsman's fantastic post, the amount of bass response you will get from your system is directly proportional to 2 things:

1: Power output of the amplifier.
2: Size of the Bass Driver Cone.

To get bass response nearing that of an integrated 2.1 PC set, you should be looking at an amp with a power output of at least 80 Watts, and a bass driver of at least 10"

I moved from a 7.1 creative inspire set a few years ago to a 50 watt amp and speakers with 5" cones. The bass response is not anywhere close to that of my old system(I've got next to nothing below 40Hz), but the clarity of the low frequencies blows anything that my old system could create out of the water. There's none of that horrible humming you get with subs.

BTW, what sound card are you using?
 
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http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SP-002-ML

Have you looked at these?
They don't require an amp and are specifically made for PCs.
I consider myself partly an audiophile, I've spent a hell of a lot of money on audio parts. And I would say these are bloody awesome, if it's bass you're looking for these have the ability to adjust bass and treble levels to your liking. They go up to a maxiumum of '60' volume, if I have my bass at neutral and put them up to 40 volume they start to rattle my windows, with no distortion, these go VERY loud and are brilliant.

I own a pair and they are ****ing awesome.

Also you could get these:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SP-008-ML&groupid=702&catid=22&subcat=719

Consider it and look at reviews online most people say they punch way above their value.
 
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The Microlab SOLO6C above are definitely not bass light, they have a very meaty sound with plenty of extension, but without the typical boominess you get with 2.1 systems. I'm not sure how they would compare to a decent bookshelf speaker with separate amp setup, but they definitely sound a step above every 2.1 speaker system I've heard, especially in the midrange.
 
reflux said:
Wharfedale Diamond 10.1s sound very good for the price (£160ish for 2).
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They do sound good. I managed to get 2nd hand ones for £85 inc delivery :)
Although with no EQ they sounded really strange. If you spend just a little time sorting an EQ for them then they sound really good. Plenty enough bass as well, and I listen to dubstep/dnb music.
 
Can someone explain to a noob what an amp is? I've always just plugged speakers into the green 3.5mm on the mobo/soundcard and can't imagine a situation where I'd need to do differently.
 
billysielu said:
Can someone explain to a noob what an amp is? I've always just plugged speakers into the green 3.5mm on the mobo/soundcard and can't imagine a situation where I'd need to do differently.
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Sound is vibrations, and for those larger cones on the speakers. It takes more power to push them, that's what an amp does, provides more power. Also some of them affect the sound too.
 
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