Need recommendation on good speakers and sound card for music and gaming

Bladerider1

Bladerider1

Bladerider1

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Hi All,
I am speccing a gaming PC which I will also use for software development. I will listen to music and was confused on the best sound card and graphics card.

For sound cards, I saw these two:

Creative Labs CB X-Fi

ASUS 7.1 STRIX RAID DLX PCIe gaming sound card set with an audiophile-grade DAC and 124dB SNR​


And for speakers;

www.overclockers.co.uk

Razer Nommo Pro Chroma THX Powered Full Range 2.1 Gaming Speakers for PC (RZ05-02470100-R3W1)

Order Razer Nommo Pro Chroma THX Powered Full Range 2.1 Gaming Speakers for PC (RZ05-02470100-R3W1) now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk
www.overclockers.co.uk

Razer Nommo Pro Chroma THX Powered Full Range 2.1 Gaming Speakers for PC (RZ05-02470100-R3W1)

Order Razer Nommo Pro Chroma THX Powered Full Range 2.1 Gaming Speakers for PC (RZ05-02470100-R3W1) now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk
www.overclockers.co.uk

Logitech Z906 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System - 500W RMS (980-000469)

Order Logitech Z906 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System - 500W RMS (980-000469) now online and benefit from fast delivery.
www.overclockers.co.uk www.overclockers.co.uk

Amazon reviews on Edifiers were mostly good but a lot of people mentioned build quality issues.
I am not sure which is best, some speakers are branded as for gaming, some branded for audiophile/general use. I guess budget for speakers be around £400.
 
There are a lot of options and it sounds like you need a good all round desktop speaker system. For your budget, I would avoid 2.1 and just get a good pair of desktop speakers, maybe an all in one solution, or otherwise.

Do you have any size constraints for the speakers? Ditch the gaming 'bling' speakers.

ELAC Debut ConneX DCB41
Q Acoustics M20
Ruark Audio MR1 MK2 (no USB connection which is a negative in my opinion)

All of the above are quality and do not need a soundcard or DAC as have it all internally.

Simplicity is key, in my opinion. If you want something geared to both music and gaming (not that it matters) I would buy the Q Acoustics M20. https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/q-acoustics-m20 https://www.qacoustics.co.uk/m20-bluetooth-speaker.html

If you want more bass, just add a little sub. :)
 
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Don't waste your money on the logitechs and similar speakers, you want proper standmount sized speakers and a good subwoofer.

How many sources do you have? If it's several then I'd recommend a AVR and speakers, as speakers like Edifers have limited connectivity.

ie if you have xbox, ps5, a laptop, a PC, CD player, audio streamer etc
 
The rule with audio gear, buy from companies that specialise in audio gear, and not computer mice!

I presume your listening in near field, I would be looking at studio monitors, Adam Audio come to mind, you do have the option to add a sub later on. You will need speaker cables, and speaker stands.

Over the sound card, I prefer at least something with proper RCA's on the rear. For music however an external DAC with XLR (balanced outputs), and connect them directly into the studio monitors. Look for something like the Topping EX5.

The above is a different path than what you originally listed, however it's a higher quality solution.

​

 
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Thanks guys. I did some research and the Q Acoustics keeps coming up anyway (with great reviews), so that is probably the one to get. 100w or so should be enough too, as this is just for an average bedroom. I can even add a sub to that. My only source is the PC and before that, i'd stream a song to it from a phone, for testing (current pc is dead).

I'm just checking out the Topping EX5. I was thinking one of the Creative Labs external sound cards.
 
The Q Acoustics are from a proper audio brand who make excellent products for the price point, plus they are marketed for exactly what you want. Music plus a little gaming. And they hit your price point.

They are what I would buy if I was in the market. In fact, I probably will buy them when I get my new desk.
 
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I just bought a pair of Kali LP-6 monitors and they are on a completely different level to any PC speakers I've ever used. Maybe a bit big for your use though!
 
hornetstinger said:
Don't waste your money on the logitechs and similar speakers, you want proper standmount sized speakers and a good subwoofer.

How many sources do you have? If it's several then I'd recommend a AVR and speakers, as speakers like Edifers have limited connectivity.

ie if you have xbox, ps5, a laptop, a PC, CD player, audio streamer etc
Click to expand...
100% this.

Get some proper studio monitors and a sub and it’ll last you decades and sound far better.

Logitech 5.1 blah are shoddy in comparison.

The Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2 are very well reviewed and not expensive.
 
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Some advantages with bi-amped studio monitors.

1) First off your bi-amped with electronic cross over so there is more headroom from the amplifiers.

2) The monitors normally have adjustments for the room, also things like attenuation of high frequencies. This is very important when setting up the speaker. I'm a software developer also and my monitors are attenuated -1db on high frequencies, that 1db is the difference between relaxing and edge of fatiguing, and no graphic replaces the audio switches on a studio monitor.

And setup including stands / isolation it's 50% of your sound quality, you make adjustment to studio monitor rear settings together with speaker placement.
 
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JasonM said:
Some advantages with bi-amped studio monitors.

1) First off your bi-amped with electronic cross over so there is more headroom from the amplifiers.

2) The monitors normally have adjustments for the room, also things like attenuation of high frequencies. This is very important when setting up the speaker. I'm a software developer also and my monitors are attenuated -1db on high frequencies, that 1db is the difference between relaxing and edge of fatiguing, and no graphic replaces the audio switches on a studio monitor.

And setup including stands / isolation it's 50% of your sound quality, you make adjustment to studio monitor rear settings together with speaker placement.
Click to expand...

Disadvantages

Limited connectivity. Can't add lots of extra sources like hdmi , RCA, optical, coaxial. No active speaker has connectivity of a avr/av pre. Can't update hdmi spec if it has hdmi input .ie update from arc to e-arc.
Can't replace with more powerful better quality amplifiers. Or change technology ie class a, ab, d etc
If the amp fails you have a useless speaker, need expensive plate amp and that's if it's available.
Require power socket per speaker
Need audio cable to each speaker or to master speaker rather than avr to act as the hub
Replacing or upgrading the speaker pair means more expensive active speaker rather than keeping the amplifier electronics to the next speaker upgrade.
 
I’m a little late to the forum but I would have suggested the Kanto YU6 speakers. A few retailers have them on sale within your budget. But to be fair, the M20’s are a good solid choice too!
 
Ok cool, guess that's a limitation in the ELACs. I did see the M20s at a shop the other day but I wasn't impressed. However, I played via Bluetooth and found my phone was limiting the volume (fixed now). I will try again, played a YouTube music vid.
 
Bladerider1 said:
Ok cool, guess that's a limitation in the ELACs. I did see the M20s at a shop the other day but I wasn't impressed. However, I played via Bluetooth and found my phone was limiting the volume (fixed now). I will try again, played a YouTube music vid.
Click to expand...

Good reason to buy passives, with actives you're stuck with limitations of the plate amp / DAC.
 
Yeah except as someone not experienced in audio stuff, I didn't want to get into the amp/DAC route. I'm sure the M20s will satisfy me when I check them out again (a few shops not far from me have them available for demo).
 
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