I'll soon be moving into a new apartment on the top floor so I will need to change my existing sound system so I don't annoy the people below with the loud bass.
I am looking for a 2.0 setup, with the speakers sat on the desk along with an amp that could drive the speakers, and if possible allow me to plug headphones directly into the amp.
I'm not looking to spend a fortune, but looking at the mid-range. Any recommendations?
Thanks!
I’d personally suggest just getting some active speakers like the Edifier range. If you want the option of a subwoofer later, get the 1850DB, otherwise save and get the cheaper model without the subwoofer out. They are amazing and honestly blow me away and give me a very decent bass response without a sub. Build quality is top notch and it comes with a remote. Also has bluetooth.
I’d get a separate headphone amp/DAC personally. JDS atom amp is the best reviewed amp under 100. Any DAC will do IMO and you can probably afford not to use a DAC to begin with and see if you are satisfied by the sound. I think getting a nice solid DAC and amp is good if ur serious and know u like sound because its an investment for the future and given ur in an apartment.. I feel ur headphones will get more use than ur speakers.
If you are after a headphone, open backs are amazing. Your options are IMO AKG 702, Fidelio X2, Beyerdynamic DT990 and AKG 712 in this price range.
The AKG 712 IMO is the best of the 4, having a very open sound signature, slightly elevated bass which doesn’t get in the way of gaming or produce any booming sounds, has a detachable cable unlike the Beyers etc. They are also the most expensive though. Beyers have a spike in them which some ppl hates and if sensitive to sibilance will be annoying.. the lack of detachable cable is a big annoyance imo.
The fidelio x2 are the lower impedance headphone so easier to run off of anything but it simply doesn’t review as well as the 712. It seems to have a more fun sound signature but really does bass well but leaves a bit to be desired everywhere else. X3 coming out soon too so I’d personally hold fire unless u really need the lower impedance.
P.S. I have AKG 712 for sale on the members market lol. I can say they are sublime. Transform music. And perfect for gaming. And I find using a DAC/amp with them improves the sound a lot. Ive seen some really good EQs for them too. It’s the only headphone I’ve owned which has blown ppl away.. all my other headphones ppl just look at me like I’m weird and throwing money away.
If you want to go for passive speakers, get the SMSL DAC/amp thing with the remote and buy some mission XLS speakers. I always find them cheap on eBay for some reason. There was also a deal recently on some JBLs for like 49 quid which are excellent near field speakers too.
I’d personally edge towards an active pair tho. I feel for PC, you really want some form of simplicity and that’s what active speakers provide you with. You’re not going to be driving them very hard as at the end of the day, they will be close to you and if you’re just using them for YouTube and music, you don’t need them to be at critical levels. Also the option for Bluetooth on active speakers which works seemlessly can’t be under estimated imo.
Decide how ur gonna split ur budget tho.. given ur headphones are for gaming and speakers just for music and YouTube.. correct me if I’m wrong but I feel like u can probably veer more towards dedicating more money to the headphones and less to the speakers. I think speakers quickly hit a wall of diminishing returns when ur playing YouTube stuff and casual music...
Like speakers can only be so good when I’m playing Linus tech tips on them lol.
whilst headphones really do improve the quality of sound from a game and obviously play with a much huge dynamic range of content... so the difference between a 50 quid set of headphones and 175 I’ve found quite high./
If u like IEMs, get some BLON 03s and mod them (30)
If u wanna save lots of money, u could just buy some KSC 75 headphones.. they are ok. Not a touch near the open backs imo for gaming but they give a really nice sound. (20)
Koss Portia pros are a nice headphone too (30)
If I were u, I’d get:
Edifier 1280T/DB
AKG 712 (open and beautiful) Or AKG 702
Atom (clean and very very well measured)
DAC (cheap one.. I think below 100 a DAC is a DAC lol)
If u don’t mind used.. as I said I’m selling them. If u want new, u can downgrade to the AKG 702 and you will just lose bass (I feel that loss is hard to take) but meh.
