Recommend some good 2.1 PC speakers?

NeilF · 9 Mar 2022 at 14:00

NeilF said:
Well, all I can say as a reference, is my little (now dead) 2.1 (actually 4.1) unit sounds fine in the room to my ear, for its purpose

At the moment the only unit that seems sensible pricewise/spec wise is that Wavemaster Moody. The more expensive Logitechs seems to offer no improvement in sound from what I can see and indeed seem to offer issues like unwanted autosleep modes and beeping.

The only other small dedicated unit seems to be the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1, but at well over £200 not really worth it. Plus the Wavemaster as the stand alone volume controller you can put in a user friendly location.

Ahhh... The Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers actually are under £200, and also do have a detachable volume controller which can be placed in a more conventient location - https://www.klipsch.co.uk/products/promedia-2-1-bluetooth

Hmmm... :cool:

EDIT: A lot of users complain of a buzz from the sub.

JasonM · 10 Mar 2022 at 14:46

NeilF said:
Ahhh... The Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 speakers actually are under £200, and also do have a detachable volume controller which can be placed in a more conventient location - https://www.klipsch.co.uk/products/promedia-2-1-bluetooth

Hmmm...

EDIT: A lot of users complain of a buzz from the sub.

They have quite poor THD also

Satellites: 18 watts/channel continuous @ <0.2% THD, 1kHz 26 watts/channel short-term power @ <5% THD, 1kHz Subwoofer: 65 watts continuous @ <0.2% THD, 50 Hz 80 watts short-term power @ <5% THD, 50Hz

2 big red flags if the speakers are good, they only have a 3.5mm mini plug (no proper RCA's), second the satellite speakers are plastic (not wood).

You should honestly get something better.

mattyfez · 12 Mar 2022 at 15:35

Probably been mentioned but do you really need a sub?
A good quality 2.0 set up can sound very good indeed, especially if it's a small room and not a nightclub lol.

NeilF · 12 Mar 2022 at 16:54

mattyfez said:
Probably been mentioned but do you really need a sub?
A good quality 2.0 set up can sound very good indeed, especially if it's a small room and not a nightclub lol.

Well, my gutt feel is yes... Having had and not had subs on various audio setups, I like what it brings to the ~~table~~ ears

hornetstinger · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:18

NeilF said:
Well, my gutt feel is yes... Having had and not had subs on various audio setups, I like what it brings to the ~~table~~ ears

You shouldn't be able to hear the subs.

Most subs with the ones you're looking at are fart boxes.

mattyfez · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:36

Yeh, a sub needs to blend into existing speakers to provide a low frequency compliment.
A lot of 2.1 systems where the mids and higher frequency is handled by a tinny small stereo pair and an 8 inch woofer is always going to sound unbalanced.

Let's not forget the unsung hero's that are mid range speakers/two way speakers.

hornetstinger · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:45

mattyfez said:
Yeh, a sub needs to blend into existing speakers to provide a low frequency compliment.
A lot of 2.1 systems where the mids and higher frequency is handled by a tinny small stereo pair and an 8 inch woofer is always going to sound unbalanced.

Let's not forget the unsung hero's that are mid range speakers/two way speakers.

I'd rather have good pair of decent sized standmounts than a 2.1 with fartwoofer box.

I've just bought some high end subs. 2000w amplifier in each

NeilF · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:46

hornetstinger said:
You shouldn't be able to hear the subs.

Most subs with the ones you're looking at are fart boxes.

Shouldn't be able to hear the sub? What's the point of it then?

From my understanding it fills in typically the 20-200ish hz range where normal speakers tend to struggle to produce audio. ie: If I turn my sub off on any of my units, I'll hear the difference given the appropriate audio playing.

NeilF · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:47

hornetstinger said:
I'd rather have good pair of decent sized standmounts than a 2.1 with fartwoofer box.

I've just bought some high end subs. 2000w amplifier in each

Good for you

For my requirements, I suspect I'll be happy with a good set of reasonable speakers for sub £200... And I suspect from previous experience, a sub in the mix will help.

hornetstinger · 12 Mar 2022 at 17:49

NeilF said:
Good for you

For my requirements, I suspect I'll be happy with a good set of reasonable speakers for sub £200... And I suspect from previous experience, a sub in the mix will help.

Wharfedale diamond 9.0, sw-150 subwoofer

mattyfez · 12 Mar 2022 at 18:01

NeilF said:
Shouldn't be able to hear the sub? What's the point of it then?

From my understanding it fills in typically the 20-200ish hz range where normal speakers tend to struggle to produce audio. ie: If I turn my sub off on any of my units, I'll hear the difference given the appropriate audio playing.

No, subwoofers are 'complimentary reinforcement' if you can tell you have a sub just by listening, you've set it up wrong.

Your mids should be good to lows above about 150hz.
It's called sub bass for a reason

hornetstinger · 12 Mar 2022 at 18:26

Subs are usually for frequencies between 10hz-120hz. I've set mine to 80hz

Subs playing to 200hz is too high that's where speakers should be playing

Look at speakers that go down to 80hz

hornetstinger · 12 Mar 2022 at 18:59

That isn't a subwoofer, this is a subwoofer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmYWjoW-qjE

mattyfez · 13 Mar 2022 at 00:18

I think you are failing to see the point.
Or more precisely, failing to listen.

NeilF · 13 Mar 2022 at 08:29

hornetstinger said:
Wharfedale diamond 9.0, sw-150 subwoofer

Understood, and I suspect it will sound very good.

But the issues against my tick boxes/order of requirements it puts crossed on are:
- Going to cost well over £200
- The speakers are large for my study desk.
- The woofer is large for my study floor.

My list and of importance has practicality and cost right towards the top of the list...

Hence why standard PC speaker packages are looking to be the best option. It's simply choosing one that ticks the boxes.

hornetstinger · 13 Mar 2022 at 09:52

Go to richer sounds ask for demo after listening to pc pap from big pc retailer store

NeilF · 13 Mar 2022 at 11:11

hornetstinger said:
Go to richer sounds ask for demo after listening to pc pap from big pc retailer store

I can play audio thru my existing (pap?) Cambridge Soundworks system or through my current Home Theatre setup (while its working), or used to be able to play it through my beloved Sony micro hifi system (in my study) before that unfortunately died.

I'm aware of the difference in (perceived) audio quality/nature... But, given my list of requirements, dedicated hifi bookshelf speakers and the like are just not going to tick (size) my boxes I fear, which leaves by the looks of it only dedicated PC speaker solutions being small enough.

JasonM · 13 Mar 2022 at 18:57

mattyfez said:
Probably been mentioned but do you really need a sub?
A good quality 2.0 set up can sound very good indeed, especially if it's a small room and not a nightclub lol.

In a small'ish room, a pair of good 2.0 is plenty.

My post #31 where I go from Edifier 2.1 with uprated Yamaha satellites, to Prodipe studio monitors. On paper my Prodipes only go to 55Hz bit listening in near field (3 foot from each speaker) it's totally fine, also thought they say 55Hz. I was listening to Cole Cox Ibiza / Boiler room session today, sounds good. If not for speaker isolation foam the desk would be vibrating, plenty of low end.

And the crazy thing the Prodipes are only around £30 more then the £200 junk the OP is wanting to buy.

http://www.prodipe.co.uk/studio-monitors/2111-pro-5-v3.html

If the Prodipes were poor I would not keep banging on about them, but there exceptional for the money they cost. As said previous they are proper entry level studio grade monitors.

hornetstinger said:
You shouldn't be able to hear the subs.

Most subs with the ones you're looking at are fart boxes.

This is 100% correct, the sound should be perceived from the main speakers only, the sub is just there for support and only noticed once it's absent

NeilF · 13 Mar 2022 at 19:09

JasonM said:
In a small'ish room, a pair of good 2.0 is plenty.

My post #31 where I go from Edifier 2.1 with uprated Yamaha satellites, to Prodipe studio monitors. On paper my Prodipes only go to 55Hz bit listening in near field (3 foot from each speaker) it's totally fine, also thought they say 55Hz. I was listening to Cole Cox Ibiza / Boiler room session today, sounds good. If not for speaker isolation foam the desk would be vibrating, plenty of low end.

And the crazy thing the Prodipes are only around £30 more then the £200 junk the OP is wanting to buy.

http://www.prodipe.co.uk/studio-monitors/2111-pro-5-v3.html

If the Prodipes were poor I would not keep banging on about them, but there exceptional for the money they cost. As said previous they are proper entry level studio grade monitors.

No doubt very impressive, but unfortunately too big for my requirements, and 2x the price of some of the "junk I'm wanting to buy".

JasonM · 13 Mar 2022 at 19:29

NeilF said:
No doubt very impressive, but unfortunately too big for my requirements, and 2x the price of some of the "junk I'm wanting to buy".

Sorry about that, I though you going to spend £200 on the ones you mentioned before.

I still think your better with something even like these Edifiers below, are you that limited on space you can't fit these on? These Edifiers will have a reasonable sound, and some mid range for vocals.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/edifier-studio-r1280t-2.0-42w-rms-speakers-maple-sp-020-er.html