Would these be any significant upgrades?

[Phantom87]

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony

Have you heard the ProMedia 2.1s in person?

nah never heard them in person but from the dimensions and pics, i can tell the sub look big (although not as big as the logitech z-2300).

But active monitors do give something close to having a surround sound atmosphere I assume?

[infinitesymphony]

The sub on the ProMedias is kind of long, but dimensions don't really say anything about performance. Logitech's subwoofers sound pretty boomy, IMO.

Active monitors are just like regular bookshelf speakers in terms of dimensions and purpose, but they each have their own built-in amplifiers instead of having to be amplified by a separate amp (this is what makes them 'active,' rather than 'passive'). If your sound card / audio interface supports it, most active monitors can be run in a balanced configuration, which will improve noise rejection.

[Phantom87]

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony

The sub on the ProMedias is kind of long, but dimensions don't really say anything about performance. Logitech's subwoofers sound pretty boomy, IMO.

Active monitors are just like regular bookshelf speakers in terms of dimensions and purpose, but they each have their own built-in amplifiers instead of having to be amplified by a separate amp (this is what makes them 'active,' rather than 'passive'). If your sound card / audio interface supports it, most active monitors can be run in a balanced configuration, which will improve noise rejection.

How would i know if my sound card supports them? by the back panel having the blue, green and red port?

[infinitesymphony]

Most active monitors can also be run unbalanced, which is probably what your sound card outputs.

[Phantom87]

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony

Most active monitors can also be run unbalanced, which is probably what your sound card outputs.

oh wow. So it doesnt matter if the speakers are plugged from either the front panel(digital) or the back (analog)? there would still be a balance of output?

[infinitesymphony]

Originally Posted by Phantom87

oh wow. So it doesnt matter if the speakers are plugged from either the front panel(digital) or the back (analog)? there would still be a balance of output?

No, active speakers need analog input; you may want to read the Wikipedia article about balanced audio. "Balanced" in this case doesn't refer to analog, digital, panning, volume, or frequency balance. The benefit of balanced equipment is that it eliminates external interference, but since your sound card probably doesn't output balanced audio, it's not something you'll have to think about.

Most monitors these days have unbalanced RCA inputs in addition to balanced XLR and 1/4" jacks. If your sound card has a stereo 1/8" output for front left/right, you can get a 1/8" stereo to RCA y-adapter and use two RCA cables to connect the speakers.

[Phantom87]

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony

No, active speakers need analog input; you may want to read the Wikipedia article about balanced audio. "Balanced" in this case doesn't refer to analog, digital, panning, volume, or frequency balance. The benefit of balanced equipment is that it eliminates external interference, but since your sound card probably doesn't output balanced audio, it's not something you'll have to think about.

Most monitors these days have unbalanced RCA inputs in addition to balanced XLR and 1/4" jacks. If your sound card has a stereo 1/8" output for front left/right, you can get a 1/8" stereo to RCA y-adapter and use two RCA cables to connect the speakers.

wow, just learnt a whole new physics course right there lol.

So how would i know if my sound card supports balanced audio? i mean its meant to be a good thing i assume.
I kinda get the feeling (from reading the wiki) this has more to with recording music that listening to it.

Also, its best to connect the speakers through the RCA adapter and RCA y-adapter, or XLR and 1/4" jacks. If it is through the XLR... would that mean I need an adapter for my computer (it is has an on-board soundcard).

[infinitesymphony]

Originally Posted by Phantom87

wow, just learnt a whole new physics course right there lol.

So how would i know if my sound card supports balanced audio? i mean its meant to be a good thing i assume.
I kinda get the feeling (from reading the wiki) this has more to with recording music that listening to it.

Also, its best to connect the speakers through the RCA adapter and RCA y-adapter, or XLR and 1/4" jacks. If it is through the XLR... would that mean I need an adapter for my computer (it is has an on-board soundcard).

Balanced audio is a good thing, and it's mostly used for recording because it still hasn't caught on in consumer audio. No onboard sound solutions support balanced audio, and any cards that do support balanced audio advertise that feature. Onboard audio (and an internal sound card in general) usually has 1/8" unbalanced outputs, so you'll need to use the adapter to split the signal into separate left and right cables to run to each speaker.

[Phantom87]

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony

Balanced audio is a good thing, and it's mostly used for recording because it still hasn't caught on in consumer audio. No onboard sound solutions support balanced audio, and any cards that do support balanced audio advertise that feature. Onboard audio (and an internal sound card in general) usually has 1/8" unbalanced outputs, so you'll need to use the adapter to split the signal into separate left and right cables to run to each speaker.

oh nice. i was already think that my motherboard was outdated already.

So its safe to go with the active monitors plus i'm trying to avoid the big subwoofers with those computer speakers. So as long as the active monitors just have the signatures bass in the track then i'm cool. I'm not really for something overwhelming on the bass side of things.