Alternatives to Creative & Klipsch for PC 5.1?

[keflex]

Hey guys, I'm a newbie and I need help...

I did a search on the forum for a good set of PC speakers, and most people recommend either the Creative Megaworks 5.1 or Klipsch ProMedia Ultra 5.1.
Come to find out, both are discontinued models. Not impossible to find, but on further research, it seems like both of these speaker sets have a rather high failure rate. One of my questions is: is this inherent to PC speakers since they're self-powered?

Secondly, do you guys have any recommendations for alternatives to Creative & Klipsch for 5.1 PC sound? 5.1 isn't absolutely necessary, but I game quite a bit and enjoy watching the occasional movie. Good music reproduction would be a big plus, however, as all of my music is stored on my computer.

I'm looking to spend somewhere in the 400-500 price range and was considering getting a set of bookshelves w/ an amp and building a 5.1 from that, but since I'm still green when it comes to audio, I didn't want to get in over my head.

 

[spacemanspliff]

Actually, at the moment we are waiting on the Prelude soundcard for gaming and music.

Easy thing to do with that budget is to get a Panasonic XR-57 receiver and run optical out of your PC mobo for 2.1 or get Creatives 5.1 speaker cable thingy and plug it into the analogue of the receiver.

Cool thing is, the XR-57 has a good dac so when you run optical or coax in, it converts the sound into something quite decent sounding.

Think of the receiver as a giant soundcard which allows you to add any speakers YOU choose instead of being stuck with crappy "PC" speakers.

I like the USHER 520 speakers most atm. For the $$ they are really fine. They are a bit out of you price range though so you might want to shop Audigon for some decent used speakers. A pair of good full range speakers can be had for around $200-$250. Or you could get a bunch of little ones like the Paradigm atoms and add a sub.

 

[Joshatdot]

logitech z-5500, z-5300e

 

[poo]

I know there is alot here to read - but it will be worth your while I think...

http://theaudiocritic.com/blog/index...Id=37&blogId=1

 

[keflex]

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

Joshatdot: I was considering the z-5500s, but I'd read in a couple of the posts in this forum that pretty much any bookshelf and amp combo will blow that away. Also, some of the reviews on other forums seem to complain about longevity (same problem as the 2 other 5.1 systems I mentioned in my first post).

Poo: Would you happen to know if the Xbox 5.1s suffer from the same amp burnout problems as it seems so many other powered PC speaker systems do?

 

[ROBSCIX]

http://www.edifier.ca/products/s51/s51.html

 

[radio]

good is a relative term when it comes to audio.

what kind of sonic traits do you like from music?

 

[Amarok]

Have you checked out some of the major gaming web sites? They have tons of reviews of this kind of thing.
I use a pair of Razer Barracuda 5.1 phones and they do a pretty good job. I only use them for gaming, tho. Razer also has a sound card and a funky looking "Advanced Desktop Audio" system. Check out:
http://www.razerzone.com/index.php?m...dex&cPath=2_16

If you decide on any of this, please give a quick review of how they sound.

-=A=-

 

[spacemanspliff]

Actually, unless you are dead set on getting speakers. Get a pair of Darths. Otherwise, get whatever you want so long as it isn't branded "for gaming" b/c everything they make for that is cheap crap. If you are on a limited budget then fine but since you have a bit of cash spend it on something of quality which will last.