[ayz]

M-audio BX5a or BX8a

 

[Qonmus]

I was in the same situation a few months ago, and I went with an integrated + passive speakers. Honestly wish I had just gone with some actives and been done with it. An integrated is nice as a headphone amp as well though, so that needs to be considered.

My friend has the A5s and I really like them.

 

[ROBSCIX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kawai_man /img/forum/go_quote.gif Id really recommend going the active speakers route its the most simple and will usually be much better than a passive counterpart in the same price range, if you google look up passive vs active speakers you will find that everyone whos tried active speakers raves about how much better they are. I just went to guitar center yesterday and I listened to all the their speakers under 400 and the two nicest sounding ones were the mackies mr5 and a JBL set which I cant remember the model name , I also tried some krks rockits once again I forgot the exact model they were like 500 and those sounded awesome too.

Wait, wait... So you're saying that an active set of speaker will be much better then a passive set at the same price range? How do you figure that?
The passive set isn't using a built in amplifer so can the company can use that money elsewhere in the design. Unless you meant to say the exact opposite?
I have both active and passive monitors and both have their positives and negatives.

 

[bumbabeef]

If you have the space and money I would go with a receiver and passive speakers. If not active speakers like Audioengines A5s or Swans M200miii.

 

[Kawai_man]

...

 

[Hansen]

I have heard wonderful things about the new Swan M200MKiii ($400).

I went for the cheaper Swan D1080MKii 08 ($159) which I like very much. I have them on my desktop table. Sooner or later I plan to buy a sub for them.

 

[bumbabeef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hansen /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have heard wonderful things about the new Swan M200MKiii ($400). I went for the cheaper Swan D1080MKii 08 ($159) which I like very much. I have them on my desktop table. Sooner or later I plan to buy a sub for them.

I wanted the Swan D1080mkii 08 but they were out of stock till mid may. Im impatient so I got the m200mkiii which should be arriving today. Ill post some reviews when I have time.

 

[bixby]

You'll get lots of opinions on speakers that's for sure. I agree with Robscix. You will find lots of actives in your price range but many are not even close to sounding flat or accurate. And many have no bass to speak of. Then you have to add a sub, hope it integrates well, have the room for it and also pay extra for most of what you could be getting in a good passive bookshelf.

I have listened to all the usual suspects at the Guitar center as well at length and could probably only live with the Dynaudio BM5a but I think they are about double your budget. The lower end audiophile powered monitors do not take into account shelf effect and most folks place them on or just slightly above the level of their desks. They will not sound too accurate there rather mushy in the low end.

I've owned small Swans and spent enough time with the Audioengines to realize they are not very accurate.

If you can stand the profile, a good bookshelf pair in the $350 or so range with a decent integrated amp or receiver would be a very good way to start for $500. The Energy suggestion is a good one as is PSB. They are about as flat as you can find for the money. And they sound great nearfield.

Don't get too hung up on whether a speaker is designed for nearfield or not. What you want is a flat speaker with good dispersion and get it off the desk by about 6 inches.

My dream speaker for desktop use would be the Focal CMS 65. Here is a fantastic active speaker with very good balance.

Good luck with whatever you get, but be sure to get out there and listen to some stuff, it makes all the difference in the world.

 

[digitor]

^ Thanks everyone for your 2 cents ,especially, Rob, Kawai and Bixby for their indepth analysis.

This make things all the more interesting for me (Active Vs Passive dilemma). Although, I live in a shoe-box so that might be the deciding factor.

 

[digitor]

Quote:

Originally Posted by a_recording /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey digitor, before you go and get the A5's, consider the Aktimate Mini's! They are made in Australia and are a similar sort of setup to the A5's. While I couldn't find many direct comparisons between the two, I got a pair and I'm ecstatic with them. The reviews for them are as overwhelmingly positive. You can audition them at a store in the city, Mini Hi Fi Systems | Home Stereo Systems - Sydney, Australia | The Mini Hifi Room. (Tell Charles Lachlan referred you ) As for the A5's they can be listened to and purchased at a Next Byte store in Rushcutter's bay. I never got a chance to actually go and see them though.

^ ta mate, I had my eyes on Akimate's when I did all my research but they were about $650 then. The website you recommended has em listed for $500 on a special which makes a visit to the store a must.

 

[a_recording]

Quote:

Originally Posted by digitor /img/forum/go_quote.gif ^ ta mate, I had my eyes on Akimate's when I did all my research but they were about $650 then. The website you recommended has em listed for $500 on a special which makes a visit to the store a must.

Oh, thats actually the special price for the red display unit (the one I auditioned!

) But, I did manage to buy a new unit at $550, which was a pretty good price IMO.

 

[ROBSCIX]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kawai_man /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yea, some of the reasons actives are better are 1. They have active crossovers which are superior to passive crossovers, passive crossovers no matter how good will always suck some of the clarity an sound from a speaker, in an active crossover each driver has their own amp driving them. 2. The amps in an active speaker are matched specifically to the speaker 3. The amp is as close as possible to the speaker elimanating the need for pricey speaker cables. btw dont confuse active speakers with regular powered speakers , active speakers have active crossovers and each driver has their own amp, while regular powered speaker are just regular speakers with an amp attached. The only negatives to me are that most of the active speakers are made for mixing and music production, so they have to have flat frequency response to output the most accurate representation of the sound and this might not be the best for just listening to music. Another negative is that active speakers cant be used with tube amps.

Ah, OK I see your point. I find some around here use active and powered speakers interchangably. I have both active monitors that I use for recording, mixing/mastering and I have a pair of passive speakers that I drive with an amplifer.
What I was getting at is if you buy a pair of "powered" speakers and compare them to a set of passives on the same price range. You would think the passives would be better as more money was dedicated to their construsiton and driver choices. Where as with a powered system, money has to be used for the built in amplifer so this can impact on the drivers and construction quality.

 

[Jubei]

Quote:

Originally Posted by talkingabout /img/forum/go_quote.gif I love this Focal XS Satellite Speakers very much though it is a little expensive.. It looks really cool. img of it.

I saw those at a store and they look sweet .... but those are ridiculous prices to pay.

 

[ROBSCIX]

Auzentech has a decent sounding set of Monitors with a built in high quality DAC. Have a look here: Blow5D Monitors Not sure if the OP made up his mind yet.
I still sugegst passives as they do allow more upgrade options, such as adding more channles down the road or using a different amplifier or receiver. There are ways to use actives and passive in the same system but you may get issue with synergy.

 

[roker]

NHT M-00

unbelievable sound for the price.