[shonor6]

So I picked the A2's for around $200 earlier today. They generally do have a nice sound and detail. The high's and mid's are very nice, but the bass makes the experience more "messy". It feels like from time to time it kind of "washes" the mids and highs and lowers their clarity. No complains about the quantity of the bass BTW. So anyway, what are my options? If buying an amplifier is required I would not like to spend a lot of money. I can return them within 30 days BTW. So lastly, will that weak spot of the A2's improve once they break in a bit?
 
Thanks.

 

[OJNeg]

The A2 are powered speakers, correct? You can't really use a separate amplifier in that case.
 
From what I can tell, the A2 use a relatively small woofer in a relatively small cabinet, meaning you're not going to get perfect bass extension by a long shot. I'd say give 'em a week or so and you'll probably get used to the sound. If not, do a little EQing to tame the low-end.
 

 

[proton007]

You can try using a sub-woofer.

 

[shonor6]

My first question would be how do I equalize?
 
And about the Sub - My old speakers are the Logitech X-540 and I have their sub, but how do I connect it to the speakers? The only connections available on the speaker are White (says Left) and Red (says Right). My subwoofer has the following connections: http://goo.gl/OsWWR
 
Thanks.

 

[proton007]

You can use a crossover to send the mids/highs to the audio engines and the lows to the sub.
A simpler way is to just split the line out between the sub-in and your monitors. But that means there will be a frequency overlap between your sub and the monitors.
My knowledge in crossovers is limited, but from fellow head-fiers, I know you can get a crossover for about ~150. I think Behringer makes them, maybe other brands as well.

 

[trog]

Well for $200ish i would really add in a 10" sub into the mix

 
Dayton Sub-1000 $99
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-628
 
Dayton DTA-100A $89
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-383&FTR=dta-100a
 
Dayton B652 $30
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-652

 

[ishmael]

Check your placement. Those are kind of limited in their quality anyway but putting them up against a side or rear wall will make it worse. Ideally you want them up off the desk on some type of stand. That gets them closer to ear level and it helps reduce reflections off the desk. I've used shoe boxes as cheap stands with good results. 

 

[Radio_head]

Placement and mopads should help alleviate most of the issues, but won't make the A2's something they're not.

 

[Olias of Sunhillow]

Quote:

Placement and mopads should help alleviate most of the issues, but won't make the A2's something they're not.

 
Agreed. I find the A2s to be excellent near-field monitors at low to medium listening levels. When you turn them up past about 60% and try to use them to fill a room, their weaknesses become apparent pretty quickly.

 

[tzjin]

Can he send the signal through a sub's crossover before reaching the A2's?
 
I would suggest picking up a new set of passive speakers and adding on a cheap amp such as a Lepai or Topping.

 

[trog]

Quote:

Can he send the signal through a sub's crossover before reaching the A2's?
 
I would suggest picking up a new set of passive speakers and adding on a cheap amp such as a Lepai or Topping.

+1 wouldn't have gone with the A2s in the 1st place

 

[shonor6]

Which other configs would you suggest? I do have a return policy.
 

 

[tzjin]

Quote:

Which other configs would you suggest? I do have a return policy.
 

 
Lepai or Topping amp from Parts Express + ~$100 speaker from Amazon or a vintage one you can buy locally. Later on, you can add a sub to the mix as well.

 

[shonor6]

Would it be a good idea to buy the Audioengine P4 which are passive speakers (cost $250), and then buy the cheapest amplifier I could find? Thus in the future I could upgrade to a more expensive amp when I feel like the budget allows it.
 
If the idea sounds good, how much does an affordable amp cost, and which is recommended?
 
Thanks again.
 

 

[tzjin]

The Lepai TA2020 is under $30. Topping makes a few good amps, as does Dayton. There are better speakers than the P4 in that price range. For example, the Energy RC10.