[geepondy]

A Soundblaster Audigy, I think the first one. You're right, my headphones sound much better thru the soundcard line out jack then then do thru the Promedia speaker headphone out jack. If I keep these speakers then I'm to have to look and see if there is some sort of splitter I can use from the sound card line out to either go to the headphones or speakers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veniogenesis Hmm, if you're not satisfied with the Promedia 2.0's, my suggestion would be to return them. I would strongly advise against externally amping the headphone out of the speakers. The headphone out already has an internal amp... a poor one at best. Amping it would only decrease the sound quality even more. Getting a nice soundcard can do wonders to your system both ways (you'll want a nice soundcard if you go the headphone upgrade path or the speakers path). What soundcard are you currently using?

 

[angler31337]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aman Don't buy computer speakers. They all suck. End of discussion.

Just to clarify, I assume that by "computer speakers" you are referring to those sets of 2 satellites + wallwart speakers. Most of the ProMedia line is well powered and produces audiophile grade sound...

Quote:

Originally Posted by geepondy I almost went for the promedia's 2.1 but the satellite although not huge is a bit big for me.

The 2.0 and 2.1 are entirely different creatures. Not even in the same league, imho. The 2.0 is basically Klipsch's attempt to be accessible to the mass market and is not their best offering. The 2.1's are very nice and if you get 2 sets of 2.1's, well then you've got yourself a 4.2 and have a setup that would make most bassheads drool. (Bass out of the dedicated ProMedia subwoofer is quite good: punchy but not tight, and pretty well extended for the price.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veniogenesis Hmm, if you're not satisfied with the Promedia 2.0's, my suggestion would be to return them. I would strongly advise against externally amping the headphone out of the speakers.

All Klipsch speakers have significant burn-in periods, so I'd audition them for at least a week or two before you return them. I agree completely that using the 2.0 headphone out is probably not the best idea, but the headphone out on the 2.1/4.1/5.1 is actually pretty good (clean, strong, etc). Do note that it runs quite hot (as one might expect) and gets along better with high impedance headphones.

-Angler

 

[Aman]

Quote:

Just to clarify, I assume that by "computer speakers" you are referring to those sets of 2 satellites + wallwart speakers. Most of the ProMedia line is well powered and produces audiophile grade sound...

Umm... no they don't.

Unless you think that screechy highs and absent mids with an incredibly over-run subwoofer is 'audiophile grade'.

Those systems are not designed to sound good with the separate components i.e. satelite speakers with the subwoofer. They are designed to be as cheap as possible while still making a large profit. The subwoofers in these systems in no way are matched to the speakers they are both driving and providing the bass for, and 'audiophile grade' sound never comes outside of a computer anyway, regardless of the speakers the sound is output to! (Unless, of course, your soundcard is of the music production type - and neither his nor yours is).

Conventional soundcards already suffer from a lack of midrange and terrible highs - why heighten this characteristic any more?

 

[geepondy]

Aman what sound card do you recommend?
Angler, can I burn in the speakers at lower volumes without cranking them too high? I would leave them on while going to work.

 

[warpdriver]

Don't use the headphone jack out of your Promedias.

As for what you should do, you have to decide where you want to spend your money. I personally do not want to spend too much on the computer speakers. As long as I can hear the beep when my email comes, I'm pretty happy. For best sound, drop your money into your headphones, soundcard and amp. The Promedia 2.0 is one of the better $100 systems out there (which by itself isn't saying much), but it sounds pretty decent compared to most sub/sat junk out there. But there's only so much you can do with tiny 2.5 inch drivers!

If you want better sound through speakers, the Swans would be the next best thing but you are getting upwards to $200 and they are a lot larger. I suggest even bypassing the Swans and getting a compact bookshelf llike I linked above and an outboard integreted amp (Super T-Amp or Teac A1-D) that would provide even better sound.

The absolute cheapest way to improve the sound quality over onboard soundcard is to buy a Turtle Beach Audio Advantage and plug your headphones directly into that. You can add an amp for better dynamics.

For an internal soundcard, the Chantech AV-710 is most mentioned as a common way to start), paired with a cheap Cmoy amp will give you the juice to power HD580's adequately.

Next up would be the Emu-0404 ($100), which is a starting point for very high quality sound. This soundcard is preferable to the comparably priced M-Audio Audiophile IMHO.

Paired with a good headphone amp such as a Headfive/Aria/GilmoreLite/Micro amp, this is probably the starting point for audiophile quality sound.

Keep in mind that I have no idea if you want a card good for gaming. For that, SoundBlaster is the way to go in terms of compatibility.

 

[angler31337]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aman Umm... no they don't. Unless you think that screechy highs and absent mids with an incredibly over-run subwoofer is 'audiophile grade'. Those systems are not designed to sound good with the separate components i.e. satelite speakers with the subwoofer. They are designed to be as cheap as possible while still making a large profit. The subwoofers in these systems in no way are matched to the speakers they are both driving and providing the bass for, and 'audiophile grade' sound never comes outside of a computer anyway, regardless of the speakers the sound is output to! (Unless, of course, your soundcard is of the music production type - and neither his nor yours is).

Wow: I'm not accustomed to such rude responses on head-fi. This is disappointing, to say the least.

For a second I thought that you were making an informed opinion based on either (1) personal experience or (2) technical data which I might ask you to produce. Upon closer examination, however, it would seem that you're producing more of a knee-jerk reaction based on little more than your own abrasive opinions. (Sorry, I'm grouchy tonight.) To be fair, let’s look at this objectively.

I've owned and auditioned a lot of Klipsch products in my days, and I've never had any experience even remotely comparable to the one you've so eloquently explained I should have had. How could my own and extended experience be so egregiously at ends with your assertions? I can only vouch for my own credibility on this topic (as I have previously done), leaving me with two possible explanations of the paradox: (1) you've yourself listened closely and extendedly to these products and it just so happens that our well informed opinions are diametrically opposed, or (2) you're full of hot air. As an indication of good will, I'll choose to believe the former.

-Angler

 

[Kwisatz]

Aman was a bit on the curt side, but what he said in this case is ultimately true - if not a wee bit exaggerated. The Klipsch promedia line is not audiophile in nature outside of the "multimedia" lines of speakers. The promedia's hold favorably within their own subset of multimedia / computer speakers, but once you cross the line into good passive speakers and powered monitors, they simply can't be considered anything close to "audiophile" grade. The overall sound of the satellites is thin, and the sub compensates with a detached boom. I've owned the 4.1's, so I'm not just saying this as a generic catch all either. I'll give them credit in that they're convenient, cheap, and do good for games / movies where you want a "boom" factor, but when it comes to music you're better served with a "real" speaker setup.

 

[egglick]

I don't think anybody expects a set of $100-300 multimedia speakers to compare with separate home theater components that can cost upwards of $1000 each. If you're going for the absolute "best" sound, then you should run your digital out to an amp/receiver powering one of those setups. I don't think that's what the thread originator had in mind though.


In my experience, the best 2.1 "computer" systems would be the Logitech Z-2300 and the Klipsch Promedia 2.1's. The Z-2300's are very impressive for the price (~100), especially bass-wise, but don't have separate tweeters like the Klipsch's. The Promedia 2.1s will typically cost you about $50 more. Stay away from the Ultra 2.0's or any GMX series Klipsch speaker, as they are of lower quality. I've also heard alot of good things about the Swans M200 speaker set, but I haven't personally listened to them. The Swans appear to be approaching the realm of higher end studio monitors, used for audio recording setups. There's nothing at all wrong with using high end studio monitors for speakers (I might have gone that route, given the choice again), but you won't have a sub unless you add a separate powered one ($$$$).

I can say that the headphone jack on my Promedia 5.1 Ultra's isn't that great, so you'll probably want to bypass the headphone jack on any computer speakers.

 

[angler31337]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwisatz Aman was a bit on the curt side, but what he said in this case is ultimately true - if not a wee bit exaggerated.

I think that was more than curt, but maybe I'm just sensitive. Certainly, I agree implicitly that the ProMedias are not very good when compared to a well constructed, top-of-the-line multi-thousand dollar rig: there's no question.

I guess egglick and I sort of agree on the point that one needs to compare these speakers to competitors within their own price bracket. In that sense, I think they excel. To draw an analogy, I think the SR-225 are great quality, headphones--but they don't stand a chance when compared to RS-1's. I'm not willing to condemn the SR-225 to the category of sub-audiophile sound quality, just because there's something better for three times its cost.

The 2.1/4.2/5.1's are certainly cheap by audiophile standards, but are well-built, designed with sound quality in mind, and stand out among their contemporaries; I politely stand by my initial assertion.

-Angler

 

[enoch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warpdriver I have the Klipsch Promedia 2.0 and it's fine for the price. The response is actually quite flat down to about 90Hz (+/-dB) where it starts to roll off. I just like the fact that they don't take up much space. My serious listening is done with headphones If you can spend a bit more, I'd recommend a set of compact bookshelf speakers like Energy C-50 (less than $150) and an T-amp. Or get a cheap integrated like the Teac A1-D.

Really good idea. And good recommendatin too.

 

[geepondy]

These Klipsch Promedia 2.0 speakers are growing on me, the more I listen to them. Unless it is my imagination, they are getting much warmer with burn-in. They are doing a pretty good job with the smoothjazz internet radio station (from shoutcast). You have to be pretty amazed at the sound that comes out when you take off the grill and look at the actual size of the speakers. It's too bad Klipsch didn't decide to go a bit wider with the speakers and add another inch to the size of the speakers themselves. I bet that would have made an impressionable difference. Still for only $60 more I may go back and trade these in for the Klipsch's 2.1.

Do the Swan's 200 absolutely blow away these speakers? Wish I could hear them in person.

Wish I still had my old Radio Shack Mimimus (sp?) 11's. I thought they sounded pretty good or maybe it was just because at the time I hadn't heard anything better.

 

[enoch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by geepondy Wish I still had my old Radio Shack Mimimus (sp?) 11's. I thought they sounded pretty good or maybe it was just because at the time I hadn't heard anything better.

No. You are correct. Those were (despite their origin) some
really good valued speakers. Similar in sound to my Monsoons

 

[proglife]

I've always wondered what Gallo Micro's sound like with a t-amp on a desktop. That would be slick if they sounded decent.

 

[geepondy]

One more question: If I return the Pro Media 2.0's in exchange for the 2.1's, will I be losing any mid and/or high frequency sounds that perhaps or perhaps not the 2.0's might be better at?

 

[enoch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by geepondy One more question: If I return the Pro Media 2.0's in exchange for the 2.1's, will I be losing any mid and/or high frequency sounds that perhaps or perhaps not the 2.0's might be better at?

No. THe tweeters are the same so the highs will be similar. The mid-range drivers will be relieved of bass duty so the mid's should sound much better than the 2.0's. Just don't over-do the bass and you'll love it.