[1031prime]

Hi all,
I just relocated and have an excuse to buy almost everything fresh.
Total budget is $1500 US.
 
A little background:
Proud owner of V-Moda M-100, using Fiio E17 to drive it. In a nutshell I prefer bass towards the strong end.
I work from my home office, and I will have a helper looking after my infant child (less than 1 year old).
 
Wants (in order of priority):
1) Desktop speakers.
Have a lot of conference calls and my V-Moda doubles as my stereo head set. Can't always wear it so I am looking for a pair of desktop speakers to enjoy music when I'm not in a meeting. I do not put music on high volume. I also play some PC/video games for leisure.
 
Here is my dilema: 2.0 vs 2.1. Again as I love bass and I play games 2.1 should be the logical choice, but my office space is very tight and I'm not sure where to put the subwoofer.
 
Speakers on my watch list:
Swans M50w
*Swans M200MKII
*Focal XS Book 2.0
Focal XS 2.1
 
The ones with *, both 2.0, look sleeker than their 2.1 counterparts (of the same brand), and match better with my dual monitor setup. The Swans ones are cheaper than Focal and they may not be in the same class (verification needed here), but the saved budget may help me get better things for the rest of my shopping list.
 
2) Desktop Amp/Open Full Size Headphones
Since I own a Fiio E17 I always wanted to get a E09k.
And since the V-moda M-100 is CLOSED, my wife has been complaining that I can't hear her nor our son. This gives me justification to get an Open headphone.
Based on my research Beyerdynamics DT 880/990 should suite my taste.
Heard that 990 comes with more bass and the Pro versions are the most economical, but I'm tempted to get a higher impedance version to try out the amp.
 
My short list of speakers above should come with built-in amps.
My assumption is that Fiio E17 + E09k will beat these built-in amps.
 
3) Home theater system
I can't stand the "naked" TV speakers, but given that I will not listen to music using the home theater system and will only watch movies and play some games on the TV, I ranked this the last, and will use whatever leftover budget to get a 5.1 set. No research done whatsoever.
 
Thanks for reading my long post.
There are many moving pieces and I haven't tested any of the products I listed.
All comments/recommendations are welcome, but there is a fundamental question which impacts everything:
Is my assumption correct that Fiio E17 + E09k combo is better than the built in amp of my Desktop speaker short-list (or any recommended sleek looking speakers in the $300 US range)?
Cause if not, may be I should save the money for E09k and upgrade something else in my shopping list.
 
Also one feature I'm looking for in the 5.1 home theater system is wireless connection for the rear speakers, cause my wife HATES wires that run from the TV to the back. Would this automatically boosts the base price of this #3 item to a ridiculous level? If so I may need to (painfully) consider getting a 2.1 instead or some sort of frontal only solutions.
 
Many thanks,
Andrew

 

[PurpleAngel]

Audio Technica ATH-AD900X open headphones, as they are only 40-Ohms, it is every easy for the E17 to drive them.

 

[cel4145]

JBL LSR305 are very good powered monitors at their current price of $120 each: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LSR305. Those should give you decent midbass down to between 50 to 60hz. And if you are only listening at low volumes, they should do the job.

 

[1031prime]

JBL LSR305 are very good powered monitors at their current price of $120 each: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LSR305. Those should give you decent midbass down to between 50 to 60hz. And if you are only listening at low volumes, they should do the job.

Thanks for the recommendation.
I'm afraid these monitors are too big for my work station though, measuring at 14.7 x 9.6 x 12.4 inches.

 

[cel4145]

Well, then you will want a sub if you want bass. Small driver speakers are generally not well-suited for low bass extension.

I think you probably need to think through your priorities and be careful about your expectations. For instance, home theater systems with any kind of decent sound are EXPENSIVE compared to everything else on your list; you could buy some cheap HTIB setup and use a good bit of your budget, but it won't sound that good. Probably best to go with 2.1 or 2.0 since your budget is very limited. Then you can build on to it with other components as you can afford it. Even then, you are looking at $400 or $500 just for an entry level 2.1 budget setup by the time you buy a budget sub, speakers, and receiver.

And then spending a few hundreds on desktop speakers won't get you near the SQ of your M-100s. Particularly when it comes to also having good bass. A good sub with good SQ that matches the SQ of a pair of speakers well can also easily cost as much as the speakers. Then again, since you are listening at low volumes, I would assume that's because you can't run the volume very loud. Probably doesn't make much sense to worry about a sub unless you go with small driver speakers that lack in midbass (which is often the case).

Given the limitations of your budget and everything you want, you should stick with the Beyerdynamic Pro series since the Premiums offer much less price/performance SQ benefit and the other parts of what you want (desktop speakers and HT) would benefit from more spending.