Speaker setup for ~250USD
Aug 26, 2013 at 12:30 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 7

froggyman

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So right now I have a set of M-Audio AV 40s. I've had them for a year or two now and have really loved their sound. I'm looking for a new setup with better bass response, but would still like to have a fairly neutral sound. I'm looking to spend approx. 250USD on this setup. I don't really have a preference towards a 2.0 or 2.1 setup. What would you guys recommend?
 
Aug 26, 2013 at 9:14 PM Post #3 of 7
Hmm. I like the idea of getting a sub to go with my AV 40s. What kind of sub would match the speakers well? How would I hook that up? Currently I don't have any special DAC and just use the audio out on my laptop.
 
Aug 27, 2013 at 1:12 AM Post #4 of 7
What kind of laptop do you have? Most laptops don't have great sound quality, so good strategy for $250 could be to get a DAC and a sub together. That would improve the clarity of the AV40s a little, and then also give you better bass.

This factory refurbished/factory warrantied Velodyne Bass Matrix 10 is a really good deal. One nice thing about it is that it has RCA inputs and outputs with a high pass filter. http://velodyne.com/special-offers/certified-refurbished/bassmatrix-10-refurbished.html

Normally when you get a sub without a fancy audio receiver, you have to set the sub crossover around where your speaker roll off--so it most only extends the bass. That Bass Matrix has both 80hz and 100hz high pass filter, which means you could let the subwoofer take over from 80hz on down, letting it produce more of the midbass than normally when integrating a sub in like this.
 
Aug 27, 2013 at 1:35 AM Post #6 of 7
It was in stock just a couple of days ago--I was doing some sub shopping but bought something a good bit more expensive.

Notice the message further down the page "Extremely limited inventory! Please call to confirm inventory prior to ordering." Could be worth giving them a call to see if maybe one is just hanging out in someone's shopping cart :)

AVS forum has a budget subwoofer discussion thread. You might skim through the last month or so to see if there are any good deals listed, and even ask questions: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1396482/budget-subwoofers-discussions-opinions-and-questions-thread

I think there is a good chance you could improve on the audio quality if you get a DAC. It's a worth a shot because if you order one from Amazon, they are so small, not to expensive to ship back if you don't think it makes a difference. Look into FiiO DACs.
 
Aug 31, 2013 at 1:35 AM Post #7 of 7
I ordered a UCA202 DAC off amazon. At first, I was definitely a bit skeptical if it would actually make any difference to the sound quality. Quite impressed with the difference it made. Can't wait to get my subwoofer too! (I ended up going with the VDX 12).
 

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