[siddjazz]

There are numerous posts in the forum talking about the ideal speaker for music, movies and gaming. To sum it all up, the MX5021 seems to be an all time favorite, followed by the corsair and the promedia.
Contrary popular usage, my need is only music. Sure I watch movies (a lot actually), but I prefer using headphones for crisp sound. I listen to a lot of music from John Mayer and BB King to The Doors, Kings of Leon, AC/DC, Metallica, a lot of power metal and stuff like Opeth, Porcupine tree and POS. I barely listen to any electronic or dance music. Maybe some drum n bass like Pendulum and some Dubstep.

Basically I need a speaker with a wide frequency reproduction range.
Volume is not a concern as I have a small room and I don't enjoy loud music anyway. Now I have an old Altec Lansing VS4121, which are pretty good speaker IMO. I usually tweak the digital EQ to highlight frequencies I want to hear and they do a pretty good job. All the science apart, the sound is never right! I feel some instruments are being held back, dubbed down or just too soft to be heard.
Technically, I did a very quick frequency test from here, and figured out the prominent and subdued frequency response of the system; and then i would merely EQ those frequencies and make do with. But enough is enough, I deserve better sound!!!

I have upped my budget and decided to get a new 2.1/2.0 system. I have never personally used 2.0 systems so I am not confident on the low/mid-bass reproduction.
I have been highly inclined towards Edifiers off late. They seem to have superior build quality and well balanced bass and satellite units.

If you got through reading all of this, do you have any recommendations??? Thank you soooo much!

 

[deathzero34]

You might be asking the wrong forum subsection. usually ppl that look for audio system for computer are looking for small speakers that are often cheaper then 10K.
 
Way cheaper then 10K you could buy a set of adam A7x with a sub. those are supposed to be extremly good. (of course I would try them out first) ~maybe 2k - ish. Even this set up is pretty borderline IMHO

 

[siddjazz]

Hey thanks for replying. I should have listed the amounts in USD. By 10K I basically mean $200
 

 

[trog]

Well nobody is born a sage and once i too thought PC/Multimedia speakers were once fine - before i got into the world of decent cans and properly designed book shelf speakers 

 Not sure where u at but in the USA you can get brand new Polk/Pioneer bookshelf speakers always on sale on NewEgg with free ship and pair those with a T-Amp or a used receiver off Craiglist  

 

[deathzero34]

If you are looking for an active speaker set you can take a look at this thread: http://www.head-fi.org/t/503088/2-0-speakers-compilation-best-for-500
Dont let the thread tittle fool you, most of those speaker are under 200$.

Multiple people use the av-40 and the bx5 D2.
 
Edit : I did find the amount of money you were willing to spend quite high for suc ha set up. lol

 

[siddjazz]

Ah thank you gentlemen. Yes, I do want to move towards bookshelf speakers now. I'm getting my own place in 2 months, so oversized speakers and messy wiring arent going to be a problem. I'm really fresh into the world of assembling audio systems. Are there any guides out there that can get me started? Over a period of 6 months I do plan to assemble a decent system.
 
I am in India, so most products arent available off the shelf and are mostly imported into the country. To give you an idea, the M-audio Bx5a cost a little over $400, which sucks. I could probably start off with the swans D1080 MKII, the AV40's or the T40's, which are selling for $200 odd. I need to really figure out how to start connecting amps and subs to the setup so I can start surveying the Indian market.
 
Thank you soo much for your help. (and for the prompt response)
 
These are the costs and kind of products available http://bajaao.com/index.php?orderby=product_name&DescOrderBy=ASC&manufacturer_id=product_list&price=15000&Itemid=69&option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=77&keyword=&keyword1=&keyword2=
 
200 USD = 10,000 INR

 

[sookee]

If you like a lot of bass (metallica drums, movies) then it's a good idea to get a 2.1 system. I just received my Polk RTi6 bookshelf speakers yesterday and set them up as a 2.0 system. Even though the overall SQ improved, I miss the bass from my 2.1 pc speakers.
 
You can always buy bookshelf speakers for now and upgrade by adding a subwoofer later (that's my plan). Or you can get something like the Pioneer BS-21 for $50 a pair and add a $100 subwoofer. You'll also need an amp or receiver with a passive system like this though. So that will probably put you over your budget by ~$30 if you go with a cheap TA2020 amp.

 

[siddjazz]

Quote:

If you like a lot of bass (metallica drums, movies) then it's a good idea to get a 2.1 system. I just received my Polk RTi6 bookshelf speakers yesterday and set them up as a 2.0 system. Even though the overall SQ improved, I miss the bass from my 2.1 pc speakers.
 
You can always buy bookshelf speakers for now and upgrade by adding a subwoofer later (that's my plan). Or you can get something like the Pioneer BS-21 for $50 a pair and add a $100 subwoofer. You'll also need an amp or receiver with a passive system like this though. So that will probably put you over your budget by ~$30 if you go with a cheap TA2020 amp.

Oh brilliant!! I plan to do exactly that in phases. As a total newbie, i've done some basic reading. Assuming I want the system hooked up to my laptop. Can I do this...
1. Line out from laptop --> stereo receiver --> AV40 --> optional sub.  OR
2. Line out from laptop --> DAC --> stereo receiver --> AV40 --> optional sub.
 
I also understand active speakers should not be connected to an amp. Since I will definitely in a sub soon, the active speakers+amp set up may not work well. Correct? I'm sure this is a global predicament. Rather than investing in active speakers now and change the whole set up later , I prefer passive speakers and an amp.
 
Any suggestions?

 

[siddjazz]

I might be missing something. Is there a way of connecting a sub to active speakers without a receiver and still hook up the system to an mp3 player/laptop?

 

[sookee]

I don't know if it's possible to hook up the av40 to a sub. Maybe this thread will help: http://www.head-fi.org/t/614965/hooking-up-a-subwoofer-to-my-m-audio-av-40s You should definitely NOT connect the av40 to an amp though. Also you don't need a stereo receiver to run the av40 by itself.