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Klipsch Promedia 2.1 are by far the best 2.1 computer speakers.

cynan wrote:

The Egg wrote:

morphine wrote:

Look for any $150+ set of powered studio monitors. No use going for 2.1, as any "subwoofer" will actually be a woofer, at most, since it's so small.

This.

The other perspective is that if you already have a system with compromised bass output and want to round out the response below 60-80Hz, and don't have a lot of room or money, a compact "subwoofer" unit can still be worthwhile. Is it technically a subwoofer? Perhaps not. But for example, I have a desktop setup where the 4" woofers in the 2-way bookshelves (Audioengine P4s) don't go below 65Hz. I picked up a sealed 8" compact sub for relatively cheap. I know it only reaches down to about 35Hz with any sort of output, but it still did wonders to add in some lower end response. Will it get me great low-end LFE or let me hear the lower registers of organ music? No. But it does it for just about everything else, which is plenty good for my desktop requirements.

I was commenting more on the studio monitors, but yeah.....typically larger drivers are going to handle lower frequencies better, so all things being equal, an 8" driver should outperform a 4" even if it doesn't have the full frequency range. I think what Morphine was getting at is that the sub they give you with most "computer speakers" isn't very good, so a decent set of studio monitors should outperform nearly all "computer speakers" even without a subwoofer.

LASR wrote:

Klipsch Promedia 2.1 are by far the best 2.1 computer speakers.

I've got a set of mint Klipsch 5.1 Ultras packed away. They're very good performers, but I wouldn't say I was blown away. They've been in storage for some time now, as I have neither the space nor desire to set up 5.1 on my PC nowadays. I've been meaning to sell them on Ebay, but never seem to get around to it. They seem to still pull in a decent price.

Sorry, can't agree about the Swan M10s. I bought a set with high hopes but am most disappointed. (I own the M100s which are far superior, though more costly). M10s have no base and are basically boring.

Go for the Klipsch set.

ordskiweicz wrote:

Sorry, can't agree about the Swan M10s. I bought a set with high hopes but am most disappointed. (I own the M100s which are far superior, though more costly). M10s have no base and are basically boring.

Go for the Klipsch set.

M10's are near-field speakers for music. They have plenty of bass for natural-sounding music.

LASR wrote:

Klipsch Promedia 2.1 are by far the best 2.1 computer speakers.

And how many sets of 2.1 speakers have you listened to?

I loved my Klipsch 2.1 THX speakers for 6-7 years, until the vulnerable preamp cable finally snapped off. I replaced them with Logitech Z623 2.1 THX speakers and these are even BETTER than the Klipsch. The Klipsch had good bass, but these sound much more "solid". There's a nice "thud" feel to them, rather than a hollow boom. I played some frequency test tones and heard nice bass all the way down to 30Hz. Even at 25 Hz, you still hear and feel something, but it's getting pretty subtle. This is outstanding for a 7 inch subwoofer. Please take a huge grain of salt when you hear anyone telling you that 7 inch subs can't make respectable bass, especially when they are simultaneously telling you that a highly rated bookshelf speaker doesn't need a sub (yet it only goes down to 65Hz).

Problem is, a subwoofer is actually meant to perform beyond bass

Good that that Logitech set woofer is that powerful though. On that note, I hope they last more than 6 months.

Well Yeats, though the question did not come to me, I have listened to lots of 2.1 speakers. For several years I gave away $100 sets after workshops as door prizes.

Still no fan of Swan M10s - even near field, to me they aren't musical. Swans more expensive lines are much better sounding.

On my work box, I have been very happy with Logitech z2300s - which can now be found used for $100 or less - and are very satisfying.

It more than you want to spend, but you will not regret the extra money, remember, these are sold each.

Mackie MR mk3 Series MR5mk3 5-Inch 2-Way Powered Studio Monitor, $119 amazon, you will not need a sub, the make pretty good bass

humannn wrote:

...The Klipsch had good bass, but these sound much more "solid". There's a nice "thud" feel to them, rather than a hollow boom. I played some frequency test tones and heard nice bass all the way down to 30Hz. Even at 25 Hz, you still hear and feel something, but it's getting pretty subtle. This is outstanding for a 7 inch subwoofer. Please take a huge grain of salt when you hear anyone telling you that 7 inch subs can't make respectable bass, especially when they are simultaneously telling you that a highly rated bookshelf speaker doesn't need a sub (yet it only goes down to 65Hz).

It seems you're taking a shot at someone, but I'm not sure who, because nobody said either of those things. If the comparison is between a pair of decent bookshelf speakers or studio monitors and a set of 2.1 "computer speakers", then yes, I would take the bookshelf/monitors. Reason being, even with a subwoofer the 2.1 computer speakers are going to be much lower quality overall. I suppose if your main concern is the quantity of bass, or "thud", then perhaps the 2.1 setup is indeed better suited to your tastes. You could always add a self-powered standalone sub to a pair of studio monitors or bookshelf speakers though.

I have to admit that good speakers are ALWAYS a worthwhile investment, but at the same time there's an argument to be made for the convenience of compact PC speakers that don't take up your whole desk - with a remote control and headphone pass-through, and sometimes even great features like bluetooth so that you don't have to put up with the abysmal speakers in your laptop/phone/tablet.

As much as we all love to let out our inner audiophile, PC speakers are largely about gaming sound effects and watching youtube/TV shows with compressed audio. For games especially, a cheap pair of hissy/boomy 2.1's can actually sound much better than good quality bookshelf units and they'll be 1/10th the cost.

Thanks to all the suggestions, I've narrowed down my list of potential speakers. Just waiting on sale, before I pull the trigger.


I guess my next question is, since the onboard audio is a little anemic, which sound card should I be looking at? I was originally thinking about picking up a Xonar, since it's made repeated appearances in TRs System Guides, but as mentioned upthread, some have had issues with it. Should I stick with that, and try the substitute drivers that were mentioned, or look into a Soundblaster? I haven't used a Creative Labs product since my AWE64, and had bad CSR experiences with them, and driver problems back in the day. Has CL cleaned up their act, and are making good product , or are they just phoning it in like they used to?

I had those Edifier speakers hooked up to a HT Omega Claro II card and yes it was great but I walked into a deal for an Asrock OC Formula board and it had no pci slot so I had to use the same onboard audio chip as you have and I honestly did not notice a difference, I also had it hooked up through the optical connection, perhaps try that and adjust the EQ for some more base before grabbing an aftermarket sound card.

For $150 or less I am not sure I could find a better set of speakers than those Edifiers, oth the Klipsch Pro media sound good and they are above your budget and they seem to focus on just loudness rather than sound quality, but I guess thats in the ear of the beholder.

Go to youtube and punch in Edifier S330D to hear some of the different setups.

If you had it hooked up by optical S/PDIF you weren't using the onboard soundcard's DAC or analog output, you were using a DAC built into the speakers.

MadManOriginal wrote:

If you had it hooked up by optical S/PDIF you weren't using the onboard soundcard's DAC or analog output, you were using a DAC built into the speakers.

Good point.

Hz so good wrote:

I was originally thinking about picking up a Xonar

Whatever you do, don't do this. Jury's still out on their USB U7 device, but otherwise their products are essentially flawed.

morphine wrote:

Hz so good wrote:

I was originally thinking about picking up a Xonar

Whatever you do, don't do this. Jury's still out on their USB U7 device, but otherwise their products are essentially flawed.

I've heard lots of people talk about how much trouble they've had with the drivers. I guess I've been lucky to never have had a hiccup. My use is strictly limited to stereo headphones though.

morphine wrote:

Hz so good wrote:

I was originally thinking about picking up a Xonar

Whatever you do, don't do this. Jury's still out on their USB U7 device, but otherwise their products are essentially flawed.

I have the U3- it works. Even got it to encode surround sound after googling the hell out of the drivers (it's not obvious).

Airmantharp wrote:

I have the U3- it works. Even got it to encode surround sound after googling the hell out of the drivers (it's not obvious).

No blue screens, DPC latency spikes, no audio stuck looping, can you use all the inputs and can you have realtime monitoring of them, does it switch to headphones mode right, can you disable stereo duplication torear speakers, etc etc etc?

morphine wrote:

Airmantharp wrote:

I have the U3- it works. Even got it to encode surround sound after googling the hell out of the drivers (it's not obvious).

No blue screens, DPC latency spikes, no audio stuck looping, can you use all the inputs and can you have realtime monitoring of them, does it switch to headphones mode right, can you disable stereo duplication torear speakers, etc etc etc?

The U3 has analog input and output only, and the drivers are a definite pain in the ass, but for the purpose of outputting sound to a stereo target, it works.

Hz so good wrote:

Thanks to all the suggestions, I've narrowed down my list of potential speakers. Just waiting on sale, before I pull the trigger.

Sorry for the thread necro, but I've been looking for new 2.1 speakers myself, so I was wondering what you ended up going with?

bean7 wrote:

Hz so good wrote:

Thanks to all the suggestions, I've narrowed down my list of potential speakers. Just waiting on sale, before I pull the trigger.

Sorry for the thread necro, but I've been looking for new 2.1 speakers myself, so I was wondering what you ended up going with?

I ended up getting the Klipsch Promedias, since I found 'em on sale, and needed to save a little money to also get a guitar, tuner, Rocksmith 2014, etc...

For future purchasers, hope this helps.

I owned a first generation (the best generation, with upgradable speaker wire, better din plug, and internals that did not fail due to heat) set of Klipsch Promedia 2.1 speakers. Bought 'em in 2001. I replaced the speaker wire a decade ago back when Klipsch still sold a better-gauge upgrade kit (Klipsch by Monster, ugh, but actually reasonably priced). They sounded phenomenal. In 2012, the control pod died. In 2014, the left speaker died, and a new control pod did not fix the issue.

Last month I bought a replacement pair of AV 40 speakers. They sound great. The sound is slightly more muddied compared to the Klipsch, and the highs are not as nice, but they sound better than I expected. And I love not having a subwoofer on the floor.

What kind of budget are we talking? And, what are you listening to?

If your intention is gaming, Logitech can actually be pretty good. They aren't Klipsch (which, as other people have mentioned is a really great choice, but you'll pay for them), but they still sound nice. One of the best deals I've ever gotten was when a vendor was selling Logitech X-530 5.1 sets on closeout; I got a very good set of speakers for like $30 (I think I paid a third of the original price), which are still amazing with my X-Fi.

LoneWolf15 wrote:

What kind of budget are we talking? And, what are you listening to?

If your intention is gaming, Logitech can actually be pretty good. They aren't Klipsch (which, as other people have mentioned is a really great choice, but you'll pay for them), but they still sound nice. One of the best deals I've ever gotten was when a vendor was selling Logitech X-530 5.1 sets on closeout; I got a very good set of speakers for like $30 (I think I paid a third of the original price), which are still amazing with my X-Fi.

I really wanted those Logitehs, but between the KP2.1s being on sale, and dropping almost $400 on an electric guitar, amp, $80+ for rocksmith 2014, a Korg Tuner, and buying a stand, strap, insurance for the guitar, stand, and the String club (get free strings every month for a year), i ended up getting the KPs, sine they were in my price range.

Off-topic, what axe did you end up getting?

morphine wrote:

Off-topic, what axe did you end up getting?

I settled for an Epiphone SG Special. I mean, sure, I could've blown $1800+ on an Ibanez or a Gibson, but I viewed it like getting a first car as a teen. The SG Special is good enough for now, since I'm such a newb, but one I get better at it, I'll consider dropping some serious coin on an Ibanez/Gibson.

Besides, Rockmsith 2014 was $80, the guitar was $180, and I got a stand, case, amp, Korg Tuner, strap, insurance on the guitar, and got a String club membership, so all told I drop a little north of $500.

I built my own custom 2.1 setup a little over a year ago after buying the BOSE Companion 5's to upgrade from Logitech Z300 2.1 system and then being completely disappointed with BOSE craptastic speakers.

I started with creating a decent 2.1 then worked my way now to a 4.1 system.

Below are the components I've chosen.

Topping TP21 DAC with headphone port
Asus Xonar U7 - No more room on my PCI-E slots for sound card
BIC America DV62si book shelf speakers
Dayton 10" 100W Sub

The bookshelf speakers are a bit larger than what I anticipated haha, but they do sound fantastic. I really do suggest going in the custom built route as you will have more options to expand your sound system over time. I choose the Topping because of the headphone DAC to easily switch between speakers and headphones. Topping really does make a fantastic affordable mini amplifier for bookshelf speakers. Sounds fantastic with my Sennheiser HD558's as well.

Good luck and have fun! Always a great satisfaction you get after building something you pieced together than just taking it out of a box


*Off topic*
Oh and HZ-So-Good when you are ready to drop serious coin on a new guitar, Seriously consider PRS. I live by the US factory and have a buddy that's been working there for 6 years. Their guitars are nothing but fantastic. The attention to detail is insane. High dollar Ibanez a close second, that I will go with over anything Gibson. Now a days if you're not buying a 5K+ Gibson it ain't worth a damn and you're paying for the name. Plus they're just heavy damn guitars.

adamwzl wrote:

*Off topic*
Oh and HZ-So-Good when you are ready to drop serious coin on a new guitar, Seriously consider PRS. I live by the US factory and have a buddy that's been working there for 6 years. Their guitars are nothing but fantastic. The attention to detail is insane. High dollar Ibanez a close second, that I will go with over anything Gibson. Now a days if you're not buying a 5K+ Gibson it ain't worth a damn and you're paying for the name. Plus they're just heavy damn guitars.

I've never heard of PRS. Got a link to their store? It'll be a while before I switch to a new guitar, and I'm always on the look out for something new to save my filthy lucre up towards.