Desktop PC Speaker Reccomendation

[admin_exported]

I am increasingly listening to more music whilst working at my PC - mostly via the CD drive built into my computer - and I am interested in improving on the sound produced by my current speakers (JBL Duet).

I have narrowed down my choice to:

- Audica MPS-1

- Audioengine A2

- Lars & Ivan (Vivenco) BK-21 Odin.

All of the above can be found for around £100 and I was wondering if anyone could tell me how they compare in sound quality? I am particularly interested in the bass performance of each system. I'm not looking for teeth-rattling bass, but I would like the bass to be pretty punchy

I have read a lot of good things about the Audioengine A2s and I would be interested in finding out if they can punch above their weight and perform better than the other two options.

I have also considered extending my budget to £200 in order to go the separates route (probably buying second-hand and upgrading over time). However I don't have room in my office for large speakers and I'm concerned that I might be wasting my money buying a separates system that would be paired with small desktop/bookshelf speakers.

 

[John Duncan]

Audioengines. Brilliant.

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah, I've heard the audioengine A2 speakers are pretty good.

ÿFor bass bose might also be worth a look (albeit more expensive though), although many people don't think of bose very highly...ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the input so far.

I can't say that I'm a big fan of the Bose sound. I've auditioned their speakers and systems in the past and I wasn't very impressed.

Has anyone heard the Audioengines A2s in comparison to the other options mentioned?

Ideally I would like to build a second Naim-based system in my office, but I don't have the room or the budget.

 

[John Duncan]

DavidTheHierophant:Thanks for the input so far.

I can't say that I'm a big fan of the Bose sound. I've auditioned their speakers and systems in the past and I wasn't very impressed.

Has anyone heard the Audioengines A2s in comparison to the other options mentioned?

Ideally I would like to build a second Naim-based system in my office, but I don't have the room or the budget.

Not in relation to the other options, no, only against things like the Zepellin, HK Soundsticks and other nefarious docks. I have listened to them in the context of 'real' hifi though and could quite happily live with them as a second system.

 

[John Duncan]

Though having said all that, if you *can* stretch to £200, something like this (or any other amp you fancy under £100 on eBay) and a pair of Tannoy Mercury F1s would be very nice indeed - don't worry at all about them being bookshelfs, I'd have bookshelfs up to about a grand before i started thinking about floorstanders.......

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:only against things like the Zepellin, HK Soundsticks and other nefarious docks. I have listened to them in the context of 'real' hifi though and could quite happily live with them as a second system.

That's very helpful, thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:Though having said all that, if you *can* stretch to £200, something like this (or any other amp you fancy under £100 on eBay) and a pair of Tannoy Mercury F1s would be very nice indeed......

That was the sort of thing I had in mind: upgrading over time and adding a DAC and CD player into the mix at some point. However I think that the F1s are a bit too large. Given the limited space in my office I don't think that I could accomodate anything larger than Q Acoustic 1010is - the speakers need to sit to the rear and side of my monitor.

Do you think that I will get better sound quality from that kind of set-up over the systems and active speakers geared towards PCs and MP3 players? Or is it likely to show up the limits of my PC's sound card?

 

[Anonymous]

Hmm, I'm not sure if your sound card will show up (hadn't considered that one) but if it is only in a small room are you likely to be playing the music very loud? Maybe the sound card would not be that big a factor.

ÿDon't forget theÿconvenienceÿof using your computer, you'll have all of your music in one place and won't have to change CDs, although that maybe doesn't bother you...ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

I don't need room-filling sound as the speakers will be positioned about 50-60cm directly in front of me - so I don't expect to play music at high volumes.

 

[Anonymous]

OK, I've given this some serious thought and reorganised my desk/office in order to see what room I have.

After much deliberation, I have decided to opt for a separates system. Now, I pretty much know what I'm doing when it comes to budget amplifiers, but I could do with some advice regarding speakers.

With a budget of around £100 and limited space (I can't really accommodate speakers that are deeper than 20cm and they will be positioned close to a wall) I have whittled down the options to:

- Mission M30i

- Wharfedale Diamond 9.0

Which is the better option? I'm haven't auditioned any Wharfedale speakers before and the Mission bookshelf speakers I have heard in the past sounded muddy and had a lot of box boom and colouration.

The only other options that I have considered are the Roth Audio Oli 1 and Mordaunt Short's Alumni 2.

Any thoughts?

 

[FazZ]

Hey 'DavidTheHierophant'

Do you have space for a sub? With minimal space and the need for decent enough sound for music being played directly from your PC, I'd recommend the Logitech Z-2300's.

They have bags of power and the benefit there is playing at low-volume levels sound great.

From what I remember they come with a standard (miserable) 3.5mm jack and have a pass-thru for headphones on the volume control unit thingy.

More the reason I recommend this item to you, is your budget.ÿ On average it retails for around £100 GBP plus delivery but you will find it for less than £90 GBP if you look around with free delivery usually.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Fazz,

Thanks for the recommendation. Although I could have gone for a 2.1 speaker setup (it would have been the cheaper option), I decided to opt for a separates system.

I completely blew my budget and I'm currently using a S/H amplifier (Cambridge Audio Azur 540a) and a pair of Dali Lektor 1s through my PC. When the funds become available I will add a CD player and only use the PC for previewing new albums.

Although the Dalis don't pack a lot of bass, they are ideal for near-field listening. If they produced any more bass then extended listening could get a bit tiresome. I might consider a sub in the future, but the Dalis are so energetic and musical, I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything.

 

[FazZ]

I think you have made a good choice. I don't obviously have the luxury of knowing the system you have put together, but I bet they sound a whole lot better than the cheaper Logitech's 2.1 speakers.

Of course they are very different, but honestly it's whatever makes you a happy human and it sounds like the combination you have chosen does!

 

[Anonymous]

Nice, the lektor 1's are supposed to be brilliant, I think you have made the right decision to opt for a separate system in terms of sound quality and I suppose if you ever want the convenience of having all your music in one place you could add something like a linn DS player to your system...

 

[Anonymous]

Ultimately it was the sound quality that swung things for me - well that and the option of being able to upgrade individual components when the funds become available.

The Lektor 1s are definitely a cracking set of speakers. Obviously they haven't had time to burn in properly, but they already sound pretty damn good.

I can't wait to try them with a decent CD source - I might even try them with my Naim Cd5i at the weekend. There is only one problem: if the system sounds too good, it will leave me itching to get my hands on a new CD player.

 

[Anonymous]

Ha! Well we all need something to aspire to get. A good CD player would do them justice once the speakers are run in...

 

[Anonymous]

I couldn't resist trying out a few CD players with my new office system.

As expected the Nait Cd5i sounded great. I even tried out my Marantz DR600 & a Yamaha CDX 660 (a really underrated CD player IMHO).

To varying extents, all three players brought out the best of the Lektor and CA combination.

Needless to say it won't be too long before I need to focus on saving for a new CD source.

One major alteration that needs to be sorted out ASAP is the need for some speaker stands. The Lektors definitely sound better when the tweeters are at ear level. Consequently I need some small desktop speaker stands.

Unfortunately I can't find any manufacturers that produce small desktop stands. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Unless I can find a supplier, it looks like I will have to find someone that can manufacture bespoke speaker stands out of something like acrylic.