Pls help choosing multi purpose speaker

[admin_exported]

Hi there,

I'm new to this forum & a novice when it comes to picking quality speakers, so wonder if any of you would be so kind as to advise on the following? One of my Dell PC external speakers has given up the ghost & so I'm looking to get another desk based system, so I can keep listening to music on Spotify as I work. However I've also been considering getting a dock for my iPhone 4S. I'd been recommended Bose docks for that but don't know if I can use with my PC too, which I would prefer. Can anyone recommend something economical which caters for both & can sit on my desk/shelf above that gives good quality sound for my lounge/diner (medium sized room?).

My husband is also interested in getting surround sound system for the TV. Perhaps we could combine all that?? Though again that would depend on the cost.

Appreciate your thoughts on this.

 

[professorhat]

Hi Claire and welcome!

Well, there's a lot of choice depending on what you decide and how much you decide to spend!

If we look firstly just at your PC speakers, any kind of powered speakers would fit the bill here - powered speakers include an amplifier in one of the speakers, which means you just connect your PC to them using a standard 3.5mm cable and you don't need anything else. There's the likes of the Audioengine A2s (small and compact but great sounding speakers) up to the likes of the Audioengine A5+ or the Epoz Akitmate range (which have the benefit of having a built in dock for your iPhone). There are many other brands which produce speakers like this, but there's a few to get you started.

On the other hand, if you wanted to look at combining the surround system with your PC based music solution, this is certainly possible. How far from the system would the PC be? It's really a question of whether you could run a cable from the PC to this system, or whether you'd need to look at a streaming solution. Again, there are numerous options for streaming solutions, including many which you could control from your iPhone.