Hi all,
I’m after some advice, please. I’m after a pair of active speakers for my PC. Budget up to approx £150. I generally use headphones but I do like to give them a break at times. I will be listening to music, playing the odd PC game and would like to be able to use them instead of the main hi-fi at times and fill a smallish room with sound. I’m not mad on heavy bass(neighbours to think about). I don’t want a bass speaker so 2.0 stereo will suffice. Over to you –
ATM – PC speakers
Similar, but more stingy. So also grateful for cheaper suggestions.
Having just been diagnosed as needing hearing aids, I think expensive speakers will be wasted on me.
In other news, anyone got any advice about hearing aids?
Paul – budget wise I would prefer to spend less too but would stretch to £150 mark if it would be worth it. My brother-in-law has had a hearing aid for the last year. I think he used specsave for his.
That’s what my wife said. At least I think that’s what she said….
Apparently I need two.
I blame My Bloody Valentine.
Can some one else inform me – do I need to improve the audio outputs from my laptop in any way to take advantage of these speakers?
Nope – get some active speakers with a USB input.
I have the Fidelia app from Audiofile Engineering on my MacBook Pro. It makes a huge and obvious improvement to music stored on iTunes. I think I made a one-off payment of £20 or £30 for it several years ago. Computer speakers are Bose Companion 3 – two small treble units and a reasonably compact bass unit that sits on the floor.
@paulwright my wife has a pair of Siemens hearing aids from Specsavers. Eye wateringly expensive, they are better than the NHS ones (less amplification of background noise) but proved difficult to get a satisfactory set up, needing several return visits for tweaking. Having said that, my wife has severely impaired mid range hearing with very little hearing in her right ear so I’m not sure the results will ever be great. A big benefit is the phone app which allows her iPhone to be piped straight into the hearing aids and volume and other features can be controlled from the phone. You can also get a Bluetooth box to connect the tv to the hearing aids (haven’t done this).
We were told that if she really couldn’t get on with them we could get a full refund which swung it for us although, of course, we didn’t try to get a refund so don’t know if that was just sales talk. Try the NHS ones first, which are much better than you’d expect and see how you get on. You can always go private later.
Re hearing aids, there have been a couple of prior threads
I’ve been using an NHS aid for three years. I wouldn’t want to be without it as it really helps dampen down the tinnitus, but I still can’t hear much when there’s any kind of backgroun noise. I had an initial chat with Specsavers – I was put off at first because you have to have 2 aids even if you only have – as I do – one duff ear. But the refund offer made me think I’ve now’t to loose. Unfortunately I got no further than the test becasue I need my ears hoovered before they can go any further and my doctor won’t do it – I was told to try olive oil in my ear for “a few weeks”. instead. Brilliant!
My son had his ears hoovered several times before he had surgery but it was always done by a consultant at hospital. The olive oil never really did much.
GPs don’t hoover ears, they might lose their indemnity, unless with proven extra training/experience. They can sluice ’em with water, or ask their nurses to, but the suggestion is that this damages the ears self cleansing capability. (Cilia, should you wish to google.)
Just saying.
What really gets my goat is that all hearing aid clinics, private, high street or NHS are staffed by audiologists with a morbid fear of ever seeing wax, banishing any individual unless they can get it eradicated. They are the folk who could/should learn how to hoover (aka micro suction.)
My son hated having it done but it was effective. Just before he had his eardrum repaired the consultant removed a lump of wax the size of a raisin which had made him all but deaf in one ear.
There’s always this option.
Specsavers tell me they plan a service that obvs you can pay them for. “Falling on deaf ears” joke follows.
I’ve got these for my system – they are excellent speakers and I would thoroughly recommend them. They look pretty decent too IMHO
https://www.harmankardon.co.uk/SOUNDSTICKS3MIIEUP.html?gclid=Cj0KCQiAnY_jBRDdARIsAIEqpJ1-81cz6-uyPDddl5e5earZViqPJu6uGHYPYc98FCvqH8wtg-mbaRgaAiEnEALw_wcB
That’s what I was going to suggest – I’ve had them for years, & as you say they not only sound great but [still] look great – also the bonus is although they have a woofer it is totally controllable down to normal bass levels if that’s what you’re after. – and for £110 you can’t go wrong.
Cripes. I know HK gear usually sounds good, but my goodness, if it’s in full view and on my desk with my PC it has to look civilised too.
What they call “inspiring industrial design” I’d call hideous steampunk nonsense!
Not sure I’d blow £109 on some gear I’d be itching to spray a sensible colour…
Another vote for those Harmon Kardon speakers, I’ve had them for quite a while. They sound good and look good,
I don’t know what Foxie’s going on about, I agree the sub-woofer may not be beautiful but it can be placed out of sight and the bass can be turned right down. Those speakers, as I have already stated, look and sound great.
I have a few sets of Logitec and they are all good. Get some with a woofer – really makes a difference.
Thanks Twang I’ll check them out. I don’t know why but I’ve always looked at Logitec being a ‘cheap & cheerful’ brand. The Woofer is not an option as I have a PC desk and my printer/scanner is underneath not leaving room for a woofer, also I’m on the second floor with neighbours underneath.
If you’re looking to listen to music on them and you care about sound, I advise you not to buy “computer brand” types. Wharfedale do their DS-2 which cost £179 at Richer, Ruark’s MR1 are great but £329 a pair. Try to find a pair of Wharfedale’s old model DS-1, perhaps.
Or find an old amplifier with a line input and buy a pair of JBL Control One from Richer for £99, which is what I do (I have a Denon shoebox-sized radio/CD/amp).
Or try music shop for a pair of active monitors from the likes of Mackie.
I have a couple of pairs of JPW Mini Monitors that sound fab used as PC speakers. Need an amp too obv. but only cost about £50 from Richer Sounds back in the day – must be some on eBay, and they seem indestructible so could be a good second-hand bet. Pick up a Jap 80s amp for £50 and shove your sound card line out into the aux.
Can’t disagree but you’re getting into quality of input there. I have the Logitech on my office pc which has bog standard sound card and plays MP3/Spotty. It sounds fine, unless the sound enhancement software, which you seem to be unable to permanently switch off, cuts in. If I want hi fi I head for the music room with Focusrite Pro40 interface and 800 quid monitors. Horses/courses.
Completely agree – just lumbered downstairs to take a butchers at the speakers I put on our telly – it’s a Sony with half decent sound already – I bought Logitech z200 “multimedia speakers” which are an active stereo pair, cheap as chips, that really give the telly sound a miles better sound stage. And for less than the JPWs by far.
The Wharfedales and Ruarks both have digital inputs, so the DAC (if there is one) is in the active speaker which is best for sound quality. If they have class D amps, they don’t even need a DAC.
I swear by this (“By Bose, I’ll horsewhip you!” I have been heard to shout at Twitter). I have it connected via audio cable because the bluetooth can be a bit neurotic sometimes, and it sounds excellent. Bass isn’t at woofer levels, but certainly all I need. Wonderfully portable too – not what you need perhaps, but mine travels back and forth to Oz with my laptop.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bose-SoundLink-Mini-Bluetooth-Speaker/dp/B00XVKW0PY/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1550069946&sr=8-3&keywords=bose+soundlink
Had a pair of these for years, and they’re pretty good too. Loads of older models on eBay for silly money:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bose-Companion-Multimedia-Speaker-System/dp/B00CL83JVQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1550070052&sr=8-1&keywords=bose+companion+2
I’ve got a Soundlink Mini or rather my son seems to have taken possession of it. It’s very good, if pricey. My brother was raving about a similar device called MiniRig. They do a couple of models but they generally get good reviews. Available through the tax dodgers.
Found 2 pairs of old Bose “MediaMate” computer speakers in a skip, about 10 years ago. Typical ’90s-style wedge-shaped computer speakers to look at (beige) but much better-sounding than the usual crappy ones. I run one pair of them from a decent but fairly cheap USB DAC, which is connected to my general purpose laptop. I have the other pair to a mate.
My music laptop is connected via USB to a Cambridge Audio DacMagic and thence to my old Denon amp and Mission speakers. Not the Hi-est of Fi, but OK.
A pair of Cerwin Vega XD-3’s attached to the PC
http://www.cerwinvega.com/home-audio/desktop-speakers/xd3.html
and their slightly larger brethren the XD-4’s in the garage.
Both have great sound and are solidly built.
Cheapest Wharfedales and a Tripath amp like the Topping TP32EX:
https://www.parts-express.com/topping-tp32ex-digital-amplifier-with-dac-and-headphone-amplifier-75wpc–310-319
(Was going to say Topping VX1 but it appears to be out of stock everywhere.)
This is a slight variation on the “old amp and JBL One” scenario above. Richer do the Cambridge AM1 amp for £99 but it requires some desktop space. The Tripath amps are class D, which means smaller heatsinks requiring smaller casework (and the laptop-style power supply is outside the amp, which helps save desktop space).
I’d have thought you’d have no trouble picking up a s/h 30W hi-fi amp for £50.
Yes, it is a variation, although I’d say desk space is a fair consideration on a desk. However, looking up the current state of play with Tripath amps, I see that manufacturing of the actual chips ceased some years ago and it looks like inventory may be running low to judge by the number of products, like the Toppings, that are slowly disappearing from sale. There are a number of mini amps sold through Amazon that look interesting though (e.g. SMSL, errr… Nobsound??). I’ve got a Lepai myself but I’d recommend something with better components for that budget.
Yep, Tripath only survived long enough to make a few chipsets. Not that those chips are in shorter supply, those class D amps are not as cheap as they were. I paid less than £50 for my Topping (albeit without a PSU, which I ‘borrowed’ from work).
And a $120 amp doesn’t leave much budget for speakers out of £150.
Leaves fifty quid for a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 9s from Richer Sounds. 🙂 But I take your point, I’d probably buy something slightly cheaper from a UK seller.
We upgraded our PC speakers as son listens to nothing but jazz during homework, on a budget we opted for these which if you can cope with a subwoofer under the desk sound just fine.
https://www.logitech.com/en-gb/product/multimedia-speakers-z333
The modern version of mine!
We like. Though for @lunaman they do have a subwoofer.
And two satellites with a sub will never sound as good as two bigger speakers without a sub. Lunaman wants to play mostly music.
The hardest part of the equation is his budget of £150, and the cheapest option I can come up in anything like hi-fi quality is £179.
I don’t want big speakers, amp etc on the desktop. Small profile is good. Also if sitting at a desk they are very close – do they need to be big?
One of the hardest parts of speaker design is getting the crossover between mid and treble units correct without dips or peaks in the frequency response, or phase differences between the two. It should sound like one unit, not two. Add in a separate bass unit and it is even harder, especially when you get even more phase cancellation at the longer wavelengths (lower frequencies) of the sub. That’s the main reason panel speakers (e.g. Quad electrostatics) sound so good – no need for a crossover as there’s only one drive unit.
I’ve never heard a “multimedia” speaker which sounds any good with music, and without a sub (which Lunaman doesn’t want) they just sound tinny. Add to that, with near-field the amount of neighbour-bothering bass will be less than with a sub under the desk.
My JBL Ones (originally designed as studio monitors in the 70s) have a 4″ bass unit and occupy the desk area of an upended shoebox. Mine are actually screwed to the wall either side of my monitor so don’t actually take up any desk space at all.
But can I hesitantly suggest Steve that most people, and admittedly ‘most people’ excludes almost all of the AW, just want a semi-decent sound coming out of their computer whilst working away at that very very important PowerPoint?
That HK system frankly looks ridiculous on a work-desk and I can just imagine my conversation with Mrs W “Yes dear, just screwing these speakers on to the wall, they look rather spiffing don’t you think?”
Those HK things are, to put it politely, visually Marmite. FWIW, I wouldn’t give them house space. They remind me a a hubbly bubbly I saw in Cairo.
Perhaps I’m being too literal but I’m an engineer and my brain is wired to solve problems. Think Viz’s Mr. Logic.
Lunaman’s OP says “I will be listening to music, playing the odd PC game and would like to be able to use them instead of the main hi-fi at times and fill a smallish room with sound. I’m not mad on heavy bass (neighbours to think about). I don’t want a bass speaker”
I have suggested small hi-fi speakers which sound good with music, fit on a desk and don’t have/need a subwoofer.
Exactly where did I go wrong? Apart from pointing out that the cheapest solution to Lunaman’s problem is £29 over budget.
Most of the audio damage in “Computer Music” is done at the conversion to analogue audio inside the electrically-noisy computer. So get the digital audio out of the PC and do the conversion inside the active speaker and the results can be CD-quality (or even better).
@Lunaman – save up another 30 quid and buy those Wharfedale DS-2. Or double your money and buy the Ruarks, which are lovely.
I think the convo has broadened into what others need beyond @lunaman who is clear about his own requirement.
Yep. Lunaman doesn’t need hearing aids, for a start. Not yet, anyway…
No criticism from me ,Steve – you is the (hi-fi) man
Jolly good, Loadey. Lunaman should find that extra £29 and go for the DS-2 (What Hi-Fi 5-star winners).
Wharfedale are now part of the IAG group and all their speakers are designed by Peter Comeau, a god amongst audio engineers (who ran Heybrook back in the 80s). They’re all made in IAG’s factory in China and are top sound per pound.
I do take particalar issue with crap-sounding equipment when there’s something better available at the same or slightly higher price. I persuaded @minibreakfast to save up a little extra before buying a new system and I’ve had no complaints yet.
Hi all – many thanks for your help & comments. The above has started me on the road to replacing my audio set-up as a whole. It’s a slippery slope once you start! I have stalled on replacing my PC speakers for the moment. As I started looking into your suggestions I then started thinking about my set up overall. This lead me to buy one of these – https://www.richersounds.com/denon-dm41-dab-blk.html. I started looking at DAC’s/Soundbars/active speakers and then decided that before I replace my PC speakers(which I will) I would benefit from upgrading my amp in order to get a better sound on my TV/Xbox/cable TV box/Audio. I realised that my audio in general (apart from headphones/portable) needed some upgrading. The Denon amp gives me DAB radio and Bluetooth connectivity/CD player which sound great with my old B&W DM302 speakers. So I’m enjoying listening to sounds in general via this new set up. I had an old Rotel amp which I realised needed replacing as soon as I hit the hi-fi shops. I must say that there must be a lot of people with a lot of cash to spend on hi-fi as some of the prices in the shops I visited were staggering. I must say that the money I spent on my Sennheiser HD170 headphones was money well spent. A good few years with them and they still sound great. Thanks again everybody for your help and good luck with the hearing aids @paulwright
That’s good news.
Spending on Hi-Fi is a bottomless pit, but most people don’t need to go any further than a Naim Uniti. Or, for a smaller budget, something like a Pioneer XCHM86D.