[Icicle666]

Hey all ...

After looking at sound all day (very hard to come buy cheaply in my country) and after being told that I am wasting my money getting the Xonar DX + Corsair SP 2500 ... I found 3 monitors and would like some advice.


Which of these are better ? ... (I listen to all types of music but mostly dubstep, rock and I game a lot)

Dayton B652
Polk TSi 100
Audio Bronze BX1


If I go with these ... What amp/ receiver would you recommend keeping in mind I want to add a sub onto the system later for a decent 2.1 system (entry level) ... I will probably run a cheap home audio sub until I can afford something better like the Sony SA-W2500/B ...


If I get an amp/receiver will I still need the Xonar DX or can I use onboard for a month or 2 ... ... Would the STX be better for speakers ?



All information would be greatly appreciated.
Regards.
 
 
 
:: EDIT ::
 
Just found out that the sub is an active sub, how would I hook this up to my pc ? ... can I still use an amp or would I need a receiver ?

 

[GREQ]

The first thing you should do is install Foobar2000 - it is the best PC media player and makes music sound better no matter what sound card/on-board sound solution you are using. 
Next is make sure you're using at least 320Kbps MP3's. 
 
As you are clearly on a budget you no longer need a high level sound card (for now).
 
If you're possibly in the market for an amp, and you're only interested in building a 2.1 system then you could look for 2nd hand vintage amplifiers. Some are nearly indestructible and cost around $10 if you know where to look or simply get lucky. Then you can pair it with a half decent set of vintage speakers, monitors, or even brand new monitors and get a VERY good sound for A LOT less money.  Depending on the speakers you get, you may feel that you don't need a sub.... but if you get really big ones, you'll need to find space for them AWAY from your hard disk drives. Most regular speakers are not magnetically shielded. 
 
Most amps have some sort of 'line out' which I would use to feed a powered sub-woofer WITH an adjustable frequency roll-off so you can kill all sound above it's frequency response ability. That plus the speakers will be the most expensive part unless you source some very nice vintage speakers/monitors. An example of a good entry level sub-woofer is the Wharfedale Diamond SW150.
 
This is just one possible route that can save you a lot of money and bring you at least 90% of the performance of modern stuff. 

 

[Icicle666]

Thanks so much for the reply !! ...
 
I am currently looking at vintage amps but I am battling to find good sources in my country ... (hate this country sometimes)
 
I came across this amp and wondered if it is any good as I am battling to find information on it ...
 
ONKYO A-9210

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

After looking at sound all day (very hard to come buy cheaply in my country) and after being told that I am wasting my money getting the Xonar DX + Corsair SP 2500 ... I found 3 monitors and would like some advice.
Which of these are better ? ... (I listen to all types of music but mostly dubstep, rock and I game a lot)
Dayton B652
Polk TSi 100
Audio Bronze BX1

If I go with these ... What amp/ receiver would you recommend keeping in mind I want to add a sub onto the system later for a decent 2.1 system (entry level) ... I will probably run a cheap home audio sub until I can afford something better like the Sony SA-W2500/B ...

If I get an amp/receiver will I still need the Xonar DX or can I use onboard for a month or 2 ... ... Would the STX be better for speakers ?

:: EDIT ::
 
Just found out that the sub is an active sub, how would I hook this up to my pc ? ... can I still use an amp or would I need a receiver ?

The Xonar DX comes with the CS4398 DAC chip and would easily match (or better?) the Essence STX for speakers.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

I am currently looking at vintage amps but I am battling to find good sources in my country ... (hate this country sometimes)
I came across this amp and wondered if it is any good as I am battling to find information on it ...
ONKYO A-9210

If the price is right, should make a decent speaker amplifier, but comes with no sub-woofer output.

 

[cel4145]

If your computer has optical out, a cost effective solution is to go with a more modern receiver that has optical inputs. The receiver will then use its DAC to convert the digital audio. When you consider the cost of STX plus amp, you might find that you can pick up a new or used HT receiver with optical inputs at a better price. Or if you are a gamer with add-on graphics card with HDMI out with audio, an HT receiver with HDMI connections will work fine, too. 
 
If you go with vintage amplifiers, be sure to listen before you buy. Sometimes vintage receivers that are getting very old are in need of refurbishing for best sound. 
 
Most subwoofers these days have their own amplifier built in. That's a good thing because subs generally need a lot of power. Looks like the Sony sub you are considering has a single subwoofer line in and speaker level inputs and outputs. So your options are
 
(1) Connect to a receiver with subwoofer out to the line in. 
(2) On a stereo receiver with both A/B speaker stereo outputs, hook the speakers to the A and the sub up to the B.
(3) On a receiver without a subwoofer line out or A/B stereo speaker hookups, run the speaker connections to the sub from the receiver, then use the speaker out on the sub to the speakers. 

 

[Icicle666]

Thanks for all the information ...
 
Been looking for monitors in my country as I was warned the few I mentioned are pretty low level and don't sound to good... Also looking at getting a better sub but the 1 I listed was only a temp solution...
 
How good are the KRK RP5 G2's ? ... would the Alesis 1M MKII be a better set for what I have intended ? ...
 
 
Last question for now ... lol ...
 
 
Can you push monitors loud or are they meant for lower volume higher quality ? ... would bookshelfs be better for both high and low volume ?

 

[GREQ]

The 'problem' (subjective) with monitors is that they are designed with a greater emphasis on the higher frequencies so audio engineers can control sibilance and hear details more easily - this means that often bass volume isn't particularly strong. If you will add a subwoofer at some point, this is a non-issue. 
The GOOD thing about monitors is that they are designed to higher specifications (normally) than consumer hifi speakers and often they will go louder with lower distortion levels which are desirable for sound engineers - on the other hand monitors are also sometimes called - NEAR FIELD MONITORS - meaning they're designed to be use CLOSE to the listener - conversely I found that my old Audioengine a5 sounded best around 1-2 meters away from me, and sounded almost bad as a 'near-field' experience. (mostly this is to do with the room and positioning) but others have had positive experiences. So generally as monitors only usually have around 4 inch woofers, they CAN fill a room, but the sound might not always be as coherent as a system with 6-10 inch woofers... which also require more space - as the larger speakers sound congested in small rooms. It is a bit of a balancing act.

 

[Icicle666]

The room I am currently in is tiny (basically a small college dorm room) and I was looking at monitors with 5-6.5" drivers, I will also be sitting about 30cm from the monitors (they will be on my desk next 2 my screen) ... is this going to cause issues ?
 
The sub will probably be a 10/12 inch active sub which will fill even decently sized rooms and when turned down should be ok for smaller rooms as well ...
 
 
Now I just need to refine my search on monitors (gotten a ton of receiver and positioning advice but no comments on the monitors)
 
Dayton B652  -- (would prefer active)
Polk TSi 100
Audio Bronze BX1
 
M-Audio BX5A Deluxe -- (was told they don't produce drum sounds correctly)
Alesis 1M MKII -- (Very Expensive)
KRK RP5G2  --  (even more expensive and I have a hit and miss response from reviews some swear by them others condemn them)

 

[cel4145]

Quote:

I will also be sitting about 30cm from the monitors (they will be on my desk next 2 my screen)

 
Where do you live? Their might be other passive speakers to consider if you are in Europe.

 

[Icicle666]

I am from South Africa

 

[cel4145]

You should investigate what you an buy locally. A lot of the advice on here is North American centric. It's based on the best bargains we can get. Your options are probably different. 

 

[Icicle666]

I understand that ... But if you guys give advice I then look up those products in my country and see the prices ...not the best way of doing it but once I have a product name finding it becomes way easier ...
 
 
Also, if you guys say the monitors I listed suck then I know not to buy them so it is advice by cancellation

 

[cel4145]

Quote:

I understand that ... But if you guys give advice I then look up those products in my country and see the prices ...not the best way of doing it but once I have a product name finding it becomes way easier ...

 
Better for you to say what you have locally that looks interesting to you for your budget. People here think along the lines of what they know to be good values here. Yet, there may be speakers that are a much better value for you there. For example, if you pick say five speakers in your budget range that you can get locally, then people can what is the best.

 

[Icicle666]

LOL ... that is why I have been listing the speakers as I find them ... but I understand your point ...
 
 
Dayton B652
Polk TSi 100
Audio Bronze BX1

M-Audio BX5A Deluxe
Alesis 1M MKII
KRK RP5G2
 
 
These are all I have found so far ... the First 3 are within budget and the other 3 are out of budget but if they are definitely better I will save up for them ... I would also prefer to get active speakers to make my life a little easier and cheaper
 
 
I did find 2 bookshelf sets but I would obviously need an amp or receiver to drive them pushing costs higher and they are pretty darn big
 
Wharfedale 10.2
Castle Knight 1
 
 

This is 1 of the only sites I can find with monitors (no stores stock ranges of monitors so I can't hear them before buying)
 
http://www.retromusic.co.za/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=146&Itemid=139&TreeId=339
 
My budget is R3000 but can stretch it slightly if need be