[BigTerminator]

I own the M Audios and love them to death, but from most people who had both, the JBL won. Purpel Angel is right about the Emotivas, personally that is my next pair of speakers.

 

[cableman5]

You guys are dangerous - always proposing something better I'll go to Guitar Center on Friday and will report back with my impressions.

 

[Honkytime]

You guys are dangerous - always proposing something better I'll go to Guitar Center on Friday and will report back with my impressions.

lol I guess you get the "sorry about your wallet" it got me really good

 

[cableman5]

Went to Guitar Center yesterday. As soon as I heard the JBL LSR305 I knew that's what I'm getting. I heard a number of other monitors, but the JBL sounded the best - very good sound stage, great clarity and "fullness" of the sound. The BX5 sounded uninspiring and flat, it sounded as if it was lacking something. The JBL sounds inspiring without any obvious coloration. I'll wait a bit for sales on the JBL and will get them for sure. Thank you guys for the help and guidance.

 

[BigTerminator]

I actually can hear what you are saying. I run my M-Audios through my Xonar with an eq. Without any eq the sound is probably accurate but kind of boring. My eq is literally just a hint of treble boost with everything else being flat and to my ears the sound completely opens up and sounds way more enjoyable. The JBL's have switches that can lower or higher treble and bass. I would go with the JBL's. But the Airmotive 5S is on sale for $332 right now through Halloween

 

[cableman5]

As much as I would like to move up to the Airmotive, it's a bit over my budget for monitors...

However, I have another question. I'll be connecting the JBL to my laptop and I'm pretty sure it doesn't have the best audio chip. What's the best way to get the most of the JBL - a DAC or perhaps an audio interface? I am getting lost in the world of high quality audio.

On the DAC side I looked at the Schiit Modi and Audioengine D1, and as far as audio interfaces go - Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. What's the best way to connect the JBL to my laptop for music listening (no recording)?

 

[PurpleAngel]

As much as I would like to move up to the Airmotive, it's a bit over my budget for monitors...
However, I have another question. I'll be connecting the JBL to my laptop and I'm pretty sure it doesn't have the best audio chip. What's the best way to get the most of the JBL - a DAC or perhaps an audio interface? I am getting lost in the world of high quality audio.
On the DAC side I looked at the Schiit Modi and Audioengine D1, and as far as audio interfaces go - Focusrite Scarlett 2i2. What's the best way to connect the JBL to my laptop for music listening (no recording)?

 
Hifiman Sabre U2 USB DAC, $57+shipping.
For connecting to the JBL 305, you will want a cable with 1/4" mono plugs to go into the JBLs TRS jack.
Depending on what DAC you get, the connection to the DAC will be 1/8" (3.5mm) stereo plug or RCA (red/white).

 

[cableman5]

What do you guys think about the Audioengine D1?

 

[BigTerminator]

The D1 is decent but if I were you I would get an ODAC and if you can spend the extra dough, try and find a used Peachtree DAC iT for around $200. The DAC iT gets rave reviews against $1000 DACs. DAC will be important so do not skimp but you really do not have to spend that much. My father has a TEAC UD-H01 and compared to my Xonar it was almost identical. I am getting the Airmotiv 5S and Presonus Temblor T10 so I will let you know how that goes. 

 

[cableman5]

That Presonus looks awesome. Will have to save up for a future upgrade. Is the ODAC significantly better than the D1? I had my eye on the D1 because it's quite convenient - it has a build in amp and volume control. Is the difference between the two worth giving up on these additional features?

 

[BigTerminator]

Unless if you need a headphone amp I would get the ODAC for your monitors. Most will say that the ODAC's DAC is superior to the D1. As for volume control, I am pretty sure the D1 only has volume control for the headphone amplifier. Plus later you can get an O2 amplifier which is a better amp/dac combo than the D1. Definitely get a subwoofer, makes the experience at the very least twice as good. ProAudio gave me a $250 quote for an open box Presonus T10 so hopefully tomorrow I will pull the trigger.  

 

[cel4145]

That Presonus looks awesome. Will have to save up for a future upgrade. Is the ODAC significantly better than the D1? I had my eye on the D1 because it's quite convenient - it has a build in amp and volume control. Is the difference between the two worth giving up on these additional features?

If you need a headphone amp, you might also consider the MaverickAudio D1. DAC+headphone amp+preamp.

Or if you can save up for longer, the Audio-GD NFB-15. Very powerful headphone amp that would work very well with most headphones on the market today, even most of those that are difficult to drive.

 

[cableman5]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, choosing a DAC seems way harder than choosing the monitors...

I don't need a headphone amp, but it would be a nice addition. I mainly care about the quality of the DAC portion, I want to do justice to those JBL monitors. The Maverick Audio D1 looks quite awesome. I don't know anything about it, I'll need to research it a bit. It seems to offer way more than I need (not a bad thing). How revealing or forgiving are those options? I'm guessing the Audioengine is the most forgiving one and the ODAC seems quite revealing. The AE D1 seems to offer everything I need in a small package but I fear that it might be a bit overpriced for the sound quality...So many options...

 

[cel4145]

Revealing is good, IMO. If you didn't want good clarify, why not take the LSR 305s back and get cheaper speakers that have poor resolution

ODAC is generally considered to be a better DAC than the AE D1. Not surprising since the AE D1 is not just a DAC.

 

[cableman5]

Revealing is good, IMO. If you didn't want good clarify, why not take the LSR 305s back and get cheaper speakers that have poor resolution

ODAC is generally considered to be a better DAC than the AE D1. Not surprising since the AE D1 is not just a DAC.

Hehe good point. So would you say that the AE D1 is not a good fit for the LSR305? Not revealing? I am basically looking for the DAC equivalent of the JBLs