Desktop Speakers, too many options!

[B00MSPL4T]

Hi,

I'm having trouble picking out some new desktop speakers for my new office space, and would love some recommendations.

For the most part I use headphones, but would like some decent speakers for watching movies or just relaxing. When it comes to audio, I'm all fingers and thumbs. I've no idea what brands to avoid, and have limited knowledge on good brands (Bose, Logitech etc). Ideally I want something sleek and unobtrusive, without that "for gamers" design style. Budget wise I'm not looking to spend more than £100, but obviously there is a little wiggle room there.

Below are some choices I've picked out so far.

Bose Companion 2 Series III:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bose-Companion-Multimedia-Speaker-System/dp/B00CL83JVQ

Razer Nomo:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Razer-2-0-Gaming-Speakers-Nommo/dp/B078XY5C1F


Any help would be appreciated!

[stage]

At that price range you could probably find some studio monitors - Mackie cr4 or cr5 are good budget entry, but I have no idea the prices in UK you need to search for your self. Don't buy gamers audio equipment that is usually very crappy, get some musical one. Active Nearfield Monitors

[rice guru]

I really like Mackie or Edifier for your price range 

[IPD]

I would go with 2.1, not 2.0.  Huge improvement in soundstage.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-980-001202-SPEAKER-SPRINGST-GIFTBOX-Black/dp/B00YR92T90

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Creative-USB-Powered-Down-Firing-Subwoofer-Far-Field/dp/B07NYS5TTT/

 

Also look for ones that have an easily accessible 3.5mm jack for plugging in your headphones--something either on one of the speakers, or a dongle that sits on the desk.

[ShearMe]

10 hours ago, IPD said:

I would go with 2.1, not 2.0.  Huge improvement in soundstage.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Logitech-980-001202-SPEAKER-SPRINGST-GIFTBOX-Black/dp/B00YR92T90

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Creative-USB-Powered-Down-Firing-Subwoofer-Far-Field/dp/B07NYS5TTT/

 

Also look for ones that have an easily accessible 3.5mm jack for plugging in your headphones--something either on one of the speakers, or a dongle that sits on the desk.

how does a subwoofer improve soundstage?

[Goldilock]

15 minutes ago, ShearMe said:

how does a subwoofer improve soundstage?

Not necessarily soundstage per technical term (i.e. perceived width and depth) but maybe more on "presence" as if I could sense explosion better.

[Goldilock]

Edifier R1280t (better if you can find BT version).

[Skip]

I would say either buy a cheap used 2.1 setup (I bought Logitech’s “top” 2.1 for $35 USD, far below the $150 new price), or the Corsair 2.1 (I got one for free from a garage sale), although the sub is comically large.

 

if you are going to spend over $100, then please go used and consider buying an old receiver for cheap on eBay and getting g very basic speakers to start and upgrading the speakers later. I would avoid Bose like the plague. Their stuff is always over-priced, even used. 
 

for ease and cost, used 2.1 setups are best. I use two at the same time just for fun (my wood floors tumble in games). My two are OLD Logitech and Corsair. If you hunt eBay and Craigslist you should be able to find something.

[Psittac]

28 minutes ago, Skip said:

I would say either buy a cheap used 2.1 setup (I bought Logitech’s “top” 2.1 for $35 USD, far below the $150 new price), or the Corsair 2.1 (I got one for free from a garage sale), although the sub is comically large.

 

if you are going to spend over $100, then please go used and consider buying an old receiver for cheap on eBay and getting g very basic speakers to start and upgrading the speakers later. I would avoid Bose like the plague. Their stuff is always over-priced, even used. 
 

for ease and cost, used 2.1 setups are best. I use two at the same time just for fun (my wood floors tumble in games). My two are OLD Logitech and Corsair. If you hunt eBay and Craigslist you should be able to find something.

I agree almost entirely other than the OP's requirement for unobtrusive.  This means that an AVR is going to have some problems because they can be very difficult to place no matter the desk size.

 

If you're not looking into the used market, which I would recommend, you would need to look into self powered monitors.  These are compact in size and require little to no cabling.  While I haven't heard a pair of actual desktop speakers in many many years if not a couple decades  But back 20 years ago before I had any experience with audio other than my home theater in a box I greatly enjoyed my dell harmon kardon like these pictured.  I used them to no end and often instead of my HT.

 

 

Since then I would be able to say that something like these edifier's have probably upped the game drastically along with other reputable brands like swan.  The only second hand experience I can offer is with Micca and the RB42 I have which are incredible however they have a 450w amp behind them that cost more than the speakers.  But they have a very full sound given the size.  That product gives me enough faith in the Micca PB42x to recommend them whole heartedly based on a reputation for making a lot out of a little.

 

 

 

 

 

I'll leave with a little clip of my micca's, the mic doesn't do them justice

 

 

 

 

 

[IPD]

7 hours ago, ShearMe said:

how does a subwoofer improve soundstage?

Frequency response of a 2.0 is usually narrower than a 2.1.  This can be easily demonstrated with something bass-heavy like dubstep.

 

From Wikipedia:

Quote

The term soundstage refers to the depth and richness of an audio recording and usually relates to the playback process. According to audiophiles, the quality of the playback is very much dependent upon how one is able to pick out different instruments, voices, vocal parts, and such exactly where they are located on an imaginary 2-dimensional or 3-dimensional field. The quality of this soundstage can enhance not only the listener's involvement in the recording, but also their overall perception of the stage

 

In this case, we're referring to bass-lines, ambiance (eg. engine room noise in Star Trek), etc.  A 2.1 is often more easy to adjust for bass, as most come with some kind of rheostat to adjust output from the sub.  This makes it (in my experience) easier to tailor (on the fly) how pronounced bass is--vs most 2.0 systems.  Granted, you aren't going to be getting 20hz response out of either--but lower is better, and 2.1 will usually deliver equal low-end for a lower price--than higher quality 2.0 offerings.

[GenericFanboy]

9 hours ago, Goldilock said:

Edifier R1280t (better if you can find BT version).

+1 use these for my xbox for in bed and such, works lovely. although i wish the remote was better.

[ShearMe]

8 hours ago, IPD said:

Frequency response of a 2.0 is usually narrower than a 2.1.  This can be easily demonstrated with something bass-heavy like dubstep.

 

From Wikipedia:

 

In this case, we're referring to bass-lines, ambiance (eg. engine room noise in Star Trek), etc.  A 2.1 is often more easy to adjust for bass, as most come with some kind of rheostat to adjust output from the sub.  This makes it (in my experience) easier to tailor (on the fly) how pronounced bass is--vs most 2.0 systems.  Granted, you aren't going to be getting 20hz response out of either--but lower is better, and 2.1 will usually deliver equal low-end for a lower price--than higher quality 2.0 offerings.

Soundstage is the directionality you can perceive. Adding a subwoofer doesn't improve directionality because lower wavelengths are too large for the human head to perceive a direction. Even if you could perceive it, you would need two subs in stereo to maintain directionality. 

 

I don't doubt that 2.1 is an improvement in your audio experience. 

[IPD]

2 hours ago, ShearMe said:

Soundstage is the directionality you can perceive. Adding a subwoofer doesn't improve directionality because lower wavelengths are too large for the human head to perceive a direction. Even if you could perceive it, you would need two subs in stereo to maintain directionality. 

 

I don't doubt that 2.1 is an improvement in your audio experience. 

Directionality is a big part of it, yes.  There's also the part about "different instruments" and low frequencies--although omnidirectional--add texture to playback that would otherwise be missing.

[ShearMe]

4 hours ago, IPD said:

Directionality is a big part of it, yes.  There's also the part about "different instruments" and low frequencies--although omnidirectional--add texture to playback that would otherwise be missing.

Texture isn't soundstage. Adding a subwoofer doesn't allow you to pick where on the stage an individual instrument is more clearly.

 

Sorry, I don't mean to be pedantic, but if we're making recommendations to someone I think our reasoning should be clear. I've never come across someone who has suggested better bass response improves the "soundstage" as most people understand the term.

[IPD]

10 hours ago, ShearMe said:

Texture isn't soundstage. Adding a subwoofer doesn't allow you to pick where on the stage an individual instrument is more clearly.

 

Sorry, I don't mean to be pedantic, but if we're making recommendations to someone I think our reasoning should be clear. I've never come across someone who has suggested better bass response improves the "soundstage" as most people understand the term.

Well that's precisely what you're doing. Weird flex,  but ok.

 

I look forward to you vehemently picking fights with people who refer to 1440p as "2k"

[B00MSPL4T]

Thank you for all your recommendations.

After going through all the options I've settled on some Edifier R1280DB's. A little bigger than I would have originally wanted, but they should work well with the space I have.

Cheers!

[ShearMe]

14 hours ago, IPD said:

I look forward to you vehemently picking fights with people who refer to 1440p as "2k"

1440p is 2k, and any confusion there is created by display manufacturers' marketing. Not understanding how that's the same situation as enthusiasts misusing their own made up definitions. 

[IPD]

18 hours ago, ShearMe said:

1440p is 2k, and any confusion there is created by display manufacturers' marketing. Not understanding how that's the same situation as enthusiasts misusing their own made up definitions. 

Um, no.  No it 100% is not.  1440p is QHD--that's it.  2.5k if you must.  1080p is actually 2k--per the nebulous definition of what "K" is.

 

Thank you for perpetuating that myth; you have no right to throw stones about my nomenclature and semantics.

[ShearMe]

1 hour ago, IPD said:

Um, no.  No it 100% is not.  1440p is QHD--that's it.  2.5k if you must.  1080p is actually 2k--per the nebulous definition of what "K" is.

 

Thank you for perpetuating that myth; you have no right to throw stones about my nomenclature and semantics.

Woah buddy, all my stones are in the garden. I'm just having nerdy conversations with fellow internet weirdos.

 

2k is a general term, and QHD falls into that pool of devices. Like how you can buy a 65" class display and then in parenthesis somewhere on the box it'll say 62.789 inches

[H713]

On 2/8/2022 at 6:13 AM, IPD said:

Well that's precisely what you're doing. Weird flex,  but ok.

 

I look forward to you vehemently picking fights with people who refer to 1440p as "2k"

Terms like "soundstage" "bright" "dark" etc. are subjective, but they do have a reasonably well-defined meaning. Low frequencies are nearly omnidirectional, so they tend not to affect soundstage significantly. 

 

As for the whole 2.0 vs. 2.1 debate, it depends on the main monitors. Personally, I don't care for 2.1 setups in small rooms - I find that it tends to create more problems than it solves. Where adding a sub is helpful is mainly in larger rooms, as the mains can be high-pass filtered at 80 Hz or wherever, and that really helps improve the linearity of their LF drivers. You can still do subs in small rooms, but it takes a bit more careful planning, and I wouldn't try to do it for less than $100.