LG C5 Audio setup

[minecraftyeet1]

hi. im getting a 42" lg c5 for gaming / movies and need a good sound system.

 

preferably under 1k aud but whats basiclaly  the max quality sound i can get for the least price? is SC9S good?

[Psittac]

I know little about soundbars, have never owned one.  But they have come a long way.

 

On LTT they have argued for used home theater setups and I can't argue with that.

 

I would start with an AVR and 2.0 or 3.0  Stereo sound is very competent and maximizing your initial purchase of an AVR and front channel speakers is crucial.

 

It took me 10+ years to get my HT setup because I bought it one piece at a time.  Putting your entire budget into a full system isn't what I would recommend.

 

AVR:  You just want something that has Audessey EQ or similar (I know the different brands have struck out with their own versions).  The reason I say this is my $2k msrp towers had a nasty kick drum peak in the sound and it drove me crazy for a year until I got some sort of DSP into it, today actually.  Depending on your timeline I wouldn't sink to much into an AVR because it is the first if not only component to get replaced.  Speakers will last for decades.

 

Fronts:  This is a tricky one because I got a black friday deal on some super nice towers for my basement but like I said they had an enhanced kick drum frequency range.  Never pay full price for towers because every year they come out with "new" models and discount the old models and you really have to be in the know to figure out what actually changes.  No brand is free from this in the speaker space.  If you have the room get towers for sure, if not bookshelves can me amazing too.

 

Center:  This is mainly for dialogue in movies, match this to your front's.

 

Sub: Depending on your living situation you might want a subwoofer.  I highly recommend an "acoustical" subwoofer over a room shaker.  I have both and haven't even bothered to reconnect my room shaker because I am Rarely in the mood to shake the walls.  A good acoustical sub will pick up where the front's leave off.  A friend of mine got a high end SVS sub and his AVR basically neutered the Klipsch towers because the sub was doing so much.  We spent a couple of hours fiddling with the settings trying to figure out what sounds best.  He would turn the sub completely off and the towers did very little and we thought something was broken.  Our assumption in the end was that it removed these frequencies from the towers because of potential overlap of waves that could cancel or amplify.

 

Conclusion: You are using a 42" as I noticed half way through this, so I'm going to assume that space is limited and or a close viewing position.  A quality soundbar is more than likely your best bet.  That or some bookshelves and a subwoofer.  Do you have this monitor at your desk?  Or is this for couch viewing?  At my desk I have a pair of Micca RB42's with a strong power amp which they require.  Though for the past few years I've been mostly a headphone guy.

 

Follow up thoughts:  We need more information really.  What is your setup space and type?  Any noise complaint possibilities?

 

*edit: Also: Are you a one and done kind of person or do you want upgradeability options?

[minecraftyeet1]

49 minutes ago, Psittac said:

I know little about soundbars, have never owned one.  But they have come a long way.

 

On LTT they have argued for used home theater setups and I can't argue with that.

 

I would start with an AVR and 2.0 or 3.0  Stereo sound is very competent and maximizing your initial purchase of an AVR and front channel speakers is crucial.

 

It took me 10+ years to get my HT setup because I bought it one piece at a time.  Putting your entire budget into a full system isn't what I would recommend.

 

AVR:  You just want something that has Audessey EQ or similar (I know the different brands have struck out with their own versions).  The reason I say this is my $2k msrp towers had a nasty kick drum peak in the sound and it drove me crazy for a year until I got some sort of DSP into it, today actually.  Depending on your timeline I wouldn't sink to much into an AVR because it is the first if not only component to get replaced.  Speakers will last for decades.

 

Fronts:  This is a tricky one because I got a black friday deal on some super nice towers for my basement but like I said they had an enhanced kick drum frequency range.  Never pay full price for towers because every year they come out with "new" models and discount the old models and you really have to be in the know to figure out what actually changes.  No brand is free from this in the speaker space.  If you have the room get towers for sure, if not bookshelves can me amazing too.

 

Center:  This is mainly for dialogue in movies, match this to your front's.

 

Sub: Depending on your living situation you might want a subwoofer.  I highly recommend an "acoustical" subwoofer over a room shaker.  I have both and haven't even bothered to reconnect my room shaker because I am Rarely in the mood to shake the walls.  A good acoustical sub will pick up where the front's leave off.  A friend of mine got a high end SVS sub and his AVR basically neutered the Klipsch towers because the sub was doing so much.  We spent a couple of hours fiddling with the settings trying to figure out what sounds best.  He would turn the sub completely off and the towers did very little and we thought something was broken.  Our assumption in the end was that it removed these frequencies from the towers because of potential overlap of waves that could cancel or amplify.

 

Conclusion: You are using a 42" as I noticed half way through this, so I'm going to assume that space is limited and or a close viewing position.  A quality soundbar is more than likely your best bet.  That or some bookshelves and a subwoofer.  Do you have this monitor at your desk?  Or is this for couch viewing?  At my desk I have a pair of Micca RB42's with a strong power amp which they require.  Though for the past few years I've been mostly a headphone guy.

 

Follow up thoughts:  We need more information really.  What is your setup space and type?  Any noise complaint possibilities?

 

*edit: Also: Are you a one and done kind of person or do you want upgradeability options?

 just want something off amazon au. its 42" beacuse im using the tv as a monitor. for my gaming pc.

setup space and type idk its just a desk. i have room on the desk for whatevrer.

[venomtail]

4 hours ago, minecraftyeet1 said:

max quality sound

Bit of a loaded question as it's all subjective, made worse by your placement arrangements, tastes and how you hear sounds. 

 

I'm not an expert on sound but I have one, the Sony HT-ZF9, without the rear speakers cause I wanted to buy them later but they managed to discontinue them before I could so. Sound bar is very plug and play friendly. I have it configured in my living room with a 48" TV setup. Sound quality charges drastically if you leave the "cone" of sound that has been configured, so not sure if a soundbar at monitor distances will be able to give you the sound to hear at such short distances properly given how complex ones want to reflect sound back to the listener and an expected position.

 

If I was to buy again for $1000, I think I might go back to a more traditional receiver and standing speakers, mainly because I've realised the living room speakers often need to serve as a general room filling music device in events and with soundbar positionality, don't do as great of a job as general speakers. Flexibility and reusability of traditional speakers is also a big appeal. Soundbars really only have one purpose and one situation where they fit.

 

The only thing I don't understand is that your newer and pricier SC9S is rated worse than my ZF9. Not sure if it's actually worse making comparison fair or the expectations have simply risen so much higher in the last 7 years to the point where the newer, better soundbar is the worse choice to buy out of new competition.

[saintlouisbagels]

-deleting because I cannot read-

[minecraftyeet1]

6 hours ago, saintlouisbagels said:

A pair of Q350 or the new Q3 Meta

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq350blk/kef-q350-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speakers-black/1.html
https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq350wht/kef-q350-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speakers-white/1.html
https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq350wln/kef-q350-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speaker-walnut/1.html

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq3metablk-rb/kef-q3-meta-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speakers-black/1.html
https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq3metawlnt-rb/kef-q3-meta-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speakers-walnut/1.html
https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/kefq3metawht-rb/kef-q3-meta-pair-6.5-2-way-bookshelf-speakers-white/1.html

A good stereo amplifier
https://www.amazon.com/LOXJIE-MA12070-Headphone-Amplifier-Bluetooth/dp/B08J7Z8TN6/

https://www.amazon.com/WiiM-Amp-Multiroom-Streaming-Chromecast/dp/B0CGCLXH4H/
https://www.amazon.com/WiiM-Amp-Pro-Multiroom-Compatible/dp/B0DFPJ91ZX/

 

Maybe speaker stands

https://www.amazon.com/Kanto-Universal-Bookshelf-Speakers-Management/dp/B0DKG1MBT9/
https://www.amazon.com/Kanto-SP32PL-Bookshelf-Speaker-Stands/dp/B073HVKDJY/

any from amazon AU?

[minecraftyeet1]

14 hours ago, venomtail said:

Bit of a loaded question as it's all subjective, made worse by your placement arrangements, tastes and how you hear sounds. 

 

I'm not an expert on sound but I have one, the Sony HT-ZF9, without the rear speakers cause I wanted to buy them later but they managed to discontinue them before I could so. Sound bar is very plug and play friendly. I have it configured in my living room with a 48" TV setup. Sound quality charges drastically if you leave the "cone" of sound that has been configured, so not sure if a soundbar at monitor distances will be able to give you the sound to hear at such short distances properly given how complex ones want to reflect sound back to the listener and an expected position.

 

If I was to buy again for $1000, I think I might go back to a more traditional receiver and standing speakers, mainly because I've realised the living room speakers often need to serve as a general room filling music device in events and with soundbar positionality, don't do as great of a job as general speakers. Flexibility and reusability of traditional speakers is also a big appeal. Soundbars really only have one purpose and one situation where they fit.

 

The only thing I don't understand is that your newer and pricier SC9S is rated worse than my ZF9. Not sure if it's actually worse making comparison fair or the expectations have simply risen so much higher in the last 7 years to the point where the newer, better soundbar is the worse choice to buy out of new competition.

ty. i will probably just wait.

sc9s seems bad

[saintlouisbagels]

26 minutes ago, minecraftyeet1 said:

any from amazon AU?

Literally did not notice that you said “AU” in your original post. My bad.

[saintlouisbagels]

SMSL A50 amp
https://www.amazon.com.au/S-M-S-L-A50Pro-Amplifier-Bluetooth-Subwoofer/dp/B0D1G8TG5B/
Loxjie A30 amp
https://www.amazon.com.au/LOXJIE-A30-Headphone-Amplifier-Bluetooth/dp/B08J7Z8TN6/

Wharfedale speakers
https://www.apollohifi.com.au/wharfedale-diamond-12-1-bookshelf-speakers.html
https://www.apollohifi.com.au/wharfedale-diamond-12-2-bookshelf-speakers.html

 

I think I would go for the SMSL A50 + Wharfedale 12.2 combo for a TV due to the HDMI ARC
Otherwise, with budget in mind, I would do the Loxjie A30 + Wharfedale 12.1 combo if you're hooking up to a PC and you need a USB input.

 

This thread mentions some setup advice regarding the A50.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BudgetAudiophile/comments/1h89bw4/how_do_i_use_the_smsl_a50_pro/

 

The Wharfedale 12.1 reviews pretty favorably on audiosciencereview, and the 12.2 is just the better, fuller-sounding version (I assume).
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/wharfedale-diamond-12-1-review-speaker.26780/