[peenemunde]

So, with my tax return this year I vowed to pay off my credit card. Since I have now convinced myself #YOLO, I will be blowing it on wicked fun stuff instead

I haven't decided on my fronts yet but I am leaning towards either the Audioengine P4 with my Harmon Kardon AVR146 (In two channel stereo mode), or rocking the new Audioengine A5+. Either way sounds good, the passive gives me a little more options down the road but would drastically need a subwoofer for good sound reproduction. I wanted to build myself a great 2.1 setup anyway, so the subwoofer is definitely in the cards. Which one?! I do not know. I was looking around the internetz last night and saw that Audioengine has the S8, which fits the bill wonderfully. M-Audio also has a subwoofer with decent reviews called the SBX10 that looked kind of appealing as well. I am in no way limited to these options, however I would like to stay under $1000 with the Fronts, Sub, DAC, soundcard.


Let me know what you think? Options? Concerns?


My plan was to go digital from my soundcard to a DAC, then to my HK receiver and out to my passives. Or DAC to Active if I go with some that are powered.


Thanks

 

[UGAd13]

#dontbeabumpayoffyourcreditcardsyou'llthankmelater...

 

[peenemunde]

Lolol I knew I would get a lot of this. Thanks Dad, but this is a forum for people with too much money that decide it's best to blow on speakers

And I'm paying off most of my CC with my refund, just not all of it. I'm allocating $500 from my refund and $500 from my savings towards my desktop setup. Any constructive ideas for my unconstructive plans?

 

[jautor]



Quote:
Originally Posted by peenemunde  /t/1517269/looking-to-build-a-wicked-desktop-setup-need-some-input-on-my-options#post_24343061


Lolol I knew I would get a lot of this.

If you didn't want a lecture on good financial responsibility you shouldn't have led off with "I have a balance on my credit card(s)"...

Quote:
Thanks Dad, but this is a forum for people with too much money that decide it's best to blow on speakers

I doubt anyone on this forum has "too much money". People like that have people to read the forums for them.

Quote:
And I'm paying off most of my CC with my refund, just not all of it.

In case you're not aware of this - carrying even a single dollar of a balance month-to-month on a card means you incur interest on your everyday purchases from the FIRST DAY of the purchase. Meaning, you don't get the "25 day interest-free grace period" normally associated with a credit card. If you're carrying a balance on a card: (1) make sure that's a low-interest card, and (2) don't use that card for everyday purchases that you can pay off at the end of each billing cycle. Look at your credit card statement and the "interest paid this month" number - pay off the balance, and you just got that amount as a monthly raise!

Quote:
I'm allocating $500 from my refund and $500 from my savings towards my desktop setup. Any constructive ideas for my unconstructive plans?

Pay off the credit card (unless it's a very low interest rate, like 0%) first. If your budget would allow the purchase of the AV gear such that you could pay it off within 4-6 months, look at good deals on 0% financing (Paypal's BillMeLater works really well for this). But that financing should only be used IF you can fully expect to pay off the total before the promotional period ends - otherwise it's a horrible, horrible idea...



Jeff

 

[peenemunde]



Quote:
Originally Posted by jautor  /t/1517269/looking-to-build-a-wicked-desktop-setup-need-some-input-on-my-options#post_24344020


If you didn't want a lecture on good financial responsibility you shouldn't have led off with "I have a balance on my credit card(s)"...

I doubt anyone on this forum has "too much money". People like that have people to read the forums for them.

In case you're not aware of this - carrying even a single dollar of a balance month-to-month on a card means you incur interest on your everyday purchases from the FIRST DAY of the purchase. Meaning, you don't get the "25 day interest-free grace period" normally associated with a credit card. If you're carrying a balance on a card: (1) make sure that's a low-interest card, and (2) don't use that card for everyday purchases that you can pay off at the end of each billing cycle. Look at your credit card statement and the "interest paid this month" number - pay off the balance, and you just got that amount as a monthly raise!

Pay off the credit card (unless it's a very low interest rate, like 0%) first. If your budget would allow the purchase of the AV gear such that you could pay it off within 4-6 months, look at good deals on 0% financing (Paypal's BillMeLater works really well for this). But that financing should only be used IF you can fully expect to pay off the total before the promotional period ends - otherwise it's a horrible, horrible idea...



Jeff

I have one credit card and it has a VERY low interest rate, as it's a student card. I know what I am doing friends, believe me. I am no dumby, if my card needed to be paid off today I would do it. I don't mind paying the very minimal interest I occur now, so after paying off MOST of my credit limit my interest per month will drastically reduce anyway. This is not my first rodeo

When I need financial advice, I call my financial coordinator. When I need opinions or suggestions from the most knowledgeable audiophiles in the world, I check the forums. Albeit, some of you may be fabulous financial coordinators, I choose to walk a different path. I would really like some input before I make my decision on a desktop setup next week.


P.S.~ Half of the gear will be purchased from a website where I get 0% interest for 12months if paid on full. So I would merely be setting aside the cash and paying it off over the next 11 months, building my credit in the process

 

[jautor]



Quote:
Originally Posted by peenemunde  /t/1517269/looking-to-build-a-wicked-desktop-setup-need-some-input-on-my-options#post_24344084


I don't mind paying the very minimal interest I occur now, so after paying off MOST of my credit limit my interest per month will drastically reduce anyway.


When I need financial advice, I call my financial coordinator.

If he / she thinks that's a ok plan, fire them.

Quote:
P.S.~ Half of the gear will be purchased from a website where I get 0% interest for 12months if paid on full. So I would merely be setting aside the cash and paying it off over the next 11 months, building my credit in the process

Now you're making sense...

Quote:
Originally Posted by peenemunde  /t/1517269/looking-to-build-a-wicked-desktop-setup-need-some-input-on-my-options#post_24342945


I haven't decided on my fronts yet but I am leaning towards either the Audioengine P4 with my Harmon Kardon AVR146 (In two channel stereo mode), or rocking the new Audioengine A5+. Either way sounds good, the passive gives me a little more options down the road but would drastically need a subwoofer for good sound reproduction. I wanted to build myself a great 2.1 setup anyway, so the subwoofer is definitely in the cards.

This probably isn't the best sub-forum for the question, but anyways... The decision between active "PC speakers" and an audio system probably depends on your intended usage. Is this setup for listening / gaming while in front of the PC (and for casual Internet / computer audio), or really for music listening only? For the former, a good pair of powered (active) computer speakers (with or without a sub) is handy, as you don't have to turn on/off the AVR for sound from a 30-second video clip.

Quote:
Either way sounds good, the passive gives me a little more options down the road but would drastically need a subwoofer for good sound reproduction.

Active / passive doesn't equate to needing a subwoofer - it's just a matter of where the amp is...

Quote:
I wanted to build myself a great 2.1 setup anyway, so the subwoofer is definitely in the cards. Which one?! I do not know. I was looking around the internetz last night and saw that Audioengine has the S8, which fits the bill wonderfully. M-Audio also has a subwoofer with decent reviews called the SBX10 that looked kind of appealing as well. I am in no way limited to these options, however I would like to stay under $1000 with the Fronts, Sub, DAC, soundcard.


My plan was to go digital from my soundcard to a DAC, then to my HK receiver and out to my passives. Or DAC to Active if I go with some that are powered.

Since you already have an AVR with a perfectly good DAC built-in, save your money there and just use any soundcard with digital audio output and connect that to the AVR or the Audioengine powered speaker model(s) directly.


Jeff

 

[peenemunde]



Quote:
Originally Posted by jautor  /t/1517269/looking-to-build-a-wicked-desktop-setup-need-some-input-on-my-options#post_24344183


If he / she thinks that's a ok plan, fire them.

Now you're making sense...

This probably isn't the best sub-forum for the question, but anyways... The decision between active "PC speakers" and an audio system probably depends on your intended usage. Is this setup for listening / gaming while in front of the PC (and for casual Internet / computer audio), or really for music listening only? For the former, a good pair of powered (active) computer speakers (with or without a sub) is handy, as you don't have to turn on/off the AVR for sound from a 30-second video clip.

Active / passive doesn't equate to needing a subwoofer - it's just a matter of where the amp is...

Since you already have an AVR with a perfectly good DAC built-in, save your money there and just use any soundcard with digital audio output and connect that to the AVR or the Audioengine powered speaker model(s) directly.


Jeff

The P4 passive speakers don't have enough low-end extension for the transient response I want, so I personally feel that they would need a subwoofer. The A5+ active speakers would be adequate without a subwoofer if only until I break down and buy one anyway. I preferred the P4 idea myself, as it would allow me to save money on a DAC and have better options in the future. Great minds think alike

As for intended use, I would have to say all of the above. I love music, movies, video games, and general internet surfing. My computer is currently my main Media Hub and source of entertainment for my livingroom, so I will greatly benefit from having good sound. Right now, I would say their intended main use would be video games and music. This will be a desktop setup, so the target audience will generally be sitting 3-5 feet away at any given time.


If a mod would kindly move this thread to it's appropriate sub-forum I would greatly appreciate it

I frequent many car audio forums but have tamed down substantially on my HT forum surfing. Not up to snuff with this one currently