[Mfusick]

Hi All,


Need some quick advice. I was about to buy a decent set of PC speakers for my office, mostly for music. I do have a spare old school Yamaha AVR that was about $1000 back in the day. It's not modern enough to offer HDMI or any of that but it's perfectly appropriate for a stereo receiver to drive a pair of speakers. I want to say it's like 80 or 90 watts a channel back then rated (rating are different today) and the price tag was about $1100 a decade ago. It's so old it's Dolby Digital but not DTS lulz...


Anyways. I have about $250 to spend and I don't mind getting my hands dirty. What do you think ? Options?


The Fusion 6 looked pretty cool, and with flat packs it was about $240 shipped. I wonder what I might get with the 8" option? Worth it ? Other options ?


Edit: I decided on NEXUS MTM for office and pair of FUSION 8 just because

 

[dwaleke]

I own both of these although I haven't assembled the Fusion 6 yet. The Fusion 8 may be a little big for a computer setup.


Are you going to run a subwoofer with these? I plan on using the Fusion 6 as my PC speakers as well.


Sitting near field I don't think you'll gain much with the 8" over the 6". Both should play plenty loud.

 

[tential]

Overnight Sensations? I think since you're sitting close and it's for a PC these would be a better fit. And they're cheaper too.

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by tential  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24512561


Overnight Sensations? I think since you're sitting close and it's for a PC these would be a better fit. And they're cheaper too.

I'm actually considering stands or wall mounted shelf. It could go on my desk but I'll get better sound if I set them up farther away I think. Idk ? I could go either way.


I don't know much about the overnight sensations. How do they compare ?

 

[tential]

I mean you said an office which is why I suggested the Overnight Sensations. Generally you just have music on in the background or something in the office. You aren't playing at high SPL levels. The Overnight Sensations can't play as loud but they're highly praised speakers for this type of application. I feel there are a LOT of posts about it on Parts Express.

 

[Erich H]

MTG90 designed a neat little speaker using the 5" Dayton Designer Series woofer and a Dayton tweeter. It's about the same size as the Overnight Sensation but it can really put out some volume. I heard one of them in a decent sized living room and was surprised at the amount of bass it could put out. Of course it sounded good too.

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Erich H  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24513350


MTG90 designed a neat little speaker using the 5" Dayton Designer Series woofer and a Dayton tweeter. It's about the same size as the Overnight Sensation but it can really put out some volume. I heard one of them in a decent sized living room and was surprised at the amount of bass it could put out. Of course it sounded good too.

Where would I find it? I just had the FUSION 6 and flat pack in my cart and almost checked out... lol


I should note these will be used in an office where I own the business, and my business partner is totally ok with my cranking metallica on them. We don't do it during business hours because we rent our office space in an office building with doctors and dentists and other businesses but at night and weekends there is time we rock on them. He has a $300 set of BOSE PC speakers he bought thinking they are good (they are ok) but I want to show him something from the next level up.


I don't have to place the speakers on my desk either. So the near field issue isn't going to be a problem for me. We have our offices PC networked so we can play games - and we both have GPU cards in our office machines. I think when I say "office" you guys automatically assume it's for back ground music and it's not. My office is a private office off the main lobby office (where we run a call center and inside sales team that uses the phone during business hours) so I'll play them at normal to low volumes most of the time but there will be times when they get hammered on. Most of my office days are spent printing, scanning, and playing with PDF and emails- but there is time when I would run them. I would probably just run my PC to an amp that powers them. A subwoofer is in the plan as well. Nothing too crazy but something high value. I might just bring my POLK AUDIO 10" to the office and make something DIY for my living room, but I only have a sound bar on that TV. IDK ???


I think I am just using this as an excuse to do a DIY kit and charge it to the company card.

I had a crappy ($50) set of logitech speakers I gave up today to someone else so they could watch training videos on youtube. I don't feel like taking those speakers back. I want something better!


I had my eyes on these two:

http://www.amazon.com/M-Audio-Studiophile-Active-Monitor-Speakers/dp/B0051WAM64/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1395423172&sr=1-1&keywords=m-audio+av40

and
http://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-ProMedia-Certified-Computer-Speaker/dp/B000062VUO


Then someone showed me this:

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Gaming-High-Power-Speaker-CA-SP211NA/dp/B004H0MQYW/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1395423513&sr=1-1&keywords=Corsair+SP2500
http://www.maximumpc.com/speaker_sparring_two_21_speaker_systems_go_head--head


but at that price of $220 I can build a pair of FUSION 6's.


My distance would be about 10 -14 feet if I placed them on the other side of the room. If I go desktop I would want monitors or something that does well near field.

 

[Martycool007]

I would highly recommend that you look up Zaph Audio's website as he has some designs in this price range that might be more well suited to this type of application than the Seos speakers. That older receiver will work fine. For a sub you should check out the Infinity 1260 subwoofer driver as it's only $62 and is a perfect fit for this application as well!

 

[Mfusick]

I actually have an infinity 12" new in the box. I was going to use it on my dads boat but he never got around to it. I might model up a ported build/box and see what I can come up with.

Otherwise I might just buy a $99 consumer sub and call it a day. I have not really decided on the sub yet either. I am waiting to decide on the speakers to see which direction I go. I really just want to spend a couple hundred and get as good sound as possible (mostly music) - but I would likely add another $200 in a sub if I go all out. Otherwise a basic PC speaker set is fine for less cost I think. I am looking for something noticeably better than a $150 set of PC speakers.

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Martycool007  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24513684


I would highly recommend that you look up Zaph Audio's website as he has some designs in this price range that might be more well suited to this type of application than the Seos speakers. That older receiver will work fine. For a sub you should check out the Infinity 1260 subwoofer driver as it's only $62 and is a perfect fit for this application as well!

What is so special about the Zaph audio ?

 

[Martycool007]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Mfusick  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...on-6-vs-alchemy-8-other-options#post_24513767


I actually have an infinity 12" new in the box. I was going to use it on my dads boat but he never got around to it. I might model up a ported build/box and see what I can come up with.

Otherwise I might just buy a $99 consumer sub and call it a day. I have not really decided on the sub yet either. I am waiting to decide on the speakers to see which direction I go. I really just want to spend a couple hundred and get as good sound as possible (mostly music) - but I would likely add another $200 in a sub if I go all out. Otherwise a basic PC speaker set is fine for less cost I think. I am looking for something noticeably better than a $150 set of PC speakers.

The 12" Infinity 1260 wil stomp any $99 dollar commercial subwoofer in the dirt, like hard!

 

[Martycool007]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Mfusick  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...on-6-vs-alchemy-8-other-options#post_24516992


What is so special about the Zaph audio ?

Not sure what you are trying to say? Nothing any more special regarding Zaph Audio than DIYSG, or any other similar website with speaker design plans. It's just that the Zaph Audio website has a lot of more traditional designs that are in your price range, as they may be better suited to your goals than a high efficiency Seos design since these will be placed near field on a desk or whatever for use as a PC setup. I think that most of the speakers on Zaphs' site will work great for your application!

 

[Erich H]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Mfusick  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...on-6-vs-alchemy-8-other-options#post_24513648


Where would I find it? I just had the FUSION 6 and flat pack in my cart and almost checked out... lol

The designer series project is listed here:

http://www.diysoundgroup.com/forum/index.php?topic=345.0

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Martycool007  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24518552


Not sure what you are trying to say? Nothing any more special regarding Zaph Audio than DIYSG, or any other similar website with speaker design plans. It's just that the Zaph Audio website has a lot of more traditional designs that are in your price range, as they may be better suited to your goals than a high efficiency Seos design since these will be placed near field on a desk or whatever for use as a PC setup. I think that most of the speakers on Zaphs' site will work great for your application!

Ok thanks I'll check them out. I just was asking what was good or you liked about them.


Note: I said earlier they probably won't go on desk rather across the room mounted on shelf on wall. 10 to 14ft away. That's said does it change anything ?

 

[tential]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Erich H  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...on-6-vs-alchemy-8-other-options#post_24518947


The designer series project is listed here:

http://www.diysoundgroup.com/forum/index.php?topic=345.0

Wow. That looks really nice Eric H. So many designs!


Now that OP is saying that he's only playing these on weekends/nights when he can turn up the music. I'd go with Fusion 6 or Fusion 8. Or the Coaxials (I just like cubes a lot.....)

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by tential  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24519940


Wow. That looks really nice Eric H. So many designs!


Now that OP is saying that he's only playing these on weekends/nights when he can turn up the music. I'd go with Fusion 6 or Fusion 8. Or the Coaxials (I just like cubes a lot.....)

The coax is an option. I wonder how it compares to the fusion6? I'm checking out Eric's link now... Your right! Good stuff! I got some reading to do...


Keep the input coming

 

[augerpro]

Jeff Bagby has a couple that would do well with your placement: the Sopranos and a bit more expensive Continuums .

 

[Mfusick]



Quote:
Originally Posted by augerpro  /t/1523638/250-budget-bookshelf-spe...s-alchemy-8-other-options/0_100#post_24520247


Jeff Bagby has a couple that would do well with your placement: the Sopranos and a bit more expensive Continuums .

Oh boy.. Brain OVERLOAD !


Right now I am considering :


NEXUS (from Eric's link) and NEXUS MTM

KARMA 8 (MTG-08)

FUSION 6 and FUSION 6 MTM

V-10 PORTED or SEALED


Now you throw these two at me

Seriously- Thanks to all the intelligent replies and advice. It seems that there is plenty of options for my budget of $250. I would likely use a sub, not a crazy 15" or 18" but a decent 12" or 10" (probably not 10" lol )


I am having trouble understanding a couple things:


MTM vs Single Woofer --- >> ? WORTH IT ? What's the advantage for the small extra cost ? Would I noticed it if both fit in my budget?

COAX vs normal tweet above the woofer design - make a big difference ? How would the V-10 compare to say the FUSION6/MTG-08/NEXUS ?

WAVEGUIDE VS TWEETER ? What's better for my application ? Something like MTG's NEXUS looks great. What the advantage of the WAVEGUIDE option vs that ?

How does these two new options compare to my list above?

And lastly- PORTED vs SEALED for the VOLT or V-10 ? Ported probably a little more output and sealed a bit more power handling ? am I close? What's opinions on those two vs each other ?


Sorry for so many questions and opinion requested. Replies are appreciated. I'd like to grab something by the end of the week.

 

[chalugadp]

Under 95 dbs the tweeter is great. It's over 100 dbs where the cd shines. I think for your purpose I would use that nexus.just my two cents

 

[tential]

Coax vs wageguide

Waveguide has better direction. It's made to direct the sound vs the coax using the woofer as a waveguide.

Chaluga already talked about cds.

Sealed vs ported

Port extends a little lower.

Mtm vs single woofer.

Extra woofer usually adds more output capability. Also helps to reduce vertical bounce.


That's From the knowledge I have from reading this forum but I'm certainly no expert.

The fusion 6 would be the quickest to put together so I'd probably go with it for the price/performance.

Especially since it's not a theater you want it loud but it's not like you're trying to hit super high spls