Do the Soundsticks have kevlar coated cables or something? If not they can be cut and extended, you're not an audiophile so a little more solder and a different wire in the signal path wont be a problem. Sound is as much about signature (how much bass vs treble etc) as it is 'quality' so if you like the Soundsticks that's something to consider too.
Or to answer part of the question: saying 'USB DAC' is like saying 'car' - there are good ones but the name itself says nothing about the quality. If the speakers have a DAC and an amplifier in there (as would be required) then on the plus side they've hopefully been designed together so should sound better than some imaginary baseline but you will be paying for the electronics so the speakers themselves should sound worse than some plain speakers of the same cost, assuming you have something good sounding to connect them to.
snake oil or overpriced garbage
snake oil or overpriced garbage
Amps, DACs, headphones, IEMs, speakers, surround sound, ANC, burn-in, FR graphs, SNR, THD, the list goes on and on.. Almost the entire audiophile industry is either snake oil or overpriced or both.
I think to be actively involved in that hobby you need to have an indisposable income.
They aren't even remotely the same, in fact about the only similarity is that you can spend a lot of money on it.Unlike the custom Keyboard community........snake oil or overpriced garbage
Amps, DACs, headphones, IEMs, speakers, surround sound, ANC, burn-in, FR graphs, SNR, THD, the list goes on and on.. Almost the entire audiophile industry is either snake oil or overpriced or both.
I think to be actively involved in that hobby you need to have an indisposable income.
They aren't even remotely the same, in fact about the only similarity is that you can spend a lot of money on it.Unlike the custom Keyboard community........snake oil or overpriced garbage
Amps, DACs, headphones, IEMs, speakers, surround sound, ANC, burn-in, FR graphs, SNR, THD, the list goes on and on.. Almost the entire audiophile industry is either snake oil or overpriced or both.
I think to be actively involved in that hobby you need to have an indisposable income.
There's no billion dollar company trying to convince you that you NEED a $1000 keyboard and $300 usb cable to make your keyboard type faster. It's community based and community driven with many of the vendors and even manufacturing being done by the community itself.
Yes, we argue/debate over materials, hot swap, clicky versus tactile vs linear, but it's all what you can afford and prefer. Audio is all about how much money they can fleece from customers.
So far I have enjoyed my Kanto YU2's and they do have a pre-out to add a sub as well to make them 2.1. I would run my Rotel gear but my wife has forbidden that for the time being due to space constraints (so it sits in storage till I can rescue it). The YU2's can run off the USB internal DAC or off of a 3.5mm to 3.5mm so you can pick your poison there - the internal DAC is fairly good but they run better when I run them to my Soundblaster Zx card as it gives me more control via the EQ in the software (I normally run them at 2.1 direct if I'm running to my Zx).
Plus, listening of this comparison makes me want them even more :)
Would you consider building your own from a kit?
https://www.parts-express.com/Overnight-Sensations-MT-Speaker-Pair-Kit-300-706
International shipping for me was around $40, iirc.
You can put it all together using a screwdriver, wood glue and clamps. Pair it with an inexpensive Class D amp, and you have speakers that will totally blow away anything else that you could buy off the shelf for similar money (or double/triple).Plus, listening of this comparison makes me want them even more :)
You were being tongue in cheek there, right? Judging speaker quality via a youtube video played over another set of speakers doesn't really work ;)
So far I have enjoyed my Kanto YU2's and they do have a pre-out to add a sub as well to make them 2.1. I would run my Rotel gear but my wife has forbidden that for the time being due to space constraints (so it sits in storage till I can rescue it). The YU2's can run off the USB internal DAC or off of a 3.5mm to 3.5mm so you can pick your poison there - the internal DAC is fairly good but they run better when I run them to my Soundblaster Zx card as it gives me more control via the EQ in the software (I normally run them at 2.1 direct if I'm running to my Zx).
You need 8-12 inch cones for good bass. So a separate sub is a must.
Get a receiver that does toslink, then a pair of bookshelf and a powered sub.
You can also go toslink, dac, amp, bookshelf, line level->sub.
You can also get powered studio monitors, but imho they're overpriced.
You need 8-12 inch cones for good bass. So a separate sub is a must.there is more than size to bass response than size, the shape of the chamber will make a huge difference, i have 6cm speakers that have a bit more base than my 3 way bookshelf (although i am not sure of the size of the elements in them, old sonys that are overall about 30*25*60cm) and those had better response than my old logitec 2.1 (i think it had a 20cm sub and 5cm for the 2 speakers, could be wrong though, haven't seen this thing in a decade)
Get a receiver that does toslink, then a pair of bookshelf and a powered sub.
You can also go toslink, dac, amp, bookshelf, line level->sub.
You can also get powered studio monitors, but imho they're overpriced.
Firm on this, you need 8 inch cones minimum for BASS that can Jiggle the stomach fat.to be honest i pretty much always listen at about 2/10 on the volume knob by fear of being an annoyance to the neighbors, so that may be why my "small" speakers do have plenty enough bass for me
Bass for your ears is doable on any size cones, but ears are not why we need subwoofers.
Some designs have passive drivers with a smaller main driver to mimic the effect of larger cones, this is fine for space constraint cases, but even 12" subs arn't that big. bout the size of an ottoman.
For main bookshelf, You want 4-6 inch cones w/ ribbon tweeter if possible.
And of course +12" sub.
Also throw in a measurement microphone so you can set up dat bass at the right volume.
You could put speaker mounts into the table you've got, just drill some holes on the top left right, and bolt it on..
Consider moving the desk so you get more space for better stereo separation.
subwoofer is not an optional.Show Image(https://i.imgur.com/2T43MJO.gif)
Klipsch Reference R-12SW or R-10SW, they go on sale for $150-160
For the satellites, it's usually better to go name brand, because their engineering team is solid, with the smaller brands, there'd be shenanigans.
The watt doesn't matter, you need the BIG cones to get DEEP...
It doesn't matter if you buy 300w speakers or 20watt speakers , you'll listen to them at ~1 to 5 watts (consumption).
The 300w is peak output of the amplifier in the chain that's sold to you, it's just marketing it means nothing.
The SIZE of the cone is what allows the subwoofer to produce deeper bass at an audible range relative to the rest of the response profile.
In this case, just get the Biggest cone relative to price.
Going to agree here- the vast, vast majority of speaker reviews are total bull****. Terribly vague, subjective rubbish that don't benchmark speakers against anything commonly known- e.g. 'these speakers are wonderfully clear, have good imaging and separation' means absolutely nothing.
For me to take a speaker review even semi seriously, the author would need to be providing measurements of frequency response at the bare, bare minimum. And not just posting the graphs from the manufacturer, but taking the measurements himself. This is a super low bar, it is something that is very easy to do, even at home.
Going to agree here- the vast, vast majority of speaker reviews are total bull****. Terribly vague, subjective rubbish that don't benchmark speakers against anything commonly known- e.g. 'these speakers are wonderfully clear, have good imaging and separation' means absolutely nothing.
For me to take a speaker review even semi seriously, the author would need to be providing measurements of frequency response at the bare, bare minimum. And not just posting the graphs from the manufacturer, but taking the measurements himself. This is a super low bar, it is something that is very easy to do, even at home.
Charts can never tell the whole story because it IS subjective.
Everyone hears differently and has different preferences so it's always subjective and that's without even taking into consideration musical taste, expected volume, etc...
They are in!!!
Plugged them in, optic cable.
Wow.. I love how they play vocals and higher tones (sorry, I'm not an audiophile or music expert) - Feels like other speakers never played some tones at all.
I recently bought LG CX48 as my PC monitor and didn't use my Harman Kardon soundsticks again, just used built-in speakers. Horrible.
But now it feels like even compared to soundsticks, these play a lot more sounds.
Weird. Awesome. Weirdly awesome :)
I was a bit worried that they won't have enough bass for me. I don't listen to techno or bass full music, but wanted to make sure they will "draw" all levels.
I'm impressed how such small speakers have this much punch. Enough for music, movies and games.
I'm a heavy listener, heavy metal etc but lately (read - I'm getting old) started to appreciate other music - I love blues, jazz, old rock. Tomorrow is my 41st birthday and I bought these for myself. LOVE IT :D
Now listening Billie Holiday - All or nothing at all - amazing how you can hear all instruments.
Mike Oldfield 'Tubular Bells' Live at the BBC 1973 - mmm.... I would love to buy a turntable and listen to some vinyl, but don't have space for it. Some day...
OK, here you can now see how small my room is - this is why these Ruark speakers are biggest I could use.
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
They are in!!!
Plugged them in, optic cable.
Wow.. I love how they play vocals and higher tones (sorry, I'm not an audiophile or music expert) - Feels like other speakers never played some tones at all.
I recently bought LG CX48 as my PC monitor and didn't use my Harman Kardon soundsticks again, just used built-in speakers. Horrible.
But now it feels like even compared to soundsticks, these play a lot more sounds.
Weird. Awesome. Weirdly awesome :)
I was a bit worried that they won't have enough bass for me. I don't listen to techno or bass full music, but wanted to make sure they will "draw" all levels.
I'm impressed how such small speakers have this much punch. Enough for music, movies and games.
I'm a heavy listener, heavy metal etc but lately (read - I'm getting old) started to appreciate other music - I love blues, jazz, old rock. Tomorrow is my 41st birthday and I bought these for myself. LOVE IT :D
Now listening Billie Holiday - All or nothing at all - amazing how you can hear all instruments.
Mike Oldfield 'Tubular Bells' Live at the BBC 1973 - mmm.... I would love to buy a turntable and listen to some vinyl, but don't have space for it. Some day...
OK, here you can now see how small my room is - this is why these Ruark speakers are biggest I could use.
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
Very nice!
It's interesting with better audio gear you can hear totally new stuff appear in familiar music.
What is that PC case, is that the one made by some enthusiast guy in Poland or Hungary?
much loved Klipsch THX 2.1s, and they are obviously already much better speakers. No wonder they have become a trope for go-to multimedia speaker recommendations from those who know. Plus I got 'em for under $100 brand new, which is crazy considering they are $180 speakers.
Quite pleased with these thus far :thumb:
My Ruark are freaking amazing.
Best speakers I could pick for this size and price.
My Ruark are freaking amazing.
Best speakers I could pick for this size and price.
ruark + 15" suboofr.. phinix needs this.Show Image(https://cutekawaiiresources.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/45.gif?w=560)
much loved Klipsch THX 2.1s, and they are obviously already much better speakers. No wonder they have become a trope for go-to multimedia speaker recommendations from those who know. Plus I got 'em for under $100 brand new, which is crazy considering they are $180 speakers.
Quite pleased with these thus far :thumb:
The promedia 2.1 ?