• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

Needing some help please...

G

giarc25

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 25, 2003
Messages
308
I have a laptop, Fujitsu Lifebook N6010 that I would like to use as my source for playing music. The laptop only has one speaker output, headphones. According to the owners manual, this jack also doubles as an Optical Digital Audio output.

The delima.

I do not have a very large selection of stores to sample different speaker setups, and I am wanting something that will get pretty loud. I am looking to get a 7.1 speaker setup that will hopefully get enough volume to fill a 400 sq ft room. This will be my music setup for my billiards room, so I am hoping to get a loud speaker setup.

I sampled the Logitech Z-5450 today, but it was only a 5.1 setup. They claim it puts out 318 rms watts, but to me it didnt sound near loud enough to fill the room I am thinking of.

I am more than willing to get a PMCIA(sp?) card if need be to help aid in the audio output, but I am more worried about the speaker setup. I dont want to spend $1000 buying a setup, but the budget is definitely flexible to aid in accomplishing my goal.

Any and all input is welcomed, thanks in advance...
 
giarc25 said:
I have a laptop, Fujitsu Lifebook N6010 that I would like to use as my source for playing music. The laptop only has one speaker output, headphones. According to the owners manual, this jack also doubles as an Optical Digital Audio output.

The delima.

I do not have a very large selection of stores to sample different speaker setups, and I am wanting something that will get pretty loud. I am looking to get a 7.1 speaker setup that will hopefully get enough volume to fill a 400 sq ft room. This will be my music setup for my billiards room, so I am hoping to get a loud speaker setup.

I sampled the Logitech Z-5450 today, but it was only a 5.1 setup. They claim it puts out 318 rms watts, but to me it didnt sound near loud enough to fill the room I am thinking of.

I am more than willing to get a PMCIA(sp?) card if need be to help aid in the audio output, but I am more worried about the speaker setup. I dont want to spend $1000 buying a setup, but the budget is definitely flexible to aid in accomplishing my goal.

Any and all input is welcomed, thanks in advance...
Click to expand...

What is your budget? If you want the best sound for your money go get a decent reciever and some speakers. will be far better than any computer speaker solution.
 
Indeed, I agree, but that really isnt in the budget. I was hoping to maybe keep the cost under $500.

I was also thinking about the possiblity of a 2.1 system today. Are there any powerful 2.1 systems that might be able to do what I want, within the budget I am allowing, or would the 5.1 or 7.1 be my best bet?
 
giarc25 said:
I am more than willing to get a PMCIA(sp?) card if need be to help aid in the audio output, but I am more worried about the speaker setup.
Click to expand...
Not necessary. The voltage of the speaker jack on your laptop and voltage you'd get from the output of a PCMCIA card should be identical (key word being should, of course).

If $500 is your budget, toss aside any thoughts about snagging a PC speaker set. As pfunk said, a receiver and speakers will be your best bet. I'm partial to Harman Kardon receivers and amplifiers, and they rate their amps extremely conservatively. There is no question in my mind that their current low-end stereo receiver, the HK 3380, rated at 80 watts RMS per channel, all channels driven, is on the order of two to three times as powerful as any Logitech amp ever made. B&H Photo and Video has them in at $199 a pop. Oh, and they sound pretty good, too.

Maximum loudness is determined by two main factors: amplifier power and loudspeaker efficiency, rated in dB. Don't fret about speaker efficiency, as most fall within the same range of 87-90dB. I've heard nothing but good things about the Onix/AV123 x-ls, which is a two way bookshelf speaker with a 6.5" woofer and has a rated efficiency of 87dB. $219 a pair, which is a very solid price.

Now, if you need a subwoofer, you're obviously going to over-extend your budget. For most, though, the x-ls should deliver enough bass to please you.

Something to keep in mind is that chasing watts eventually becomes pointless. For every increase of 3dB SPL, which is what most people perceive as an audible change in intensity, amplifier power must be doubled. Don't sweat the power ratings too much -- just make sure you buy a quality amp.
 
You may want to look at USB sound cards, they are ideal for your purpose.
You will only get 2.0 sound from the digital out in games and windows.
DVD playback or an AC3 sound source only will give you 5.1 with digital out.
 
Well, I guess it depends on how high end you want to go and how you want to go about it. If you want to keep it cheap and simple, get a computer speaker system. Ive a friend with the Creative Gigaworks system and it's quite good for the size and price. I'm sure the Logitech systems are similar.

Now as for speaker numbers, you don't need lots of speakers to fill a room with sound. I could fill a thousand seat concert hall with just two powerful stage speakers. You get multiple speakers if you want surround sound. For that, yes you'll want to get an addon soundcard.

So, a perfectly feasible option is to get a higher quality 2 channel setup. Get a receiver and 2 decent home theatre speakers. They will crush almost any computer system volume wise as well as be higher quality.

Personally, in the "Nice but not too damn expensive" category I'm a fan of the JBL Northridge series. That's what I ended up putting in my living room. J&R has good deals on them that includes shipping. Get a pair of floor-standing speakers and you'll probably find the bass as good as most satellite/sub setups. Now that'll be fairly expensive, at least $500 for 2 channels but good sound. Of course you can always add to it later. Get a 5/7.1 receiver and 2 speakers to start, get more later.

Either way unless you've ruined your hearing don't worry too much about volume. I have a system capable of pretty crushing sound and I rarely take it over 1 watt per channel (yes really). You should find that any good computer setup or above will easily produce enough sound for your room.

However if loud is really your thing then you should probably lean towards theatre speakers and a receiver. You simply aren't going to get the same kind of sound out of a little satellite as you are out of a big floor-standing unit with dual woofers.
 
Well, I was trying to steer away from the home audio setup, as I already have a design in mind for that. I am going high end on the home audio side. The budget for that will be about $10,000 when I start getting it together.

I guess if I were to do a cheap home audio system as suggested though, until I can afford the setup I have planned, I a reccomendation for a reciever that I can hook my laptop up to, so I can use it as my source for playing music. I have several audio shops around here that I can sample speakers at, so thats not a problem.

Thanks for all the input thus far....it is appreciated.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top