n00 speakers

T

Testin da Cable

Guest
well as I now run my audio through my luvely nfarce mobo I'm in the mood to see if it's worth upgrading my speakers.
currently I have a set of labtec424 (or 242 - I can never remember): it's a 2+1 setup with (imo) a pretty good sound. such a good sound in fact, that I'd sworn never to upgrade them ;) anyway...is it worth it? is positional audio in games so far advanced that connecting a 5.1 (or 4.1) speaker rig to the nforce will be worth my while? I don't watch dvd's on my poota, I have my hifi rig for that and frankly music through 5.1 sucks goat balls...so it's back to games again. yea or nay people :)

oh and if yea...which setup would you advise? I was looking at some pretty altec-lansing speakers, but prettyness ~!= good quality audio they tell me ;)
 
W

Will

Guest
I say nay. Good headphones will beat 5.1 every time.
 
J

Jonty

Guest
Really, this kind of question is very subjective. Some people love 5.1 surround sound, others can happily live without it. If we're being honest, very few games as yet truly show off what accurate 3D sound can do. Standards such as EAX are very cool, but it's the next generation of games that will really show off, not only graphically, but also 'audially'. For example, Doom III will be one of the first games to be Dolby certificated, and will allow you to literally pin-point an enemy's position via sound alone thanks to the 5.1 surround sound system which id have specially created.

Games like Deus Ex 2 take it a step beyond, using the power of today's surround sound systems to create sounds on the fly (much in the same way as graphics are given multiple passes to build up the quality of the scenes, the game will use multiple audio files and blend them together to create an accurate audial portrayal of an event). For example, in current games, one or two audio files are made to simulate a box falling off a shelf. With Deux Ex 2's technology, a similar method is employed, but then dynamically altered to take into account the room size, the surface which the box is falling on to, the speed at which it's falling etc. The result is a life-like sound that can literally fool a person as to something occuring in game and something occuring in the room they're playing in.

Anyway, such details aside, it's really 'tomorrow's' games that are going to benefit from a decent surround sound setup.

Many manufacturers produce decent speakers and are relatively cheap in price. Creative Labs, Logitech, Altec-Lansing and Harmon-Kardon are often touted as the best, though everyone has their own favourite. At the moment, 5.1 surround sound setups are seen as pretty much the leading standard, although 6.1 and even 7.1 have been recently introduced, although support (both in terms of hardware and software) is still lacking. THX and Dolby both operate a certification policy, with products carrying such labels often being of a high-quality.

As I said in the beginning, whether you'll really benefit from surround sound remains to be seen. If you played DVDs on your computer, or these new DVD-audio or Super-Audio CDs, then the choice might be a little easier. There's no doubt that surround sound is cool, but whether it's worth the money for the new kit is entirely down to you. Thankfully most games support quasi-3D audio standards, such as EAX and A3D, so if you did take the plunge, you wouldn't necessarily have to wait for 'tomorrow's' games to yield at least some of the improvements.

I doubt that really helps, but there you go :p

Kind Regards
 
X

xane

Guest
I got a nice set of Altec-Lansing speakers quite a few years back, although only 2.1 they have a really nice effect. When I first got them the bass unit didn't seem to be working, then I noticed a little dial at the back and turned it up a natch, huge bass sound, I only ever needed it at "1" (it goes up to "11" if you get my drift), superb quality manufacture as well.

I thought EAX/A3D was for 2 speaker systems (or headphones), not for 4 speakers. I have to agree with Will, you can't beat a decent set of headphones, although mine need upgrading since I was relegated to using the pair that comes with the Gamevoice.
 
Y

~YuckFou~

Guest
I'm still using my CL live 128 (never had any problems :) ), with 4 speakers and a woofer (Cambridge FPSS). I find in CS and other games I play with EAX running I can tell exactly which way peeps/gunfire are coming from.
I'm no audiophile but lots of speakers does seem to make a difference in games. Music sounds good enough for my needs too.
 
E

Embattle

Guest
/Ponders if Jonty will ever give a short sharp reply ;)

Its not worth it unless you watch DVDs on your computer since only a few games exist/going to exist before the end of this year to take advantage of DD5.1.

People like headphones because they don't require much space compared to 5 speakers, won't piss of family/friends/etc and have the natural effect of muting the noise PCs make.
 
T

throdgrain

Guest
I have a set of 5.1 surround sound speakers. They sound awesome tbh, but i still like headphones :)
 
T

Testin da Cable

Guest
ok...I have a lot of nays and some yeas. the only thing I use the audio functionality of my pc for is to play games and I really haven't been able to convince myself it was worth it. my trusty labtecs will stay with me for another year.
 
W

Wilier

Guest
My brother-in-law spent a stack-o-cash on some spunky 6.1 speakers, and has the rear 3 all clumped together just behind his head. :rolleyes:

Personally, I use earphones for gaming and find (if I put them on the right way round) that I can hear (like Yuck ses) the direction that people are gonna kill me from, so at least I can see them when I die :(. Far more easily than if I use speakers.
 
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bodhi

Guest
Tbh I think you're better off just using the hi-fi you watch DVD's on. Even a micro will probably give you a better sound than PC speakers.
 
T

Testin da Cable

Guest
ah, I used to indeed have that. however nowadays my tv-watching-music-listening space is far removed from my officey-coputer space.
 
T

Testin da Cable

Guest
ahh, but the dream of a non-awkward life :D
 
T

Tom

Guest
my pc speaker provides perfectly adequate sound with its 3Khz bandwidth
 
M

mank!

Guest
Originally posted by bodhi
Tbh I think you're better off just using the hi-fi you watch DVD's on. Even a micro will probably give you a better sound than PC speakers.
Click to expand...

That's what I've done, it's better than my Cambridge FPS I reckon. Good idea!
 
S

Scooba Da Bass

Guest
What Bodhi said, run some cable from the pc to the amp, and then run some back to a second set of speakers connected to the second speaker connectors on your amp.
 
T

Testin da Cable

Guest
Originally posted by Scooba Da Bass
What Bodhi said, run some cable from the pc to the amp, and then run some back to a second set of speakers connected to the second speaker connectors on your amp.
Click to expand...


you may have a point there Scooba. and I get to use the nfarce's digi-out which is nice...but I'll have an even thicker bundle of cables running round my livingroom than I already have :/
hmmm...
 
S

Scooba Da Bass

Guest
Raise the floor and run it underneath....
 
S

Scooba Da Bass

Guest
It's still do-able, you're just being lazy!
 
T

Testin da Cable

Guest
dammit, I'm not going to rip up my lovely floor just to snake cables to the amp and back :eek: lazy my arse :D
 
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