Show Us Your Rig [5]


  1. Posts : 6,075
    Windows 7 Professional 64 bit
       #1311

    Lol, yeah things always seem to happen at the worst possible time don't they! I said to Jess earlier, why couldn't the Fridge have just lasted 1 more month! The final car payment is like £3000 we saved a lot and just managed to get it all together ready, now we need to find another £200-£300 for the fridge I could have done some nice upgrades with that lol.

    Such is life eh. Roll on September!
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #1312

    Ok, guys, don't hate me for being able to afford this (believe me, I know what it's like to be broke...for years at a time). I've had my eye on a set of Corsair SP2500 2.1 speakers for my computer for a while and a week ago, I saw they were on sale at NewEgg so I pulled the trigger. I didn't pick them up from my mail service (fancy name for private mail box but the guys that run the place do far more than just stuff mail) until Friday.

    I finally got around to getting the speakers installed today. I needed longer cables than the ones that came with the speakers so I had tried to buy longer ones from Corsair but their idiot website kept insisting that the address on my card didn't match my delivery address (which was a total crock). I finally gave up on them and found some 16/4 in-wall speaker cable at Home Depot that didn't look too horrible (I don't know why I was worried about the appearance; they are hidden behind the curtains and desk) and made up some 12' cables yesterday (10' would have been enough but I figured it would be easier to cut off any excess and crimp on new pins than it would be to add to the length).

    This morning, I cleaned out behind my desk and, after digging out the carrots, potatoes, Jimmy Hoffa, etc., I got rid of the old Logitech X-540 speakers, abandoned cables and power cords, and one surge suppressor strip, then swept out the dirt, and relocated the other surge arrestor strip to the right of the desk kneehole to make room for the sub-woofer on steroids (I knew exactly what to expect but I was still a bit stunned when I opened the box and saw the little monster). I also pulled the desk three or four inches farther away from the wall to make a bit more room for that sub (it's about the size of the Nautilus) and added an extension cable to the monitor power cable so I could plug it into the UPS. It took me over a couple of hours to get things ready for the speakers since I was having to frequently crawl under the desk through the kneehole and back out and getting up and down off the floor. Ten years ago, I could have done all that in half an hour but I'm 64 now and legally handicapped so it was a bit of a chore for me (the joke "I've fallen and I can't get up" isn't funny anymore).

    After recovering for awhile, I got the satellites set up on the shelf that runs over the window my desk faces and the speaker wires run behind the curtains to where the sub was to go. I set the sub on its front face on a couple of rags so I wouldn't scratch up the sub or the floor, pushed it part way under the kneehole, crawled under there (I hate that place right now), and hooked up the speaker cables, the input cable from the computer (3.2mm to two RCA plugs), the cable for the remote pod, and the power cable. That part was easy. Then I tipped the sub back upright and pushed back as far as it could go and crawled back out (if only crawling out and getting back to my feet was so easy). I fired up the computer, reset it to the new speakers, fiddled around with some settings, and I now have sound.

    Even when just using the onboard audio on my ASUS P9X79 WS, everything sounds much, much, clearer and crisper than my old Logitech 5.1 system, especially the treble and the bass. Getting 5.1 was a mistake since one doesn't really need it for music and there isn't enough room in my bedroom where it was set up to mount the rear speakers properly. It was ok when I was sitting at my desk but the rear speakers would disappear when I listened from my bed. When I got the Logitechs, they sounded much better in the store than the Bose 2.0 speakers I had planned on getting for around the same price and they sounded just as good at home but they really weren't a good fit for the room. As good as the Logitechs were (considering how much they cost), the Corsairs are much better and well worth getting. Are they as good as true home theater speakers cost two to ten times as much? Of course not, but for the price and considering how small a room they are in (9'x12'), they sound fantastic. I haven't cranked the speakers (and won't because I don't want to bother the neighbors or hurt my ears) but, judging on where I have the computer and speaker volume settings at, they could easily rattle the windows.

    The control pod has a longer cable than the old Logitechs did so there are no worries about having enough length no matter where I put it on the desk (pity they didn't take that into account with the speaker cables). I was worried about how bright the view screen would be at night but it can be set to turn the screen off after a certain period of time and the light for the buttons is bright enough to be seen but much dimmer than the power light on the old Logitech pod; I'm quite happy with that.

    I haven't done too much fiddling with the settings (I have a slight amount of bass boost in the Realtek EQ and the speakers are set for Classical) since I'm tired and ache pretty much all over (I do have a spot on my left ear lobe that doesn't ache too much) so I'm giving it a rest for the rest of the day. I'm going to experiment with the settings for the next couple of days, then get an ASUS Xonar Essence STX sound card and see if there is enough improvement to justify the cost and the loss of a PCI-e slot.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 2,973
    Windows 7 Professional 64bit SP1
       #1313

    That set looks really nice. I'd like to put them up against the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1's since they are within 20-30 bucks of each other and both 2.1 systems and Corsair doesn't make junk generally. Also, I'd like to hear your thoughts about onboard audio vs a decent sound card......I'm still torn on the issue. Keep us posted. Great to see more quality 2.1 systems!!
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 3,118
    Win7 Home Premium x64 SP1
       #1314

    Nice1 Lady!
    They are indeed a very good speaker setup, I've had my eye on them for quite a long time now I hope you enjoy them

    I have the logitech z506 at the min which have a similar problem to the logitech's you had only i struggle to hear the rear speakers at all unless i set the fronts/center at half the volume of the rear's. I'm not sure if its for the same reason but with mine its due to Logitech cheaping out and not using a crossover.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 30
    Windows 7 Home premium 64bit
       #1315

    ToxicXGL said:
    That's a really nice rig love that CPU block who's it from?
    It's just the Swiftech H220 All-In-One Liquid Cooler
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #1316

    kbrady1979 said:
    That set looks really nice. I'd like to put them up against the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1's since they are within 20-30 bucks of each other and both 2.1 systems and Corsair doesn't make junk generally. Also, I'd like to hear your thoughts about onboard audio vs a decent sound card......I'm still torn on the issue. Keep us posted. Great to see more quality 2.1 systems!!
    Thanks! Actually, the Corsair is quite a bit more than the Klipsch. I did even consider the Klipsch because the volume control and power switch is on one of the satellites and getting at them would be a bit tough and darned inconvenient for me since I have them on a high shelf instead of on a desk (I couldn't put speakers on my desk if I wanted to; no room). The Corsair also has far more control options on that handy little desktop pod.

    I'll let you all know how the system sounds with a sound card when compared to the onboard audio. I want to fool around some with the onboard settings with the speaker's settings (there is a huge number of possible combinations), then get the card so I can get a better idea which will sound better and if it's worth the cost of the card and the loss of a PCIe slot. I also want to see if I can stream my audio from the computer to the speakers via an Apple Airport Express from the onboard audio and if it would work from the card.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 9,600
    Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
       #1317

    ganjiry said:
    Nice1 Lady!
    They are indeed a very good speaker setup, I've had my eye on them for quite a long time now I hope you enjoy them

    I have the logitech z506 at the min which have a similar problem to the logitech's you had only i struggle to hear the rear speakers at all unless i set the fronts/center at half the volume of the rear's. I'm not sure if its for the same reason but with mine its due to Logitech cheaping out and not using a crossover.
    I had to crank up my rear speakers a bit to get them to balance but that was because of the longer run needed to get the wiring to them and the cables weren't as large as they should have been. They worked fine when I was at my desk but, since they were on a high shelf over my bed (the only place I had to put them), they would send the sound out over my head when I was in bed. To work properly, the rear speakers should be at the same height as the listener (same for the front ones, too) and a few feet behind. There just wasn't room to do that in my bedroom since the bed's headboard is against the wall. I'm thinking of getting some wall mounts for the Corsair satellites so I can get them down to a reasonable height.

    One problem I did have with the Logitechs was the center speaker and the sub ran at the same volume. By the time I cranked up the sub enough to hear it (not car stereo booming), the center speaker would be too loud. Changing the settings in the computer had no effect. I finally gave up and disconnected the center speaker. I had the problem with both my last XP machine and my new Win 7 machine so the problem was with the speakers.
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 3,118
    Win7 Home Premium x64 SP1
       #1318

    Lady Fitzgerald said:
    ganjiry said:
    Nice1 Lady!
    They are indeed a very good speaker setup, I've had my eye on them for quite a long time now I hope you enjoy them

    I have the logitech z506 at the min which have a similar problem to the logitech's you had only i struggle to hear the rear speakers at all unless i set the fronts/center at half the volume of the rear's. I'm not sure if its for the same reason but with mine its due to Logitech cheaping out and not using a crossover.
    I had to crank up my rear speakers a bit to get them to balance but that was because of the longer run needed to get the wiring to them and the cables weren't as large as they should have been. They worked fine when I was at my desk but, since they were on a high shelf over my bed (the only place I had to put them), they would send the sound out over my head when I was in bed. To work properly, the rear speakers should be at the same height as the listener (same for the front ones, too) and a few feet behind. There just wasn't room to do that in my bedroom since the bed's headboard is against the wall. I'm thinking of getting some wall mounts for the Corsair satellites so I can get them down to a reasonable height.

    One problem I did have with the Logitechs was the center speaker and the sub ran at the same volume. By the time I cranked up the sub enough to hear it (not car stereo booming), the center speaker would be too loud. Changing the settings in the computer had no effect. I finally gave up and disconnected the center speaker. I had the problem with both my last XP machine and my new Win 7 machine so the problem was with the speakers.
    That sounds just like my problem too, the center speaker has developed a rattle now because it can't be controlled seperately.
    The cinema system in the living room is on its way out and we used to use that to play our music. So there's my excuse to upgrade my Logitech's
    Thats a long way off yet though.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 3,168
    Windows 10 64bit
       #1319

    Don't got any inside pics atm but just a picture of my work area. LOL before anyone ask about the apple sticker I just put them there cause I got a iphone was like mehh ill'l put the stickers it came with here Excuse my bad photo with poor lighting, it's night time. Might try to get some better pics tomorrow of the case and the inside.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Show Us Your Rig [5]-img_0687.jpg  
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 24,479
    Windows 7 Ultimate X64 SP1
       #1320

    Mighty clean desk Miguel. Here's mine.

    Show Us Your Rig [5]-p1030013.jpg
      My Computer


 

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