Klipsch Promedia 2.1, I AM DISAPPOINT - feel free to share your view too.

Page 2 - Seeking answers? Join the Tom's Guide community: where nearly two million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.

Hype S

Honorable
Jul 3, 2013
14
0
10,560
I really wish there was a nice stereo shop near here, but it's either ghetto 1000W sub shop or $10,000 home theater shop so nothing for a college student :/

I was surprised to find out that my car, actually has more clarity and balanced sound output than klipsch OEM satellites (sub off) and wishing I could just replace the pair of drivers and call it a day since klipsch sub is more than I need/want.
 

Hype S

Honorable
Jul 3, 2013
14
0
10,560
._. you're not supposed to guess that close. USC. South Carolina.

Well, these sats are 35W peak each.. so I guess I'll try to find a used speaker with 50 max or something with nice sensitivity (highly sensitive)
 

B SD

Honorable
Aug 1, 2013
2
0
10,510
First mistake...you severely underestimate their true potential. you have to break them in.. it takes about a week (you can use white noise or just run them at 30% power and leave the sub knob on the indicated dot). second, you have them laying on their sides of course your not even gonna hear them right cause you in properly placed them and caused a serious decrease in sound quality due to the vibration that will now cause the horn and tweeters to be damaged. The sound waves alone are also reduced. ALL speakers need to have a base or a mount, there is a reason for that. Read the owner's manual.
I have owned my pair of Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 for seven years now...before they took away the mini-plug in the back of the sats. They are VERY powerful speakers among the many I have heard. Logitech or Bose don't got a damm thing on them. Other brands mentioned have equally powerful sound, some have better. I would say Klipsch has the best base I have ever heard in the 150-200 price range (in some cases they are better than the 500.00 ones) and about a 7/8 on the clarity scale. It is most def worth the price tag.
 
@b sd

i dare say i must disagree. i've owned the set and the speakers were vastly overpowered by the included subwoofer even at the lowest setting. as far as overall volume is concerned they were perhaps equal to a set which cost not even half as much.

i ended up buying klipsch home theater system speakers instead which were much better.
 

Hype S

Honorable
Jul 3, 2013
14
0
10,560
So, the speakers should be broken in nicely by now with their original feet attached,,, nope. very small improvement but still doesn't justify price range in 100's.

If these are 7/8 on clarity, Focal KRW165s are 20/8 lol
 

ruzveh

Distinguished
Apr 26, 2009
2
0
18,510
Its pretty easy to say the difference btw 128kbps and 320kbps mp3 files. The major difference will be seen in the bass notes. Yes, the bass becomes more soft and the accuracy is maintained in 320kbps.. While yes i agree i really cant say there is any difference in 320kbps vs 320+ kbps flac files. I can bet on this with anyone unless you use extra high end sound system or some hifi speakers. I have tried and tested all formats with my loved library and telling you the same based on what i hear.

My suggestion to Hyper S is you better change your soundcard desperately and i bet on you that you will love your Klipsch speakers. I have grownup with the likes of Creative Platinum 5.1 Live soundcard which is a killer in terms of sound quality but sadly now i use Realtek 892 as the same doesnt work anymore with Win7. I hate creative here.. I hate onboard sound.

Since you can upgrade your internal soundcard i suggest buy an external one which plugs via usb.

dont forget to buy 2.1 soundcard and not 5.1.

If Any confusion then mail me




 

Hype S

Honorable
Jul 3, 2013
14
0
10,560
@ ruzveh

I'm off to local store to get a USB soundcard, or even PCI. I will try that, thanks :)


PS: but does that mean,, my car's OEM head unit and iSimple is better processing music than onboard sound ?!?!?!
 
while true that a decent soundcard can improve the quality of sound i dont think it will solve the underlying flaws of the promedia set. remember that even though sound quality may be up you might not hear too much improvement depending on what kind of speakers you are using.

this is mainly the fact that the subwoofer is sized much too large for the speakers and that it completely overpowers them. the only way to get it under control seems to be to turn the bass knob all the way down and then to adjust the eq to compensate further. honestly the satelites dont sound all that bad provided you can hear them over the bass. if you adjust the bass out i think you might be fine.

i've used the set with a higher level onboard soundcard and with a slot soundcard and while there may be some improvment it doesnt fix the flaws of the set. honestly as long as you dont have any issues with your onboard sound like crackling, distortion or low sound quality (note: the bassy sound isnt a result of your sound card its the promedia) then i wouldnt uprade to a card.

yes hype, a slot based or sometimes a decent usb based soundcard is normally much better than a onboard sound card. first off the drivers are normally much better, second they dont crackle, buzz or have static, they have more output options and sometimes come with neat software like virtual surround. however with that said, it is normally not necessary to upgrade unless you have really bad onboard sound, are having issues like buzzing/distortion or if you lack the right ports.

this doesnt relate to your cars oem head unit or isimple. not sure why you even brought them up.

 

TRENDING THREADS