Speaker recommendation for Sound Blaster ZxR

[huiyiungai]

i got creative zxr sound card and i looking for a speakers and a headset. My budget is USD 600 in total. My main use for headset is gaming while speakers for movie and music

 

[ssddx]

we need more to go on then that.

requirements? size? sound signature?

 

[huiyiungai]

i should revise my question then.
1. Should i buy a creative zxr card or i should spend it else where.
2. for requirement, headset is for gaming and music so i think balance is more or less important.
for the speakers, my place can put 5.1 for sure, i mainly listen to music that focus on the male vocal so i need clear voice. Also, for movie purpose, i think surrounding sound would be best. Total budget will be usd $900 though for soundcard speaker and headset. Please help me to divide among them

 

[ssddx]

dont have much time to write out a full response, but heres a little..

1. that depends on what you want to hook up to your pc. in all reality though even if you went with a soundcard something like the xonar dx would likely be a better choice given that it has a better dac and you really wouldnt need the amplifier since if you went with higher end headphones you would want an external amplifier anyways and speaker sets would not require it. as far as if a soundcarad is the correct piece to use as a dac that depends on if you want virtual surround support or 5.1 support at all as well as if you wanted to go with a 2.0 speaker system or something 5.1 and what type.


2. headphones generally fall under a few categories..
treb/mid focused, bass light: good for fps gaming due to advantage. footsteps not covered by bass but may not be exciting to listen to.
neutral: a bit more bass and overall flat sounding. still good gaming choice but may not be exciting sound. most natural.
v-shaped: treb/bass focus. exciting to listen to. might cover some footsteps with bass but still can be used for gaming.
mid/bass focused: poor treble response often focused on bass power to extremes. often not good for gaming but bassheads may enjoy.
mid focused: accentuates mids such as male non bass vocals and other instruments at the expense of other frequencies being less.

i will say that i'd suggest some headphones along with a separate mic over any "headset". products like the ad500x/700x/900x (bass light), hd598/dt880 (neutral), dt770/dt990 (v-shape bassy) arent bad. there are others but i dont have time at the moment to list. as far as speakers are concerned, you could go for something like an entry level home theater such as a receiver unit paired with the energy classic 5.1 / monoprice 10565 or you could go with some nice powered speakers (2.0 audio) as well depending on preferences.

ran out of time. you can respond with thoughts. you may want to say what stores you can buy from if you arent in usa as your choices may be limited.

 

[huiyiungai]

I think i will still buy a creative zxr sound card and i decided to buy sennheiser game zero headset for headphones(do i need buy other accessories for this headset?)

For speakers, actually the location problem is not a big deal as i got ways to ship the speaker from usa. I saw a few, some recommended pioneer sp-pk22ps, bose companion 5, some said logitech Z906, and also audioengine A5+ so i dunno wt should i buy

 

[ssddx]

please read our forum rules. bumping is not allowed.

game zero is very bass light. its in the same family as the hd555/595, pc350se, pc363d. i would say going with an ad500x/700x might be better quality if you like bass light but its not going to be terrible. its completely your choice but i think for your budget you could do better than an all-in-one. also you said you wanted neutral not bass light headphones above.

bose 5 is overpriced. garbage in my opinion but some people like them. z906 is fair. okay for pc speakers but blown away by anything hifi. pioneer bs22 set is good but realize you need a receiver as well. a2/a5 are decent but remember they are small so not much in the way of bass and they are highly dependent on placement. i can certainly list a few products but you need to narrow down your choices - i'm not going to make a list just to have you ignore it.

depends on what you want.. you're all over the place right now. i think you need to give thought to what kind of setup you want and what purpose it will have.

 

[huiyiungai]

please read our forum rules. bumping is not allowed.

game zero is very bass light. its in the same family as the hd555/595, pc350se, pc363d. i would say going with an ad500x/700x might be better quality if you like bass light but its not going to be terrible. its completely your choice but i think for your budget you could do better than an all-in-one. also you said you wanted neutral not bass light headphones above.

bose 5 is overpriced. garbage in my opinion but some people like them. z906 is fair. okay for pc speakers but blown away by anything hifi. pioneer bs22 set is good but realize you need a receiver as well. a2/a5 are decent but remember they are small so not much in the way of bass and they are highly dependent on placement. i can certainly list a few products but you need to narrow down your choices - i'm not going to make a list just to have you ignore it.

depends on what you want.. you're all over the place right now. i think you need to give thought to what kind of setup you want and what purpose it will have.

Lets talk about headset first. Umm after i read your reply, i think a neutral/v-shaped typed headset suits my requirement(I worry how much the v-shaped will cover the footstep as I will use the headset in fps game for sure). To be exact, I need a all-around headset as i will use my headset for everything(all types of gaming, music, movie, skype etc) so i would like to have some suggestions on this type. Also, as i will skype, please offer a mic model if the headset recommended does not have one.

Speakers are actually the bigger issue. I had a desk which is around 120cm X 60 cm which i will put my computer set on it(including a monitor acer x34). For speakers, i mainly use it to watch movies so i would prefer a surround sound at best but i am not sure i am capable for that(as i only can place all my things on that desk). For sure the main concern of the speakers are the sound quality.

 

[ssddx]

if you only have a desk to place things on, a 5.1 setup will be not much better sounding than a good 2.1 or 2.0. surround sound relies on being placed around you for it to sound good. it sounds like you would be better suited to stay with 2.1/2.0.

good choices?

if you went unpowered (which needs an amp of some sort). bs22, mb42, klipsch kb15, etcetera.
if you went powered (plug and play) av30/av40, cr3/cr4, a2/a5, pb42x
if you want a subwoofer, dayton subwoofers are cheap yet not bad.
swan hivi set also isnt a bad little 2.1 set but isnt cheap.