Quality 2.1>5.1 systems? Minipods?

[SpeakerboxDude]

I'm looking to get a system that will be used to play mainly music, hiphop, jazz, soul, funk etc. so needs good bass support, but also that can play movies reasonably well. With regards to power, I'm looking for 100+ watts per speaker and 150watts for sub). It will be used in an 8m x 5m bedroom and will be connected to the 'line out' of my PC.

My starting budget is only £400 so I'm gonna have to gradually build up the system. I'm planning on initially getting a 2.1 setup and later on expanding to a 5.1 when I get more funds.

Does anyone have any ideas on any quality (both looks and sound) systems. I've been looking at the Blueroom's minipods, what's people's opinion of these speakers? The sub costs a bomb though, around £500 so do you think I will be able to use a different sub with these speakers?

Finally, am I right in assuming I would need to purchase an amplifier with these speakers? Sorry if my knowledge isn't all teched up but I have just got seriously into this a/v stuff recently.

Many thanks for any contributions...

 

[Respectamonkeee]

Mini pods are great speakers and really rock once run in,i still use these cool looking speakers for my front room set up and have been very happy with them ,much prefering them to a Gallos A'Diva front and micros that i had for a while.

I'd avoid their sub tho as it isnt very good at low level bass and the pods do need a good sub....many alternatives about just look thru these forums for ideas.

 

[SpeakerboxDude]

Great, from you what ay the minipods seem like the ideal choice. If you even prefer them to the AG nucleus micros (which cost more), they must be good. Yeh I have read alot of reviews saying that the Blueroom sub isn't too good. Thanks for the tip though, I will scan the amp/sub forum for a decent one.

I'm just a bit worried about not getting the right equipment. How have you set your speakers up in your front room? If I am planning on playing mp3s and DVDs from my PC do I need to purchase any additional cables for my "Line Out" port aswell as an amp?

Cheers for the advice.

 

[Respectamonkeee]

Hi

I have mine running thru a Sony 940 receiver and they sound really good,using cat 5 for speaker wire on the fronts which sound way better then the cable talk wire i have on the rears.

You would need some sort of amplfier to power them...maybe take a look at Richer sounds for a bargin.

If your sound card has a spdif output you can run this straight into the amp for better quality.

 

[SpeakerboxDude]

Respectamonkeee is this your amp/receiver http://www.ciao.co.uk/Sony_STR_DB940__5596472/TabId/4, over 100 watts per channel is excellent just a shame it isn't longer available (damn). What I don't get is that these minipod speakers have a nominal impedance of 4 ohms but your receiver operates 8 ohms, doesn't this the speakers won't perform at their full potential? Every amp I have looked at seems to be 8 ohms ones and I am finding it hard locating any amps that are for 4ohms speakers.

Also I want to make sure I have all the right cables before the speakers arrive so I don't have to wait around ordering them. Do you know any good cable sites that sell the minipod ones that connect to a A/V receiver and a cable that can connect from my speaker out of my PC into the A/V receiver? You mentioned that you use Cat 5 cables for your fronts, call me stupid but are these Cat 5 cables the same cables as you would use to connect to an ethernet via a PC's network card?

Thanks alot man...

 

[Respectamonkeee]

Yes m8ty just plain network cable in 2 runs for +&-r you can strip off the outer sheath and plat 2 or 3 runs up for better quailty but i like mine just fine the way i have it.

As long as a amp had plenty of juice the pods with run fine,i've tried them with a Marantz 5200 and they really sung with that 2.

As for speaker cable i dont realy know that much about it as i use XLR balanced stuff for my main HC room.

Any optical cable would run well from your pc's optical outputs into the amps input...had a few tos cables and they all sound the same ranging form £10 to £100 so go for a cheapy of the length you want.

What colour are you going for with the pods i have silver and they melt very well into the decor

 

[sonofmoth]

Get a 2nd hand REL or a new Quake, scrimp on the speakers for now and then use them as rears when money allows Yamaha do some good subs too if the REL is out of your price league for now. If you can try not to cut corners too soon you will only regret it later.

Have a look on ebay too or www.vickers-hifi.co.uk they often have ex-dems or deals on Monitor-Audio floor standers. You may not need a sub (or an expensive one) quite so soon.

 

[SpeakerboxDude]

So can I just double check that it is ok to use an A/V receiver that operates at 8ohms with my minipods' nominal impedance 4ohms? I'm worried it will blow them

I've decided to go for the Silver minipods too, they are easily the slickest colour out of the lot with the dark blues in a close second. I just have to decided on a 100watt A/V receiver and a sub-woofer to go with it.

Sonofmoth thanks for the tips on those subs, I never knew REL made such wicked subs, just gotta get one within my budget of around £150-200. Will be looking second hand I think.

Thanks again, all your advice guys has been great...

 

[Respectamonkeee]

Some speakers would struggle @ 4 ohms with 100w but i've never had a power problem with the pods.A decent amp that is rated at 8 will drive them pretty well...very well in my case with the amps i've used on them...Dont worry you wont blow them....they would just sound lacking rather then explode

As for subs i run my front room set up with a REL QE100 and i prefer it to the velo hgs18 i have in my HC room....but only for dance music....just adds that dirty flavour dance needs.

There's some great sub bargins to be had int he for sale forum here if you can wait some something suitable to pop up.


If your in my neck of the woods your more then welcome to pop over for a listen of the pods if you've not heard them before.

 

[Ango]

Where are you buying your minipods from? How much?

 

[SpeakerboxDude]

Phew, that is reassuring because I want my minipods to sound like bombs but not act like bombs Sounds like you have a great setup, Monkeee and thanks very much for your offer but I'm miles away.

Yep that's what I'm going to do, just wait around and keep checking the 'For Sale' forum as subs can cost alot if you want a meaty brand new one. I will be looking out for any REL Quake's which would be nice.

Ango, I got an offer of £230 for two brand new minipods from another board member on here..

 

[Ango]

Thats a very good price! I was also thinking about the minipods, I would be using them for mainly music. Would the minipods be much better than the B&W DM602 S3 SPEAKERS which are only £300? What amp were you looking at?

 

[SpeakerboxDude]

I love the B&W DM602s aswell! Those speakers are amazing and have a better watt rating and wider frequency range than the minipods. They are amazing value for money and I have yet to read a negative review about them. Everyone has said that they sound awesome during music playback and seem to get better the more they are 'played-in'. They also look great if you are not fed up with the standard rectangle speaker look. Finally they are, as you have already said, great value for money.

See if the B&W 602s looked like the minipods, I would definitely buy them but I am bored of the usual 'speakers should look rectangular' idea. Remember also that they are quite large. I definitely, however, think that the positives far outweigh the negatives of the B&W 602s.

What I might do is buy 2 minipods now and use them as my fronts. And when I get some more cash, I'll probably purchase the B&W 602s and by then they should be even cheaper Then I'll use the B&W 602s as my front and move the 2 minipods to the rear. Should be an awesome setup.

I think both the minipods or the B&Ws will play music really well. The B&Ws, probably, have a little edge over the minipods so if you don't mind the rectangle design and paying slightly more then go for the B&Ws.

With regards to the amp, I am looking at getting the Yamaha RXV440 RDS but hopefully second-hand as it is quite expensive: £250. http://www.hifistore.co.uk/product.php?qsProd=RXV440BLA&S=244de6075f136009551514ac1719daed

Let me know what you think/end up doing...

 

[Ango]

Yeah, I will probably go and try to listen to both of them sometime next week. I'll report back what I think of them,

 

[tee2]

I have some minipods for sale in the classified section if you are interested?