Best sound device around 150€

[Jorres]

I'm totally new to this forum, and to audio too. I post my request here cause i didn't really know where else to ask it.
I'm not an expert at all in music and sound, but i appreciate and enjoy good things, so i want the best for me, tho I don't have much money so i want the best i can have for my budget which is ~150€.
So for summarize all, i'm a movie enjoyer and video games too, i play in a close room, and my screen sound is awful, so what is the best sound i can get for ~150€, either it's a speaker, soundbar, whatever is the most relevant, you are the pro!
Thank you for your answer and time, i appreciate your help

 

[staticV3]

Hi @Jorres! Welcome to ASR.

I believe that the best bang-for-your-buck sound device is an in-ear monitor (IEM).

You can get fantastic sounding IEMs for very little money (e.g: 7Hz Zero:2, Truthear Zero:Red, Truthear Hexa), but the tricky thing is to find a model that you can comfortably wear for hours.

Each ear shape is different, so there's no way around just trying a bunch of models until you find one that fits.

 

[Jorres]

Hi @Jorres! Welcome to ASR.

I believe that the best bang-for-your-buck sound device is an in-ear monitor (IEM).

You can get fantastic sounding IEMs for very little money (e.g: 7Hz Zero:2, Truthear Zero:Red, Truthear Hexa), but the tricky thing is to find a model that you can comfortably wear for hours.

Each ear shape is different, so there's no way around just trying a bunch of models until you find one that fits.

Hi
Thank you for your answer, i must say that i don't enjoy much headphone neither earphones tbh and was more looking into device that spread sound loudly. Appreciate your advice tho thank you

 

[Power Pop 23]

Depending on what is available in your area, consider a pair of powered loudspeakers that have an input compatible with an audio output from your screen. Acquiring a used sample may yield a set up that has more bass output while fitting your budget.

 

[AnalogSteph]

OP, what kind of devices will you need to get sound out of? I guess it'll be a TV (which make/model)? What does it have to offer in terms of outputs - optical, headphone, anything else? How far away are you from where speakers could be placed?

I suppose a pair of Edifier MR4s plus a stereo 3.5 mm to RCA cable would fit the bill, but they're little 4" nearfields more suited for the desktop (distances of not much more than 1 m). Maybe more something like a 2.1 system like a Logitech Z625?

Either way, 150€ is not a ton of money for good sound, and as mentioned the used market may definitely be worth a look. The problem there will be knowing what to look for. I guess there'll be decent passive 6.5" class bookshelves available in a lot of places, something like that paired with a decent inexpensive Class D amp could be a good starting point. I'd suggest making a list of what speakers you can find locally up to maybe 75-80€ the pair and see what we have to say.

 

[Jorres]

Hi
Thank you for your answers
You probably right, i didn't gave enough details of my situation.

I play on a tv, a Samsung 42", the model is UE40H6400AWXZF.
I don't know much about the name of the port.
There is hdmi; there is 5 coloured port: 2 red; 1 blue; 1 white; 1 green and yellow. There is other but i don't think it's relate to audio.

I'm set in the top of my house so the room have a triangle shape, i sit at 2,50 meters maximum, could be less but not much.

I'm not looking for headphone, neither for earphones, so nothing in or over my ears.

Sorry for the blurriness of the information, i want to get a better sound cause i appreciate it but i'm not an expert in the topic at all.
Thank you again for your time and appreciation

 

[JustJones]

Logitech or Creative gaming speakers. I assume you're using a computer to connect.

 

[RosalieTheDog]

I second the suggestion of AnalogSteph: Edifier MR4s plus a stereo 3.5 mm to RCA cable is the easiest and cheapest solution.

I think less than €150 might get you decent passive bookshelf speakers like Wharfedale Diamond 220 or Polk XT20, especially if you scour Black Friday deals for example on Fnac (I assume you live in Europe?). Passive speakers need an amplifier however. Audiophonics has many cheap amplifier options. €50 can get you amplifiers without remote control (you will connect the TV via RCA and control the volume with the TV remote); €100 can get you amplifiers with a remote control and more inputs (you can connect the TV digitally via an optical cable and control the volume of the amplifier with the amplifier remote). https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/audi.../remote_control-no?orderby=price&orderway=asc Total price will be more in the direction €200 or €250.

 

[DVDdoug]

When it comes to sound quality, speakers (or headphones or IEMs) are "everything". Audiophoolery will help give you some perspective on that.

Most electronics are better than human hearing, but of course you need an amplifier powerful enough play your speakers as loud as you want to go.

It's probably worthwhile going to an audio/video store just to listen to a variety of speakers to see what they sound like. With your budget it will be discouraging but it will be educational.

Computer speakers are powered/active so you don't need a separate amplifier. Audio "monitors" are also usually active. Hi-fi/home theater speakers, computer speakers, and monitors are sold into "different markets" so you'll usually find them in different stores or different departments. Monitors are sold where they sell musical instruments and pro/semi-professional audio & recording equipment.

Back to what you don't want to talk about... Headphones & IEMs... I'm not really a headphone guy either. I prefer speakers in a room. But with headphones & IEMs there is almost no correlation between cost and sound quality. You'll see that if you sort the reviews here by "recommended" and price. The "famous" AKG K371 is about $150 USD but it can compete with headphones (or speakers) costing 10 times as much and it's "rated" better than many more expensive headphones. (It does have a reputation for being "fragile" and breaking, but mine aren't broken yet.)

Headphones are a "different experience" than speakers, but plug a good-sounding pair of headphones into your smart phone (or TV) and you'll have sound quality as good as (and usualy as loud as) a system (with speakers) costing thousands of dollars!

 

[JeremyFife]

The $99 Google smart speaker got a great review recently https://audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/google-nest-audio-speaker-review.58134/

Get one, and it will sound great. Add a second one, now or later, and you have a very decent set of speakers. If you come to upgrade your system later on then these will happily move into another room and keep giving you music.

 

[JeremyFife]

The $99 Google smart speaker got a great review recently https://audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/google-nest-audio-speaker-review.58134/

Get one, and it will sound great. Add a second one, now or later, and you have a very decent set of speakers. If you come to upgrade your system later on then these will happily move into another room and keep giving you music.

Ah - apologies - wasn't thinking properly and missed that you want to use your TV as a source. The Edifier MR4's sound sensible

 

[AnalogSteph]

I play on a tv, a Samsung 42", the model is UE40H6400AWXZF.

Strictly speaking, that's a 40", as the model number indicates. In any case it has 4 ways of getting audio out of it according to the manual:

1. HDMI ARC via HDMI OUT
2. Digital Audio Out (Optical), a.k.a. Toslink
3. Headphone jack
4. Audio output jack

I had to look for a while to find a non-potato picture of the ports, but I think the square one to the right of the blue component jack is the Toslink. The two holes underneath the bottom HDMI probably are your 3.5 mm output jacks then.

I'm set in the top of my house so the room have a triangle shape, i sit at 2,50 meters maximum, could be less but not much.

Hmm, that's really pushing it for MR4s, I'd rather want something a bit bigger...

EDIT: Wouldn't you know it, here's one for inspiration...

 

[Jorres]

Hi, first thank you all.
After reading your recommendation i took the Edifier R2750DB, i manage to find them for 100€ brand new. As i saw Edifier appear to be a good brand, i thought it would be a good deal and i read only good back up about them, can't wait to try them!
And DVDdoug, thank you for the explanation and i write down the headphone you were talking about in case one day i needed it.
Appreciate your help guys, thank you