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No love for desktop speakers on ASR?

BlueTunes

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Nov 24, 2020
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looking at the ASR speaker review index, i don't see any desktop speakers.
Is this:
A) A typo (ie they are just labelled as a bookshelf)
B) Truth (there hasn't been any)
C) I am an idiot, Learn use the search function properly.

I ask because updating my desktop to a proper system rather than the cobbled together mishmash it is at the moment (old hifi amp and bookshelf speakers) is on my to-do list.
I'm specifically interested in a desktop speaker system (probably with a 2-1 sub).

Don't see any reviews and i find looking for them if they do exist, a bit opaque.
 
Are we talking about things like Harmon Kardon sticks or Logitechs?
 
i think spinorama.org is more updated. And they’re called monitors.
 
Are we talking about things like Harmon Kardon sticks or Logitechs?
Those are PC speakers i think. more stuff to hear the PC noises rather than listen to music with.

Speakers for desktops.
Speakers tuned for near field listening, small, efficient and easy to pair with a sub if needed.

I am expecting something along the lines of KEF LSX II:

 
Erin has reviewed a few of these.
 
Those are PC speakers i think. more stuff to hear the PC noises rather than listen to music with.

Speakers for desktops.
Speakers tuned for near field listening, small, efficient and easy to pair with a sub if needed.

I am expecting something along the lines of KEF LSX II:

If you want to read about the build quality and reliability of the LSX, there is a teardown thread here:

 
The people on this forum seem to all use studio monitor speakers for that application. Personally, I don't have room for them on my desk and I find them too ugly for home use. I do wish there was a bigger market for audiophile-quality, very compact speakers, and reviews to identify the good ones.
 
The people on this forum seem to all use studio monitor speakers for that application. Personally, I don't have room for them on my desk and I find them too ugly for home use. I do wish there was a bigger market for audiophile-quality, very compact speakers, and reviews to identify the good ones.
Ya, good post. My point entirely :)
 
The people on this forum seem to all use studio monitor speakers for that application. Personally, I don't have room for them on my desk and I find them too ugly for home use. I do wish there was a bigger market for audiophile-quality, very compact speakers, and reviews to identify the good ones.
The neumann kh80/120, ilouds and adam audios are as small and good as it goes. we’re going razer tincan levels of sound here any smaller though…
 



JSmith
 
I'm specifically interested in a desktop speaker system
I would second the Genelec recommendations. My wife is very enamored with Genelec 8030A monitors attached to a Fosi ZD3, to which she can stream from her smartphone.
 
We like AudioSmile too. And the Micca RB42 is just one hell of a little desktop speaker, the best kept secret of the genre.
 
Desktop speakers is a consumer market product name.
Studio monitors is a pro audio product name.

There have been several studio monitors reviews here on ASR or on Erin's Audio Corner, and they are all compiled in Spinorama.org under category = Bookshelves and powered = Active.

Ranking below:
 
looking at the ASR speaker review index, i don't see any desktop speakers.
Is this:
A) A typo (ie they are just labelled as a bookshelf)
B) Truth (there hasn't been any)
C) I am an idiot, Learn use the search function properly.

I ask because updating my desktop to a proper system rather than the cobbled together mishmash it is at the moment (old hifi amp and bookshelf speakers) is on my to-do list.
I'm specifically interested in a desktop speaker system (probably with a 2-1 sub).

Don't see any reviews and i find looking for them if they do exist, a bit opaque.
Edifier makes some decent and inexpensive desktop speakers. Some have even been measured thoroughly. Check the usual places, here, spinorama.org, Erin's channel.

If you're looking for something higher priced, Neumann and Genelec are your go-tos.
 
Adam D3V fits the bill and measures really well - it's marketed as a monitor, but fits the desktop / "PC speaker" form factor.

Genelec 8010, 8020, or 8030 if you have the space are also all excellent and should work size-wise.
 
The people on this forum seem to all use studio monitor speakers for that application. Personally, I don't have room for them on my desk and I find them too ugly for home use. I do wish there was a bigger market for audiophile-quality, very compact speakers, and reviews to identify the good ones.
There are some, but there are inherent issues with going too small with a speaker, namely distortion gets higher, max volume gets lower, and bass goes away at some point. It's barely possible to get usable bass out of a driver smaller than 4", and there are inherent issues with using a full-range driver, so you also need a tweeter for real hi-fi, at which point the speaker has reached a relatively large minimum size.

Physics is not our friend here, the wavelengths involved with music are simply too large for a speaker to be (say) the size of a billiard ball and still sound good using conventional transducer technology.
 



JSmith
I've been using the Audioengine 5+ since 2014 as a desktop system, with an adjacent sub on the floor just outside of a nearby corner (an SVS SB1000) and a small amount of EQ, and I've been satisfied since then. Surprisingly so. I'm sure there are better desktop speakers available, like the Genelecs, but I haven't been motivated to trade up.
 
There are some, but there are inherent issues with going too small with a speaker, namely distortion gets higher, max volume gets lower, and bass goes away at some point. It's barely possible to get usable bass out of a driver smaller than 4", and there are inherent issues with using a full-range driver, so you also need a tweeter for real hi-fi, at which point the speaker has reached a relatively large minimum size.

Physics is not our friend here, the wavelengths involved with music are simply too large for a speaker to be (say) the size of a billiard ball and still sound good using conventional transducer technology.
Or you could also just go wild and get a pair of C8Cs.

Had them on my desk a short period of time before I had time to install them properly, they work great.
 
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