Speakers for my PC
Speakers for my PC
Can anyone recommend a good pair of speakers to use for my PC which are capable of handling karaoke vocals. I have a proper set up for my home karaoke parties, which includes a powered amp, large speakers, mixer etc but sometimes I just want to plug a mic into my pc and sing a couple of songs without the hassle of setting up my full system. The speakers I currently have (creative 5.1 surround sound) can not handle karaoke and the vocals are distorted beyond recognition,
Whenever you're looking for small format speakers capable of producing top quality sound there really is only one option. That's Bose. They've got a number of surround setups designed for applications similar to yours. That said, you do understand that your soundcard is a huge part of this too right? Not so much on the output side (any basic 16-bit sound card can produce CD quality output) but on the input side. If you're running your microphone through the Mic input on your sound card, the sampling rate, ADC and other factors all become a part of the sound quality equation. As long as you're sure you've got a high quality sound card, then look at top quality speakers.
I have 10 Bose Cubes and 2 subs in my livingroom (that's 2 Bose surround sound systems a 7 and a 5) powered by a Kenwood amplifier. They can not handle the vocals. After a while they were starting to sound a little bit like they are a little crackly. I now sing through 15" and horns and 18" subs. No crackly sound now. Even Bose surround sound can not take the punishment of live vocals. I personally think all surround sound systems are a waste of money. Your house will never sound like the theater system, never.
So I would say it depends on how much your are going to use them for vocals and how loud you want to be. Nothing is a PA system, except a real PA system. Don't try to pretend. You'll waste your money.
So I would say it depends on how much your are going to use them for vocals and how loud you want to be. Nothing is a PA system, except a real PA system. Don't try to pretend. You'll waste your money.
LMAO Bigdog, that is about the dumbest thing I've ever heard. 15" Woofers are needed for vocals? Are you out of your mind? It might interest you to know that there are very few if any line array (we're talking concert systems here, best quality there is) that use 15" speakers. Most use 8 inch and some 10 inch speakers for their Mid-range. Low end is usually a 12" at best. Only the sub woofers go any larger.
When I said Bose, I never suggested the "Lifestyle" system like you've described in your post. awdl22125 if you're even still reading this monotnous drivel, take a look at the Bose Panaray systems or maybe even the Freespace system. I'll guarantee you when it comes to fidelity and overall sound presence, they'll blow you away (oh and they are designed with live sound applications in mind as I stated before).
When I said Bose, I never suggested the "Lifestyle" system like you've described in your post. awdl22125 if you're even still reading this monotnous drivel, take a look at the Bose Panaray systems or maybe even the Freespace system. I'll guarantee you when it comes to fidelity and overall sound presence, they'll blow you away (oh and they are designed with live sound applications in mind as I stated before).
Most KJs don't have a clue about real PA systems. It is evident from all of my competition and reading posts from many other KJs describing their systems. LMAO
The ones who don't know what or why you would use subs and think a Fender Passport system is good enough...LMAO more
12" mids would probably give a little better vocal sound.
But all the major speaker companies must be wasting their money because they all sell 15" mids...
It's a woofer if it isn't crossed over...in a mid cabinet with a horn, it's a mid speaker....they also sell 15" subs....every major speaker company
I wouldn't play out anywhere with less than a 12" mid...you need the power they put out....8s & 10s don't deliver that kind of power...unless you are using 20 of them...
A surround sound system for your livingroom won't handle the vocals...been there and done that...waste of money...
The ones who don't know what or why you would use subs and think a Fender Passport system is good enough...LMAO more
12" mids would probably give a little better vocal sound.
But all the major speaker companies must be wasting their money because they all sell 15" mids...
It's a woofer if it isn't crossed over...in a mid cabinet with a horn, it's a mid speaker....they also sell 15" subs....every major speaker company
I wouldn't play out anywhere with less than a 12" mid...you need the power they put out....8s & 10s don't deliver that kind of power...unless you are using 20 of them...
A surround sound system for your livingroom won't handle the vocals...been there and done that...waste of money...
Actually you're incorrect again Bigdog. A 2-way or 3-way system with a 15" woofer has the woofer designed as a Mid-Low. Look at the Frequency response on those cabinets, the low end (At -3dBu) is typically between 45-65Hz, that's NOT mid-range. Generally anything in the first two octaves is considered Sub-Low territory. When manufacturers design these 2 and 3 way mobile cabinets they're designing them so they can be used as "Full Range" cabinets. Meaning no sub. However, they are making compromises when they do so for sake of convenience. They give up the lowest of low end in exchange for building a simple lightweight cabinet.
As a result, many will chose to add a seperate sub woofer to get to the lower frequencies that these "Full Range" (using the term loosely) speakers can't hit or at least can't drive at a significant level. Those who do it right will only send a the high-pass signal (i.e. everything above their subwoofer cross-over point) to their 2-way or 3-way, effectively turning it into a Mid-High cabinet.
As to the premise that only a full-ranged (no crossover present) speaker is referred to as a woofer is just laughable. The term woofer is used to describe a speaker designed to deliver lower frequency sound. Woofer is actually a fairly ambiguous term, there's no hard requirement for what is a woofer but in general terms it refers to speakers covering frequencies under 2Khz.
Finally, you also have a habit of confusing speaker size, with power handling, wtih SPL. They are very different concepts. Speaker size affects the range of frequencies a speaker can reproduce. Power handling refers to input power (normally expressed in Watts) and in a traditional driver is affected by the size and design of the voice coil. SPL essentially is the perceived "loudness" at your ear and is an overall function of the speaker design Also worth noting is that multiple smaller speakers can be used to generate the same low-end frequencies as a single larger speaker. This is why you'll notice that most bassists backline equipment is a cabinet of multiple 8" speakers, not one gigantic driver.
As a result, many will chose to add a seperate sub woofer to get to the lower frequencies that these "Full Range" (using the term loosely) speakers can't hit or at least can't drive at a significant level. Those who do it right will only send a the high-pass signal (i.e. everything above their subwoofer cross-over point) to their 2-way or 3-way, effectively turning it into a Mid-High cabinet.
As to the premise that only a full-ranged (no crossover present) speaker is referred to as a woofer is just laughable. The term woofer is used to describe a speaker designed to deliver lower frequency sound. Woofer is actually a fairly ambiguous term, there's no hard requirement for what is a woofer but in general terms it refers to speakers covering frequencies under 2Khz.
Finally, you also have a habit of confusing speaker size, with power handling, wtih SPL. They are very different concepts. Speaker size affects the range of frequencies a speaker can reproduce. Power handling refers to input power (normally expressed in Watts) and in a traditional driver is affected by the size and design of the voice coil. SPL essentially is the perceived "loudness" at your ear and is an overall function of the speaker design Also worth noting is that multiple smaller speakers can be used to generate the same low-end frequencies as a single larger speaker. This is why you'll notice that most bassists backline equipment is a cabinet of multiple 8" speakers, not one gigantic driver.
My 2 way speakers are mid and a horn. That is where they cross over. My subs woofers are subs, low range speakers. Specifically designed to be a sub woofer. Yes a 3 way speaker would be wired as such, to include one of each. We were talking about 2 way boxes that include a horn and a mid range speaker, be it a 12" or a 15" MID RANGE speaker.
That brings up the next bad example...
I don't know if it's a local idiot KJ thing or a national deal...
I have seen several KJs put one mid speaker and the horn on a pole, as it should be. They set the other speaker and horn on the floor...Trying to use it as a sub speaker. Totally wrong useage of the speaker on the floor. Real Sub woofers are multi-directional, because bass frequencies travel 360 degrees. Boxes with horns and mid range speakers are very directional. They are crossed over to be mid range speakers. So by putting the speaker on the floor you kill the horn in the first 5 feet and the mid range is killed within 10 feet. So not using it at all would be better than putting it on the floor. A mid range speaker and a horn will never act like a sub speaker. Try pretending some more.....where do idiots get their ideas????
That brings up the next bad example...
I don't know if it's a local idiot KJ thing or a national deal...
I have seen several KJs put one mid speaker and the horn on a pole, as it should be. They set the other speaker and horn on the floor...Trying to use it as a sub speaker. Totally wrong useage of the speaker on the floor. Real Sub woofers are multi-directional, because bass frequencies travel 360 degrees. Boxes with horns and mid range speakers are very directional. They are crossed over to be mid range speakers. So by putting the speaker on the floor you kill the horn in the first 5 feet and the mid range is killed within 10 feet. So not using it at all would be better than putting it on the floor. A mid range speaker and a horn will never act like a sub speaker. Try pretending some more.....where do idiots get their ideas????
Well lets make sure we're talking about the same thing. 2-Way speakers only have 1 crossover, usually between 1.4-2.0 kHz. Therefore when you send a full-range signal to the 2-way speaker, everything in the high-pass (above the cross-over point) goes to the horn, everything in the low-pass (below the crossover point) goes to your woofer. This means that your woofer is getting everything from 20 Hz up to the crossover point. That makes it a Mid-Low, and this is how the cabinets are designed, so they CAN be used in that fashion. Now your woofers have limitations (commonly referred to as frequency response and frequency range) which indicate the lowest and highest frequency sounds it can reproduce within -3 dBu and -10 dBu of the input signal respectively. For most 15's this is between 45-80 Hz and 40-65 Hz respectively. So with a full range signal, your woofers are producing sounds in the range of say 45Hz-1.4kHz.
Now, you have no doubt implemented a cross-over to send sub-low signal to your Sub-woofers (probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 85-125 Hz). This could be a part of your amp, mixer, or a seperate component (or built into the sub cabinet if you're using active speakers). Out of that cross-over you very likely may only be sending the high-pass signal to your two-ways. So if your 2-ways cross-over at 1.4kHz and your subs crossover at 85Hz this means your woofers are producing frequencies from 85Hz to 1.4kHz, that's mid-range plus some sub-low. But that is your choice on how to use them, not the design or what they are capable of. Now assuming that's what you're doing, that is the preferred method.
As far as what you described with KJ's using two full range cabinets stacked in that fashion, I'd agree that's pretty idiotic. I can't say I've ever seen that done, although there are some maufactueres out there who make their 2-ways and subs in the same basic cabinet so they look very similar (See the JBL EON Series for example). But assuming they are stacking two 2-ways with one as the sub and one as the mid-high, well you gain nothing by doing that and lose a ton. Assuming a cross-over is sending only sub-low to the lower cabinet, you're not using the horn at all and the woofer isn't producing any lower frequency sound than it would have with a full-range signal.
Now, you have no doubt implemented a cross-over to send sub-low signal to your Sub-woofers (probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 85-125 Hz). This could be a part of your amp, mixer, or a seperate component (or built into the sub cabinet if you're using active speakers). Out of that cross-over you very likely may only be sending the high-pass signal to your two-ways. So if your 2-ways cross-over at 1.4kHz and your subs crossover at 85Hz this means your woofers are producing frequencies from 85Hz to 1.4kHz, that's mid-range plus some sub-low. But that is your choice on how to use them, not the design or what they are capable of. Now assuming that's what you're doing, that is the preferred method.
As far as what you described with KJ's using two full range cabinets stacked in that fashion, I'd agree that's pretty idiotic. I can't say I've ever seen that done, although there are some maufactueres out there who make their 2-ways and subs in the same basic cabinet so they look very similar (See the JBL EON Series for example). But assuming they are stacking two 2-ways with one as the sub and one as the mid-high, well you gain nothing by doing that and lose a ton. Assuming a cross-over is sending only sub-low to the lower cabinet, you're not using the horn at all and the woofer isn't producing any lower frequency sound than it would have with a full-range signal.
Right, you don't, because they are purpose built to only cover sub-low, that's what I'm trying to point out. When you buy a 2-way speaker it is ultimately designed to be full-range. However, most will use it for mid-high and let the sub do the heavy work. This keeps the voice coil on the driver cooler (low frequencies take the most power to reproduce) and that helps clean up the overall sound.Bigdog wrote:I just always assume that a speaker box with a horn and a speaker in it, is a mid range box. You don't see horns in a sub box.
