On my computer, i've been using The DCT OG-1050 's

Plainly put, they don't reproduce sound, they make sound.

I'm looking for something better in the 50$ canadian region (~ 40$ american)

currently, i'm looking at the Logitech X-230 and the ALTEC LANSING VS2121

Is the difference between my supercheap speakers and the slightly more expensive ones very big? As in worth my money.
Also, of course, which model should I buy? Feel free to suggest more options.

Thanks very much

I bought these on eBay from another seller for $20, and am happy with them (for cheap speakers). They go plenty loud without distorting and have decent bass from the subwoofer.

The only thing funny about them is that despite the fact that every seller claims that they are Altec Lansing, you cannot find that written anywhere once you buy them.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...item=5181711717

I have JBL Creature II speakers and I am so pleased with them. They supposedly retail for 129.00(US) but I have seen them at stores for more like 100 or 80(US)

I purchased mine though ebay/JBL direct. I can't remember if they were returns or reconditioned but they sound great and look cool and came with a one year warranty.. I paid around $50.00(US) including shipping.

Also, to answer your ? about paying more--just do it. ten or twenty bucks paid right now for a better speaker will be forgotten down the road. Why take a chance and have to put up with bad sound from cheap speakers.

Go with a quality brand-in my opinion. JBL is affiliated with Harmon/Kardon..It is my impression that they make good products.

Of course, paying more does not guarantee a better speaker. But paying less(very little) does kinda guarantee something cheap-o (bad sound) $50 bucks(CDN) $40(US) is not a lot of money in the world of speakers.
Wait and save a little more $ and shoot for the $50-$100(US) range-In my opinion there is a huge leap in quality between a $50 set-up and $100 set-up
Good luck

I got my dad a pair of the Creative Soundworks PCWorks speakers. They're only $40, and for $40, they actually put out some credible sound! They have some pretty nice build quality, too. Satts are small, but clearly damped well (heavy), subwoofer uses speaker clips and has a dial for sub volume that is pretty smooth to operate. Volume control is a wired remote that you can stick anywhere. Overall, I was nothing but impressed when I heard these.

Yes, Altec does supply those speaker OEM to Dell, much like Lexmark supplies OEM MFP's to Dell.

I'm a proud owner of Trust Soundwave 80 since 1999.
They sounds well due to the inclination and good heavy metal supports included (stands matter !).
Anyway, just a suggestion: if you like music, try to buy a non-reflex wood shell speaker !

Wood shell I can understand, but why non-reflex? In many cheap designs a port is present as a tradeoff between frequency response, phase response and linearity. In my experience of (very) cheap speakers, the addition of a port can increase frequency response without having a seriously negative effect on linearity.

Well I brought some Altec Lansing 4.1's of Ebay and apart from one other person bidding against me I managed to buy them for £20, so in that respect I'm really happy with my purchase [yes they're the real deal before you ask]

Reflex speakers tends to collapse when reproduces fast-basses music (metal - double bass drum, for example).
Even mid-quality hi-fi speakers have this problem: Canton LE 130, plays well with slow music (pop, classical, some jazz, etc) but when used for fast one, bass frequencies overlap themselves.
It's just the my opinion, anyway i bought a pair of used and re-coned Infinity RS-III: a large (48"h x 18"w x 7"d) weightered (80lbs each !) speaker buyed for 180$ on eBay (Canton costs 150-200$ -new- here): absolutelly satisfy me in each kind of use !
(anyway i'll do some tweaks sometime in the future)


check google for images of RS-III

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...ronics&n=507846

without a doubt the Logitech z-3s are the best sub $100 2.1 speakers you can buy. great heavy speaker stands, a very strong, if somewhat muffled bass and very crystal highs. they compare favorably to higher price speakers and are a great value IMO.

This thread has really bounced around.

No offense PatchWorks, but $180 (US?) speakers are not near $40*(US)/ $50(CDN) that 2xG originally asked about. However, 2xG has not re-appeared on this thread yet so...we are on our own.


I've seen a couple posts about best (cheap) speakers on HA in the past 2 weeks or so.

How about we all tell each other what our speaker set-ups are, how much($), and a quick note about why we are happy/un-happy?

http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index....topic=33078&hl=

[Where is original poster 2xG?]

I'm still here, I just sort of forgot about my post until now

I really can't afford anything over 75$(can), when I said sub-50 I meant it. So telling me I need to spend an extra 100$ is pointless.



maybe it isn't, but my current speakers are so bad that practically anything is better. They sound tinny and super cheap.

I'm not looking for super-fancy speakers that'll deliver a high quality listening experience... just someting that isnt quite as pathetic as what I've currently got.

Thanks for all your suggestions, I really appreciate it

For speakers strictly sub-50, getting a 2.1 system may be a bad deal (depends on if you can find a great bargain tho). Usually at this price point the bass is too boomy, and there is usually a noticeable hole between the range of the satellites and the subwoofer. An alternative would be the JBL Duet 2.0's... they produce great sound with a respectable 60-20 frequency response (considering they're 2.0), >70 dB SNR with a total of 12 watts (6x2). The sound is quite smooth and I even prefer them to the Logitech 2.1's at this price point.

Edit: Seems Logitech changed the technical design of their low-end satellites a few times since I last checked, that said if you can find the X-230 at or below MSRP then that should also be a good deal to look into.

I second that - the JBL Duet speakers are great sounding, with one caveat: they don't seem shielded. I was using a pair briefly but they would make a horrendous sound whenever my cellphone (gsm) had any kind of transmission going on nearby. I've not had that with two sets of Altec Lansings I've used.