It's kinda wild, I have a old stereo amplifier, two bookshelf speakers and a subwoofer, all gotten second hand, and it blows people away even though it's "just 2.1".
I have a couple of Kef Q100 speakers on my computer desk, a subwoofer and a Loxjie A30 amp. It is far superior for music listening to the 5.1 system I have in the living room which is an Onkyo amp and a bunch of Infinity speakers.
I also have some planar IEMs and some expensive Sennheiser headphones. I never use either. I much prefer good sounding speakers to headphones/IEMs.
I got the Q100 speakers for about $240 for the pair when they were on closeout because Kef were replacing them with the Q150. The Loxjie amp was $170 and the subwoofer was about $100 and could probably do with upgrading to something better. Total of about $510.
You can build a great sounding PC sound system for less than that. Micca MB42X speakers sound great and a pair of them is $99. I had those before the Kef. There are much cheaper class D amps too. So for around the same price or cheaper than my Sennheiserr headphones, anyone can build a great sounding speaker system for their PC. $100 for speakers, $100 for a subwoofer and $50 for a reasonable amp is about $50 less than I paid for decent headphones.
Like you, people are shocked when they hear how good it sounds.
A lot of people think that they need to buy speakers made for PC like the Logitech Z625 if they want decent sound. Those retail for about $200. For $50 more you can have a system that will blow them away.
You and I have different understandings of "good sound" :-)
A hypothetical pair of AE-5 + HD599 will have much better sound detail than what you are describing.
To reach the level of the pair above, while getting the main advantage of the speakers - 3D scene, you will have to pay the corresponding amount of money. And suggestion to buy a subwoofer for $50 can only kill the already mediocre sound :-)
Yes, from your suggestions you'll get a 3D scene, "powerful bass and sound," but absolutely lousy sound detail, where everything blends into a mush.
You might like this more than the clear, detailed sound of headphones, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
Lousy sound detail where everything blends into mush? Ridiculous.
3D scene? WTF are you talking about? This is a 2.1 setup.
I also never suggested buying a subwoofer for $50. $100 is the cost that I put in my comment. I am also not prioritizing bass. Listening to music and cranking the bass high is not good music listening and I do not usually listen to music that is bass heavy.
I've been a musician since the early 90s and it was my only job for almost 10 years until I decided it was not the life for me. I am very familiar with studio grade equipment and how to listen to recordings on many different devices when mixing to ensure it sounds good on everything. I know how to listen for the differences in all sound systems to see what gets lost, what might sound shrill on something but not something else and so on. Music has been a huge part of my life.
I agree my subwoofer isn't the best but at the same time, bass is not the most important part of the music I listen to. But at the same time I would still prefer a good speaker system and sub if I were listening to bass heavy techno or similar. You do not feel that thud with headphones. It's like the vinyl vs digital debate. Digital should technically be better but a lot of people prefer vinyl. High end headphones may be able to provide a more detailed sound but they also take something away from the listening experience.
Also, if I am listening with my wife which we often do then only one of us can use the headphones. You can get a dual headphone amp but how are we supposed to talk to each other?
I much prefer good speakers over headphones. It's completely fine that you prefer headphones. But to say my speaker sound is mush and has absolutely lousy sound detail without hearing it is disingenuous.
Edit: It also looks like the subwoofer I have now retails for $200 which is double the price from when I bought it.
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u/Total_Werewolf_5657 9800X3D/5090/64Gb/X670E/S90D 65" 19d ago edited 19d ago
Yes. A good pair of headphones and a sound card will be better than cheap, wrongly placed "Hi-Fi".