Speaker recommendations for desk

Speakers & Subwoofers Speakers
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I interested in buying my first pair of speakers for my desk. I would like these speakers for listening to music and for my personal enjoyment. Keeping in mind I have a budget of $300 and no other equipment such as a speaker amplifier, what would be the best for my budget. Some of the speakers I have looked at and are possibly considering are:

  • Jbl 306p
  • Kali LP-6
  • Fluance Ai40W
  • Adam A5x (Although out of my price range considerably)

I am really struggling with knowing which ones to get if anyone has any recommendations it will help a lot.

Edit: Thank you for all the replies. Although I have not replied to any of them I can assure everyone I have read them and even looked into the options listed. I probably should have stated earlier in the post that already had somewhat of a ā€œdecentā€ DAC(Never actually heard an amazing DAC nor know what it would sound like) it is an audio interface I use with my microphone. I ended up settling with a separate amplifier and speakers. I chose to go this route because in my opinion with this setup I have more room to expand and experiment with my audio experience. The speakers were Polk Audio TSi 200 and the Yamaha R-S202BL Stereo Receiver. I am sure there might be better speakers or Receivers but with this setup, I am able to more easily expand upon it. I would just like to say thanks to those who replied once more, and if you were to look at Hifiguides (Not forums) you will see Zeos and DMS have added more options.

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The Audioengine HD3 is also supposed to great. Wirecutter review

Make sure the sizes of your choices are good. The Audioengine A2 (which I have) is excellent for their compact size.

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I have a Topping MX3 DAC/Amp paired with Micca MB42x(s) Iā€™m liking. I was wanting the Fluance Ai40 But they would of been running off my computers sound card because I didnā€™t have the Budget for Fluance And a DAC. My headphones sound better off the Topping MX3, so powered Speakers should Sound better off an external DAC Tooā€¦

4

Those 240ish reviewed 4.8/5 triple sonyā€™s looked magically delicious for 118 dollarsā€¦ prime shipped

5

Tweeters a lil too Bright for the Sonys on a Desktopā€¦ 6:40 mark

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Aye and the A5+ is only $99 more than the opā€™s budget :+1: https://www.amazon.com/Audioengine-Active-2-Way-Speakers-Black/dp/B005OA3BSY/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Audioengine+A5%2B&qid=1560692194&s=gateway&sr=8-3

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If a fellar was gonna run the Fluance Ai40s or other powered speakers what is a Good DAC to run them off of.? Iā€™m guessing the Origin G2ā€¦?

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Kef LSX would be good for desk use. Wireless. Tiny and umm theyā€™re kef

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OP said he needs it to be under $300. The LSX are $1100.

Iā€™m a big fan of ā€œseparatesā€ ā€“ having your DAC/amp/speakers all individual parts, but that probably increases price a bit. It leaves me a little more flexible for upgrades, tinkering, or re-purposing parts for another installation.

DAC wise Iā€™d probably shoot for something in the $100 range like the JDS OL DAC. Gets good measurements from ASR, looks good. For a $40 upgrade you can have optical added.

The SMSL SA-98E (~$100-115) is a powerful Class D amp with honestly way too much power for desk usage, but itā€™s clean, aesthetically pleasing, and I havenā€™t had any problems with the two units Iā€™ve bought. The one time I bought its little brother the SA50, it broke within 30 minutes. These Chinese amps are usually made in different factories, so quality is different for each product regardless of brand.

Speaker wise? Iā€™d probably grab the Micca MB42x like SmittyJonz says. Itā€™s great bang for your buck, and it allows you to allocate more of your budget to things that you wonā€™t outgrow as fast (DAC/amp/headphone amp).

OL DAC ($100-140) + SMSL 98E ($100-115) + Micca MB42x ($80) puts you in the $280-335 range, not including cables (Seismic Audio RCA $10, 2x Cable Matters 12AWG cables $21).

If you want to add in a headphone amp later, the JDS Labs Atom basically measures as well as the THX AAA 789 and costs $100. Itā€™s single ended, powerful enough, and most importantlyā€¦available. You can hook it up between the DAC and speaker amp.





If youā€™re ok with a more all-in-one solution, SmittyJonz is giving good advice.

Alternatively, grab the JDS Labs ODAC for $100-140 and the JBL 306p for $120 (x2) and $20 of cables, and be done with it for $360-400*. Those speakers have 4.5 stars on Amazon for a reason.

Edit: whoops, forgot that was $120 per monitor. The price did look a bit low.

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The new Adam T5Vs then! :smiley:
Zeos also has a review:

EDIT: Huhā€¦ hoping you have a decent, external sound card, with volume knobs etc. Because youā€™d still need a volume knob somewhereā€¦ I donā€™t know. 6$ for this one?

https://www.amazon.com/Axxess-AALC-Controller-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B003FPD3IS

WAY better:

https://www.amazon.com/Mackie-Controller-2x2-KNOB-Passive/dp/B01NCUZ32O/ref=zg_bs_11974991_11?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=9H853KQYB707R083STEJ&th=1

*Note: Powering T5Vs, or anything actually, but especially T5Vs, with an on-board, motherboard sound card would be a horrible ideaā€¦ if you donā€™t have an external sound card, search for active speakers with USB-in only.

  • Jbl 306p (No volume knobs!)
  • Kali LP-6 (No volume knobs!)
  • Adam A5x (No volume knobs!)
  • Fluance Ai40W (Ok, volume knob + remote control.)
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If you donā€™t have anything except a computer with USB connections, I found this.

Morning edit: AND this, obviously.