Buyers' Guide: Speakers

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PC speakers have come a long way, with most manufacturers now offering 2.1, 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, and even 8.1 packages.

Here are three things to watch for when you’re looking to buy. First is the output, often expressed in watts. Try to look beyond the manufacturer’s statements, as they can be misleading. For instance, a 125w output might comprise a 100w sub-woofer and five 5w speakers. You may see speaker output quoted as PMPO (Peak
Music Power), which relates to the maximum output that can be achieved under perfect conditions and is misleading. Lastly, there is RMS (Root Mean Square), which is expressed in watts, for example total 200w RMS. This is a better reference for overall power, but not perfect.

Impedance is measured in ohms and tells you how much of an electrical load a speaker presents to the amplifier.

The higher the impedance, the less power the amplifier needs to drive it. The average on most speakers is 8ohms. If lower than 8ohms the amplifier has to work
harder to drive the speakers, which can result in distortion.

Frequency response refers to a speaker’s tonal qualities and its ability to reproduce sounds at different frequencies. Speakers listed as having a response of 20Hz-20KHz are the most common for PC speakers.

Recommended Speakers:

Creative Gigaworks S750
Although no Dolby Digital encoder is included, the sound quality and construction are superb
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Logitech X-530
Sleek design, great sound quality and a performance that belies the bargain price
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Hercules XPS5-101-Black
Excellent build quality, easy to set up, lots of power and a fantastic remote control

Creative Inspire T7900
A 7.1 surround system with surprisingly good sound quality, but it won’t cost you a fortune
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Logitech Z-5500 Digital
With a built-in Dolby Digital decoder, this set also delivers impressive audio performance
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