Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: Sandwich on November 23, 2005, 06:29:27 pm
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Ok, so Saturday night I was looking at prices online for the computer speakers I want to upgrade to, the Logitech Z-5500 Digital 5.1 set. I found them for as low as $200 (list price is $400), but most places wouldn't ship them overseas. The one place that was willing to ship them overseas was charging almost $400 just for the shipping, bringing the total cost to $600. Not fun.
However, since I have no plans to fly to the USA anytime soon, and since there's no way I'm gonna ask anyone to bring me back a 60kg package, I figured I didn't have all that much of a choice. Before I ordered, though, I checked out the prices for the speakers on some Israeli online computer stores. I found it on one of them for as low as 2,800 NIS ( / ~4.5 = $622 USD, including 17% VAT here). So I figured I'd much rather get them from a local store, so I wouldn't have the problem of having to use a transformer for the electricity, wouldn't have a problem with the warranty, etc.
Alongside the speakers, I also had been looking at one of Creative's new X-Fi line of sound cards. After reading a bunch, I decided on the X-Fi Platinum (3rd place in price/features out of 4), which retails for ~$180. Again, same story, where most stores weren't willing to ship overseas, and the ones that did cost too much. So I found the X-Fi Platinum at an Israeli store for around 1,500 NIS (/ 4.5 = $333 USD, including 17% VAT).
The one thing the Israeli store didn't make very clear was how much cost was added when paying in installments, so in the confusion..... I discovered that my order had gone through. :eek: Over 4,300 NIS (including a whole door-to-door shipping cost of 40 NIS... about $9 USD :p). Turns out that dividing the payments into 6 monthly installments bumped up the price to just over 4,500 NIS (%5 increase, fairly reasonable, I guess).
Anyway, so that was my weekend. I semi-accidentally ordered something pretty darn expensive. Cool, but expensive. :p
Fast forward to Tuesday.... Watching a movie on my PC with my old (ancient, actually) Logitech SoundMan SR70s when suddenly the subwoofer starts to act up... emitting loud clicks whenever it should be booming. :nervous: I took the thing apart, put it back together, and nothing. Still clicking instead of booming.
Then I realize... 4-5 years I'd been using those speakers, and they finally give up the ghost the very week I (accidentally!) order a new set of speakers. ;)
Sweet!
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Dum-dum-duuuum....
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Wow...your speakers were vengeful at you...
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I have some old Altec Lansing 2.1 set that I have been using for four years. They are nothing special, but I almost always use my headphones anyway so I'm not going to bother upgrading them.
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After using 5.1 for around a year now whenever I listen to another sound system it just doesn't sound good at all.
5.1 has spoiled me :p
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My god, how much you'd pay for a platinum is about how much we'd pay for an elite pro here in the USA. I have the Extreme Music model, which is the same exact card just without breakout box, and it's a killer card. I LOVE it. Big improvement over the Audigy, that is if you have had bugs in the past. If you haven't, but are looking for a worthy successor. The cards DO have RAM on them by the way, just not user-configurable. Mine has a 16 mb chip soldered on it, looked at the serial number info online, though I've heard reports of 2 megs, all the way on up to 16 megs.
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Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention, I'm upgrading from a Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer card... so it's a hefty upgrade as well. ;)
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/me has to make do with his tinny laptop speakers :nervous:
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Meh. I can make do with my old crappy headphones. 5.1 is nice to have, but I don't consider it particularly important.
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what's funny is, i have the 5000 speakers (older model), and i would've sent them to you, you just pay shipping :p
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:wtf: Logitech doesn't have (and never had, AFAI can tell) a 5000 model. They've got Z-5300, Z-5450 (wireless rear speakers), and the Z-5500. All the others are 3 digits: Z-540, Z-560, Z-680, etc.
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I have a pair of Labtec LCS-900 speakers. They sound amazing for their cost. All I have to do is turn on the feature that enhances treble sounds and push the bass up to max. They can go really loud, too. They are pretty loud on a light setting.
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:wtf: Logitech doesn't have (and never had, AFAI can tell) a 5000 model. They've got Z-5300, Z-5450 (wireless rear speakers), and the Z-5500. All the others are 3 digits: Z-540, Z-560, Z-680, etc.
my mistake. they're the z-680s...
pictured on my desk:
(http://www.swooh.com/home/lorenzo/hosted/z680.jpg)
:)
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Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention, I'm upgrading from a Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer card... so it's a hefty upgrade as well. ;)
What's the main diff b/t those and the Audigys?
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The CPU power, dang good surround sound using regular earphones, 24-bit upscaling of MP3 audio... ;)