I just wanted to pick the community's brain to see if such a setup would be worth it. Are these even the right kind of speakers for surround? Are there any additional speakers I'd really need to pick up to optimize my setup in such a small room?
Also, I have the idea to mount my reciever underneath my Ikea desk for easy access... kind of where I'm holding this book.
Does anyone have any idea how I'd go about doing that? The thing weighs 20 pounds.
Also, I'm running audio-in from my motherboard's optical audio-out. Is this an acceptible way to get audio from my computer or would it be better to get a sound card or something?
It's kind of late and I know this is a rambling post but I'm super excited to have gotten ahold of this equipment and want to make sure I have a good gameplan before I buy anything or move this heavy stuff around!
Getting a centre channel might me something to keep in mind while trying different things out, but not necessary.
Putting the speakers in the corners of the room is not a good move. I will point you to some audio setup videos to help you out. These are geared to home theatre, but can be applied to a desktop scenario.
You can check out the other videos on their channel since they have many 'how to' guides, and other useful information.
Placing the surround speakers will be a bit tricky. It really depends how much you value accurate surround sound. Ideally you could use small tables, or plant holders to position them. Newer Yamaha receivers have a 'virtual cinema front' feature which lets you setup the surround speakers in front of you and works really well. I looked up your model and it doesn't list this feature, but you could give it a try anyway.
I am a big fan of 5.1 on pc for media/gaming but not so much for music. A good amp dac and head phones or a full sized system for music is preferred. Due to my exp. ? Music is not bad per say but it is isnt wonderful either. I have to wonder about that wireless sub.
These speakers are strictly for media consumption. I play CS:GO and always wear headphones. in that regard would setting up 5.1 be a good idea with these particular speakers? Not sure I know what you mean about the sub... i can hard-wire it if i want.
Yes, hardwiring the sub is better. Your bookshelf speakers didnt come up for me. downloading some stuff. You need to research the receiver verses the speakers you have to determine if they match up well.
I can't speak for the quality of the speakers but I can leave you with this:
About a year ago now I was house sitting for my dad who is near retirement and taking extra (unpaid) time off to take longer vacations. Anyway, he needed his computer running for the first few days, and suggested that I hook my PC up to his home theatre instead of using the stuff at his computer desk.
I was ruined for PC grade speakers ever since.
A PC can leverage a home theatre system BETTER than a blu ray player can, especially with games. With surround sound you can 'hear' what is going on and where in a shooter. That experience is fairly small compared to what a good surround system brings to the table in an RPG. There was nothing like walking through the city markets in the Witcher 3 and hearing the cackle of conversations all around you. It wasn't just random noise, they were actual dialogues spread around the 3d space (some of it placeholder conversation which is classic for film production, but still).
Surround sound is indeed the way to go for PC gaming. It is just unfortunate that "The PC Master Race" has a habit of short changing itself by considering audio as an afterthought, when it brings almost as much to the table as graphics do. I mean many casual console gamers will have a much better sound setup due to having some kind of home theatre setup for watching movies.
However, none of it is designed for near-field use. I would not put that all around your desk. That gear is best used for theater or listening to music (from 5-10' back).
If you don't have another room that could benefit from a good music listening or movie watching setup, I would recommend selling all that gear and getting some near-field monitors for your desk. From your desk chair it will sound tremendously better.
Thanks! That's pretty much what I'd expected. I think I may hold onto it and use it at my desk with some wall-mounts for the speakers just until I move into a different house. At that point, I'll re-deploy the speakers for a home theatre or something.
