5.1 speakers help

[fretis]

i want to buy 5.1 speakers by creative. i have noticed 2 models.t5400 and 5500.Which one is better.I know that 5500 has an external decoder but i will buy sound blaster live for t5400.t5400 is a bit more powerful.But the center speaker of t5400 is a lot more loud that the other 4 satellite speakers.Does it going to 'cover' the other ones?

[saphalline]

Welcome to http://www.pcguide.com/ubb/pcgubb.gif

Yes, speakers with built-in decoders are started to become a problem. Many issues with people not knowing they need to disable their sound card's decoder in order to get surround sound, and all that cr@p.

Anyway, I agree you should get the T5400's if they have no decoder. When you say the center channel is "more loud", how did you determine that? Did you listen to them at a store? Or is that based on the output wattage of the center channel vs the other satellites?

[fretis]

Im based on the output wattage of the center channel vs the other satellites

[Fruss Tray Ted]

The satellite speakers are for clarity and are comprised mostly of upper frequencies or 'highs' (tweeters). The center speaker is more for voice or 'mids' and also contains 2 or larger speakers than the satellite ones for the surround sound.

The wattage necessessary to drive larger speakers and/or mid frequencies is more than what is needed for treble or 'high' freq tweeters to get the same volume (loudness). This is why the specs are this way. Is there a wattage diferrence in the 5500's also?

Personally I would try to listen to both sets or read some reviews if possible before buying.

[pave_spectre]

On top of that even a halfway decent set of speakers will usually have individual volume controls for front, rear and centre speakers, so even if there is a noticeable volume discrepancy between the sattelites it can be adjusted to suit.