Decent active speakers on a budget?

The Lounge Other Gear
#1

Hello,

A good friend of mine finally started listening to music. He currently uses his TV to play mp3s which is a really poor experience, there’s no bass at all, no kicks very sad.

He’s got some records but no turntable nor anything, just a TV.

I want to get him a good pair of active speakers as a present.
With or without Bluetooth/battery, doesn’t really matter.
No need to be smart just decent sounding speakers for a small room.
Would not be used for production just mp3s for now, eventually records in the future.
Would need to be connected to iPhone and TV and eventually hi-fi amp.

I am on a tight budget and don’t want to spend more than £100, can be used or new.
Would be nice if they weren’t ugly.

Any suggestions?
Thank you very much for your time

#2

There’s these Micca PB42 speakers that I was very happy with as a secondary pair, I think if you look around you’ll find them well below 100 bucks. Apart from a slight lack of fine clarity in the upper treble they’re alright speakers, definitely are worse things happening in this price segment.

Coincidentally I also gave these to a friend, haha.

#3

What about these Edifier speakers.
They have bluetooth and two pair of inputs.
I haven’t tried them, but looks like they meet the criteria :slight_smile:

https://www.amazon.com/Edifier-R1700BT-Bluetooth-Bookshelf-Speakers/dp/B016PATXSI

#4

It seems unusual to me to connect active speakers ‘eventually to a Hi-Fi amp’.

For that budget, you can buy a good used HiFi amp and speakers. That’s going to give you by far the best results on a £100 budget. Split it approx £50 for an amp and £50 for speakers.
Lots of surround sound amps going especially cheap… And he can later add a subwoofer into that, should he want to.

#5

thanks for the replies!
so a cheap passive speaker + hifi amp combination would be better than say presonus eris e3,5?

space is limited atm so would prefer a contained solution

#6

Simonator is actually right in my opinion.
I have two active monitors and two sets of passive speakers and two amps.

Considering your budget and my past experiences, the choice of speakers+amp, second hand, will probably give a better all round sound and more or better bass. (Adjustable on most amps) also a lot of these units look really great.

Another option is computer speakers with a sub, people tend to think that’s a great way to go…

But the speaker+amp hunt online or secondhand shops must be a great adventure!

#7

Yes I think I’ll go the old hifi system route, thanks for your input

#8

Dunno, hi-fi speakers and studio monitors are not the same (though there’s plenty of debate about that [flat response and all that]). With your budget it wont make much difference but I’d suggest you check out some of the cheaper Mackie monitors.

#9

I bought these below, sound great to me and really cheap… black ones here

JBL 305 MKII

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#10

The eris 3.5’ are very good and within your budget for the non Bluetooth and just over with Bluetooth I’ve got a pair of the bt ones
.

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1 Like
#11

I went for the presonus eris e3,5, no bluetooth
I think 5 inches would have been better but too bulky, not much room available.
we’ll see how they sound but anyway massive improvement from the tv speakers that’s for sure.

thank you all for your input

1 Like
#12

Yamaha HS 7

#13

those are nice I have hs5s myself but my budget was 100 quid in total, anyway all good now hopefully the eris will do the job

#14

+1 for the Eris 3.5. Very decent speaker to listen music.

1 Like
#15

I would go Prodipe Pro 5 (used) - Tannoy Reveal series (used)
better Focal Alpha 50 (used) but a bit more expensive

( PRESONUS - ERIS E3.5 should fine as well ) budget budget

To me in a small budget it’s difficult to beat headphones (but for hearing loss no good)
I have a BeyerDynamics DT990 Pro + Magni3 headphone amp from shiit and i’m very happy with that combo (unbeatable price)

With more budget Sennheiser HD 600/650 (i prefer the 650) + Shiit Magni3 + SubPac (sure not the same investment but still lower than good monitors)

Sonarworks reference can really help also.

#16

Focal’s stuff is GREAT.

I would vouch for the Kali Audio LP6s.

Kali Audio’s stuff is INCREDIBLE value for money.

#17

yes I agree with the same budget the quality is much better on headphones, but my mate’s already got a pair, we just needed speakers for when we’re lounging