PC Peripherals iBall Booster 5.1 - Any comments?

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Darth_Infernus

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It seems iBall has launched a new model of speakers in the market named the Booster 5.1. Strange thing is, I get it around Rs.3000 and it seems to have somewhat decent specifications for that price. Now thats strange to me.

Anyway, after fishing for info on it, here's what I got from an iBall representative:

Power Output - 120W RMS (45W subwoofer and 15W for each satellite)
Signal-to-Noise Ratio - >=75dB
Separation(?) - >=45dB
Frequency Response - 20Hz~20KHz

Subwoofer Driver - 5.25-inch woofer driver unit
Speaker driver - for each speaker, 3-inch full range driver and 1-inch tweeter

Comes with a remote control though I have not found out whether it is corded or cordless. The iBall representative can't have lied to me about its specifications because I later also got an email with a specification sheet for this set of speakers.

Most other speakers I came across in the Rs. ~3000 price range (Artis S5200, Creative SBS 580) all have 2.5-inch drivers for the speakers and absolutely no tweeter. I find the specifications for the Booster quite good for the price. Anyone have any experience with this speaker set?

Forgive me, I'm still a n00b in these things :(
 
even i am a noob @ all this....dont mind if i get a few things cleared via this thread ??

can some 1 tell me how do i know if the speakers..are good by looking @ the specifications....

if possible some1 explain them in short ..what it means ...and what is a suitable/good value...

and also what are the 2.5"drivers..and tweeters and all ?what do they do ?
 
As far as I know, the higher the RMS, the louder and cleaner sound you get. Same thing about Signal to Noise Ratio, the higher it is, the cleaner the audio produced.

Frequency Response indicated the frequencies between which the speakers are able to produce audio. 20Hz to 20KHz is ideal as that is the audible spectrum for the adult human ear. Children can optimally hear more, or so it would seem. :)

As for drivers, traditionally, computer speakers contain two "drivers", i.e. components used to control other electrical components (not sure about this though). The two normally used drivers are full-range and woofer/subwoofer. The subwoofer driver is specialized to produce frequencies below 120Hz (i.e. low frequency), such as thumping or booming noises, and the full-range drivers are meant to produce sound between 20Hz to 20KHz. Apparently, most speakers are unable to produce the complete 20Hz to 20KHz spectrum though.

Anyway, a tweeter is not a common component for entry level speakers. It is used as a specialized component to deliver better reproduction of high frequencies. Speakers with tweeters often fare better in music reproduction than speakers without it. The inclusion of this component in the iBall Booster is what makes it so interesting to me.

So, does anyone have any experience with this speaker set?
 
Though it may sound good on paper, most of these brands have exaggerated specs. So if you wanna buy one of these brands, its better to have a demo before purchase.

As for the driver specification and the presence of tweeters, I guess the more important thing for good sound is the quality of the driver and the amplifier. Its all well to have 3 different drivers for the frequency ranges, but what if the quality of the drivers is not up to the mark.

Just to add, in my personal opinion and experience is that though iBall may have some decent cabinets, mice and keyboards in low cost range, its the worst possible brand for headphones or speakers. If I have to go for one of those cheap brands, I would rather go for Intex or Mercury (Kobian)

@faheem:

Just to explain a bit, its considered best for quality audio reproduction to have different speakers suited for different frequencies. Large speakers (sub-woofer) for lower frequencies (bass), small speakers (Tweeters) for high frequencies (treble) and medium sized ones for mid-range frequencies. Some use more than three while most use less than three to cut costs. In many of the sub 5k 5.1, 4.1 or 2.1 sets, each of the satellites have a single speaker which produce both medium and high frequencies and a single sub-woofer for low frequencies (bass is not directional, so one one sub-woofer is good enough).

As for the frequency range, the 20Hz -20KHz is considered the audible range for humans. It is hard to produce the frequency range as low as 20 Hz and requires very very large drivers for that. Most of the good PC speaker brands give rating of 30~50Hz as the lowest and 18~20KHz as the highest, most of the cheap brands advertise 20Hz - 20 KHz or some even had 5Hz - 25KHz. :rofl:

The signal to Noise ratio as is the logarithmic ratio of signal to noise amplitude levels represented in decibels (dB) and a higher quantity denotes that the noise level is low. Noise level is determined the quality of the cables, the quality of the amplification circuit and many other factors.
 
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All right, so how's the Creative SBS 580 then? Its the only other option I'm considering at the moment...apart from a Creative Inspire M5300 (which costs more).
 
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thanx to Darth_Infernus and Lord Nemesis for that information...i am really enlightened ..lolz..that was easy to understand..

@ darth do u want a 5.1 setup only ? and whats u r budget like ?? cauz i think the Altec Lansing ATP 3 2.1 sounds better than the cheapo 5.1's ...so u can consider a good 2.1 instead of some non-branded 5.1...
 
faheem_m said:
thanx to Darth_Infernus and Lord Nemesis for that information...i am really enlightened ..lolz..that was easy to understand..

@ darth do u want a 5.1 setup only ? and whats u r budget like ?? cauz i think the Altec Lansing ATP 3 2.1 sounds better than the cheapo 5.1's ...so u can consider a good 2.1 instead of some non-branded 5.1...
Click to expand...

Well, I wanted a 4.1 setup at least, but not to worry, I didn't go for some cheapo brand. I went to a Philips Arena showroom today and got myself a nice 80W total RMS powered 5.1 setup. I even had a live demo of it and it was great, though I felt the subwoofer was a bit overpowered as compared to the speakers. Still got the box here, plan to set it up tomorrow. :)
 
a caution on philips....i have seen philips systems havin complaints more often than not...durability on their electronics havent looked gud...just talking about what i have seen in and around me(meaning : not expert opnion)

about 2.1's being better than 5.1....generally it is considered that for the same price range 2.1 is far better for music....however, i have noticed that many (esp. who listens music loud) tends to have a likin for 5.1....it can be a person to person thing....so if liked 5.1's , stick to that
 
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