[Review] Logitech z-5500

[TITO786]

yes, it's perfect for this type of setup.  you'll be pleasantly suprised and not a bit disappointed.

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Cool thanks for the responses. I was about to by them at amazon for 269.99, but they have just listed a vendor by the name of Altech which sells them for 299.99. How can I make sure they are the ones with regular speaker cables since I am planning on mounting them on the wall.

Thanks for the help

[TITO786]

Sorry, I got the price wrong. They are selling for 229.00 by altech on amazon.

Edited March 16, 2005 by TITO786

[jskf01]

hey guys im new to neowin and this is my first time in here.hope u guys can help me out with this problem that im facing for the last one day sigh.i hav an abit nf7 SL with soundstorm in it.i just got my z-5500s today and have been spending the whole day trying to fix it.I hav a coax cable with an adapter on one end so as to fit into the holes on ma sstorm.firstly...i do not know how to connect which cables to which hole.there are 5 holes(3 below and 2 on top of the 3) on ma sstorm card and i have 4 cables(3 from logitech and the one coax that i bought)...i tried almost every config but i couldnt get the pod to detect ma digital sound.please anyone please help.i was thinking if i should go get a optical cable to see if it works but pls pls help someone anyone!:)

secondly....the direct connection works....BUT...the sound is horrendous.the bass is almost non existent!i was using the logitech 2.1 speakers just before i got this and they sounded so much better than ma 5500s!so i thought something must be wrong! i was thinking if it was ma nvmixer that wasnt working or something.ma current driver version for nvmixer is 4.57.im using winxp.If anyone out there has any insight please let me know as i have been serching the web for the whole day and nothing.

oh ya sorry if u guys have talked abt this before but i just didnt have time to read thru all ur posts sorry...forgive me and hope u guys can help thanks:)))

[plaskos]

hey guys im new to neowin and this is my first time in here.hope u guys can help me out with this problem that im facing for the last one day sigh.i hav an abit nf7 SL with soundstorm in it.i just got my z-5500s today and have been spending the whole day trying to fix it.I hav a coax cable with an adapter on one end so as to fit into the holes on ma sstorm.firstly...i do not know how to connect which cables to which hole.there are 5 holes(3 below and 2 on top of the 3) on ma sstorm card and i have 4 cables(3 from logitech and the one coax that i bought)...i tried almost every config but i couldnt get the pod to detect ma digital sound.please anyone please help.i was thinking if i should go get a optical cable to see if it works but pls pls help someone anyone!:)

secondly....the direct connection works....BUT...the sound is horrendous.the bass is almost non existent!i was using the logitech 2.1 speakers just before i got this and they sounded so much better than ma 5500s!so i thought something must be wrong! i was thinking if it was ma nvmixer that wasnt working or something.ma current driver version for nvmixer is 4.57.im using winxp.If anyone out there has any insight please let me know as i have been serching the web for the whole day and nothing.

oh ya sorry if u guys have talked abt this before but i just didnt have time to read thru all ur posts sorry...forgive me and hope u guys can help thanks:)))

585624416[/snapback]

Since you've been trying all day to set these up properly and still cant get it to work you should DEFINETLY read through this thread, you'll learn a lot about your new speakers and how to use them properly.

[Gotchaforce]

hey guys im new to neowin and this is my first time in here.hope u guys can help me out with this problem that im facing for the last one day sigh.i hav an abit nf7 SL with soundstorm in it.i just got my z-5500s today and have been spending the whole day trying to fix it.I hav a coax cable with an adapter on one end so as to fit into the holes on ma sstorm.firstly...i do not know how to connect which cables to which hole.there are 5 holes(3 below and 2 on top of the 3) on ma sstorm card and i have 4 cables(3 from logitech and the one coax that i bought)...i tried almost every config but i couldnt get the pod to detect ma digital sound.please anyone please help.i was thinking if i should go get a optical cable to see if it works but pls pls help someone anyone!:)

secondly....the direct connection works....BUT...the sound is horrendous.the bass is almost non existent!i was using the logitech 2.1 speakers just before i got this and they sounded so much better than ma 5500s!so i thought something must be wrong! i was thinking if it was ma nvmixer that wasnt working or something.ma current driver version for nvmixer is 4.57.im using winxp.If anyone out there has any insight please let me know as i have been serching the web for the whole day and nothing.

oh ya sorry if u guys have talked abt this before but i just didnt have time to read thru all ur posts sorry...forgive me and hope u guys can help thanks:)))

585624416[/snapback]

you might want to jot this down somewhere:

you look retarded when you say "ma"

[G0rd0n]

That WAS helpful, Gotchaforce.

[jskf01]

That WAS helpful, Gotchaforce.

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thanks for the tip guys will keep that in mind:) but does anyone have the answer to my question though?im gonna be sending the speakers back on mond as i think thats the best thing i can do now..gonna be a pain but no choice since i cant find a solution:(

[plaskos]

thanks for the tip guys will keep that in mind:) but does anyone have the answer to my question though?im gonna be sending the speakers back on mond as i think thats the best thing i can do now..gonna be a pain but no choice since i cant find a solution:(

585636117[/snapback]

I'm 100% sure you are setting up the speakers wrong. Sending back the speakers is a total waste of effort and money at this point. Please just read the last half of this thread, at least since 99% of the issues faced have been faced and resolved.

Believe me when I tell you that reading this thread will solve ALL of your problems and teach you how to properly use these speakers in any given set up.

Really, just grab yourself a nice drink, sit back, and read.

[Dennis]

jsfk01, there is no need to return your speakers. All you are doing is setting it up wrong. First, you do not need an adapter for the coaxial cable on nVidia soundstorm motherboards. Secondly, return the coaxial cable and the adapter and get an optical, the motherboard you have has an optical connection that you can use for digital sound. There is no coaxial input on that motherboard. The optical input is black and you take out the cap to plug in the cable.

I'm assuming your motherboard has SPDIF input.

[Gotchaforce]

That WAS helpful, Gotchaforce.

585635288[/snapback]

when he rights down "my" instead of "ma" on a job application he will remember me and be thankful.

[jskf01]

jsfk01, there is no need to return your speakers. All you are doing is setting it up wrong. First, you do not need an adapter for the coaxial cable on nVidia soundstorm motherboards. Secondly, return the coaxial cable and the adapter and get an optical, the motherboard you have has an optical connection that you can use for digital sound. There is no coaxial input on that motherboard. The optical input is black and you take out the cap to plug in the cable.

I'm assuming your motherboard has SPDIF input.

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hi ok i will try to read up on the other posts.the reason i wanted to ask u guys first was cos i have very slow net connection so i thought i would just tell u what i did and maybe get some responses.oh ya dennis yes i do have optical cable.yep the coaxial doesnt work so i connected the optical cable from my mobo to the optical port in the control pod.i didnt use the analog jacks provided.still the sound is really low ESPECIALLY the bass.all the functions are working like dts and dolby digital(for dvds) plII etc.i just wanna reconfirm with u guys....the z5500 is much stronger than the 680s arnt they?cos honestly speaking my 5500s are much lower compared to my old 680s in terms of volume and bass performance.so im thinking something must be wrong somewhere.i will go and read the rest of the forums now but yeah just letting u all know my setup.im using the sstorm onboard soundcard and the abit nf7-S mobo.i think i have connected everything correctly in terms of cables and stuff.so any help would be great thanks.

[plaskos]

hi ok i will try to read up on the other posts.the reason i wanted to ask u guys first was cos i have very slow net connection so i thought i would just tell u what i did and maybe get some responses.oh ya dennis yes i do have optical cable.yep the coaxial doesnt work so i connected the optical cable from my mobo to the optical port in the control pod.i didnt use the analog jacks provided.still the sound is really low ESPECIALLY the bass.all the functions are working like dts and dolby digital(for dvds) plII etc.i just wanna reconfirm with u guys....the z5500 is much stronger than the 680s arnt they?cos honestly speaking my 5500s are much lower compared to my old  680s in terms of volume and bass performance.so im thinking something must be wrong somewhere.i will go and read the rest of the forums now but yeah just letting u all know my setup.im using the sstorm onboard soundcard and the abit nf7-S mobo.i think i have connected everything correctly in terms of cables and stuff.so any help would be great thanks.

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when used properly these speakers are better than any other logitech model hands down. (on par with 680's)

keep playing around with your setup, make sure your settings are correct, and make sure you read this thread. you should slowly make progress.

[Gotchaforce]

hi ok i will try to read up on the other posts.the reason i wanted to ask u guys first was cos i have very slow net connection so i thought i would just tell u what i did and maybe get some responses.oh ya dennis yes i do have optical cable.yep the coaxial doesnt work so i connected the optical cable from my mobo to the optical port in the control pod.i didnt use the analog jacks provided.still the sound is really low ESPECIALLY the bass.all the functions are working like dts and dolby digital(for dvds) plII etc.i just wanna reconfirm with u guys....the z5500 is much stronger than the 680s arnt they?cos honestly speaking my 5500s are much lower compared to my old  680s in terms of volume and bass performance.so im thinking something must be wrong somewhere.i will go and read the rest of the forums now but yeah just letting u all know my setup.im using the sstorm onboard soundcard and the abit nf7-S mobo.i think i have connected everything correctly in terms of cables and stuff.so any help would be great thanks.

585645530[/snapback]

uhh what? the z5500s have a whopping 5 more watts than your z680s

[jskf01]

ok ive read thru all the posts and i discovered:

1)no one here seems to have the problem im having which is very very low sound especially in terms of bass.(im using optical connection by the way)

2)not many ppl are using sstorm here(im using them).most of them use audigy2.and the ppl who are using sstorm arnt getting much probs from what i can see in here.

so if theres anyone out there who can help me out that would be great.i have decided to keep the speakers still and not send them back just yet.here are the pics of my connections and stuff.If anyone can tell me what i have done wrong that would be great cos I have exhausted all my efforts reassembling it and reading thru these forums with my slow connection.thanks guys heaps!oh ya im in australia if thats any help:)

[jskf01]

hi sorry abt the pics here they are.umm what i meant was that when the bass is maxed out on my 5500s, they sound like abt 3 bars of bass on the 680s.thats what im so puzzled about.the sound is absolutely horrendous.anyway here are the pics so u guys try telling me what im doing wrong cos Im maxed out of options here.

Edited March 21, 2005 by jskf01

[jskf01]

heres the last pic

[Gotchaforce]

you know winamp DOES support 5.1, just change the sound input to the nvsoundstorm in preferences..

[plaskos]

jskf01, for troubleshooting purposes, try hooking up the speakers with the 6 channel direct wire that came in the box. So match the colours of green, black, and orange, from your computer to your sound touch control centre.

[pacifica]

Sorry, I got the price wrong.  They are selling for 229.00 by altech on amazon.

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i know it's a bit late but if you haven't ordered them yet you can get them on newegg for about $267. with shipping it came out to about $299 and it came super quick.

it also has the standard speaker wire and not the proprietary speaker cable.

watched the incredibles on this and it was incredible.

[pacifica]

hi sorry abt the pics here they are.umm what i meant was that when the bass is maxed out on my 5500s, they sound like abt 3 bars of bass on the 680s.thats what im so puzzled about.the sound is absolutely horrendous.anyway here are the pics so u guys try telling me what im doing wrong cos Im maxed out of options here.

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are you referring to the bass set by the POD for the z-5500 or the bass set by the software mixer (in this case your nVidia mixer)?

the bass or subwoofer controlled by the z-5500 pod should come through clearly even when turned all the way up. i'm not sure about the mixer setting. i've bumped my up in my creative mixer (there are two settings, one for bass and one for treble) and even just raising the bass level above the threshold causes distortion.

when i first got my speaker system i didn't think that this was abnormal and now that i read it from someone who has a different soundcard and setup but having the same problem i feel confident that i was right.

[Dennis]

jskf01, go to your nVidia SoundStorm settings, click the second button on the bottom bar, and select "5.1 Speakers (Dolby Digital Live)" from the drop down menu. You could also try the Speaker Wizard to get it set up correctly.

[jskf01]

yes i hav selected the dolby digital live dennis.in the pod it says that its got DD when im connected with the optical cable.i also used the speaker wuzard.the sound is the same.iknow what u mean when u say tat u get distortion when u just pump it out alil.but trust me for mine even when i pump it to max on the bass level its just equal to like 2 bars of bass for the 680s.Now u know why im so confused here.and plasko i did try using the direct channel jacks and its the same theres no diffrence in the bass level.when i put the bass at the lowest setting its like a small thud almost non existent:(((.this shouldnty be the case as i remember 1 bar on the 680s would get ma room already vibrating just alil bit im sure u all know what i mean.helllpppp!!!

[Dennis]

Maybe return it in exchange for another set. It sounds like it might be a defective one if you tried everything.

[jskf01]

are you referring to the bass set by the POD for the z-5500 or the bass set by the software mixer (in this case your nVidia mixer)?

the bass or subwoofer controlled by the z-5500 pod should come through clearly even when turned all the way up.  i'm not sure about the mixer setting.  i've bumped my up in my creative mixer (there are two settings, one for bass and one for treble) and even just raising the bass level above the threshold causes distortion. 

when i first got my speaker system i didn't think that this was abnormal and now that i read it from someone who has a different soundcard and setup but having the same problem i feel confident that i was right.

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i turned evrithing up on both the pod and the nvmixer.its still the same.no distortion whatsoever.the bass is too low in intensity.my room is not even vibrating at the max volume!no thumping whatsoever:(

[jskf01]

Maybe return it in exchange for another set. It sounds like it might be a defective one if you tried everything.

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sigh i knew it:(( well i will hear what others have to say before i make a decision.Will probably send it back after easter if i cant find out whats wrong.i will need to bear all the shipping costs wich is not too good probably costs me another 100aud to do so.well if anyone else there wanna give any suggestions im open to almost anything as long as i dont void the warranty