I need help buying Surround sound speakers

Question

See I am looking for a surround sound system that can work with BOTH my computer desktop AND my hdtv, maybe even my playstation3 since it uses optical audio cable and all. I found 1 system that seemed heavenly made but I feel its a scam and I dont want to risk it with my credit card. link is: http://www.comsiscomputer.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=100

the system I want more or less is a 5.1 true surround sound, not virtual. for around $150 because I need to budget myself this month. Is it possible to get something really satisfying at that price that can work with computers and a tv?

Answer 1

No, not really, for two reasons:

1) Speakers that are meant to deliver the best in home audio sound need to be connected to a receiver.

2) Speakers that don't need a receiver, are, in effect, inferior in sound, because speakers that don't need an amp (Which is contained i9n a receiver) cannot fully reproduce very good quality sound.

The sad thing is that a decent HT system can be had for around $400: J&R has a nifty Polk audio set, the 6750, list price of $600, selling for $200. A good HT receiver can be had from amazon.com for under $200.

Then, you can hook a computer's audio out into an input on the HT system, and get far better sound from both the computer and other HT media sources, such as DVD players.