# Z5500's or G51's w? Creative X-fi Titanium Fatality Pro?



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 18, 2009)

Same as title...which is gonna sund better. G51's are with sopund card Z5500's are with onborad. I'm leaninng towards the G51's because both the speakers and the sound card look sexy and preform really well.


----------



## DanishDevil (Oct 18, 2009)

What are you going to be listening to? What devices are you going to hook up to it?


----------



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 18, 2009)

PC.
I'll be listening to some movies,fair bit of music but mostly gaming such as L4D and Fallout 3.


----------



## DanishDevil (Oct 18, 2009)

For gaming, you're probably going to want a sound card. The Z-5500's are great for music, because if you hook them up to a PC using an optical cable, they decode for you, bypassing your sound card. Their PLII Music setting works great for stereo music, and that's the way I listen to music. Come check out the Z-5500 Clubhouse in my sig if you want to learn more about the speakers.


----------



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 19, 2009)

Are the G51's any good for music? I can't afford the Sound card and the Z's and my dad is prolly gonna complain about the Sub taking up too much room...lol.


----------



## DanishDevil (Oct 19, 2009)

No idea. Google for reviews.


----------



## fafa21 (Oct 19, 2009)

i have the g51 and there not that good i would get the Z5500 you can always get a sound card latter they will still sound good for now. my g51 sound weird the matrix mode doesn’t work.


----------



## BumbleBee (Oct 19, 2009)

I used to own the Logitech G51 (now own Z-5500) I blew the subwoofer, the bass was muddy which seems to be more evident on lower models like the X-540. another problem is there is no grill for the subwoofer which means dust will be an enemy. one of my sound cards died and I actually had to use the Z-5500 on my onboard soundmax for a little bit until I could buy another it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but still no substitute for a soundcard the only problem aside from quality was it can only play one audio source at a time or it would generate white noise. 

you can split the difference by purchasing the Logitech Z-680 (discontinued) it used to be the flagship model aside from the different satellite speakers (actually like the smaller ones), subwoofer and control pod it relatively has the same specifications both are 505/1010 watts, DTS decoder, Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic II the Z-5500 does have slightly better frequency and impedance but were talking very small almost insignificant however the Z-5500 has a bigger subwoofer (10" vs 8") but the Z-680 has DTS 96/24. eBay AU and a couple stores are selling them for $150-300.

Z-680





Z-5500


----------



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 22, 2009)

BumbleBee said:


> I used to own the Logitech G51 (now own Z-5500) I blew the subwoofer, the bass was muddy which seems to be more evident on lower models like the X-540. another problem is there is no grill for the subwoofer which means dust will be an enemy. one of my sound cards died and I actually had to use the Z-5500 on my onboard soundmax for a little bit until I could buy another it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but still no substitute for a soundcard the only problem aside from quality was it can only play one audio source at a time or it would generate white noise.
> 
> you can split the difference by purchasing the Logitech Z-680 (discontinued) it used to be the flagship model aside from the different satellite speakers (actually like the smaller ones), subwoofer and control pod it relatively has the same specifications both are 505/1010 watts, DTS decoder, Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic II the Z-5500 does have slightly better frequency and impedance but were talking very small almost insignificant however the Z-5500 has a bigger subwoofer (10" vs 8") but the Z-680 has DTS 96/24. eBay AU and a couple stores are selling them for $150-300.
> 
> ...



Are the Z5500's cordless...if not...how long are the cords for the back speakers?


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

<<Onafets>> said:


> Are the Z5500's cordless...if not...how long are the cords for the back speakers?



about 1.5 meters i think, they use standard speaker wire so you can always change them/merge them with other cables for extra length.


also, bumblebee made some mistakes - the Z680's are the earlier generation of z5500 (with most things in common), but also states that the Z-680's have DTS and the z55's dont (or at least, this is implied)
The z55's do indeed support DTS 24 bit, 96KHz audio.

i actually have a friend with a set of z-680's that lives just around the corner


----------



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> about 1.5 meters i think, they use standard speaker wire so you can always change them/merge them with other cables for extra length.
> 
> 
> also, bumblebee made some mistakes - the Z680's are the earlier generation of z5500 (with most things in common), but also states that the Z-680's have DTS and the z55's dont (or at least, this is implied)
> ...



What's you're take on the topic?
Will different speaker wire change the audio quality?
Are there diff colours of Z5500' screens?


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

<<Onafets>> said:


> What's you're take on the topic?
> Will different speaker wire change the audio quality?
> Are there diff colours of Z5500' screens?



z55's are godly. get them.

not really. long wires can add latency, so its best to not make them much longer/use quality wire (and dont join wires)

No there are not. its a tad irritating at night, with no way to turn the backlight off.


----------



## <<Onafets>> (Oct 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> z55's are godly. get them.
> 
> not really. long wires can add latency, so its best to not make them much longer/use quality wire (and dont join wires)
> 
> No there are not. its a tad irritating at night, with no way to turn the backlight off.



Isn't there some sort of "red" mode?


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

<<Onafets>> said:


> Isn't there some sort of "red" mode?



the power LED is blue in use, red when off. (or purple when off, in second skin mode)

there is no way to change the backlight or LED.


----------



## Reefer86 (Oct 22, 2009)

i dont get why people buy these pc setups. they cost about 250 quid and you can buy a very nice Sony high spec Home ciema sound setup, that will sound far far better then any little logitech setup and imo look better. Its easy to connect your pc to a home cinema kit. I have a very nice kit by bose i use it for my PC and its far better then any of the exspensive pc kits.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

Reefer86 said:


> i dont get why people buy these pc setups. they cost about 250 quid and you can buy a very nice Sony high spec Home ciema sound setup, that will sound far far better then any little logitech setup and imo look better. Its easy to connect your pc to a home cinema kit. I have a very nice kit by bose i use it for my PC and its far better then any of the exspensive pc kits.



z55's will pwn many speaker systems. they are high end home cinema speakers, re-labelled as logitech.

the weaker sets may be as you say (x540's, for example) - but they're also a fraction of the cost


----------



## Reefer86 (Oct 22, 2009)

Im not saying they suck, the logitech high end stuff is basicly a home cinema kit downscaled. I personally know that any pc kit will not beat my Bose cinema kit on sound calrity or bass. Imo if you buy a nice kit, you can position speakers around the room to get proper surround sound. Im just saying you can invest in a very nice kit and can be used for several functions and has the same if not better features then the exspensive pc kits.
I  use it for both my TV and the PC, they have stand up speakers that are postioned around my room. I suppose it depends on the application and room size as it always does with sound systems.

Plus they are simply not just re-labeled as no high end kits manufactuer a kit that small and with the smaller amplifier. I agree they are powerful and high end but they are not just simply re-labeled.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

my z55's run a PC, a TV, a wii, and recently a 360.

i also have true 5.1 thanks to custom made wall mounting.

Q: can a home cinema system sound better than z5500's?

A: yes - but you'll be paying more, and need full sized bookshelf speakers, taking up far more room space.


----------



## Reefer86 (Oct 22, 2009)

Not really i personally think that spending £250 on a z5500 setup is exspensive for something that you can grab for cheeper. 2 of the speakers of either side of my desk and others are up on the wall in the corners of the room. As i stated before i suppose that it depends if you live in a small home. My bose kit i picked up for £320, more money but well worth it, it looks shit hot and sounds just the same. You can easily pick up a high end sony kit in a sale for around 250, the features are better on home cinema kits as they are forever improving. Anyways we all have our preferances and i dont care for tit for tat. You will always defend the z5500's as you own them, but you must agree there is better alternatives out there.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

their price to performance may be different in your country.

at current exhange ranges, 250 GBP is $450 Au

I got my Z55's new for $300, with $400 being the price in todays 'bad' economy

as the OP is australian, perhaps you should consider the price discrepancy

i certainly agree there are better speakers out there - whether they are the best value for money or the best suited for the OP's needs, is an entirely different matter.


----------



## Reefer86 (Oct 22, 2009)

well ofc it is and as i have stated from the start this all depends on application and room size. I was simplying stating my opinion, to hopefully enable the OP to make a conscientious decision with everyones views, which i assume why he created this thread. 

I have no idea how much they cost in australia, i was simply stating how much they cost in the UK and the cost of other options. I was only trying to give my opinion to and add another view, which i thought this thread was about. 

As i clearly dont know much about the OP's countrys economy, i was just hopefully trying to give advice and my opinion about the question. Imho i think its down the op to decide if my opinion is valid or not.

I was only simply trying to help onafets with his decision to help him make a meticulous decision even if my knowledge of the Australian economy is lacking. Also our opinions can only made by judging what we know about our own economy and past experiences.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

thats what we're doing. point and counterpoint. leave it to the OP to choose based on the discussion we're having.

i'm from his country, therefore i have some information you do not - if its applicable or not, is up to him.


----------



## morpha (Oct 22, 2009)

The cables on the back of the z5500's are longer than 1.5meters... double that I reckon. I have mine still tied up behind my sub... far too long for what I need.


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

morpha said:


> The cables on the back of the z5500's are longer than 1.5meters... double that I reckon. I have mine still tied up behind my sub... far too long for what I need.



i got cables for two sets here (didnt return all the first ones on RMA) so its possible i've got them muddled up.

the rear ones are fairly long, but i dont feel like taking them out from under my carpet to measure them


----------



## BumbleBee (Oct 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> i got cables for two sets here (didnt return all the first ones on RMA) so its possible i've got them muddled up.
> 
> the rear ones are fairly long, but i dont feel like taking them out from under my carpet to measure them



Manual says L/R are 4.5m, RL/RR 7.5m and C 4.5m


----------



## Mussels (Oct 22, 2009)

my measuring skills also suck, apparently.


----------



## Zubasa (Oct 22, 2009)

<<Onafets>> said:


> Same as title...which is gonna sund better. G51's are with sopund card Z5500's are with onborad. I'm leaninng towards the G51's because both the speakers and the sound card look sexy and preform really well.


Honestly the Fata1ity is the same as the Titanium, the difference is the EMI shield and the logo.
Rip the EMI shield off and you see the exact same card.
Unless you have some significant EMI in your case, its not worth the extra money.


----------



## magibeg (Oct 22, 2009)

Just doing a shout out that the z5500's are an extremely good value for the quality of speaker you're getting.

Also you could in theory go with a home theater setup for your computer. Say a cheap set of Onkyo speakers for example:
http://reviews.cnet.com/home-theater-systems/onkyo-ht-s3200-black/4505-6740_7-33560952.html


----------

