I currently have a late 2009 HP DV6 and am looking to replace it in the next three months with a MacBook Pro or a MacBook Air. The Altec Lansing speakers in my HP are rich, but completely lack any bass whatsoever....i'm talking none. I also have a 2010 iMac, and I love the speakers in it. They are very rich and have a nice punch to them. (in terms of built in computer speakers) My question to you is are the speakers in the MacBook Pro the same as the ones in the iMac, better, or worse? I have also heard that the MacBook Air's speakers are worse than the ones in the Pro because it has a hard to letting the sound get out. Is this true?
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MacBook Pro speaker quality?
- Thread starter i4Collin
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The 15" Pro has better speakers than the 13"... But the 13" has pretty decent speakers too. I've found the ones in my 13" to be good. Dunno about the Air, as I have never owned one.
if u want good quality sound, ANY built in laptop speaker will SUCK. u can only fit so much of a speaker in such a small enclosure.
your way better off investing in external speakers, any will be much better than the macbook.
if u want speaker quality, i made a video of that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2g2J8ofd88
your way better off investing in external speakers, any will be much better than the macbook.
if u want speaker quality, i made a video of that:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2g2J8ofd88
I understand that, and I do have a pair of external speakers, but I want a good pair of speakers when it's not plugged into them too because I rarely use the external set. I'm not looking for external like sound quality, just a reasonable set compared to other portable laptop sets.
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A new 15" or a refurb 17"
...Never let us rest
Till our "good" be "better"
And our "better" - "best"!
So, to the OP: get the "best" - get the 17".
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I am happy with my air's speakers although I think that the headphones that come with iPods are fine. So I am probably not the best source
The air is really mobile so the speakers may be a sacrifice
The air is really mobile so the speakers may be a sacrifice
I love mine's MacBook 2011 13", speakers sound are W good, compared with my 1years old Samsung laptop.
Well we should ask hi what he plans on listening to, wouldn't that be the most important tid-bit of knowledge to know here?
Simply saying this is better/best doesn't help if they are STILL under what he wants or needs.
Youtube? All of them are great.
Music? *unplugs speakers and plays dubstep* everything sounds great sans the bass, but that's a given. Soundstage and all is pretty good on mine.
Now if he wants to watch movies on the thing, then none of the speakers would do justice, real justice anyway. In that I'd suggest getting a good speaker system or some headphones. Laptop speakers aren't made for pumping out super HD sound.
For your average every day use with iTunes, youtube videos, and sound tracks from the internet/podcasts or whatever, all of the speakers will be great.
I'm using a 13 inch MBP BTW.
Simply saying this is better/best doesn't help if they are STILL under what he wants or needs.
Youtube? All of them are great.
Music? *unplugs speakers and plays dubstep* everything sounds great sans the bass, but that's a given. Soundstage and all is pretty good on mine.
Now if he wants to watch movies on the thing, then none of the speakers would do justice, real justice anyway. In that I'd suggest getting a good speaker system or some headphones. Laptop speakers aren't made for pumping out super HD sound.
For your average every day use with iTunes, youtube videos, and sound tracks from the internet/podcasts or whatever, all of the speakers will be great.
I'm using a 13 inch MBP BTW.
I think that the 17" does movies justice. Sounds at least as good as a 2.1 system to me. There is nothing to complain about on the 17" speaker, really, they are amazing!
What kind of 2.1 system do you have that you're making comparisons to? Just saying it sounds "at least as good as a 2.1 system" doesn't really say much, if anything at all.
Personally I use a Logitech Z Cinema and I couldn't see me listening to music OR watching movies on anything less. By no means is it top of the line, but that 2.1 is drastically different than a 2.1 you'd find in Radioshack or Walmart.
It's a big purchase; why the OP has so much emphasis on the built in speakers is beyond me. Headphones and speaker systems are used when you want "quality"; the built in speakers are there for convenience.
My 13", 2010 MBP speakers leave a lot to be desired.
Then again, I am a relatively "audio" person and have nearly a 2k 5.1 system that I listen to music on (well 2.1 for music) and so I'm comparing crappy laptop speakers vs quality speakers
Then again, I am a relatively "audio" person and have nearly a 2k 5.1 system that I listen to music on (well 2.1 for music) and so I'm comparing crappy laptop speakers vs quality speakers
then watch my video of the speaker quality test on the 15inch macbook and decide for yourself?
Speaker quality is all relative. There is no way we can say YOU will or won't be happy with the speakers in any of the MBPs. If you compare the sound to your typical laptop I would say the MBPs are some of the best I've heard but that is where the comparison stops. You mentioned you would like sound quality similar to external speakers. Again, that is difficult to judge and my opinion won't be yours. Personally, my MBP speakers are used as a last resort if I want quality sound. I'm looking at the BOSE SoundLink speaker advertisement at the top of this page as I type this and can't help remembering reading the different opinions on that speaker system (which would be infinitely better than the MBP speakers). The best way would be to go to an Apple store and try for yourself.
Agree; however, maybe not an Apple store, but an actual store that specializes in good, worthwhile audio equipment.
By that I mean if you buy anything audio related from an Apple store or their site, you're throwing money away. If you want the best bang for your buck, IMO, which should be THE main reason you buy something to "listen to".
IMO, MBP's speakers, even the 17's, are quite inferior to those in the iMac.
If you're really worried about sound quality, buy a good pair of headphones or external speakers to plug in.
If you're really worried about sound quality, buy a good pair of headphones or external speakers to plug in.
I agree with your point Young Spade but I was referring to the OP going to the apple store to check out the MBP speakers to see if they met the need. I too wouldn't buy anything from the apple store beyond the computer (if I could find it elsewhere).
Oooh! Yea, then definitely. All of their computers have various albums loaded into iTunes; play a few of those at a good volume and maybe some trailers at youtube as well.
Personally, I don't think I ever use the actual speakers; if i'm in my room, I'll use my 2.1(5.1) system and if I'm not in my room, I'll be using headphones to avoid disturbing others.
Bose sucks. Don't do it.
The Apple store, while a little light on selection, has some pretty good stuff. ie offerings from Bowers and Wilkins, Focal, Bang and Olufsen
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