1 00:00:00,089 --> 00:00:04,350 If you’ve seen some of my earlier videos, you may have noticed one of these speakers. 2 00:00:04,350 --> 00:00:09,240 These are Infinity RS-2000 bookshelf speakers, originally from 1988. 3 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:14,780 I picked 4, yes 4, of these up from Goodwill for $5 apiece. 4 00:00:14,780 --> 00:00:18,161 They all had busted foam surrounds on the woofers which required replacing, but with 5 00:00:18,161 --> 00:00:23,070 an eBay purchase of new surrounds and a little Elmer’s glue later, they were working perfectly. 6 00:00:23,070 --> 00:00:26,670 These speakers are certainly nothing state-of-the art, but they are a decent little bookshelf 7 00:00:26,670 --> 00:00:27,670 speaker. 8 00:00:27,670 --> 00:00:28,699 In fact, I quite like these. 9 00:00:28,699 --> 00:00:32,619 I’m no audiophile, and it looks as though this particular model never really achieved 10 00:00:32,619 --> 00:00:38,010 anything more than a lukewarm reception among the audiophile community, but I think they sound great. 11 00:00:38,010 --> 00:00:42,410 I’ve grown to appreciate clarity and definition more than a booming bass, so the limited bass 12 00:00:42,410 --> 00:00:46,320 response on account of the 6.5 inch woofers doesn’t bother me much. 13 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:51,149 I use these on my desk as computer speakers, and the other pair sits hooked up to my TV. 14 00:00:51,149 --> 00:00:54,500 And let me tell you, I don’t think there’s a better option out there if you want fantastic 15 00:00:54,500 --> 00:00:56,160 sound for cheap. 16 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:57,460 And that’s what this video is about. 17 00:00:57,460 --> 00:01:02,400 Now of course, audiophiles in the audience are gonna argue with me and themselves, so 18 00:01:02,400 --> 00:01:05,059 I’ll just say: your mileage may vary. 19 00:01:05,059 --> 00:01:08,609 This video is based on my personal experience and opinions. 20 00:01:08,609 --> 00:01:12,840 These speakers might not sound great to you, and I’m sure there are better options, but 21 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:19,070 having spent just $60 all in for 4 speakers and an amp, I think it turned out pretty well. 22 00:01:19,070 --> 00:01:20,729 To start with, speakers. 23 00:01:20,729 --> 00:01:23,710 You might be surprised what speakers you’ll find in a thrift store. 24 00:01:23,710 --> 00:01:27,049 It does take some luck and patience, but here are some hints. 25 00:01:27,049 --> 00:01:30,210 When hunting in a thrift store for speakers, there’s one thing you should do before putting 26 00:01:30,210 --> 00:01:34,139 too much thought into any speaker: pick it up. 27 00:01:34,139 --> 00:01:38,649 True hi-fi speakers are heavy, usually because they’re filled with dense acoustic foam 28 00:01:38,649 --> 00:01:39,929 or fiber. 29 00:01:39,929 --> 00:01:43,119 The cabinets tend to be made of better and thicker materials, too. 30 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:47,340 If you can effortlessly pick up a shoe-box size speaker with just one hand, 31 00:01:47,340 --> 00:01:48,900 put it back down. 32 00:01:48,900 --> 00:01:52,540 For reference, these speakers weigh about 12 pounds apiece. 33 00:01:52,549 --> 00:01:57,450 Brands to keep your eye out for include Infinity, JBL, Harman Kardon, Bang and Olufsen, Bose, 34 00:01:57,450 --> 00:01:59,149 Klipsch, and others. 35 00:01:59,149 --> 00:02:03,779 This is very much a generalization, but speakers from big electronics brands are often not 36 00:02:03,779 --> 00:02:04,779 too great. 37 00:02:04,779 --> 00:02:09,850 A speaker boasting a Sony or Panasonic logo probably isn’t that fantastic, since it probably 38 00:02:09,850 --> 00:02:12,280 came from an all-in-one, mass produced system. 39 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:16,420 I’m sure there are exceptions, but something out of a home theater in a box or a dedicated 40 00:02:16,420 --> 00:02:19,230 bookshelf system likely won’t be too exceptional. 41 00:02:19,230 --> 00:02:22,430 You also want to check to see how the speakers are hooked up. 42 00:02:22,430 --> 00:02:26,010 A speaker with wires permanently attached to it is probably a no-go. 43 00:02:26,010 --> 00:02:30,480 That’s a tell-tale sign that it came from a boxed system. 44 00:02:30,480 --> 00:02:34,189 You want to see old-fashioned speaker terminals or screw posts. 45 00:02:34,189 --> 00:02:37,909 Especially avoid speakers with 2 pairs of wires or connections. 46 00:02:37,909 --> 00:02:41,780 These don’t have a crossover of their own to drive the woofer and tweeter separately, 47 00:02:41,780 --> 00:02:44,219 which definitely means they’re from an all-in-one system. 48 00:02:44,219 --> 00:02:47,590 Next, you want to check the speaker drivers for signs of damage. 49 00:02:47,590 --> 00:02:51,550 Good speakers will usually have fabric grilles that can easily be removed simply by pulling 50 00:02:51,550 --> 00:02:52,730 them forward. 51 00:02:52,730 --> 00:02:56,890 If the drivers have cracked or blown foam surrounds, it’s not necessarily the end 52 00:02:56,890 --> 00:02:57,950 of the world. 53 00:02:57,950 --> 00:03:01,430 Like I said, all of these Infinitys suffered from this, and I’m sure that’s why they 54 00:03:01,430 --> 00:03:02,870 ended up in goodwill. 55 00:03:02,870 --> 00:03:05,939 But It’s not hard to replace the surrounds, and I’ll put a link in the description to 56 00:03:05,939 --> 00:03:07,459 a good guide for doing so. 57 00:03:07,459 --> 00:03:10,269 Another good thing to check is if any drivers are stuck. 58 00:03:10,269 --> 00:03:13,879 I’m not sure how often this happens, but I have a pair of JBL speakers which had a 59 00:03:13,879 --> 00:03:16,390 completely seized woofer. 60 00:03:16,390 --> 00:03:20,099 Check for this by gently pressing on the woofer to see if it can move. 61 00:03:20,099 --> 00:03:23,939 You can also do this with a mid-range driver, but you shouldn’t do it to a tweeter. 62 00:03:23,939 --> 00:03:27,870 Tweeters can be very fragile, and you wouldn’t be able to tell anything by feel, anyway. 63 00:03:27,870 --> 00:03:31,480 Which brings me to the next bit: you probably won’t be able to test a speaker you get 64 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:34,510 until you’re home and can hook it up to your amplifier. 65 00:03:34,510 --> 00:03:37,409 If you should find that one of the drivers is dead, fear not! 66 00:03:37,409 --> 00:03:40,010 It’s often easy to obtain a replacement. 67 00:03:40,010 --> 00:03:43,769 Search around for a website specializing in speaker repair and you’ll find plenty of 68 00:03:43,769 --> 00:03:44,769 options. 69 00:03:44,769 --> 00:03:48,599 Of course, this will alter the sound of one of your speakers, so you should buy a pair 70 00:03:48,599 --> 00:03:51,739 of replacements and replace both drivers. 71 00:03:51,739 --> 00:03:56,540 And I know, that’s not exactly ideal, but hey, better than a broken speaker, I say. 72 00:03:56,540 --> 00:04:00,959 Ideally you would find a direct replacement of the exact same part number to prevent altering 73 00:04:00,959 --> 00:04:02,560 the speaker’s sound. 74 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:04,359 But good luck with that 75 00:04:04,359 --> 00:04:07,069 These are the JBL speakers which had the seized woofer. 76 00:04:07,069 --> 00:04:10,159 I use these with my stereo, and they’re pretty good to my ears. 77 00:04:10,159 --> 00:04:12,120 Not as detailed as the inifitys, though. 78 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:14,279 You’ll also notice that they are white. 79 00:04:14,279 --> 00:04:16,359 Where’d the old-school wood grain go? 80 00:04:16,359 --> 00:04:18,459 Well, here you can get creative. 81 00:04:18,459 --> 00:04:22,300 One of the nice things about buying old speakers for pennies is that you can do crazy things 82 00:04:22,300 --> 00:04:25,979 like paint them or replace the speaker grille cloth without regret. 83 00:04:25,979 --> 00:04:27,720 And in this case, I’ve done both. 84 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:31,620 I would have been happy to keep the original finish, but these were very beat up and needed 85 00:04:31,620 --> 00:04:33,330 some TLC anyway. 86 00:04:33,330 --> 00:04:35,789 I figured, why not go with something a little more modern? 87 00:04:35,789 --> 00:04:37,440 And finally, what about an amp? 88 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:42,000 The audiophiles will not be happy with this, but I really like these little 20 watt amplifiers 89 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:44,650 you can get on Amazon for $20 or so. 90 00:04:44,650 --> 00:04:49,210 They’re perfect for a PC setup, and can rest next to your monitor rather unobtrusively 91 00:04:49,210 --> 00:04:51,699 and you still have access to the volume and tone controls. 92 00:04:51,699 --> 00:04:55,229 Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can mount them to the underside of your desk for 93 00:04:55,229 --> 00:04:57,170 even more flexibility. 94 00:04:57,170 --> 00:05:01,250 Unfortunately the quality of these seems to have dropped in recent years, so it’s definitely 95 00:05:01,250 --> 00:05:05,260 worth reading the reviews, but for a small speaker like this, 20 watts is plenty. 96 00:05:05,260 --> 00:05:10,889 In fact, the spec sheet recommends amplifiers from 15 to 75 watts, so while 20 is on the 97 00:05:10,889 --> 00:05:13,490 low end, it isn’t starving the speaker. 98 00:05:13,490 --> 00:05:17,669 Most speakers from the same time period will work well with an amp of this size. 99 00:05:17,669 --> 00:05:22,740 These little amps usually accept a 3.5 mm mini-plug in addition to RCA cables, so if 100 00:05:22,740 --> 00:05:26,970 you’re fine with the blasphemy that is running them from your motherboard’s built-in DAC, 101 00:05:26,970 --> 00:05:29,449 all you need is an "aux cable". 102 00:05:29,449 --> 00:05:32,669 Personally I’ve never been bothered by using the computer’s own analog output, and I 103 00:05:32,669 --> 00:05:36,410 think these days they’re all pretty decent, though it should be noted that for my particular 104 00:05:36,410 --> 00:05:41,180 setup, my monitor is actually working as the DAC, taking digital audio via displayport 105 00:05:41,180 --> 00:05:43,789 and sending it out to the amp via the headphone jack. 106 00:05:43,789 --> 00:05:45,000 And, that’s it! 107 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:47,099 I know, this isn’t for everyone. 108 00:05:47,099 --> 00:05:50,990 Maybe the idea of shopping in a thrift store isn’t your cup of tea, or perhaps you’re 109 00:05:50,990 --> 00:05:52,440 not as crazy as I am. 110 00:05:52,440 --> 00:05:56,650 Also, you might have better ears than me and think these aren’t even worth $5. 111 00:05:56,650 --> 00:05:58,979 But for my money, I think these are excellent. 112 00:05:58,979 --> 00:06:02,840 The biggest downside I face with these is that, well, they’re kinda big. 113 00:06:02,840 --> 00:06:05,340 They eat up a good deal of my desk space. 114 00:06:05,340 --> 00:06:06,620 But I don’t mind. 115 00:06:06,620 --> 00:06:10,909 Also, while the oak veneer works well with a black desk, I’m not so sure it will work 116 00:06:10,909 --> 00:06:14,280 with the new bamboo-topped desk I have on its way. 117 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:18,480 Overall I actually quite like the design of these, especially with the floating black grille 118 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:22,330 cloth, but the finish is rather intensely dating itself. 119 00:06:22,330 --> 00:06:24,080 Perhaps I’ll refinish these, too. 120 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:25,810 Anyway, thanks for watching! 121 00:06:25,810 --> 00:06:28,919 If you’re ever on the lookout for a new speaker setup, why not take a trip down the 122 00:06:28,919 --> 00:06:33,069 path of oddities and see what’s available outside of your traditional retailer. 123 00:06:33,069 --> 00:06:35,000 You might be impressed with what you can find.