Shiseiten

If you are planning to get an Intel processor, I think you would be fine with an Ivy Bridge processor unless you can wait awhile for Intel to bust out a few more Haswell CPUs in retail and then the prices of the Ivy Bridge processors might go down. Also Haswell uses a different socket. Do you have a current rig as a foundation?

Did you play past the tutorial area? That area has some terrible lag issues. The rest of the game runs so much better.

Even if you are buying stuff just for gaming id still say a decent 2.1 is the way to go.

I mean games have really good audio and music and bass too so why not buy a system to support that...?

That Corsair set seems to have a bigger subfoower so id get that.

If you are using onboard soundcard i doubt it will matter that much which of those you end up getting though.

Hmm.

I can't answer that question with any real insight since I'm not you. I would say;

• If clarity above all else is important to you, and you think explosion effects etc get in the way of your gaming experience then go with good bookshelf speakers.
• If you want a fuller audio experience which more closely resembles a well tuned theatre mix then go with good 2.1 speakers.
• If you like more melodic, faster paced music - orchestral, 8-bit, spanish guitar, etc go with good bookshelf speakers.
• If you have a more general taste which spans to include the above but also elements of electronica, rock, rap, r&b, pop, etc go with good 2.1 speakers.

If you're just not sure what you like or care for, go with the set which straight up gives you more options / customisability, so 2.1 speakers.

As for which of those two sets you should get? Seriously, they both seem to be very good so pick the one you think looks better with your decor. (I personally think the Klipsch ones look cooler - but both don't look as good as, again, my good old Logitech Z-2300s)

For bookshelf speakers, you're looking at:

Clear bass? Check

Solid bass? To some extent

Punchy bass? Yep

Deep bass? No.

The good thing about the 2.1 systems you mentioned (the klipsch and what I'm reading about the Corsair) is that they have variable bass levels so you can tune it to your liking.

For example, for podcasts I have my comparable Logitechs turned down for bass, for music and games I have it around normal gain for bass - and only for house parties do I turn it up.

BUT there is absolutely nothing wrong with quality bookshelves if you want clear, crisp sound and are not a fan of heavy bass. Do not confuse that with the mentioned systems having muddy bass however - especially if you do hardware and software tweaking.