Comparison Between the 15" & 17" Speakers

[MinDMaKeR]

Hey all,


I live in Lebanon and where i live' Mac's are not popular; we do not have a store where you can go and compare them side by side to set up your mind on your preferences. My friend is going to the US and I asked him to buy me an MBP, however I still have one question that I can't find a clear answer to. Are the 17 inch Macbook Pro speakers louder than their 15 inch counterparts? Is the volume recognizably louder or is it richer / better or both. Thank you all for your help.

The only mention to this question is on Apple's website where it mentions that the 17 inch MBP is twice louder than the 15 inch however I have not been able to read anything else about this subject anywhere else except on Ifixit.com. This website is specialized in hardware repaires and mentions that the 15 inch and 17 inch speakers on the MBP are the same.

Has anyone compared them side by side before and noticed louder volumes or clearer sound or even better both. By the way if yes by how much louder.

 

[KingYaba]

I find it rather funny that your going to base your decision on speakers. Both computers have poor speakers. Better off using headphones or external speakers.

I would guess that both computers have the same speakers, just the 17" looks bigger because it has a bigger shell. I doubt it's any "louder."

 

[vv-tim]

I find it rather funny that your going to base your decision on speakers. Both computers have poor speakers. Better off using headphones or external speakers.

I would guess that both computers have the same speakers, just the 17" looks bigger because it has a bigger shell. I doubt it's any "louder."

Music people need nice speakrs...
That said, you're pretty much wrong.

If I remember correctly, the 17" MBP actually has 4 speakers (two on each side) instead of 2 speakers. From the reports I read when they were released, the 17" speakers sound wonderful. The 15" are tolerable, but nothing compared to the speaker quality of my 17" VAIO I had before.

If speaker clarity is important to you, go for the 17".

 

[thebeephaha]

Apple's laptop speakers are pretty good compared to some of the other laptops out there though, my old Dell.. Yeeesh...

But yea the 17" has 4 speakers but I think their the same as the 15" model's just twice as many.

 

[Chone]

Music people need nice speakrs...
That said, you're pretty much wrong.

If I remember correctly, the 17" MBP actually has 4 speakers (two on each side) instead of 2 speakers. From the reports I read when they were released, the 17" speakers sound wonderful. The 15" are tolerable, but nothing compared to the speaker quality of my 17" VAIO I had before.

If speaker clarity is important to you, go for the 17".

Then again a music person (a serious one that is) would use headphones or external speakers, I'm a bit of an audiophile and I can listen to music just fine on my 15" MBP when I'm lazy to go get my headphones, it sounds just fine (you know to just hear a couple of songs casually) and I doubt that any serious music person will use built in speakers and a casual person will find the ones on the 15" to be enough.

 

[mkrishnan]

Do the MBPs have speakers under the keyboard like the two larger PBs did?

 

[SiliconAddict]

Mac laptops have crap speakers pure and simple. Its my only remaining gripe about Apple laptops. My Tosh's speakers kicked the living crap out of my MBP. Even at its loudest it still is hard to hear with background noise.

 

[SiliconAddict]

Do the MBPs have speakers under the keyboard like the two larger PBs did?

They are under the grills on the right and left.

 

[MinDMaKeR]

Re: Comparison between the 15" & 17" speakers

One more clarification: I have heard that the MBPs sound awful compared to the new laptops that come equipped with brand quality built in speakers. I know my brother's laptop a Toshiba comes with Harman Kardon speakers that sound WOW for a laptop. The Compaqs and HPs come with sound from Altec Lansing. Does any one know if the MBPs come with such branded types or just regular off the shelp speakers?
Has anyone tried to replace the built in speakers with branded ones. I guess all notebook speakers are the same size, they only differ in the quality they are made from and the price of course. Being an audiophile i am very much interested in knowing the quality of the built in speakers, I know nothing compares to a pair of headsets from Sennheiser, but don't tell me, sometimes you feel lazy to go and pick them up from your room.