Want a Badass Sound System for Your Desktop? Here Are 2 Ways to Get There

Only one of the speakers has a built-in amplifier, known as the “master;” it also has Bluetooth streaming capabilities, but not Wi-Fi ones. However, it has a wealth of analog inputs, including AUX and USB, which makes it simple to turn into a computer speaker system.

The sound quality of the M20 HD system is generally excellent, producing lucid mids and highs and surprisingly punchy bass, but it’s admittedly not a night-and-day difference from the passive speaker system. This is mainly due to the body of each M20 HD speaker being very similar to the body of the Q Acoustics 3020i — which are updated versions of the Q Acoustics 3020 speakers that I’ve been using.

The KEF LSX II LT are an even higher-end active speaker system that, as it turns out, make excellent computer speakers … which you’d hope if you’re spending $1,300.

Photo by Tucker Bowe for Gear Patrol

In my experience, there are two main hurdles with using the M20 HD as your computer speakers. First and most annoyingly, the speakers will go idle if your computer doesn’t play audio for 20 minutes, meaning you’ll have to use the remote or hit the button on the top of the master speaker to wake it up. It’s not a huge deal, but it’s far from ideal.

And secondly, if you want unlock the full potential of the M20 HD as computer speakers, you’ll need to connect them via USB (USB-B, to be exact) rather than AUX — but neither of these cables are included in the box.

I mainly connected the speakers to my computer via the AUX jack (mainly because that’s what I used with N22 desktop amp and bookshelf speakers setup). When connected with via USB-B, the M20 HD speakers are able to play true lossless audio at up to 192kHz.