Are you using an interface to get audio into your computer? If so, you should also use it to get audio out. The DA converters in the laptop are far from the best. Also, don't be surprised if going with the cheapest solution is at least partially to blame. Just as good mics are extremely important to a good sounding recording, Monitors are as well. Also be aware that in some cases near-field studio monitors a designed to be extremely accurate at close range and can have a very small sweet spot when positioned correctly. Listening outside that sweet spot can sound pretty dismal. Were you listening to commercial releases in iTunes or listening to your own projects? Another possibility you must consider is that the monitors are telling exactly what you need to know... the mix has problems. A basic rule of thumb says to put as much money as you can afford into any step where you are converting from one type of energy to another, i.e. Good mics are critical to convert acoustic energy into electrical energy, good AD converters convert analog into digital, good DA converters turn digital into electronic energy, and good speakers turn electrical energy into acoustic energy. Everything else in the chain certainly has its role, but can't make up for deficiencies in any of these critical processes. (In other words great preamps cannot turn a radio shack mic into an AKG 414, but an AKG 414 might make a radio shack preamp sound amazing!) Stuart Holmes