Entry Level Sound System

[Rob Babcock]

Ok, what speakers were you listening to? After all, that is what dazzled you, that is what you heard there, not the Naim gadgets.

That's the first question I was going to ask, too. If you were blown away by the sound you heard, let us know what speakers you were listening to. Then we can recommend something with a similar sound.

 

[John Bailey]

That's the first question I was going to ask, too. If you were blown away by the sound you heard, let us know what speakers you were listening to. Then we can recommend something with a similar sound.

I agree. I keep coming back to this thread so I can find out which speakers he listened to because he has similar listening tastes as me. Hope we can find out!!

John

 

[Brett A]

A $3000 system that I have been considering for myself is a Rotel CD player and integrated amp ($700 each) and B&W 683s ($1500/pr.) I think one would have to spend a lot more to do better than that.

I started out with this set up --Rotel 1070 CD, RA 1060 integrated. and B&W 683s--- and quickly replaced the Rotel amp with something less fatiguing. (a Shanling A3000).

Rotel is known to be quite forward and analytical. The upside is focus and resolution, the downside is it can get painful to listen to after an hour or so. And who wants a system they need to get away from?

I also found the Rotel to have a rather cramped sound stage compared to the Shanling.

It is important to take your time and listen, (preferably in your home) before you spend big money.

IIMHO, you'll serve yourself better by also checking out the high end audio discussion sites. They tend to be almost exclusivity two-channel.

 

[3db]

Hello all!

I recently had the opportunity to listen to a Naim system (CD player, pre-amp, and power supply.) Up until then I never knew such a system existed. I never knew anything existed beyond Bose... ect.. ( Be gentle!) I was absolutely blown away by the sound!! I'm a musician and have a deep appreciation for classical music and MANY recordings. I also frequent the local symphonies when I can.

Are there any suggestions for an entry-level system that will give me similar clarity in sound and texture?

Thanks alot!

What speakers were you listening to? I highly doubt looking at the NAIM would blow you away without speakers attached to it.

 

[ChrisMG]

They were a pair of Spendor floor standing speakers.

 

[gus6464]

They were a pair of Spendor floor standing speakers.

Spendor is a british manufacturer and makes some very good speakers. Do you remember the model? Maybe the S5e? How much were they? If you loved the spendor sound I would suggest you look at the Quad 22L2. I am a fan of british sound myself so you might love these. They retail for $1700.

http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/model.php?sector_id=2&range_id=9&model_id=20

Edit: And if it was the Spendor S5e that you heard there are two people on audiogon selling a pair for ~$1100. You can't get any better than that.
http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1205203706
http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1207431281

 

[John Bailey]

If you're ready to move quickly you can get the Naim Nait 5i integrated and a Naim CD5i along with those Spendors at Audiogon and stay withing your budget. You'd have a great system for music.

John

 

[Rob Babcock]

I've drooled over the Naim Nait 5, too. Only issue I could see is that it's not exactly a powerhouse of an amp- it's around 35 Wpc IIRC. If you're sure that stereo is all you require but want something well made and attractive, you might consider a Musical Fidelity integrated, too.

 

[gus6464]

Nait and Spendor have great synergy together. I think they are the same parent company.

 

[mustang_steve]

In the interest of cost, how about the Yamaha sterio recievers? Particularly the RX-797. The price seems to be right paired with a yamaha CD player. It seems to me that it would give enough juice to power a pair of T65's. Is this valid? This is all in theory of course. I need to go and listen to these things when I have a less hectic schedule...

I use a Yammie RX-496 for my 2-channel HT setup, and it's quite usable. I keep mine on tone bypass ("pure direct" as they call it), since I hate having the signal altered by any tone/balance pots in the signal path. the only mod I have done to it was clip the wire guides on the binding posts for speaker set B so it could accept large spades (hardly a mod really, look at the rear binding posts and what I've said makes more sense). The wattage claims on the RX series is not all that truthful though, so keep that in mind. Mine maybe gets a real world 40wpc.

 

[trnqk7]

I will agree that you should try to find the speakers you auditioned originally if you liked them so much-obviously there is something quite good about them! However, if you are still auditioning different brands, I would recommend the Dali Ikon series-I am purchasing a pair for myself (ikon 6's) very soon and have been quite impressed with their sound. Especially with the highs they have, I believe that I am a ribbon tweeter fan now! Midrange also sounds very,very good to my ear and the bass is natural sounding to me. They could be purchased for around $1500 or less at the dealer. Worth a look I think, if you are still looking.

 

[Joe Schmoe]

Time for a decision. Would replacing my Onkyo C315 one-box electronics with entry-level high-end components (either the Cambridge Audio 340A and 340C or the NAD 315BEE and 515BEE) provide a clearly audible improvement?
(Note: According to What HiFi, the Onkyo unit "rivals the sound of many budget HiFi separates". This is why I question if there would be any improvement.)

 

[Joe Schmoe]

I guess I will find out. I just ordered the Azur pair. (Shipping should be much faster than they estimate, as the warehouse is here in OKC.)