Advice on upgrading....

[Redbone]

Hello fellow audionuts- A few years back on a tight budget I put together a moderate AV system consisting of:

Arcam AVR 250- Recently upgraded from NAD T753
Focal JM/Labs Chorus S speakers
Hsu research STF II Subwoofer
Yamaha DVD C920 DVD player

The equipment functions excellent as a whole and IMHO would be very hard to beat in its price range, however with the addition of the Arcam piece I find myself wanting to go to the next level. I have considered changing the speakers, DVD player or subwoofer. Just looking for some opinions on what my weakest link is in the current system and what upgrade would provide the best sonic impact.

I am thinking that the speakers would probably be the way to go for sound quality. Have considered the B&W 804 and the Focal Profile series.

Also considered swapping out the sub in favor of something a bit more dynamic like a James or REL Britania.

Arcam DiVa 78, Yamaha C950 and Denon 2910 DVD players have also been considered as upgrades.

At the present time my system has no weak links and isn't lacking in any area, my motivation is to go to the next level of sound quality but I only have enough in my budget for one of the above upgrades.

Thanks so very much for any advice or suggestions

 

[agarwalro]

What do you feel is lacking in your system?

I realize that "Upgrade-titis" has no cure, so for that I suggest investing in a better sub. SVS, Axiom, HSU, Velodyne make some awesome subs. SVS has some subs that are the best value for money.

Personally, I am saving up for the SVS PB-12 Ultra.

 

[Tritonman]

As stated above..

What is it about your system that bothers you or you feel is lacking? That should be your first step in the upgrade direction.

You did say that your system is not lacking in any area..yet you still want to upgrade.

What is your video source? Maybe you could upgrade there.

Also you reach a point in upgrading where you would need to spend a significant amount of money to acheive a large beneficial gain to sound quality etc. Otherwise most of your upgrade steps would be small and possibly trivial with minimal gain.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Hello fellow audionuts- A few years back on a tight budget I put together a moderate AV system consisting of:

Arcam AVR 250- Recently upgraded from NAD T753
Focal JM/Labs Chorus S speakers
Hsu research STF II Subwoofer
Yamaha DVD C920 DVD player

The equipment functions excellent as a whole and IMHO would be very hard to beat in its price range, however with the addition of the Arcam piece I find myself wanting to go to the next level. I have considered changing the speakers, DVD player or subwoofer. Just looking for some opinions on what my weakest link is in the current system and what upgrade would provide the best sonic impact.

I am thinking that the speakers would probably be the way to go for sound quality. Have considered the B&W 804 and the Focal Profile series.

Also considered swapping out the sub in favor of something a bit more dynamic like a James or REL Britania.

Arcam DiVa 78, Yamaha C950 and Denon 2910 DVD players have also been considered as upgrades.

At the present time my system has no weak links and isn't lacking in any area, my motivation is to go to the next level of sound quality but I only have enough in my budget for one of the above upgrades.

Thanks so very much for any advice or suggestions

As agar indicated, you should really try to determine what you really think is the problem or issue with your setup before jumping off the deep end

Speakers and room acoustics in combination, makes the biggest audible change to a setup. So, that is the direction you should proceed in changing. But, you need to make sure that a speaker replacement will make you that much happier on the long run, not just a few minutes of WOW factor

 

[Redbone]

Thanks for the replies. It is not that I feel my system is lacking I just want to move up to more clarity, separation and three dimensionality in my musical enjoyment. I want the music to be more lifelike.

Could this be achieved with a better quality DVD player or Subwoofer, or is purchasing new speakers at the next price point up my solution? I want something that will give me a noticable difference.

 

[zumbo]

B&W baby! I am happy with my speakers in my 5.1 system, but I will build a 2-channel system using tube power & B&W's. That is as close to perfection as you can get.IMO

 

[jcPanny]

Since you have pretty good gear . . .

You might consider upgrading the room. Well placed furniture and room treatments can go a long way to improve audio quality. As far as the other components go, speakers will make the biggest difference.

 

[agarwalro]

You might consider upgrading the room. Well placed furniture and room treatments can go a long way to improve audio quality.

I second that after Red's response. Room Treatmeant is the way to go.

 

[Redbone]

Thanks for all the great advice.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Thanks for the replies. It is not that I feel my system is lacking I just want to move up to more clarity, separation and three dimensionality in my musical enjoyment. I want the music to be more lifelike.

Could this be achieved with a better quality DVD player or Subwoofer, or is purchasing new speakers at the next price point up my solution? I want something that will give me a noticable difference.

More clarity, if that is a real issue, not just perceived one, can be solved with better recordings, room acoustics and speakers with any one or all combined. Multi channel music can certainly help in this matter as well.
A sub will help with your low end.
These are the noticeable aspects ion audio, not components and cables

 

[anamorphic96]

Make sure if you upgarde speakers the Arcam can handle them. The Arcam AVR250 has no pre outs for upgrading amps or anything else.

The 800 sereis from B&W would probably be to much for the Arcam to get the best out of them. They tend to demand alot from amps and suck alot of juice.

Not trying to spoil anything just a word of caution.