Stereo Systems Question

[Garrett]

What do you mean by "low quality power" besides being marketing speak for cable and power conditioning companies. The reason high end audio sells is for on reason only-expectation bias! It's more expensive so it must sound better. Besides, so called high end audio is lost on us over 25 who may not hear above 14k.

The primary value of a good amp is not frequency response. The primary value is if you have music with great dynamic range, a quality amplifier will be able to manage the power requirements, which can be pretty extreme (especially into difficult loads where lesser amps will be under measurable duress). Recording quality has changed in that most mass market recordings are auto tuned and compressed so they sound loud... the problem is they have no dynamic range. In addition, some amps can essentially be a tone control if people want a particular sound (e.g. class A or tube amps).

For me, high end audio sells because you are getting craftsmanship and great design. I have gear over 50 years old that still performs great and would not even contemplate selling. Most electronics sold these days are disposable... they are unrepairable and quite simply, who would care to own it 20 years from now. If you buy the right high end gear, and can use it for its basic functional purpose, you have equipment that long term will be very inexpensive and give you a lot of happiness.

 

[EJunkie]

Join, then check the forums at http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/

 

[einar]

I'm not a audiophile. I just want a simple system for listening to CDs iPod etc
Perhaps one of those single unit systems ?
I want to spend < 5k.
Thanks for the input.

As someone has already said, there's no need to spend $5000 for quality home equipment, especially if you are not an audiophile. I would recommend going to Executive Stereo, which was on Yonge St. near Davisville for a decade, and is about to reopen on Avenue Road near Wilson. I did some serious listening with two of their staff, and it was a delight: they know their stuff, and were the opposite of pushy. You could also try Hi-Fi-Fo-Fum, a high-end little shop on Mt. Pleasant north of Eglinton. Or go to Bay Bloor Radio on a weekday morning when it's quiet there.

A mini-system by Onkyo, Denon, TEAC, Yamaha, etc., perhaps with upgraded bookshelf speakers, might be a delightful way to go if you want something small and simple to operate, for under $1000. The Bose Wave Radio/CD Player is even smaller, looks lovely, and throws out fine sound for its size. I've owned two of them: they are costly to repair and overpriced to begin with, but still nice. Buy a used one for $300 and you might be very happy for a few months while you shop for an expensive system. Or your search may prove over.

Frugal Einar

Einar

 

[picketfence]

You are thinking of the wrong power, while the AC power can affect somethings - its not by any means a large contributor. However you should be using a high quality surge suppressor to protect your stuff. That cheap shit radioshack/walmart one is hardly good enough. Try Panamax or Furman.

As for the power I was talking about, that would be amplifier power. The sound quality varies extremely between different amps. You can feed a fantastic speaker crappy power and it will sound horrid. The power is crappy because of a number of factors ranging from current deliverd, to S/N ratio to distortion amplifier slew rate, damping factor etc.

And most separate amps are tremendously better sounding than the ones in a receiver.

a) You can get very good speakers for about 600, and for 600 you'll get a remarkably shitty receiver. (total 1200)
b) Lets try it at 1k, great speakers, very good amp (total 2k)
c) And at 2.5k high end speakers, and a top quality 2ch AMP (total 5k)

in b and c you spent the same on the speakers as the amp and both will sound far better than a.
you still need to buy a processor so tack on another 1 to 1.5k
So that 50% rule of thumb is obsolete, maybe 20 years ago that rule would be useful, but today its not, spend maybe 1/3 of your budget on speakers, and get an active sub, it will take a big load off your amps and speakers and give you a much better overall sound. Better yet forget these nonsense guidelines and go sit and listen to stuff. I recommend Kromer and Whitby Audio they have good listening rooms and a lot of content, you'll be amazed at what you hear if you come from the typical consumer grade electronics (sony, panasonic, denon etc)

also Check out Bryston (Canadian) and Sunfire Amps while you are out and about.

Yes ! my response was to the idea that I thought your were going down the snake oil road that modern high end audio is full of. I personally would still content that if extra money is spend, it's better to spend on speakers or even more important but almost always ignored, room acoustics.I guarantee you that a 1000.00 amp with 500.00 in room acoustic treatment will sound better than a 5000.00 amp with none.
I've been out and about and been to high end audio shops the world over. Been in it for 25 years.There's a lot of bs in high end audio-seen people spend 5k on cables to get better highs from their 5.5" ml tqwt's..lol

I'm a member of canuckaudiomart only for selling, not knowledge.For real knowledge diyaudio.com is much better. That place is ripe with engineers, developers and designers who actually know their shit.

By different amps, do you mean same type or different type? I.E, comparing tube to tube, solid state to solid state, op amp to op amp, etc. or tube to solid, solid to op or just different brands and price points???? If your comparing say a 800.00 Nad solid state amp to a 5000.00 Lexicon solid state amp, Siegfried Linkwitz may disagree with you. If your comparing the garbage receivers to properly designed amps(btw, a properly designed amp does not need to cost 1000's) I agree with you. But, the difference between a properly designed 800.00 amp and a 10,000.00 amp is mainly "expectation Bias" and high end marketing.

 

[shakenbake]

As someone has already said, there's no need to spend $5000 for quality home equipment, especially if you are not an audiophile. I would recommend going to Executive Stereo, which was on Yonge St. near Davisville for a decade, and is about to reopen on Avenue Road near Wilson. I did some serious listening with two of their staff, and it was a delight: they know their stuff, and were the opposite of pushy. You could also try Hi-Fi-Fo-Fum, a high-end little shop on Mt. Pleasant north of Eglinton. Or go to Bay Bloor Radio on a weekday morning when it's quiet there.

A mini-system by Onkyo, Denon, TEAC, Yamaha, etc., perhaps with upgraded bookshelf speakers, might be a delightful way to go if you want something small and simple to operate, for under $1000. The Bose Wave Radio/CD Player is even smaller, looks lovely, and throws out fine sound for its size. I've owned two of them: they are costly to repair and overpriced to begin with, but still nice. Buy a used one for $300 and you might be very happy for a few months while you shop for an expensive system. Or your search may prove over.

Frugal Einar

Einar

Executive Stero has been around for a very long time. I recall when Ervin was the owner, in the mid 70s, when I bought my Dynaco equipment from him, around Dundas and Gould streets. I still have these components and they have served me quite well. Richard Brack was another great audio vendor, when he was Brack Electronics, down on Simcoe and King Streets. Thise were the days, when one cold have a pick of a number of good audio vendors, and the equipment was truly hi-fi, and the prices were good and the specs were not inflated.

 

[big apple]

thanks frugal

 

[Dave Ed]

http://www.americansound.com/ see Angie, tell her how much you want to spend, look at her used gear and enjoy audiophile quality. Don't by lo-fi, just wasting your time.