r/StereoAdvice

Hi friends!

I recently posted my budget system: My Current Setup. I've since added a Wiim Mini streamer. Quick system summary so you don't need to click the link to the other post:

Record deck : Dual CS 505-3 with an Ortofon OM10 cartridge/stylus

Ampliier : Marantz FM-66SE

CD deck : Philips CD610ii

Streamer: Wiim Mini

Speakers : Wharfedale Mach 5

Currently everything runs through the Marantz and out into the speakers. The sound is high grade but a bit thin - it's a combination of my room, and the speakers liking a bit of power before the really engage the lower frequencies.

The Wiim Mini has a room correction feature, so I used that and as expected it decided the lower end needed some boosting and I can't believe the difference it made - the addition made everything come alive in the room. The issue here though is that it does nothing for the vinyl and CD sources.

So - I need to add EQ or room correction. The Marantz has a tapeloop so I can feasibly add something there that would apply to all sources. What I'm stuck on is whether to slot in a simple graphic EQ and tweak myself, or something like a Mini DSP 2x4 and use digital tuning and room correction.

I think I also need to add a DAC between the Wiim and the amp as it's a little muddy on its own DAC- if I do this, would it have a bearing on the EQ/DSP question too?

Any advice is greatly appreciated here as I'm now way over my head in trying to figure this out!

Edit to add: very modest budget on upgrades, ideally no more than £200. I'm happy to spend my time bargain hunting in the second hand market.

Anyone tried BOTH and could articulate how close/far they are to/from each other?

Been digging into reviews and ChatGPT trying to assess, but have heard/seen much directly comparing the two directly and don't fully trust the AIs as they hallucinate like crazy, haha.

Would definitely go Cyan 2 IF cost not a factor, though could probably save $700 with a used uDAC. I know uDAC is surely a better value at that pricing and would still probably like it (as upgrade from EF600, paired with Burson Soloist 3x w/5A supercharger and v7v opamps)... But also likely left wondering how much better the Cyan 2 actually is and if woulda been worth it to wait a little longer and increase budget.

Thus, curious if anyone can offer details of how the two weigh up...

My home audio system includes a Yamaha A-S301 amplifier and Yamaha CD-S303 cd player. I'm considering replacing my current cd player with a Marantz 60 cd player. Is the Marantz an upgrade? Any thoughts about the sound quality of Yamaha vs Marantz? Thanks in advance for guidance. Or, any other suggestions for another brand CD player? My budget is in the $1000 to $1500 range.

I am a middle-aged jazz lover that has listened though Apple Music exclusively for over 15 years on a B&W A7s all-in-ones. I am now ready to get something higher-end. I have two listening areas I want to finally set up with high-quality components. The smaller one I have set up already with a Cambridge Evo One, which I love. The larger area is about 300 sq ft, and I’d like to get a simple, end-game streaming amp set up with a $10,000 budget with either bookshelf or smaller floorstand speakers that would be excellent for acoustic jazz listening. Full disclosure, I recently auditioned KEF R3 speakers with a Cambridge Evo 150 and found the R3s to be impressive but too clinical and a little harsh for my ears. Loved the amp though and see they have a 300 out now. I am wary of active speakers because I auditioned KEF LSX IIs, and they kept dropping out on me. Located in Minnesota, U.S. Please help me out. What various setups would you recommend and why?

-Budget around 200$
-I only connect to PC (Wired connection is fine)
-Mostly use for video editing and music listening.
-For sound preference maybe well-balanced and flat/neutral
-Wanna avoid Chinese brand like Edifier (Yes, I'm racist and I also Chinese)
-Small room 2 x 4 meters (6.5 x 13 feet)
-Love minimal design

thank you

It’s new amp time for me. I have some 86db sensitivity speakers that need a bit of oomph to drive and my Brio wasn’t quite cutting it. I’ve listened to and enjoyed the Elex Mk4, but I’d really like something with a smaller form factor if I can find it…

I’ve seen a Cyrus Classic amp and an i9-XR on ex-demo deals in the UK that are tempting me. I’ve had a brief listen to the Classic a while ago, but I’ve never heard the i9 and I can’t get a proper demo on either locally. I like something that’s quite forward, but not harsh or tiring - in the past I’ve liked Marantz, Rega, and Naim (I’ve not heard much Cyrus). Does anyone have any experience of the amps in question that could help me out with a comparison please?

Location: UK
Budget: ~£1.5k

!thanks

hello,

looking for some advice; i have an audio-technica AT-LP120XUSB, and would like to create a multiroom system (2 small rooms) that lets me play music from both that and a hardwire connected ipad (done with all the connectivity issues with speakers running spotify direct!). budget is about 2-3K for the whole system: 1 amp and 2 stereo speaker pairs for 2 rooms.

i was looking at sonos, but it only has 1 input; and a lot of the amps i've seen only have 1 set of outputs. it seems like as soon as i try to get 2 inputs and 2 independent outputs, the price points and power levels seem to jump dramatically. any ideas? thanks!

Fellow music friends!

Asking for some input regarding my next "move". There's been quite a few of them to be honest thru the years.

Went thru a lot of both speakers and amps, and somehow ended up with a pairing I couldn't have guessed when starting out all those years a go.

A Lyngdorf TDAI 1120 with Harbeth M30.2 XD. Really liked this pairing and kept it the longest out of all gear ever owned. Although now sold because our living room has gotten twice as big.

Some weeks ago a mint pair of Harbeth SHL5+ XD came for sale and I jumped on it, and now I need an amp again. I actually own an old Sansui AU 717 but that's for restoration.

So I've been thinking about going for the newer Lyngdorf TDAI 2210 as I'm familiar with Lyngdorf and the only thing missing with the 1120 was more power. Even the rest of my family used it quite a bit and it integrates well with the TV too. Anyway it's quite expensive at around 5k.

Have seen a little bit on the new Musical Fidelity M5/6XI and also on the Boxem Arthur 4216 E2. The latter needs a pre streamer dac, maybe Wiim Ultra or something similar.

Livingroom is 40 sqm, prefer to hook the system up to the TV and must be easy for the family to listen too.

In other words, not a lot of boxes that need switching on. Trigger or autosense (Boxem) is key in that regard and also WOL. Based in Norway and budget is preferably under $5k.

What are your thoughts and recommendations? Much appreciated.

So my cheap speakers went out and was thinking about getting some bookshelf for my desk and a mini amp. Budget From 500 to 600 mostly for shooting games and some movies. Ive looked into Polk, psb, golden ear, elac, paradigm, dynaudio, triangle, Sony, even rsl. And some of the power speakers like kayno and audio engine. I think I want to stay passive. Can anyone help

Hey guys and girls. I recently got into the hifi and have taken to it like a duck to water. Im looking to upgrade my speakers. Im looking at the Wharfedale Evo 5.2 or the Linton Heritage? I listen mostly to jazz, what do people think?

My budget is £1000-£1200 ish . Based in the UK, unfortunately I don't live close enough to a store where I can listen to them in advance

I listen to vinyl records mainly through my speakers, and I want something with really good bass. I will also be connecting my receiver to my TV and am looking for speaker recommendations within a $700 budget. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Preferably new condition speakers but will settle for used if there's a really good option

Have pretty much settled on getting this integrated amp as it ticks all of the boxes for me.

I have a chance to pick up some used dynaudio evoke 30s that fit my budget but I won’t be able to audition then so was wondering if anyone has heard this combination and could provide some feedback.

I’m stepping up from a soundbar so no doubt I will be happy and it will sound amazing but trying to put my mind at ease before pulling the trigger.

Hi there, I’m located in Montreal and a budget of around 500$ on a set of floor standing speakers. I’m intending on using them for a mix of Hifi and tv/movies. I found a pair of these located near me on marketplace and I’m wondering if it’s a good deal. 400$ new still in the box?

Of course if you have any other suggestions I’d love to hear your opinion

My budget is $300-$800 for the speaker and I’ll be getting a subwoofer with a later budget. I know I will need other items for passive speakers to be used properly but I’ll figure that out later. Passive or powered speaker is fine for me

Hey gang. Thanks for the advice on speakers earlier. So TL/DR my Musical Fidelity X-A100R amp was living at my GF's place powering my Epos M 15.2's and it sounded mind-blowing in that big space. But I finally got my own place and took my amp back. But I left the speakers all ampless...

The internet says they want 8 ohms and between 25-150 Watts, but they've been getting 75 wpc and they might be used to that...

For "budget" like...£200 or less if I get lucky on any given internet auction platform that does not start with E (according to the robot mods), what amps should be on my shortlist?

Many thanks!

Im looking to get my first CD stereo after inheriting my dad's CD collection and adding about 200 of my own on top.

Before ive just been rotating the 30 I keep in my car but I want something nice for my room

Preferably im looking for something under 150, 200 max because I have college to pay for also. So a budget option, or something that goes on sale often.

I dont need external speakers because I have a pair that my dad go for like 300 back in the 90s so im sure theyre still fine, so as long as they can hook those up thats all good. Or something that has good sound quality on its own is great!

Hi Guys,

I'm looking to buy a pair of 5" studio monitors for my home studio, which is located in a very small and narrow bedroom.

Here are my room dimensions:

Metric: 3.60m (Length) x 2.10m (Width) x 2.55m (Height)

Imperial: ~12ft x 7ft x 8.3ft

The room is barely treated (just some basic cheap foam from AliExpress), so acoustics aren't great. Because the room is so narrow (7ft width), the desk will be placed against the short wall, meaning the monitors will have to be placed pretty close to the wall behind them.

I already own a pair of Beyerdynamic DT 880 Pro headphones, which I use as my main reference tool to bypass the room's acoustic issues.

I’m currently torn between two main options:

Focal Alpha 50 Evo: Love the front-ported design which seems safer for placing close to the wall, and I heard they have low self-noise (hiss) and great punch.

Kali Audio IN-5: The 3-way coaxial design sounds amazing for midrange clarity and stereo imaging, and the boundary EQ switches seem useful for a bad room, but I'm slightly worried about build quality or potential hiss.

(Side note: Genelec 8030C was on my radar, but I feel like they might be an overkill/wasted budget given my room's poor acoustics).

Which of these would you recommend for my specific situation? Are there any other options I should consider?

Thanks!

Hi everyone, I’ve recently bought a monitor and I’m hoping to get some recs on some decent speakers (budget of 100$) that I could use with it as I’m not too familiar with them. The monitor only has one 3.5 mm jack, which might be an issue? I prefer a more mid profile so no over the top bass, if that even is of concern. Im alright with buying used so if there’s any good pair in my budget I’d happily buy. Like I said I’m not too familiar with speakers, hope it’s ok!!

Hello r/stereoadvice!

Current set up:

Speakers: ADS L710

Headphones: sennheiser HD6xx

Amp: Kenwood KA-7300

Turntable: Project 2xperience SB (ortofon 2M silver)

Digital: Schiit Modi DAC

I have been flipping between modern and vintage systems most of my adult life, with my current system satisfying a lot of my listening needs (smooth, warm, emotional).

Recently the Kenwood has been showing its age (channels sound imbalanced, the noise floor is becoming louder and more distracting, and the sound quality just feels more compressed).

I believe it is time for a full recap but this repair will run me about CAD$900, won't guarantee results and besides, the transformers are known to fail on these amps without adequate replacements available.

All this to say I felt like it was time to haul my speakers to the shop and start auditioning new equipment. I first hooked them up to a NAD C3050, a beautiful amp that seemed to have it all (phono, digital inputs, high power, vintage aesthetic). Unfortunately this amp sounded extremely harsh with my speakers, almost sibilant on the high end. I couldn't listen to it for more than 10 minutes.

I cycled through a few other solid state options at various price points and wasn't thoroughly impressed.

On my way out I noticed they had a Rogue Audio chronus magnum 3 set up and asked if I could give the tubes a try. It was a bit out of my price range but nothing I couldn't save up for a little longer. And damn if it wasn't perfect to my ears, and a great compliment to the L710s and drove my sennheiser hd650 flawlessly.

I am asking for advice from those that have experience in the tube world. I used to own a bifrost/valhalla 2 combo which was an incredible experience with my headphones. I know tubes are higher maintenance and more costly in the long run with less features than modern solid state, but the sound spoke for itself in my opinion. So maybe some general advice for someone new to tubes would be helpful.

Secondly the Rogue amp sounded amazing, and is a reputable company but compared to a Muzishare X7 (which seems to be a well regarded piece of chifi, in terms of features and build quality) is more than twice the price (CAD$4700 vs CAD$2000) has less features and honestly looks almost homemade compared to the sleek vintage looking X7

Can anyone convince me that it's sonically worth my while to save up for another 6 months for the Rogue vs the X7 which has all the features I need, probably enough power for my speakers and the ability to try it in my listening room and return to Amazon vs special ordering from the manufacturer?

Some listening impressions from anyone who owns these would be much appreciated too!

I mainly listen to records (ambient/IDM, folk, psych rock, shoegaze, indie rock, dream pop etc...) on my turntable and 50/50 listening between headphones and speakers if that helps.

Budget: CAD$2000 to $5000 max