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Another upgrade question

Ok, didn't know a better board to put this on so here goes.
So now that i have the beginnings of an audio system,
and the upgrade bug seems to linger (do you guys ever get satisfied???), and i keep looking at the audiogon for sale ads, i am not sure where to go next with additions/upgrades.

Although i will eventually go full HT, at the moment since i am working on my dissertation, i never have time/desire to watch tv other than an occasional movie which i watch on my laptop, though i do try to make time to listen to music, though often read journals at the same time. So aside from video, what should i upgrade to next?

my system at the moment:
H/K AVR 520 receiver
Denon 370 CDP
Some yet to be finalized pair of speakers (AE Aegis 3s or Dahlquist Qx6)
Kimber 8PR speaker cable
RS Gold series audio cable
My room is about 10 x 17, with a bay window on one of the short legs, and a hallway on the corner of the other. Right now i have the system setup along the middle portion of a long wall.

I am pretty satisfied with the HK receiver and plan on keeping it for some time to come. Since the whole multi-channel thing has not played itself out, i am hesitant to spend any money on this route (sources or additional speakers) until there is a "clear" winner or direction where things will be headed, at least for some point in time.
So, upgrades that I have thought about to save up for:

1) AC line conditioner (Monster 2000, Adcom..., Rotel prod)
2) Amplifier - either stereo or multichannel

So several questions:
1) which of the above 2 is more urgent/necessary? will line conditioning help that much (i am in a 40 yr old condo building)?
2) I can either buy a used amp or build one from a kit, like from bottlehead.com or something like that, though it is a tube amp. are there any recommended SS amp kits out there?
3) is there ANYTHING in a HT setup as far as electronic equip/something carrying electricity is concerned which everyone agrees on does not add/subtract to the sound in any way? i ask this because i think i will go NUTS having to audition every single itsy bitsy piece of wire that i want to buy. And, i hate not being able to buy something at a great price, just because i can't hear it beforehand. Do the people that live in towns of pop.400 not have any audioenthusiasts??

Or, if there is anything else that i should be looking for in upgrades, please let me know. Thanks.
ent2b
3 responses Add your response
kotta's avatar
kotta
649 posts
 
I'm far from an expert but I will give to you a few of my thoughts. The most immediate change I would make are your interconnects/speaker wires. The line conditioners you mentioned are not going to give you as much improvement as changing the interconnects/spk. wires. I would replace your electrical outlet which supplies power to your equipment. This very inexpensive change could yield noticeable results.
Turn off all dimmer switches/fluorescent lights when listening to your stereo. Don't go over-board w/magazine reviews. I've found that in most cases you get what you pay for. (Buy used and save a bundle.) Buy a turntable and some records. Bill
ent2b OP
1 posts
 
Thanks for taking the time to respond Kotta. Since I don't own but rent my place, in terms of liability, although i know how, i am not sure if i should proceed down this road (for changing electrical outlets). As far as records go, just their physical occupation of space is a bit much for my environment. Perhaps later when I have a house or a bigger apartment, i can look down the vinyl route. So given the cost of my components, can you give me a few choices of wires/ICs that I should look at? Obviously MIT ICs that run for $400 might be complete overkill for me. As far as your advice on reviews go, yeah, it is hard not to get "caught" or even not be biased when auditioning several pieces of equipment, whether it's due to price, features, etc. instead of primarily on sound quality.I guess double-blind purchasing might be nice, but perhaps expensive for the pocketbook. thanks once again.
kotta's avatar
kotta
649 posts
 
Hello Ent2b. As far as interconnects go I would suggest you check out Cardas 300B Microtwin/ Van den Hul 102 mk3. Both of these would set you back less than $100. (Audio Advisor has the Cardas, so you would be able to audition in your home for 30-days. If you're not satisfied you could return. Also fatwyre.com would offer something similiar.) Not knowing you're speaker choice makes it extremely difficult to recommend either "Soft" "neutral" or "bright" sound interconnects/spk. wires. Also, I'm somewhat familiar with the Denon CDP's sound (having owned 3 models) but I'm not familiar with your HK's sound. (I did own an 795i receiver for a very short time many years ago and I thought it sounded very bass heavy.) If you find you need warm sounding speaker wires, try Cardas Twin-link/Quadlink. Also, from what I've read, VDH will add bass and soften treble. One thing I do know the 8PR lacks smoothness and lacks refinement.(What can you really expect given the cost. The 4VS/8VS sounds better to my ears.) Everything is so system/room/personal dependent that what may work for me might not for you. Also, unfortunately, "you get what you pay for" most of the time. Do your research (and get even more confused!) and once you know what you're looking for buy used if possible. Good luck, Bill.
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