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Cost Effective System Improvement?

My hobby is to get the best possible sound IMO at the lowest possible cost. My system:

Tekton Electron Speakers - Upgraded
Doge 10 Tube Amplifier (generally 30WPC in Class A) with Psvane KT88-TII, GE 5751 3 mica black plate preamp tubes, and NOS Mullard CV4024 phase inverters.
Denafrips Pontus DAC
Canare 4S11 Speaker Cables

I listen only to TIDAL Premium through Bluesound Node 2i using the BluOS on an android tablet. I often listen to vocals and use the following as test tracks:

Vaya Con dios “Don’t Cry for Louie”
Dave’s True Story “Chasin’ The White Line Down”
Dead Can Dance “The Wind That Shakes the Barley”
Harry Nilsson “Without You”
Glen Campbell “By The Time I get To Phoenix”

I would like recommendations on what I might do for a cost effective improvement. I would consider spending $2-4K for different speakers or amplifier. The speakers and/or amplifier would have to weigh less than 80lbs. My back is 75 years old.

I appreciate your recommendations.
chinook9
chinook9 OP
68 posts
 
Thank you all for your recommendations.

I have already treated the room with acoustic panels. I will work on this more after I move to a different house in March.

I will start off by cleaning up my cables as suggested.

In addition, I will probably go ahead and get an optical Rendu.

I have already orders a couple of sets of Nobsound springs and I expect I will eventually get the Townshend Podiums.

I may also try one of the Raven amplifiers as suggest by but I’m not sure about this. If I return it it will only cost around $270 plus shipping so that not too bad.
terraplane8bob's avatar
terraplane8bob
68 posts
 
My "Cost Effective System Improvement" is totally without cost, but only to those who are regular wearers of eyeglasses.  If you fall into this category, try this -------.   Sit in your "sweet spot" and listen to your favorite music with your eyes closed.   Midway in the piece, remove your glasses and hear the difference !   It always amazed me that audiophiles, who are conscious of every reflective surface in their listening room and spend thousands to adjust and regulate room acoustics, would wear a pair of "reflectors" only inches from their "receptors" !   Try it !  It's free, cost effective and a really big improvement !
   Both Sennheiser and Neumann have developed head-shaped binaural microphones and neither of them come with an eyeglasses option !  I'm just sayin' !
robert1234
15 posts
 
I thought vibration control was some kind of woo-woo thing sold for crazy money to gullible audiophiles. I spent about $400 on a used collection of Black Diamond Racing cones, Round Things and Those Things. I was really questioning my judgment when I received and opened the box. I started out by putting some of them under my tube DAC and KT-88 tube amp. The improvement was the equivalent of $3,000+ in equipment upgrades. Clarity, focus, detail—all the words I see around here—were much improved. I’ve still got a handful left with which to experiment. Thanks to @millercarbon for the BDR tip. So, as others have recommended above, definitely contemplate vibration control.
jpgsf's avatar
jpgsf
71 posts
 
+1 Qobuz
lemonhaze
416 posts
 
Acoustics are inextricably part of the sound you hear. You have some acoustic panels but are there enough or too many? Are they in the right place? What about the biggest issue in all rooms: the bass?

Get a free download like HolmImpulse or REW and a microphone and remove the guesswork. Once you start understanding, and it's not difficult, it becomes a lot of fun and will reward you more than anything else. Appreciate that when the room is sorted out you will better hear any tweaks you try.

Another bit of advice is to ignore the suggestion to fill your room with imitation ficus trees. At best they may serve as narrow-band diffusers.  A measurement system would clearly show that the ficus trees are not helping with the room problem which is the sound taking too long to decay. A bunch of dust collecting ficus trees to solve these problems is simply ridiculous.
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