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help me build a system for $1200

I am a medical student, and as such, already have tons of debt to begin with. That said, I've been wanting to upgrade my current system (cambridge audio CD player, squeezebox v3, a 10 year old NAD receiver, and a pair of minipod speakers that I received for free). I will probably keep the cambridge audio CD player for now.

So I've been perusing audiogon incessantly the last week or so...but can't seem to come up with a good integrated/speakers combo. I have thought about the following systems:

Onix sp-3 (for about 500-600 + onix ref 1/epos M5
musical fidelity ($700)+ quad 11L
jolida 502b + something in the 600-700 range

and this last crazy idea:

sonic impact super T amp ($150!) + an efficient speaker in the $1000 range (suggestion?)

I'd love to hear your comments.

John

p.s. This new system will be used almost exclusively for music. My current room is pretty small I'd say about 13x20 with 9 ft. ceiling. My musical taste is mostly indie rock...with the occasional jazz and "electronic" thrown in.
eungdamr
ptt660
20 posts
 
John, a couple of thoughts to go along with some excellent feedback here.

i have had the quad 11L's in a room similar in dimensions to your's. If you choose the quad's, I feel you would be better served moving up to the bigger 12L's for improved bass response. The 11L's were great but bass impact in the mid-sized room i have was not enough. These quad monitors are excellent for jazz by the way. The roksan kandy mk3 integrated amp is known to go well with the quad's. I feel they need a lively sounding amp (which the roksan is) to complement the quad's laid-back nature. The roksan kandy mk3 and quad 12L's could be had for around $1200 used on audiogon.

The previous recommendation of the usher s-520's is a good one. I have these and feel they would pair well with your nad receiver and save you some money for now. The usher's are a little on the bright side, which would balance out with the slightly dark sound of your nad receiver.

good luck with your search and have fun with it!

regards,
Paul
cleaneduphippy
323 posts
 
T'all do know this thread started over a year ago on 06/09/06. I missed it when I made my posting, but I'm betting that Enugdamer has alread made his decisions about what he's going to do with his system. Guess in the future, I';; pay attention to when the orginal thread was started. :-)
ptt660
20 posts
 
ouch! i hate when that happens.
vtrammell
1 posts
 
I, too, am looking at a similar system and find this thread immensely helpful. Currently I have I an old B&O system that is in need of reapir; Beogram 6000, Beomaster 6000, Beocord 6000, Beogram CDX. I listen to FM and albums a lot, jazz mainly.

Any suggestions for an FM tuner or a receiver that would fit in this new sytem? Does the following budget seem reasonable?

Speaker budget $600
Amp and tuner or receiver budget $600
CD budget $500
Turntable? maybe keep existing

Thanks!!
cleaneduphippy
323 posts
 
Vtrammell,

Your budget looks reasonable, especially in you're going to buy used. If it was me, I would checking the Audiogon listing (much better than e-Bay) to see what people are offering of a regular bases. If you have questions about a certain pieces of equipment, ask in the various forums, people here will certainly give you their thoughts and in most cases, their thoughts and opinions are educated and experienced ones. After that get in touch with the seller of the particular piece of equipment you're interested in and take it from there. If you take your time and do a little research first, you should do well with the budget that you set for yourself. btw, I'm another who bought most of my current system here on Audiogon and my budget was in the $1200-1500 range, and I think I did a pretty good job. I know I'm getting much more enjoyment from my music, nowadays. I believe you could do just as well.
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