Help me make sense of this - Midfi system sounding better hifi.


   I have a few systems but recently I changed the setup and pleasantly accidentally I came up with a really enjoyable system from midfi gears like Onkyo M-306 power amp, acurus pre, Klipsch kg 1.2 speakers, Topping E-30 DAC, and Ixos cables. 

   My main hifi system consists of Krell pre/power, B&W 802 D speakers, Firestone upstreaming DAC, and Transparent cables.

   The former system is considrably more dynamic and exciting to listen to - why?

   Is the Onkyo power amp M-306 that good? It's 300 watts per ch compared to Krell 200 watts - is that why the difference in dynamic exciting quaility?

 

   Any insight will be greatly appreciated as I am not enjoying my Uber system that costs as much as a luxury car, and getting me upset - I enjoy the midfi system that can be assembled for 1/30th of the cost...alas!

gonglee3

I agree, the room is the most important component. But after that, the speakers. B&W (and KEF) are known for their tonal balance and imaging, not so much their dynamics - Pace Rhythm and Timing (PRaT, as the Brits call it) and slam, certainly not the way Klipsch and some other brands like JBL are. These are subjective qualities yet instantly identifiable when heard. Maybe some kind of dynamic compression. Finding a speaker that combines dynamics, imaging and tonality can be tough.

After that, the ability of the amp to handle the impedance (deliver current) and control the drivers especially their back EMF is a key part of amp-speaker matching. Back in the 'receiver wars'  era the 100w/Ch and up mainstream receivers all sounded horrible with demanding loads, like Double Advents, or big JBLs and Altecs due to budget-compromised power supplies and heavy current limiting that allowed admirable numbers on the bench, but poor performance with demanding speaker loads. To a lesser extent it still happens today, as amp designs have improved. But it remains - some otherwise excellent amp designs presuppose certain speaker behaviors, and just don't sound 'right' with others. 

Beyond those items, the rest is all front end and source, a whole ' nother set of topics.

I think the real difference here is that the Klipsch are hornloaded that creates better dynamics plus two way monitors are much easier to place than big floorstanders.

My bad - Onkyo M-506rs is the right model no.

Thanks for all those who posted for me...You guys are a great source of Hifi info!

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System synergy is the culprit. You have multiple pieces that are bright sounding (krell and B&W) and both together will make things much worse. Your Onkyo is much warmer sounding than the krell and why did B&W buy Classe? Because Classe produced warm sounding gear which works well with B&W speakers. You also see a lot of McIntosh gear teamed up with B&W speakers for the same reason. 
Try using your Onkyo with your B&W speakers to see if they sound better