Help me spend $100,000 on a new system

Thank you for your suggestion immatthewj. Is the Cary brand still available new? I forgot to mention I’m going to purchase new, not used equipment.

grisleybutter, , sorry if the title sounded obnoxious to you. I was thinking it was a fun fantasy to spend that much money on a system, and maybe some of the folks here are familiar with that kind of expensive equipment, so could suggest some specific items to demo. It honestly was not my fault real estate prices have gone up so much over the past thirty years affording me that kind of cash to make this kind of purchase a real possibility. I honestly almost fell over when I was told what I could get for my home.

Patrick, thank you for all your suggestions. I’ll look each of them up. I’ve so many records and CD’s, I really don’t desire to incorporate another medium like streaming into the mix. I will do some more studying on building a listening room as you suggested on your second post.

testpilot, travel is another consideration I’m considering along with getting some oil paintings or some other things like an old Mercedes from the fifties. I thoughtr this would be a good place to explore the audio option.

newbee, as you suggest, I will get a house with a suitable listening room with the bulk of the cash I get for selling my current home. At this point I’d just like to find out how much better a $100.000 system might sound than my current set up to determine if that is worth pursuing.

By the way what upgrades to the current system would you suggest?

maxwave, good suggestions. I built my own home so have the skill to make any size room needed for a listening room. I was thinking about that earlier when starting this thread, but didn’t mention it here to keep this post more focused. Going to Axpona or a similar show is an excellent idea. Hadn’t thought of that. Thanks.

Mike

laoman, will do. Thanks.

mapman, spending money just because I can may not be the wisest way to go, but letting it sit in a bank account might be even less wise. At this point I’m just exploring options for best utilizing that possibly available cash to best enjoy the remaining years I’ve got left. And among other things I do love a good sound system, so I’m considering that possibility as a luxury I unexpectedly may be able to afford.

Andrew, I’ll look those components up. Thank you.

knock1, things might look a bit differently to you when you hit your seventies. If you’ve potentially got the money to spare, why not spend it on the things that give you the most enjoyment for the time you’ve got left to enjoy them.

ghdprentice, sorry, no streaming, gaming, or cell phones for that matter. I’m guessing if I spend $100,000 on equipment none of my current components would be up to snuff. I really need to listen to higher end equipment to see how much better it would sound compared to my current set up to see if it's worth pursuing. I will look into the brand equipment you mentioned. Thanks.

Initm, appreciate your suggestions and will look into them.

audioman58. if I decide to go this upgrade route I will contact you. Thanks for offering your assistance.

tomic601, nice to hear from you. What exactly would be a transducer? Your a bit over my head there even after I googled that term. What monoblocks might you recommend. I hate to admit it but your statement about " having monoblocks and speakers with 11 bands of EQ below 120hz" was lost on me too. Could you explain what you mean to me, a lay person on these matters. Thanks. Upgrading to a better Lyra Kleos makes perfect sense. And yes the Fatboy tonarm does have that upgrade you mentioned, I was thinking a better turntable could be in order however in a $100.000 system.

bigtwin, I’ll check out that video you suggested.

Thanks all,

Mike

P.S.: I’ll reply to the three posts that came in while I was typing the above replies tomorrow, as it’s getting kind of late here. .

yysantabarbara- thank you for your suggestions. I’ll look up each of them.

Inna, nice to hear from you again. I’m not sure what I plan to do yet. But I would like to listen to a system at a show or dealer showroom that would add up to approximately $100,000 in equipment and hear what it sounds like. That’s an awful lot of money to spend. Since the law of diminishing returns applies to stereo equipment as you spend more, I’d like to hear what I could expect get with with that large a sum. I had planned to keep my current set up permanently. But this is essentially found money so I can spend it freely if I think the sound is that much better. Maybe it won’t be significantly better at that price point, who knows?

I don’t have any experience with tubes so probably will stick with SS. I also need to figure out how to allocate the funds. I used percentage of funds per component suggested by PS Audio’s founder last time around.

joeyv- i do like doing research so it will be fun, not a headache to do so. Maybe one or more of my current components could make the cut into a $100,000 system, but I’m guessing not. I could be easily wrong though, having never listened to any equipment in that price range.

mdalton, sorry I missed the Capitol Audio Show such a short time ago. I will look up the equipment you mentioned and hopefully find that same room at whatever show I do get to go to.

yoyoyaya, I’ll check out the Esoteric CD player you suggest. Any specific turntables or cables that might fight my budget?

ronboco, the Gryphon Diablo 300 has had some good reviews and might be a good choice. Knowing my bottom line, how much do you think I should budget for a new amp.

asvjerry, I’ll do my be to spend the money the taxman leaves wisely.

deep_333, you could very well be right about $100,000 of equipment not sounding much better. I’d like to take a listen though to some suggested components and determine that for myself, hence this thread. I heard a very nice system, better than mine, at the house of the dealer who set up my new VPI Fatboy tonearm and Lyra Kleos cartridge, but have no idea how much that system cost.

brewerslaw, thanks for the produdt brand suggestions.

kerrybh, I will check out the Magico S5 you suggested and the DAC you like. Thank you for addressing my6 initial questions directly. I appreciate that.

retiredfarmer, our outlook is similar and appreciated.. The family will get all the equipment, house, and everything else when I go, so why not reap the benefits of a lifetime of hard work myself first. I will check out your suggestions too. Thanks.

jomonhifi, I just got back from Florida visiting family Monday. Next visit there it wouldn’t be too hard to go a little farther south to Miami. Thanks for the suggestion.

mahgister- appreciate the need to study up and thoroughly plan. Appreciate your suggestions. At this point I’m only trying to gat a ballpark idea of what this kind of money can by to determine if it’s worth pursuing. Next up is doing the things you suggest all of which sound quite reasonable.

overthemoon, thanks for your specific suggestions.

pennfootball71- thank you for addressing my initial question exactly with definite suggestions to check out. I do appreciate that and will look into each component.

curiousjim. Will do

hilde45, I’ll look up Audio Note as you suggest.

Thank you all again for your input. Hope i addressed everyone.

Mike

ddgtt, thanks for your equipment suggestions. I will look into each. Do you really think the current VPI Classic 2 turntable will cut the mustard in a hundred thousand dollar system? When I was asking advice about getting my current Kleos Lyra cartridge a lot of folks criticized the VPI Classics. I still like it in my current system, but I’m hardly an expert in this type of thing, just a partially educated consumer. Thanks,

Mike.

mapman, I fortunately know how to build, having built my current 3000 square foot home myself, and should be able to buy a house that will either suit any equipment I might demo and really like, or can be modified to do so. That’s kind of backwards from buying equipment to suit a given room, but fortunately easy pickings having some carpentry skills.

At this point I’m really only wanting to hear what $100.000 can buy and sound like. I could head in a completely different direction, as I am happy with my current system and home, albeit it's way bigger than I need with my wife having passed, and ten acres is a lot to keep up anymore, making me consider downsizing.

terry9, I’d especially like to read that Absolute Sound article on room construction. If anyone knows what issue of Absolute Sound it was in that would helpful.

Ron, thanks for your recommendation on your Rockport Avoirs. I’ll look into them.

Mike

ronres, it’s hard to state conceptually what I’d like to accomplish. What I can do is listen to some of the higher priced equipment some of you are suggesting and then figure out how and why it is sounding better or not. then figure out if the improvement in sound is worth the financial outlay. I haven’t heard a lot of higher end systems, but do know some sound more three dimensional, almost in person live and that’s a direction to move towards. Dealing with room size, design and acoustics will push me in that direction as well as buying better recorded CD’s and records.

Thanks for your thoughtful reply.

bobby phischer, I’ll look into the brands you recommend. I did start my audi0phile journey with JBL speakers, their original (now reissued) Century 100’s if I’m remembering the model correctly

laoman, I’ll look up the Parasound JC3 phono stage you recommend. Thanks.

macg19. I’ll definitely pursue synergistic equipment as a number of you have suggested, and can hopefully avoid expensive mistakes by asking advice and careful research.

inna, some more excellent advice from you, thanks. I usually avoid used, but it’s hard to imagine how cables could be misused, so probably a safe bet there outside of possibly getting fakes. $25 -$40,00 sounds like a pretty good price range for speakers to demo. I agree with your idea of seeking brand names with a good track record, especially thosr that have been around a while, and not too esoteric.

mapman, I’ll look up those MBL Omnis, as well as the KEF’s and Ohms you mentioned. Thanks

terry9, I love DIY, but am afraid of getting in over my head with audio gear, and auto mechanics for that matter. I wish they taught those subjects when I was school age. I will hang onto to those cables as you suggested earlier.

crustycool, I’ll check ino omnidirectional and dipole speakers as you suggest. Any particular models you might recommend looking into? I would like a bigger room next time than my current 14 x 28 with 12/12 pitch cathedral ceilings, so yours is a good idea in that regard.

loomisjohnson, at 71 I’m also not into the saving for the future approach either, or avoiding risk taking. At age 71 the future is now, so why not go for it. A high end DAC sounds like a good idea. Any suggestions in that regard. 

Again, thanks all for every ones replies,

Mike

jallan, I think I might have missed answering your post. That’s an excellent suggestion to visit Command Performance in Falls Church to listen to the Gryphon Diablo on Magico A3s. I will do it on my next trip up that way. My new house will definitely have a larger listening room so I’m thinking better speakers will be in order, if nothing more than going higher up the Magico line.

kennyc, moving up the Magico line is a possibility. I’m not familiar with YG’s so will have to look them up. I’d like to hear some other pricey speakers too and may do some traveling up to Pennsylvania to check out the Joseph Audio line there.. That’s the closest dealer for them to here in Roanoke last I looked. I’ll look into the Audionet Humbolt line you suggest as well.

marco1, I commiserate with you on how annoying constantly changing records on a turntable is. Glad someone replying here is a bit older than me. And coincidentally I just came in from my daily half mile walk, so we have something in common. Not to mention when I carried my heavy Luxman amp and Magico A3’s up a flight of stairs to my listening room a couple years ago it was a near death experience.

I don’t think I’d ever want to part with my records and CD’s though, however inconvenient they may be.

hsounds, thank you for all your suggestions. I’m adding the to the list of components to check out. Sounds like you have some nice equipment.

immatthewj, it is amazing when you hear a system like you describe. When I purchased my Dahlquist DQ10 speakers back in the seventies I went to one New York Audio Society meeting the dealer invited me to. Ill never forget the realism of the system I heard at that meeting.

I’m unfamiliar with the "SET stuff" you reference but will Google it.

12many, I will be stating from scratch room wise if I sell my home. If I don’t I’m perfectly happy with the equipment and room I’ve got.

macg19, I’ll reread laoman post. I must have misread it. I’ll look into the equipment you mention you’re using too. Thanks for the heads up.

Mike

tunefuldude, no where else I can think of.

macg19, will do.

maxwave, my heirs will have to worry about thar eventuality. I plan on using the room ’til I drop. Thanks for the many equipment recommendations. I’ll look into all of them.

garrettc, fortunately I already had a bit stashed for unexpected issues, so this new amount should be free and clear for any use, sensible or not. I’ll look into the Wilson Alexx speakers you mention.

mtbiker29. I do like your recommendation, so you obviously do have good taste. I’ll be checking into all of them. Getting an old Mercedes might be a good idea too, if it turns out the amount of audio improvement is not significant enough to warrant such a huge expenditure.

fritenheimer, Good thought, but after spending a lifetime in psychology related "helping" professions both in and out of Corrections, it’s time to help myself to some fu,n even if its’ on the selfish side. 

kennyc, thank you especially for the DAC recommends. I need to learn more about them. I’ll look up the cable recommends too. I was going to demo some Josehp Audio speakers prior to getting Magico A3’s. But having to go all the way from SW Virginia to Pennsylvania just to find dealer, plus get a demo, seemed prohibitive at the time This time I won’t be so lazy.

inna, I wonder how good the optional DAC and phono stage are on the Gryphon Diablo 333.ntegrated amp. It would be nice to have that all in one package rather than having to waste money on more expensive wires and cables for separates

I’ll read up on your other suggestions too. Thanks again for good advice.

btbluesky, it would be funny to get JBL speakers again. My first decent speakers many years ago were JBL Century 100’s. I’ll add your suggested JBL’s to my list to read up on.

overthemoon. thank you for multiple recommendations. That’s exactly what I’m looking for here. I’ll look into each one.

immatthew, thanks for the links. I’ll check each out.

Again thanks all,

Mike

Inna, I read a review on the Diablo Gryphon 333 when it first came out. Can’t remember who did the review or what if anything they said about it’s phono stage and DAC, or how they compared to other phono stage or DAC separates. Seems like they are a reputable company and have been around for a while, which has its’ appeal.

axeis1, no need to get insulting. I was thinking at a $100,000 price tag each component in my current system would probably need upgrading to fit in and not be a weak link. Maybe not. At age 71 I don’t need appreciating assets more than I already have. I don’t care that if I decide to spend that much on a new system if it loses half its value as I’ll never sell it, I held onto my previous system for some forty years, only upgrading that whole system to what I currently have a couple of years ago. At some point in your life you need to cash in your chips so to speak, and enjoy the benefits of what you worked for all your life.

scotwheel, no not yet, I’m only exploring my options at this point..

Mike

Inna, I'm mixing the Diablo Gryphon and the new 333 up.

Mike

laoman, as you pointed out I would appreciate if in replies if anyone would primarily address the questions originally posted, like most of you have. That would be most helpful and will keep this thread on track. Thanks for mentioning this laoman.

I did mix up the Gryphon Diablo 300 and the new 330 model. I’d read reviews of the Diablo 300 previously, but not the new Diablo 330 as I mistakenly stated. Inna called that one right. Sorry for the confusion.

occasionallycurrent, I honestly don’t want my listening room to look anything like a studio as it is my primary living space. But I am fully open to using what I have in terms of furnishings (many books on shelves furniture, rugs, artwork etc. as well as designing room dimensions and wall materials) to augment the acoustics.

Mike

Thanks for the tips Scott. I'll have to look up what a bass trap is.

Mike

hsounds, Trouble with the room decor is that I have mostly Federal style furnishings (mostly repros of an early American, roughly 1790-1820 style, for anyone not familiar) that doesn’t lend itself to what you are describing.

How would you tell if you had either Series 1 or 2 tweeters?. I will listen to the Magico S3’s.

niodari, If I can use rugs, furniture, plus lots bookshelves and some paintings to achieve the same ends that would be great.

mdalton, I will look at Ember Audio and Design, see what they carry. on their website and hopefully pay them a visit. Thanks for mentioning them. They’re about two and a half hours away, maybe an hour closer than DC.

Mike

mdalton, I'm looking forward to checking out your friends store next time I'm down that way. 

lancelock- thanks for the offer to check out your system. That would be fun if I drive up to the DC area to check out some new equipment. 

Maxwave, I’m still in the considering options phase and have not sold my house as of yet. I’ve been seriously considering becoming an expatriate, except that moving all my stuff to another country and dealing with buying a home, visas and the like is a pretty tall order for a 72 year old. So I’m standing pat at the moment in my current situation, without an extra 100 grand to throw around. Thanks for asking, though.

Mike