Sounds like you are already listening to some pretty kick-ass stuff. Stuff, anyway, that would kick my stuff’s ass.
I always thought that if I had a lot of disposeable cash to play with I’d want to get into some of Cary’s SET stuff. Back in the early ’90s I got a guy I worked with interested in tube gear and I turned him on to my dealer in Filthadelphia. The friend I worked with had bumped into the station from a station in California that had been closed and he had a lot of money (all things being relative) to play with, and, among other things, the dealer set him up with Metaphor speakers and a pair of Cary 805s. The system the dealer sold him cost around 20k, so I do not know what the appreciation on that over 30 years would be. (20k on "a stereo" was enough to blow everybody’s mind at work, however.) I always felt the dealer undersold him on the preamp and digital front end.
Anyhow, the Cary 805s have long been on my wish list, or even better, a pair of Cary 211 FEs. I suppose for digital I would go Esoteric, and any analogue front end I bought would be better than what I have now, wch is none at all.
But sadly, my wish list is all based on a fantasy I have never heard but only read about, so you can take all of that above with a grain of salt.
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I will be blunt, that's a bad title. Especially with your closing
hope I’m not sounding uppity here
But not for most people here, for whom a 25K speaker is budget find.
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Yours is an enviable situation! 👍
Do you like your Magicos? The speakers are such a key component, and if you like the Magico sound—I heard the A5 at a show, paired with a fine Constellation integrated amp (and Aurender streamer), and the sound was marvelous. So maybe consider upgrading your Magicos? And the integrated you have, or go to separates? Mono amps would allow you short speaker cables (less $$) if the amps are placed by the speakers, but it means more boxes.
Magico A5 review - AbSound
I love the Constellation integrated, but maybe yours is good still. Others: The ModWright KWH225i has a tube preamp stage and is sweet, and so is the AESTHETIX Mimas (also a tube pre stage) (Mimas). Both have enough power to drives the Magicos— approximately twice the power of your very nice Luxman (Luxman review)
If you do, I think you can do MUCH better with new speaker cables, like the AQ Mythical creatures series. Your system now is better than the Rocket 88s...a weak link maybe.
I’m not an analog guy (and maybe your analog rig needs no changes?). If you spend a lot of time listening to your CDs, I would say you definitely should invest in a good DAC, if you are using the one internal to your CD player. Do a search here...that is a whole ’nuther kettle of fish! You can easily spend $10-20k on a DAC if you go wild, but whether you need to, I can’t say. Maybe look for used deal?
Don’t rule out streaming ... it is amazing. I listen via Tidal using ROON (which I love dearly), using a Small Green Computers Roon server (all my CDs are ripped and stored on it too) and Sonore microRendu streamer. Trust me—streaming will blow your mind when you see how much music you will discover or re-discover via streaming and Roon. Aurender makes streamers that have a very good operating app too.
I think you can do many upgrades and even have money left over! Have fun!
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Keep the $100,000 and spend it on vacations, like experiences etc. it sounds like you already have the high end stereo covered off.
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How can you really do this now, you don’t even have a room and much of what determines what you use will depend on the room and it’s characteristics?
I’d recommend that you use that $100K, if necessary, to get a house with a room you can dedicate to an audio system. BTW, you have pretty good stuff now and I’d bet with a little effort you could get a pretty high class sound with minimum upgrades of equipment.
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Wait until you are in your new house.
Have a dedicated listenig room.
Room’s acoustic is half of the sound . So treat the room.
Offer yourself a trip to Axpona 2024.
Stop at Vinnie Rossi booth ; for amplifiers and preamplifier. Brama line 👍
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How can you really do this now, you don’t even have a room and much of what determines what you use will depend on the room and it’s characteristics?
GREAT point. Don't forget the use some (more than a little) of the money on building or treating your new listening room acoustically. Just as important as hardware upgrades.
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Consider better cable, especially the speaker cables. Two of the best I have testred Are Hijiri and QSA Lanedri. Your system is already very nice.
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Top gear is priority, but THE ROOM is what's gonna make it sound fabulous.
Some of those dollars should be allocated toward getting the room
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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
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Work with a dealer that is willing and patient in helping you build a system to your personal preferences. Going to a show like AXPONA would also give you a great exposure. With $100K to spend, I wouldn’t shy away to take a road trip or a flight to visit some of the top dealers in nation.
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........Ummmmm I would talk to your tax account first if you haven't already as there maybe somebody looking to take a certain percentage of that sale ......Mr Tax !
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Mike,
I I agree with the others- buy a home, then set up a dedicated listening room. Might be best to listen to your current system in your new room in order to know, hear the difference when you audition new equipment (not necessarily new since there’s so much good used equipment and it is a buyers market right now).
Get the room acoustics right first. Not too difficult to do with the right direction.
I just treated a dedicated room and it was affordable ($5k).
I have 2 other systems which I plan on selling. Excellent high end stuff. I appreciate having one good dedicated room.
Great idea to check out Axpona.
As to your question- the gear to consider is VAC, MBL, Magico, Alsyvox (might blow the budget), Cabasse… and so many others.
Cables and interconnects might be best to audition once you decide on speakers and power.
You’re in an excellent position. Take your time and try to visit other audiophiles.
Keep us posted.
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Your post is not uppity in any shape or form…. i suggest permanently ignoring any who react with such petty emotion…. i would color it green.
Is it a blessing ? Sure.
I wouldn’t at your budget level focus on a sea change… but i would suggest working the two transducers in your system and the room. For $35 K you could have monoblocks and speakers with 11 bands of EQ below 120 hz to work in just about ANY room you choose… Get into a better Lambda Lyra ( keep your Kleos as a backup ), get dual pivot on VPI ( can’t remember IF you pulled trigger on it. )… put some $ in the room….but don’t kill it w over treatment AS so many dedicated rooms do……
Finally have fun, enjoy the journey….
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Email me ,myself being an ex dealer I can lead youto dealers where you can get a solid 20%+ off on many brands of top brand equipment .
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Keep your speakers and get a Mark Levinson no526 pream and 534 Amp, that will set you back 50k, then upgrade to Cardas Clear cables another 10k and then treat your room another 2k. Then spend the rest on vacations and travel. Now you're set!
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I would definitely choose your home… with a great audio area, if you can. I accidentally bought a home with one of the best audio areas imaginable. Very much by accident. It has almost no symmetry… overall a big Z shaped room (s). Underground, so silent.
I am 71 as well. You want streaming… one old fart to another.
Anyway, take your current system… and then do what audiophiles do… find your weakest link and upgrade the heck out of it. I would definitely look at upgrading your preamp / amp to tube: Audio Research or VAC, or Conrad Johnson. Real musical stuff. Us old guys finally get it.
As you age, getting up and constantly changing records gets to be a real announce. You can get the same quality sound and not have to get up an futz every twenty minutes. You can see my solution under my user ID. Audio Research / Aurender… three heavenly hours a day and not up and down. I walk in the forest and bicycle for exercise.
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It seems that OP wants to change his system just for the sake of spending money.
It is very strange approach, to me at least.
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Filthadelphia
Some of us love Philadelphia. Are you 9 years old and/or just mean?
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Magneplanar 3.7i and a full Mark Levinson system powering them. #DreamSetup
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Find the right house with the right room for listening that will make you happy to spend time in first. You have good stuff to start with. See what the gear you have can do there first. Then consider what might be improved if needed.
Spending the money on gear too soon just because you can is probably not a wise way to go.
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Have a look at Stenheim speakers and a DarTzeel integrated amplifier.
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Only suggestion I would make is on the speakers. I demoed those speakers along with the Yamaha NS5000 and Vivid Kaya 45. The Yamaha and Vivid sounded way more coherent to my ears. I ended up with the NS5000.
The Vivid speakers are rather unique and a good way to spend a lot of money if you went up the lineup.
If I get a job in the next few weeks, I am going to spend money on 1 more audio item that I do not need. I am looking to get either the PlayBack Designs Dream DAC or the KRELL KSA-i400 amp (need to trade in a CODA #16 amp for the KRELL).
The DAC is likely the better choice because my #16 is already great to my ears. Both of these items were in my original audio master plan, but I would be wasting money because what I have now is very good. I expect to waste the money,
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As a general idea, I would first replace the amp and cables. If you like your speakers enough to keep them for a long time. If not, then you will have to build the whole new system. Not necessarily $100k system, especially if you buy some of the components and cables used. But again, first you have to decide about the speakers in the room they are going to be in. Do you only consider SS amplification or are open to tubes as well ? But I have no idea how Magico perform with tube electronics so it's not a suggestion.
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You are welcome. I wish I would take my own advice or be able to overcome indecision! I would like to do what you are doing. @tomic601 referred to speakers with equalization, and since he (and I) are Vandersteen owners (and he’s the relative expert) maybe he was talking about the Quatro CT, which have built-in powered woofers with their own equalization. Very easy to tune to your room, and easy to drive because the amp only drives the midrange and tweeters. Cheers.
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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. .
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I think you're already looking good there.
I would honestly not go through the headache of rebuilding a system from ground up. A lot of heart ache and stress can result, not worth it at age 71.
If anything, I would decide which part of the system is in need of an upgrade.
Maybe you need a better turn table or cart. Maybe you would benefit from going to the Magico S3 mk 3?
If you're really into digital and streaming, maybe get a better dac.
I would suggest small improvements rather than large sweeping changes.
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Sorry, @hilde45 , that was just airline industry talk and I didn't mean anything by it. That's just what we always called it (like LaGaurdia was "LaGarbage", and so on) and it just got to where it was second nature without even thinking about it. The dealer I was referring to was a guy from David Lewis Audio, btw.
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My own journey has been leading me inexorably down a “less is more” path, so higher efficiency speakers with fewer drivers and simpler crossovers, which of course opens up the possibility of lower-powered tube amplification. I find that this approach connects me to the music more effectively. I liken it to going to the Big Apple Circus instead of Barnum & Bailey. There’s an immediacy and intimacy to a small circus that is completely lost in a three-ring extravaganza.
So if you had come up to the Capital Audio Fest outside DC 3 weeks ago, at that budget I would have directed you to the Highwater Sound room, where they were running Cessaro Wagner II horns ($65k) with a TW-Acustics turntable, phono pre, pre and amps; no digital. Beautiful sounding room.
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I'd hope you've taken into account (no pun intended) capital gains tax, but I suspect you may have already.....if that's 100K$ afterwards, lucky you.. ;)
Yes, consider the new space before you leap Treat that beforehand with your existing, consider, and then go shopping.
Enviable position to be in. and sounds like you've got the rest of the 'bucket list' in progress or covered, so's best to enjoy the luxury of having already exemplary gear in hand that could enjoy some 'tweaks' b prior to making 'enhancements' on a larger scale....
By all means, focus on the new space first and foremost.
Then go nutz. *L* ;
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@skyscraper , At age 71 and with associated age related overall hearing degradation, you are not going to do a whole lot better sonically with a 100k than what you already have (Magico, Luxman, VPI, etc). Pack/take all your current audio equipment with you to your downsized house, continue to enjoy it and give 50k to your kid or grandkid (might help him buy a house!).
Use the remaining 50k to remodel/acoustically treat/create a great acoustic space for placing equipment in the new house. This would be a much better upgrade sonically than buying the same thing in different chassis/packaging/etc and different wires (over and over...hoping for some sonic miracle).
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☝ That’s actually good advice.
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I’d suggest spending some time in the Chicago area (or similar large market). With a little planning you could knock out some great auditioning in a couple days to see what you like. I’ve been able to listen to some great combos there such as Raidho & Absolare, Sonus Faber Stradivari & Boulder, Borresen & Aavik, Dali Kore & McIntosh, and Rockport/Estelon & Vitus Audio.
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Nothing at all uppity about your question and if you spend a lot of time with your system, not a bad way to invest your gain. I take your point that you don't want to get into streaming, etc. so will try to give you some thoughts that are responsive to the question you asked.
if you like the magico sound the first thing I would consider is going up a rung in terms of quality while staying with Magico. Maybe consider investing in the S5, which I have heard and consider to be outstanding. That way, you are not taking a plunge into the unknown, you are getting a speaker that will be similar to what you have except more and better. I've recently had a similar experience with Sonos Faber. I had the Serafinos and first considered just moving up to Amati in the same line. This did produce a solid gain, but when I auditioned the next level up into the reference line, the improvement in sound quality was exponential and for me was the best allocation of my upgrade budget.
that would still leave you with a good chunk of change to experiment with other upgrades, but I think you might find the biggest gain by focusing on the speakers first. after that, I would consider a high-end DAC. I have a DCS, which I like very much, but most everyone will probably endorse whatever brand they have. I think there are lots of good choices, and if you have a chance to visit some dealers, you can give yourself some options.
you have a fun problem to solve. good luck!
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Lol personally I would look at top shelf used equipment. 100k will get you some of the best in the used market. Personally a set of canary grand reference monoblocks 8 300b tubes in each one plus there top dog 4 box preamplifier. Likely keep your speakers and get a top of the range front end for at least one source that is your favorite. The last is go way up the food Chain for wire.
You are right you cannot take it with you and if you get some enjoyment out of it in your later years that is just wonderful. The kids and grand kids can make there own money.
Regards
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Head to Miami for much needed warmth and stop into this place and hear what a room can sound like.
www.audiosalon.net
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@OP - Thats already a very good system. The weak points are the CD player and cables. If you can, try to audition the Esoteric K-01XD CD/SACD. Also, as already suggested, better AQ cables will deliver a significant improvement. After that, perhaps look at the Turntable.
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Spend it on a dedicated listening room. Maybe a small addition to your new home, designed for excellent acoustics, convenient wiring, sound-proofing ...
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I love how nobody actually answered the question and became realtors instead or told him to buy some crap tube Cary midfi or said his current set is great when it isn’t because he is not happy! So in my next post I will answer the question!
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Fun post. Rockport speakers with a Gryphon Diablo 300
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It is impossible to build a high -end system for the average dude , as i was and as i am myself , in few months with ONLY and MERELY money, even a big amount of money ...
Why ?
First, the fun is in the learning curve which go slowly up ...
The fun is not buying BEFORE knowing what to do ... It is a recipe for deception and frustration and the reason why many audiophiles enter in this hobby , upgrading without end each year or many times a year ... I know because i do it , at low cost in my case BEFORE knowing what to do because i would have learn it ...
Second, what the learning curve is made of then ?
Nope it is not the user manual of the gear pieces you will buy ... Not even the EQ manual ... 😊
It will be first discovering and reading about compatibility and potential synergy between gear , this is the relatively short studying purchasing parts before buying ; it takes few months of studying or listening on store if you can ... But knowing nothing and going to listen in store is dangerous for premature buying ... Studying statistically with notes reviews and articles about audio BEFORE going listening is better ...Takes few months studying and dreaming ... Dreaming is fun...
Then after buying a minimally synergetical system , the real hard study and experiments begin : read about the working controls of the mechanical (vibration-resonance) , electrical ( noise floor levels controls of the gear-room-house) and especially acoustical working dimensions of any system ( by acoustical i dont means only room acoustics but acoustics concepts in articles and books , you will not discovered this in most audio magazine trust me save acoustics panels publicities ) ..
Then you will discover that the fun part of this hobby save for music listening is not the thrill to try a new component which is short lived most of the times , but instead the learned ability to integrate it really well in your system-room-house-ears...
Everybody will advise you about a piece of gear ... My advise is buy nothing study before ... Enjoy what you already have and practice possible low cost improvement on it and try to improve your room with what you have FIRST ... Try vibrations-resonance controls of your speakers ... Read about that dont buy spikes and dont call it job done ...it is not job done ...read about not only isolation but coupling-decoupling methods ..
I can assure you that for any system at any price there is no comparison between any system right out of the box and the same system well embedded in the mechanical working and workable field of the desk-room-system , well embedded in the electrical noise floor of the system-room-house , well embedded in the acoustical field between speakers-room-ears/brain ...
But doing that without studies and experiments is impossible ...😊
The false promise of many reviewers is buy this perfect product, plug it and you will need anything else ... Marketing necessary lies for the obligation to sell ...Or enthusiastic advice from audiophiles about a piece of gear, good or not, but a piece who dont know yet to integrate in your world anyway, because you did not any studies BEFORE ...
Psycho-acoustics rule the gear design and results, never the reverse ...
Audio hobby is not about price tags but about acoustics ( not only mere room acoustic by the way ) and DSP as the BACCH filters and mechanical control of the room ...
And the impact of vibrations-resonance uncontrolled, of a too high noisde floor and of a bad acoustic room is staggering ... Unimaginable BEFORE the comparison with the reverse : a well done triple embeddings set of controls ...
Good luck ... And my best wishes ...
P.S. to be frank i did all the above because i did not have the money neither any other choices ... Studying and experimenting was my only solution at low cost to create a real audiophile experience with the right components for sure ... The amount of time and hard work was very high for me ... I could say that with 100,000 bucks i would had go to the easy deceptive solution you contemplate : buying ...
The truth is disturbing , but i put it for you ...
But you can buy a 100,000 bucks system not so good , not well embedded, and call it perfect instead of taking the time to study and experiment and understand ... ... Many do it ... 😊
They will call any other systems under 100,000 as mine , trash .... Dont imitate them ...But for sure ignorance is bliss...
I forgot to say that there exist a shortest road now i was not knowing existed at the times ... Read about the BACCH filters by Dr.Edgar Choueiri ... It will shorten the learning task ...And buy these filters dac for your actual system to begin with nothing else and study it ......All stereo system are flawed because of crosstalk uncontrolled effect on the ears/brain , learn why ...It will help you a lot better than buying a 25,000 bucks amplifier illusion of high end or help you better than any piece of costly gear advices ... ...😁😊
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Good luck on your journey.
I would enjoy the process - you earned it. I'm fortunate enough to have a dealer I trust to work with and it allows me the opportunity for home auditions and even occasional opportunities at demos.
There's a few upgrades I was pessimistic about - cables and racks.
- Power cables - I upgraded one cable from Venom to Alpha V2...holy crap.
- Racks - HRS isolation rack was equivalent to a turntable upgrade
Good luck!
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I would start with a proper integrated. $15,800 with no DAC for a Mola Mola Kula. It’s the best I heard and not just for the money! I would spend about 2k more on a kubala sosna elation power cable. $4000 more on kubala sosna temptation speaker cables and interconnect. Your Shunyata can’t handle this amp and you best plug it into the wall.
Sonus Faber Amati will be 36 grand and give you more bass than your Magico and destroy them in dynamics and look better. To beat the sonus faber we need 60k to 75k for Vivid Audio Giya G2 series 2 (mine speakers) or Wilson Audio Alexia-V for 70k! So you will love these things! If I had a bigger room I would have went with the Sonus Faber myself.
Dac easy full stop Lampizator Baltic 4 is perfect for $6800 you will not beat that unless you’re spending over 25 to 50k on a DAC like a Horizon or Poseidon. The Mola Mola Tambaqui is too analytical and you need big money for a DCS Vilvaldi Apex. The this Lampizator beats a DCS Rossini level btw to give you context.
Streamer Auralic Ares G2.2 for 6099. It’s a beast in a box! Use wired even though it is still good on WiFi and the lighting app is the best. You will not beat this unless you step up to an Aurender N20 and spend double. For the Lampizator don’t use a usb cable use a Shunyata Sigma V2 AES cable for 2610 for 1.5m. The usb board is really not as good as this unless you do crazy high frequency dsd! The AES is superior until you go to the big money streamers 25-30k range then they are more optimized for usb to overcome the marmite usb board Lampizator uses! (Also the more expensive Lampizator Posiden and Horizon have better usb boards but you don’t need to go there if you buy this cable.
Assuming 7% taxes we have 15k left for vinyl. This is easy your cartridge will be an Hana Umami Red for 3950… you won’t beat it unless you spend over 10-20k and it will barely be beat! It’s my favorite cartridge.
Phono stage is also easy Parasound JC3+ phono. $2200 don’t laugh for this system it will be perfect. It beats phono’s I heard for quadruple the price.
Turntable I would get a Rega planar 10 for $6345. You won’t beat that beast unless you spend over 25-100k. It also has the cables built in!!! So you save on an interconnect. Get a kubala sosna temptation rca set from parasound to Mola Mola Kula for $1500 ish. (The phono in the Mola Mola is not as good as the parasound and 4k module.
we are at 99k ish after taxes for the extra grand buy 3 GR Research b24 power cables for the phono, DAC and streamer. They are about 380 a pop and you need to spend huge money to beat them. We are at 100k your system will destroy things 3-4x more.
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+1 testpilot
The best advice you are gonna get.
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If you like the A-3’s, check out the A-5’ with some better speaker cables.
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+1 Maxwave See what you have to work with once you're in your new home then put your new system together. And most of all have FUN doing it! 😊👍
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@immatthewj
that was just airline industry talk and I didn't mean anything by it.
Understood. Thanks.
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How about getting an Audio Note system? There are dealers who can help you out.
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