How do you determine how much to spend on speakers


Hello all,

I am just starting out in this HI-FI stuff and have a pretty modest budget (prospectively about 5K) for all. Any suggestions as to how funds should be distributed. At this stage, I have no interest in any analog components. Most notably, whether or not it is favorable to splurge on speakers and settle for less expensive components and upgrade later, or set a target price range and stick to it.

Thanks
krazeeyk

Showing 2 responses by danoroo

I have never understood the relevance of the phrase "garbage in, garbage out" in these types of discussions. If a $1000 to $1500 integrated amp is producing "garbage out", then you were ripped off. The THD on a Yamaha a-s1000 integrated, which sells for around $1200 is less than 0.02%. The only thing that a more expensive amp might do is play louder. Louder, not cleaner.
I think the ratio between the costs of the components changes depending on the budget for the entire system. For example, if I were going to build an audio system with $1000 I would spend about $400 on speakers, $400 on amplification and the rest on a disc player.
If I had a 5K budget, I would spend about 3K to 3.5K on speakers, 1K to 1.5K on amplification and the rest on a disc player.
It seems to me that as the budget increases a larger percentage of the total cost should go toward the speakers.