My ears are ready to retire!


After many many years of owning great audiophile gear, my ears are ready to retirešŸ˜€. I am in the process of downsizing my home and my audio equipments. I am now looking for a simple, enjoyable, good sounding and maybe all in one system to play mostly digital music. Any recommendations will be very much appreciated.Ā 
128x128analoguefan
Your ears served you well all these years, and so in retirement you want to reward them with a lifetime sentence of abysmal low rent digital? Man talk about robbing the pension fund! If I was your ears, I would go on strike. Refuse to work. Don't laugh. They just might.
I'm with MC. Downsizing is a mistake, you should be upgrading! A nice tube integrated with some tower speakers could be a replacement for a bigger system, maybe even better than you have now.Ā Ā 
You say all in one, do you mean speakers too OP?

I'm a Mac guy, They have desktop units. How about this.

https://www.crutchfield.com/S-h6POyratNNN/p_958RS200/McIntosh-RS200.html?XVINQ=GLX&awkw=82254542...

When I get there (and I am), weight and fishing through wires isn't something I want to be doing.

Have my colostomy bag drop off behind 50,000.00 worth of gear.
I ain't gonna be able to talk the cleaning person in to that one..:-)

All may fail on this ol body, BUT as long as I can see the light is on the silly thing, I'll stick around.. I'll be just like the RCA terrier setting there listening to my master, speaking through the old Edison TT, come home, ALL IS WELL..

Enjoy...

Regards
Really not much to go on here. Ā What sound characteristics are most important to you, how big will the room be, and whatā€™s your budget? Ā The more info you provide the better the recommendations youā€™ll get. Ā 
Naim, man oh man that is a clean little unit.. A single speaker setting to one side.

I bet it does sound good, looks easy too..

Regards
These from Ferguson Hill are fabulous. FH007. I have two sets, one connected to the TV, the other in the office. The accuracy of the wide range horns is spooky. Ā https://www.fergusonhill.co.uk

Before buying my first set I range the number on the website and it was the designer himself who picked up the phone. Always a good sign.Ā 
Review:Ā https://www.fergusonhill.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/HiFi-Pig-Review-May-2016-copy.pdf
"...Have my colostomy bag drop off behind 50,000.00 worth of gear..."

Thanks for that visual...NOT.Ā  The worse part of having a colostomy bag for women is trying to find a matching pair of colostomy shoes...I'll be here all week, try the veal...Ā Ā 
Nami Uniti Atom and a nice pair of bookshelf speakers or small floorstanders.
In addition to Naim Uniti Atom I'd encourage you to explore the Moon by Simaudio's ACE.

Good luck in the next stage of your retirement!Ā Ā 
This is the system I want to set my parents up with. Itā€™sĀ as barebones as you can get. Easy to setup, easy to position and a small footprint.Ā 

LS50 Wireless II + KEF KC62 Subwoofer.
You may not need the subwoofer though.
Another option if you want something less expensive...

Dynaudio Xeo series(depending on size of room) and a Bluesound Node 2i. Just set this up in the garage and very happy with the results.

Good luck!
I can 2nd the Dynaudio Xeo (I have a set of 10ā€™s I am going to list in the classifieds tomorrow) and I will add to it a set of KEF LSX (I have a set of those I am going to list also), they both are very dialed in for digital streaming and will fill a small-small/med room with great sound.
Take a break from the analog grind. Washing records, up every 20 minutes and reset the needle...it is a drag. I have a love affair with my Bricasti, it serves as a preamplifier. Very high end gear...
My suggestion is to get a Sony Walkman and Grado GR10E earphones. The sound is excellent and portable. Ā If you get them from Amazon and they disappoint, a full return is easy.
from someone who owns two ( and a bunch of high end analog gear ), the NAIM Atom paired with a nice pair of even moderate 86-87db speakers will satisfy. Easy and there is a World of music out there.....
have fun, enjoy retirementĀ 
For older ears, I strongly recommend tone controls & a loudness switch on your amp.
Your ears will feel like they are 15 yrs old again :-)
Astonishing the disrespect some posters show on this forum. The OP specifically asks about a simpler system for listening to digital. Two of the first three responders have the gall to tell him what an idiot he is for making his decision. @russ69Ā  and @millercarbonĀ we already know how you feel but your words are totally disrespectful to the OP. Didnā€™t your mother teach you if you canā€™t say something nice then STFU?

Matt
"...Didnā€™t your mother teach you if you canā€™t say something nice then STFU?..."

Yes she did. Being retired and at one time downsizing the advice I gave was the best advice I could give (sometimes good advice is not what you want to hear but it's still good advice). My advice was in no way disrespectful nor did I tell him he was an idiot, it was offering hope and perhaps a different way to look at things. Sorry it didn't meet your standards.Ā  Ā  Ā 
If money is no problem the RAAL sr1 headphone , or the Berning headphone amplifier with a top headphone would be my dream in the same situation....Downsizing in gear but not in S.Q. quality....

My best to you
@russ69Ā  - OP said, ā€œI am now looking for a simple, enjoyable, good sounding and maybe all in one system to play mostly digital music. Any recommendations will be very much appreciatedā€ and you tell him, ā€œdownsizing is a mistakeā€.

How in any manner is your advice in keeping with what the OP asked or helpful to them? Ā Heā€™s very specific about what advice he is looking for and you tell him heā€™s making a mistake. How is that not disrespectful?

Matt
"...and you tell him, ā€œdownsizing is a mistake ...How is that not disrespectful..."

Well Matt, I am mostly here to share my experience with others with the hope they find what I say is useful. I gave my honest advice as to the way I might tackle the question/problem and that was to state that maybe an integrated amp and a pair of loudspeakers might be one way to go as did some others. Perhaps I am too blunt and I could have explained in detail that I at one time had tried to downsize and I was extremely disappointed in the result and perhaps someone else could learn from my experience and not make the same mistake I made. I spoke plainly, as I often do, but my only hope is the OP will at a minimum think about what I have offered or just dismiss my idea if it isn't useful for his situation. That's enough thread jacking for tonight, I'll move on...Ā Ā 
Iā€™d suggest you log onto the ASR website, in order to help guide you to your next point(s) of reference:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php

Very cleansing, gets you back to a rational approach to musical enjoyment.
a minority opinion here, coming from somebody who dislikes the bose corporation. that said, i was surprised at how neutral and actually GOOD the bose SR-1 cinemate system sounds [with every kind of music] in every room i've tried it in. it uses semi-automated room correction to tailor its sound for the local environment. it is a compact soundbar unit with a wireless compact bass bin that must be placed in the general vicinity of the soundbar [or else the bass becomes localizable due to a relatively high crossover point and perhaps a bit of odd-order harmonic distortion] but properly dialed in, [with the right recordings] can fool the ear into believing the whole front section of the room is nothing but sound. you can sit or stand anywhere and the instrumental locations stay put at any listening position. it does not shriek or boom if adjusted correctly, and is possibly the best sound most folks [outside of the rarified 1% environ$ of audiogon]. the bass is usable down to the low 30s, the trebles are smooth enough, no peakiness. they don't make 'em anymore so if you want to try one, ebay is where it's at.Ā 
+1 on the Kef LS50 Wireless II suggestion. If you want the bass the KEF KC62 Subwoofer or any small sub with a wireless option will help cut the cable clutter.

Please pay no attention to the arrogant suggestions to invest more into HiFi gear that your (as with us all) ever diminishing hearing is unable to take advantage of anyway.

If you haven't already invested in Roon, it might be a good option to manage your digital collection and Tidal/Qobuz streaming.
Musikhead

I keep watching this venue and occasionally find some good info.Ā  Not sure it's worth reading through all this infighting, though.

I'd take a look at the AVM all-in-ones.Ā  Just add speakers.

Kindness and politeness rules.

"down sizing my home"Ā  Does this mean from a 10x16 listening room to a 10x16 studio apartment?Ā  My divorce made that happen to me.
Looking at the system in your profile.Ā  Ā Appears to be a good system.
I would keep it.Ā  All paid for!Ā  Make them work in the new space.Ā  Trim down by selling the vinyl reproduction components and the Magnepans.Ā  Keep the Digital stuff, Intergrated amp and Fynes.

Sorry to tell you "Once an Audiophile, Always an Audiophile".Ā  Can't make your ears "retire".
I thought I could get by with the FM off my smartphone and my computer speakers to listen to NPR. Talk radio!Ā  Nope.Ā 
I thought I could get by with an old Luxman intergrated, B&W bookshelf speakers and my dvd player to play cds.Ā  Nope.
I found there are limits to what my Ears will accept of lowering my audio standards.Ā  I had to spends more than I wanted to compromisingly satisfy it.Ā Ā You already have that system.Ā  Make it work.Ā  And be okay with the compromises.Ā  It still will be a darn good system.
Thank you all for great recommendations and for sharing with me your thoughts on downsizing.
Hello,
Before this turns into a 1000 post thread can you give exact details?
room size
type of music
what hour keeping
book shelf or floor stand speakers
close to wall or in the room
tube/ SS/ or a mix
used with tv or just music
color of products
and the final cost $$$.
Right now Iā€™m at a Amazon Echo $100
Their was a good post about detailing the questions in the past.Ā NAD M33 with Revel B126 and matching subs $13000. Blue sound built in. There is a new usb card and HDMI card options if you want video switching. Runs cool and speakers are beautiful.Ā Hegel series in charcoal or flat white with a Lumin or less expensive BlueSound Node option with KEF LS50 Meta and the new sub that is 12ā€x 12ā€x 12ā€ that goes down to 20hz in its sleep. The KEFs and BlueSound can be ordered in black or white. Starting at $6500 with Hegel20. If you are in the Chicagoland area I go to my
Local store:Ā https://holmaudio.com/
They can ship. If not please find your local brick and mortar store. I hope this helped to start the journey.Ā 
I agree with cakyol

A ā€™Loudnessā€™ fletcher munson automatic filter boosting bass and highs progressively only at low volumes would be a great feature to have, for any ears actually. For me, at low volumes, it preserves involvement with the music.

Most modern equipment, say that very interesting McIntosh unit, other choices, do not incorporate ā€™loudnessā€™.

Chase RLC-1 Remote Line Controller has ā€™loudnessā€™ built-in

It would not work with modern wireless, however any source via RCA cables could go to it first just for itā€™s automatic loudness feature, then to your system, whatever you buy, IF it has an RCA input option

This one is sold, but it shows it well

https://reverb.com/item/12411621-chase-rlc-1-remote-line-controller

They pop up on eBay, none listed now, it can easily be added later if one shows up.




Hello,
CAKYOL suggested tone control. If you need this I suggest the Parasound Hint6. Fully loaded integrated amp. It has a basic phono stage and the remote lets you turn on and off the sub. Great for apartment living. You still need a streamer- BlueSound Node or Lumin. And speakers. Another option is DALI speakers. Very, Very good for the money. Oberon 7s speakers. Total cost without a sub is around $5000 plus tax. It has a built in crossover for the sub. I still say the KEF kc62 sub since it is so small. $1500 for the sub.Ā https://holmaudio.com/
Get the Vinnie Rossi integrated amp with built in DAC is you need that.Ā  Not cheap but one of the best built and sounding components I have heard and I build audio components.Ā  I just don't build integrated (at least not yet)!

Lower priced would be Electrocompaniet, Naim, and Luxman.

Happy Listening.
I recommend the Gold Note IS-1000. Integrated amp with DAC and Roon-ready Streamer and a pretty nice phono stage built-in. Choose your speakers and you are ready to go...
Sorry for some of the ridiculous comments people made regarding your question but if you read this forum much it will not come as much of a surprise.Ā 
Sounds like a Roon subscription with either a Tidal or Qobuz source
might be the best. I have no idea what the best sounding, simplified system is these days but I think you can get by with one box-integrated,DAC, Streamer, storage? . Add a 2 way pair of
speakers and you are done. Maybe even wireless. Supposed to be getting better these days.Ā 
Please keep us posted with what you decide to buy. We are all
on the same path.
First task is to choose speakers. The rest is easy.
Least expensive set up that I can think of is Dynaudio active speakers, Burson Audio dac/preamp/headphone amp and Mac mini computer. And a few good cables.
...just to muddy up the conversation.....

Here's one commentary about why some prefer tubes vs. SS....

https://www.wired.com/story/the-brains-background-noise-may-be-meaningful-after-all/?bxid=5c49090a24...

When you get to mid-article, there's a reference to a study on 'vacuum tube noise'; later a reference to nVidia (the software company) taking an interest in the research....

That, and the reference to audio begins to make this individual wonder if tube 'noise' rubs some the Right Way as opposed to SS gear....

You may prefer tubes because you can't help it psycophisilogically...conversely, SS....

The same may apply to 'sources'....you don't like streaming/CDs'/anything digital because it rubs your brain the 'wrong way', much like your cat.

*L*Ā  I like that concept....You like what you like because you're wired that way from a DNA kink....as opposed to being 'anti-progress'...*L*

"We can make an app for that..." *LOL*
" ā€˜Yes. Someoneā€™s noise is another oneā€™s signal.ā€™ ā€

....just as I suspected....*smirk*
However, ideologically I agree with those who say never downgrade. You might have smaller room in the future and may need different speakers and amp but that doesn't have to be downgrading, just changing.
I asked @analoguefan for more details before because Iā€™d really like to help if I can, but thereā€™s still nothing and Iā€™m not going to waste my time making recommendations that may be totally off the mark because we have absolutely no parameters to go by. Ā Maybe you could see your way to at least sharing your budget, or is even that a national secret?
@innaĀ ...One could call it/that 'cross-grading'; adaptation to a new set of variables.Ā  Keep the TT, the cart(s), the CD, the streamer...whatever supplies ones' input....and, of course, an outstanding computer.
(I'm not a Mac fan, but to each....)

Driver development and variations on the theme have been underway for awhile now.Ā  The LS50s' are addressing a number of the limitations of the 'radiating element' of a speaker, which has happened in the past.
The port is purported to have some novel features, but the design is still a 'polished' ducted port phase inverter cabinet.
Time and market will decide if it's a hit or a miss. ;)
The price is attractive for a 'high-end' smaller unit anyway...

(I'd opt for the sub, but that's just me....I like the 'tactile nature' of bass...)

Have you experienced them?Ā  The +2 suggests a Yes...
asvjerry, right, cross-grading. Point is to maintain course no matter what.
Here is your system.

Streaming.
Nad pre...(I use a 7130 Receiver).
Carver m200t amp
Suca tube pre amp as buffer between pre and amp..(45.00 on Amazon)
Arcam Rblink Btooth DAC.
Important! Use an Ipad Mini for Music Playing.
PSB 300 or 300i Bookshelf Speakers.
Play them into room. Sound 10 times their size.



I'd also recommend the Naim.. Uniti Nova.. and good speakers, all you'll need.Ā