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Really Inexpensive Systems That Sounded Great?

I think there is a big difference between "cheap" and inexpensive. I have blown money on "cheap" cables and immediately regretted it when my ears started bleeding from the brightness in my digital components. I also don’t mean "bargains" like the time I scored $2000 speakers for $200 on Craigslist, that is basically luck.

I am talking about inexpensive (less than $1500) for a system that sounded really great to you.

I fell into a whole house audio system from DTS Play-Fi because I wanted to try and compare different brands. I picked up Play-Fi amps, preamps and active speakers made by Polk, Paradigm, Klipsch, Onkyo and DefTech all for less than $1000 a pop. For what it is, whole house audio/casual listening it sounds great.

What inexpensive great sounding systems have you tried?

 

kota1

Showing 1 response by waytoomuchstuff

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waytoomuchstuff
1,013 posts
 

The KLH Model 20 "Amazing Music Box" was my first experience with hifi sound. A buddy was telling me great his new stereo system sounded, so I decided to drop over after school for a listen. Here was this dinky little chassis with a turntable stuck in the middle of it with cutesy little knobs. Speakers were not small, but lacked the awesomeness I that I envisioned. The expectation of a mind-blowing musical interlude had already dropped to near zero as he cued up the music on this glorified table radio.

Then, he played WIth a Little Help from My Friends, a song I’d heard on my dad’s dual chassis 12" 4-way Admiral console stereo many times before. There was a delicacy to Ringo’s voice I hadn’t heard before. Hum? Other selections revealed details and the feeling of "being there". Okay. This was IT. I was hooked.

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