Hello thermionicemission. Happpy Holidays! Please understand that we are all at the mercy of the recording engineer who provided us with whatever recordings we play. The fact that your system sounds great with some music, but not with others is proof that it's telling you the truth. Please remember that 400 watts is only 10 db louder than your 40 watts. It's how easily an amp can produce the power you normally use that matters. With inefficient speakers, 40 watts may not be enough. But, most speakers are in the 86 - 92 db range of sensitivity and 40- 60 watts is plenty unless you are trying to annoy the neighbors. Most of us listen at between 0.5 and 5 watts. A 20 db higher peak requires 50 to 500 watts! Is that news? Try some recordings of music you like that get excellent reviews. Do they sound great? If they do, your system is working well. Better recordings are cheaper than new electronics. I've got a lot of old recordings. Lots of stuff recorded off the air. Some of it sounds poor, but I like the music or the performance. I can overlook the "sound" because I like the material. When your sweetie has a cold, you still want to hear her voice, yes? Keep smiling! Enjoy the music.
Recommendations Wanted
Hello All,
Would like everyone’s opinion on speaker replacement as I feel it is the weak link in my system. Currently I am running a McIntosh 240 amplifier, Fisher CX-2 preamplifier, and a Linn Sondek turntable. Speakers are B&W 703 S1 and 90 db efficient from about 2009.
Sometimes the system will create that magic and disappear in the room, but mostly not. I listen at 7 feet away in a 16x22x10 room. My choice of music is jazz lp’s and some lighter rock lp’s. I occasionally like to listen at higher volumes so somewhat efficient speakers may be best. This especially since I only have 40wpc of tube power. The budget is 5k new or used.
Thanks,
Rob