the cart or the horse?


I currently own a Parasound ZAMP, Denon PRA-1500 preamp, and Omega 7's speakers. I stream through a Bluesound Node 2i.  All this resides in a home office of approx 15x10. 

I am not happy with the sound and do not know which component to attack first. There is a lack of presence and body and the sound is well.......boring. I listen to jazz at low volumes and would like your opinion on what to work on first. 

Replace amp,preamp, or speakers? The cart or the horse? My budget is very modest but am willing to go step by step. 

All my best,

Andy

wavendon

Showing 2 responses by reubent

@wavendon - As has already been stated, replacing your pre-amp and amp with a quality integrated amp would likely pay immediate dividends. As also stated, a low(ish) powered tube integrated should have enough power with your Omega speakers, in an office system, listening to jazz at low volumes. Lastly, with a budget of $2500 you should be able to pull this off, no problem.

A couple of questions that might help folks make specific recommendations:

1. Do you have a preference for tube vs. solid state? There are arguments for either.

2. Do you require remote control?

3. Do you have any location/space considerations?

4. Will you ever have a need for a built-in phono pre-amp, i.e. do you plan on ever adding a turntable for playing vinyl?

5. Lastly, do you want to go all-in on your $2500 budget, or would you prefer to try something less expensive, then re-sell it if it doesn’t float-your-boat and try something else?

IMHO, you could get something for less than $1000 that will better what you’re using now. I believe a Rega io or the new Rega Brio would suffice. And I’m fairly certain a Croft integrated would sound great, but no remote, plus dual-mono volume control knobs. So, there are options depending on what you want/need.

Good Luck! I hope you find something that makes your system sing!

If it were me (it’s not) and I already owned those Omega speakers, I would be looking at one, or more, of these integrated amps to replace your existing pre-amp and amp:

Musical Paradise MP-301 MK3 Mini Tube Amplifier

Rega Brio (current model, not the Brio-R or original Brio) or Rega io for less $.

Dayens Menuetto Integrated Amplifier

They are all WAY below your max budget. Heck, I might even buy a couple of different ones, do a shootout, then return (if they have a trail period/policy) or re-sell the loser.

The Rega is probably the most popular, but it’s also the most expensive. I own a Rega Elicit-R and I love the Rega house sound. However, I might be tempted to try the other 2 based on their prices.