The Next Step - what would you do?


Dear Audiogoners,

i'm sitting here listening to my setup, and realising my last thread has lost relevance.

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&1260210396&read&keyw&zzthiel=cs0=5

i have a choice to make now, after about 15 years of slow, consistent upgrading. i need to take my system to the next level. i'm sure we've all been there at one point or another. so my current system is:

Pass Labs Aleph 5
Pass Labs D1
CEC CD2100 [running Supra AES/EBU]
Thiel CS 0.5
MIT MH-750 speaker leads
budget XLR leads otherwise

so i see the choices as follows:
1. get an amp with more current, and bigger thiel speakers
2. move to bigger, more sensitive speakers [spendor SP100, big proacs]
3. get a new girlfriend

all perfectly viable choices, but i'm sure both 1. or 2. would be less expensive. i've run the gamut of musical styles, but as i get older, and my hifi becomes more resolving, i find myself drawn to recordings of un-amplified instruments, such as old jazz recordings. still, i like a little thump now and then, any system should be reasonably flexible.

So, Audiogoners, what would YOU do, and why??

all the best!
David
skickaskinka

Showing 3 responses by knownothing

Number 3 sounds good in theory - otherwise I vote for Number 2 or Tonywinsc's suggestion - or Number 2 and Tonywinsc's suggestion.
I would go with the different speakers. It is not just a matter of efficiency or power. It is a matter of what sounds like "music". The ProAc's and Spender's sound more musical to me than Thiels, and I believe would mate with the Pass electronics quite well.

Better interconnects wouldn't hurt either...
Your A/B/C/D-in-your-home idea is terrific and the best (only?) way to really evaluate gear IMHO.

With all I said above, the Thiel CS1.6's are hard to knock, very accurate but a little bass shy. Often however, honesty in music reproduction can get in the way of enjoyment and involvement, and a hump here or a dip there in the grequency response actually sounds more "musical" in many rooms and to many ears. The difference between theory and practice I guess...

I would prioritize your search this way:

Spendor S8
ProAc Studio 140
ProAc Response 2.5 (Bass King, tonal champs, but will never disappear in the room)
ProAc Response D15

I don't know anything about the Spendor S9.

The Thiels would either fall at the top or the bottom of this group, depending on your personal tastes. Given that you feel your current pair of Thiels are underpowered, probably towards the bottom with your existing set up. Just one person's opinion.