2. amps-preamps
  3. 1403859541

Upgrade advice needed

Let me tell you my story.

Piece by piece, I've been gradually building an audiophile quality system.

My system is a Toshiba Laptop w/ J River playing FLAC files into a Wyred 4 Sound DAC-2. The laptop is dedicated exclusively as a music server. I've stripped most of the background processes from the Laptop and disconnected from the internet. The only external connections are the USB line to the DAC and a Mouse connected by the other USB connector

I don't have a preamp, the W4S DAC has onboard volume control.

I'm using a NAD 356 BEE Integrated amp but bypassing the preamp module and routing the DAC input directly to the power amp. The speakers are Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grands. I use LAT International SS-800 MkII 6 ft speaker cords and Pangea AC-14, 14 Gauge after market power cords for the NAD amp and the DAC. I installed Albert Porter Outlets. I do not have any power conditioners.

I live in an apartment so room treatments and dedicated circuit wires are out.

Musical tastes are primarily chamber music and some classic jazz of 1950s and 60s.

I listen near field - 6 feet from speakers and prefer moderate volume. I don't have much interest in Home theater or television in general.

My biggest source of frustration is the reproduction of violins and pianos. I recently ripped a CD of Bachs Violin Sonatas by Arthur Grumiaux. The sound is so harsh a cannot listen for more then 10 minutes.

My issue with pianos is the percussive aspect of the instrument seems to overwhelm the musical tone. I have a collection of Chopin Polonaises and it sounds like the artist is playing the piano keys with a hammer.

Other instruments sound better -- Cellos, brass, woodwinds, vocals.

I'm wondering what the next step in my upgrade evolution should be. I been intrigued by the First Watt line of amps. They seem to be a good fit for me. But, I don't know, will that address my issues with violins?

I could spend up to 5K now and, perhaps a year from now, I could swing another 5K for the next component

I'd welcome any suggestions.
cjk5933

Showing 2 responses by zd542

zd542
5,339 posts
 
Reading through all of this, the only thing I can see for certain is that you really don't know what the problem is. Sure, it can be the cables, amp, preamp, room acoustics, tubes, power, sources or speakers, but unless you have other components laying around that you can swap out, you may want to start eliminating some of the potential causes to your problem.

Looking at your system, I would say that using your PC as a source is the most likely place for something to go wrong. I would start there. Take the CD's that you ripped and find a CD or DVD player that has a digital out. Most do and it doesn't have to be anything expensive. Try using that as a transport going to your DAC instead of the computer. Don't change anything else. After trying that, was it a step in the right direction?
zd542
5,339 posts
 
" 06-28-14: Zd542
Looking at your system, I would say that using your PC as a source is the most likely place for something to go wrong.

I take your point about the limitations of computer servers but I'm committed to this for the convenience and simplicity. This was my old general purpose laptop I repurposed as a server primarily by clearing most of the extraneous software and background processes.

I've resisted adding a SS hardrive to this laptop because my long term upgrade plan is to switch from a Wintel box to a Mac mini with external power and SS hardrive."

I didn't mean that using a PC was inferior compared to other sources. When I said that the computer was the most likely place that something could go wrong, I meant that literally. Its easy to get music out of a PC, but to get best results requires a lot of work. Ripping music, configuring the OS, picking up the right player (and setting it up properly), cables, AC products, different kind of file formats... Getting all of that stuff right is what I was talking about. In the end, the results shouldn't be inferior, or why bother?

How you go about fixing a problem like this is very important. You're either going to fix the actual problem, or you're going to cover it up. Some people like to through tubes and cables at problems. You can go that way if you want to. Its your choice. For me, the only way to fix a problem like this is to find out the root cause, and then fix that. Its not as easy, but I think you will be much happier with the results. That's why I said in my first post, that you have to isolate the problem. Looking at your last post, I still think this is a PC issue. I would still try a CD transport in place of the PC to confirm this is where the problem lies.
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