My money would be on room treatments, easy. 1-2k of very wise investment.
where best to spend $2-3000 upgrade dollars in my system
Looking for help/opinions on where to best spend upgrade dollars in my system and recommendations.
Here's my current set up:
Musical Fidelity A300CR dual mono power amp
Musical Fidelity A3.2CR dual mono preamp
Musical Fidelity A5 CD Player
Kyocera T910 digital tuner
VPI Aries Scout with Dynavector MC 2x20 cart
Klipsch Cornwall II speakers
Also using Monster Cable Z2 Reference speaker cable, Cardas micro-twin phono cable, Van Den Hul D102MKIII cable for CD, and KimberKable PBJ for the rest
Lastly, using Furman Elite 15DMi line filter/power conditioner
Look forward to hearing ideas, thanks
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+1 for Tom Carr. Check out the HFT's offered by Synergistic Research. https://highend-electronics.com/products/sr-hft-high-frequency-transformer The HFT's are NOT subtle. Also, be sure to check out SR's Blue fuses ... and then treat all of your connections with Tim Mrock's Total Contact. Here's where to order: https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lis8g7ac-perfect-path-technologies-total-contact-electrical-contac... Frank |
Room treatment, room treatment, room treatment. Cover all 1st reflection points of ceiling, front wall, side walls, rear wall. I'm very happy with Primacoustic panels, purchased from Sweetwater Sound. Great product and service. Biggest bang/buck by far. Also very happy with Anticables cables and ICs. Will soon be ordering their power cords. Tom |
Now that you have listed the room size, I can better understand your statement concerning low listening levels. The Cornwalls would tend to dominate a space of that size and would be limited in their ability to perform at their best, not having sufficient breathing room. It would seem to be a rather "live" space from your construction details. Room treatments are always a "best buy" as they will stay with you throughout and hardware changes. If speakers are in your future, twoleftears has provided some good reccomendations. Also add Harbeth to that list. Might be worth while to look into standmounts/monitors for that size room. |
Everyone's preferences (I repeat, everyone's) in speakers will be different. I think they inspire more loyalty and dislike that any other component. Ask a question on the internet, and 12 people will reply with 17 different answers. That being said, since you asked, my own personal "favs" are ProAc, PMC, Spendor, Vienna Acoustics, Silverline. And given your previous experience with Klipsch, I strongly recommend you take a look at Spatial Audio. Their M3s can be had, used, in your price bracket. They might be just the ticket. |
@mattmiller thanks for the suggestions on cables. I do know cables can make a big difference. I do not feel like my system is broke at all but always interested in tweaks and upgrades which may be that "bit of magic". I'm going to look at room treatments. for the room questions/comments, my listening room is 12x12, laminate floors with a large rug in the middle, wood paneled walls, plaster 9' ceiling. |
Having owned Cornwalls twice in my audio journey, I agree that they like to be played at more realistic (live) levels, where they really come to life. So many variables to take into account before any change. For instance, How large is your room? How close do you sit to your speakers? Concerns of noise transmission to other living spaces? Type of music most often played? ETC. Room and speakers and the interplay between the two are THE most important aspect in an audio system. As has been mentioned, have you any acoustical treatments in your room? Always a good place to start. |
I agree with Jadedavid, if its not broke dont FIX it! BUT this mixy patchwork of cables you have all sound different! If it were me, I would try and get some synergy going by changing cables to mainly one brand. You seem to like Kimber (neutral sounding good lows and mids and highs), why not start there by changing everything to Kimber (solid core copper)...12TC for speakers and Kimber Silver IC’s. I find Monster (tiny multi stranded copper) and Cardas (various thickness solid core copper) to be very "colored" in MY system, and I think using cables to dial in the sound the way you want is the perfect way to go. Listen to different cables,most have return polices so it shouldnt be a costly matter. I have also heard great things about Anti cables, Morrow Audio cables, Signal Cable, The cable company. P.S. I am also a big opponent of the use of power conditioners.....they color the sound as well. Matt M |
Can you identify that which you are unsatisfied with? If so please let us know so that the collective can better guide you in your quest. You have what appears to be a decent system. There are many ways to throw money at an audio system. Many are misguided. Don't try and fix something that isn't broken. |
@bksuperphon2 Yes, indeed he does: http://www.madscientist-audio.com/graphene_ce.html Price for the 2ml tube, which is way more than enough and has a long shelf life is $25.00 US. Bob, the chief mad scientist is a great guy who has a great product. He's an electronic and software engineer by trade. Also, he offers a money-back guarantee if you’re not pleased. I am not affiliated in any way except as a happy customer. |
@bksuperhon2 Being content in this often crazy hobby is a rare and desirable state of mind, IMO, a lot of audiophiles throw money at imaginary "problems." :) Are you interested in streaming music if you don’t already do that? One last thought: I recently disconnected all my cables, including wall plugs, cleaned all the contacts with Deoxit, and applied a VERY light coating to all contacts, including fuses, of graphene contact enhancer I purchased from a fellow in New Zealand, who calls himself the Mad Scientist. This made a substantial improvement throughout my system. Total cost was under $50 bux for everything, including shipping. Terrific ROI. YMMV |
thanks for the compliment, I love it all but always thinking about where I could improve. because I'm happy with it all, I kinda sometimes feel like I am complacent but maybe its just content. I don't know what I necessarily want to achieve. Always thinking that I might want speakers that excel and low listening levels |