Which component has the most importance?


I have been on a quest redoing my system to a high effecient SET Integrated Amp affair with 2 way diy speakers of 95 DB Effeciency to run my Pentode amp in 1.8 watts at Triode Mode Operation. The amp is a Decware 84C
with the speakers being Parker 95 Signatures which put out a 95 DB Effeciency with response 40hz to 40khz.My front end for now is a Toshiba 2950 DVD Player soon to be upgraded to a Tube cd player in the near future.
So here I am thinking I must improve the sound of my front end immediately; of course that is what LINN always taught us and over my years since the 80's of listening that is what I always thought until I came onto a tweek that has so profoundly changed all my prioities around on its ear.
I have been swapping out cables,tubes,creating DIY IC's,
diy power cords,replacing internal hookup wire and then I opened up the speaker and took a look inside and thats when I started down this road of tweeking even more.I had noticed the speaker had 2 Deflex panels installed directly in the back cabinet wall right behind the drivers, and the drivers had small guage solid core hook up wire on each of them with just one cap on the ribbon tweeter. Well the first tweek on my list was to replace the internal wire with cyro treated wire single core I had with a small green enamel on them. I wraped these with some heat shrink tubing to protect them from other wires in the scheme and the sound of the speakers became much more open and organic.
Every note took on additional richness and clarity of sound. The soundstage really opened up in all directions.
Tweek #2. I removed all the internal stuffing which consisted almost the bottom 2 feet of the short tall 39 inch speakers.
Why? Well the people at Deflex state to do this and specifically say to cover 80% of the internal cabinet with Deflex. So far I have added an additional 18 inches by 10 inches of Deflex into the speaker and the sound quality jump has been off the charts.THIS HAS BEEN THE MOST SIGNIFICANT UPGRADE I HAVE EVER DONE PERIOD.
I am now in the process of installing Deflex throughout
the entire internal speaker cabinet except for the last bottom 7 inches or so.
The Deflex has improved the speakers and my system in every parameter, Soundstaging, speed, timming, dynamics,timbre,focus and accuracy. I find it such a huge improvement that I am not rushing out to get amy new cd player yet.
I'm thinking now that maybe Wilson Audio has been right all this time stating the importance of the Speaker interface in a system. I am such a happy camper now with my system that I have literally been losing some sleep lately which is okay since I'm retired and have nothing to do but tweek all day. LOL.
wELL MY CONCLUSIONS FROM ALL OF THIS?
I think now that the most critical component in the system is the speaker interface first and then the preamp or integrated in my case followed by the front end.
Atlest based on my observation that is what has worked for me. Well my last tweek on my speakers will be to replace the one and only cap in the non crossover speaker the 2 mfd
100 Volt Havoland with a Dueland Cooper or a V-cap. Luckily I only need to replace one in each speaker. This little tweek will cost almost $650.00 for the 2 caps which is more then what I paid for the pair of the speakers.
Well will it be worth the investment?
I am told by the speaker designer that the Dueland is someting very special indeed.
So we shall see.
Happy Listening
76doublebass
128x12876doublebass
Your sending $650 on caps you best have a quality driver for if your caps cost more than the transducers your crazy to do so. Best to upgrade drivers a cap can not make a average driver sound as good as a quality one and for $650 You can almost purchase fostex fe138esr with alnico mag advance basket cone etc. I see so many on this site spending $1000 on caps for cheap or vintage drivers not of quality. Sure if you replace a cheap cap with a good one sound can improve if caps in networks in critical position. Most dont understand that sometimes only a few of the crossover parts need to be hi-quality. So one finds a cap change changes sound so they go nuts. Ask madisound this is popular today folks upgrading crossovers with no understanding on how they work or why designer used such parts. Changing out networks in my designs would only decrease performance for all is designed as a whole. And if you had to deflex the whole cab your cabs resonate and not built to a hi-standard. If built proper only deflex needed is behind drivers like a mid or fullrange deflex makes 1 for sub base use. Thats a costly upgrade in itself unless loudspeakers small than deflex away. And in some of my loudspeakers I use wool acusta stuff deflex etc if you pulled out fill and deflexed all of cab, sound would be the worse for it. So in your case maybe total deflex and removing fill worked but in many loudspeakers it wouldn't. If designer did work proper no upgrades by owner could improve it. If you cheap out on loudspeaker then well all affordable kit is built down to a price point and maybe they cheaped out. So a average person could improve. But in many designs only designer or a expert could improve. Do any of you test before and after change? Or do you just say hey I change out a cap for 1 that costs as much as a med TV and sound improved. How do you know the change really improved anything? Since no base result, no testing just a shot in the dark. But I know if it costs alot it had to make sound better. Or 1 would think they where foolish and noone like to think that about a purchase or DIY effort.Maybe you might think this post rude but just trying to help you out.
Ditto X3—The Room. Think about it. Imagine hearing the Philadelphia Orchestra playing “Rite of Spring” at your local high school gymnasium and then at the Concertgebouw.

8^(
If you want to get the most sound for your money pay more attention to posters like Johnk and less to posters like Stehno
Johnk : The speaker has no crossover parts at all
just 1 capacitor soldered to the tweeters positive post
and the other leg of the cap to the speaker jack THATS IT NOTHING ELSE. I am not just rolling dice with this. I spoke to the designer of the speaker and he stated specifically that the Dueland cap would be a significant upgrade for the speaker,But he did not put it in the assembled speakers so as to keep the price down to a level
that others could afford. I also was checking out a web site shootout of the 25 best caps and they test them monthly and found that the Dueland Cast Cooper was by far the best for speaker crossovers from there latest findings as of FEB.09. i HAVE HEARD FROM MANY SOURCES AND POSTS ABOUT HOW GREAT Chris's Teflon V-cap is, and I would have no problem even batting and I getting the V-CAP,but I would like to hear more independent studies on the Dueland
before possibly getting this particular cap.
So you use a $650 cap set on a $89 ea fountek? Didnt you say caps cost more that you paid for DIY kit? Still crazy but thats audiophiles;) FYI founteks 95db at 2.83v 1 M or 92db 1 watt 1 meter. Your loudspeakers 92db 1 watt 1 meter keep this in mind some rate drivers at 2.83V others 1 watt 1 M. I would use a M dorf on the cheap fountek or buy a better tweeter pair with the $650.