Go listen to the components. Most often, with questions like these, the OP has made up their mind which option they want to go with and are posting the question to get confirmation. To be honest, I don’t spend $7500 on any component that others picked out for me. It’s completely my decision and I will be listening to the components not Audiogon members. Only I know how important budget will be, only I know how important sound quality will be, only I will know how important build quality and customer service will be, only I know how much time and effort I should give to evaluate a component before I buy it.
??? Which Would You Buy ???
So your in the market for a new component,amp,speakers,DAC,doesn't matter what it is...You have a budget of say $7500.00...You aren't made of $ & this amount represents a significant investment in time spent working & saving & will likely be the only upgrade you can make for the next several years...The rest of your system is good,what is considered mid level gear..
After extensive research,time & money spent seeking out & demo'ing many choices you narrow your shortlist down to 3 different choices..2 of these choices are from well established manufacturers, have good reviews,sound very good in the demo environment & have excellent build quality but will max out your budget..
The third choice is 1/3 the price of the other 2,is a fairly new product & has limited but positive feedback on sound quality,comes from an established manufacturer that many high end manufacturers have sourced to build their products,has very good build quality but not quite up to the level of the others & offers about 85% the sound quality of the others...
Choosing item #3 saves you about $5000.00,meaning you could also upgrade another component or bank the savings...Which do you buy???
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I’m the last guy who should be commenting, but at 62, after a divorce, for the first time in my life, I put together a half-decent stereo system, that is decidedly mid-level. I did a lot of research and had a friend whose preamp or turntable probably cost twice what I have in my entire system. Do your research, listen to different things and decide if you’re going to be happy at 85% for a third of the cost. And by the way, I found lurking in and reading in the forum was extraordinarily helpful. I found my turntable and speakers in the Audiogon marketplace and the transactions were seamless. My integrated amp was found on eBay, open box, shipped from Germany at 2/3s of new. Also found the CD player I wanted on eBay, but hunted down the retailers and purchased directly. Spent 50% more than first anticipated (not including cables, but that’s for another day) and could not be happier. If you like the less expensive option, you’ll probably be fine. |
@bigtwin + 1 - buying the less expensive one and putting the saved $$ towards room treatment might be something to consider. If the room itself is bouncing sound around all over the place, nothing will sound as good as it should. |
Specifically with DACs, the differences are so minute, and preferences so fickle (depends on day of the week, air humidity, and what I had for lunch), I would definitely go with the cheaper one. As I mentioned before, I compared a $5K Holoaudio with a $250 Topping, and neither is objectively "better" across various genres of music and recordings. So you mainly pay for brand name and look. |
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