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Helping a friend build a new system

A good family friend has recently retired and is looking to build a system for his home office. He used to own a nice sound system some 25 years ago but hasn't been actively pursuing the hobby. He was visiting my home a few weeks ago and I guess listening to my system must have inspired him to finally build a new one. He asked me to help set up a new system (new to him, he's willing to buy used). I asked him a bunch of questions to find out what he wants and how much he is willing to spend. His responses are summarized below:

1. Budget -- since he's retired he wants to keep the total system budget to around $7-8K (including cables)
2. Components Needed -- bookshelf speakers, integrated amp, cables. He already has a CD player which would do for now, but he might get into streaming later on. He owns a few hundred CDs.
3. Room size -- around 10x12 with 10 foot ceilings. Fully carpeted with some furniture.  
4. Music genres -- jazz, blues, vocals (he's a big fan of Frank Sinatra, Chet Baker, Billy Holiday, etc.), and R&B
5. Listening preferences -- he is looking for an 'intimate' and cozy experience and wants to try tube amps with high sensitivity bookshelf speakers. He mostly listens at a moderate volume and can be sensitive to high frequencies.

He also mentioned that he has some hearing loss since he's in his early 60s and suffers from a mild case of tinnitus. I'm not sure if this plays a role in the choice of components but I thought it's worth mentioning just in case.

I will really appreciate it if you guys can provide some pointers. Please remember that he is retired so $8k is absolutely the max he can do. System synergy is important. And, please no Tekton or class D recommendations. He really wants to try some affordable tube gear as a starting point.

128x128arafiq
russ69's avatar
russ69
3,360 posts
 
"...At this point, he really wants to experiment with tube amplifiers...He feels that he can stretch his budget much farther when buying used equipment, and I concur.."

For a first timer into tubes, I recommend buying a fresh new unit. Let him be the one that gets all the cream out of the new gear. Tube equipment gets hot and that ages all the components after time, best to be the first owner especially if you are new to tube gear. That will maximize his enjoyment. IMHO. 
arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,599 posts
 
@jjss49 Thanks for providing the links to what's currently on sale. That was super helpful. My friend really likes the VTL and VPI amps. What are your thoughts on long term reliability when it comes to these two brands? Also, can they drive Harbeth speakers well -- p3esr, C7, or 30.x?

Another listing that caught my eye is this one. Wonder if anyone here has experience with Lyric Audio (this seems to be version 1):
https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649719517-lyric-audio-t100-integrated-tube-amplifier-w-new-kt170...

Right now, we're thinking that if he buys one of these three amps, he can bring it to my house and try it out with my speakers (30.1 or SHL5+). I think it will give him a good idea of what it would actually sound like if he were to pursue Harbeths. I see a number of C7s for sale but not sure if they work well with tubes.



avitacom
90 posts
 
Build a system around Magnepan 1.7i and Underwood Wally’s LSA Voyager GAN 350 amp.  Use cheap cabling for now.
arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,599 posts
 
Fritz and Spendor also sound like a good choice. Has anyone compared one of the Fritz models (in the $3-4k range) with Harbeths or Spendors?

The reason I’m asking about Harbeth comparisons is that since I have two models in house, I can provide him with a point of reference.

@lalitk Thanks for the Leben suggestion. This is one amp that even I would like to try some day. But from what I hear, you have to have super efficient speakers to get the most out of it. I might be wrong though. It is a lovely looking amp for sure.
jjss49's avatar
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jjss49
6,612 posts
 
@arafiq

search my old posts discussing the fritz carrera be i tried (and bought)

@jjss49 Thanks for providing the links to what’s currently on sale. That was super helpful. My friend really likes the VTL and VPI amps. What are your thoughts on long term reliability when it comes to these two brands? Also, can they drive Harbeth speakers well -- p3esr, C7, or 30.x?

c7 and 30x should be no problem - p3 much less efficient, but his room is small, that should be ok too (he will need a sub w p3's) - playing semi nearfield at moderate volumes all the amps i suggested shouldn’t even breathe hard

vpi is not really an amp maker, this integrated was a one off --  i think their gear is generally very well made, or harry won’t put his brand name on it, plus steve leung @vas in nj can service if ever needed, he is very good, very responsive

vtl has reputation for great gear but iffy customer service... small shop...  anyways tube amps are basically quite reliable, circuitry not so fancy - just make sure tubes are good, and they are pretty simple, lots of experienced techs can work on them
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