Help me spend $100,000 on a new system

mapman, I fortunately know how to build, having built my current 3000 square foot home myself, and should be able to buy a house that will either suit any equipment I might demo and really like, or can be modified to do so. That’s kind of backwards from buying equipment to suit a given room, but fortunately easy pickings having some carpentry skills.

At this point I’m really only wanting to hear what $100.000 can buy and sound like. I could head in a completely different direction, as I am happy with my current system and home, albeit it's way bigger than I need with my wife having passed, and ten acres is a lot to keep up anymore, making me consider downsizing.

terry9, I’d especially like to read that Absolute Sound article on room construction. If anyone knows what issue of Absolute Sound it was in that would helpful.

Ron, thanks for your recommendation on your Rockport Avoirs. I’ll look into them.

Mike

At this point I’m really only wanting to hear what $100.000 can buy and sound like.

It’s probably a fair assumption that anything reputable you buy for that money should be very good, in which case the end results will be determined largely by personal preferences (everyone is different here) and how well executed the system is end-to-end, including room, no matter what path is chosen.

Main thing is to enjoy what you are doing at all times, both along teh ride and once you reach the destination.

Were it me making that investment, I would be probably be seeking to have a large room that would be amenable to a nice pair of mbl omnis and go from there.

In lieu of just the right room needed for best results from full omnis like the mbl, I’d probably either stick with my large Ohms, or might consider splurging on a pair of KEF meta blade 1 or 2s. I might even settle for a pair of KEF Reference 3 meta for ~ $15K and optimize for those upstream. This is actually something currently on my radar screen, but so far I can’t justify the additional investment and overhead of another pair of fairly large and heavy speakers. I’ve actually downsized in recent years and when I compare what I have to that ideal, I find I am in a very good place for a lot less cost and operational overhead.

Cheers and good luck!

skysraper, there really are almost infinite possibilities, and $100k can buy truly excellent sound. Choose your speakers first, something that you wouldn’t want to replace for the next 20 years. Take your time with that. The rest will be easier if not easy. I would probably audition $25k-$40k new speakers with good SS amplification. This is quite a range, I know. The brand you get should have a high reputation in terms of warranty and repair work after the warranty expires. You don’t want any problems with this. I would buy all the cables demo or used unless you must have something particular that is impossible to find. Great cables and cords are usually outrageously overpriced. Frankly, I don’t know what I myself would choose at this level, the biggest challenge would be to find those near perfect speakers for many years to come.

Lot’s of great advice here, including maybe save half for a rainy day or an impromptu adventure.

This is not good advice, IMHO.

Assuming 7% taxes we have 15k left for vinyl. This is easy your cartridge will be an Hana Umami Red for 3950… you won’t beat it unless you spend over 10-20k and it will barely be beat! It’s my favorite cartridge.

It may be someone’s favorite cart but it can be beat for the same money, never mind 10-20K. (Not a Hana hater - I enjoyed the $1200 Hana ML for a year or so and sold it for $700)

and neither is this...

Turntable I would get a Rega planar 10 for $6345. You won’t beat that beast unless you spend over 25-100k.

Your current VPI/Lyra is likely equal or better.

My dealer who sells Million dollar systems and sells Rega and Clearaudio would not let me buy the in-stock P10. He told me to wait a few weeks and get a ClearAudio for $2500 less, which I did. Conversely, the Technics SL-1000RE at $20K is likely one of the best in that proposed price range that eclipses the P10 and my CA, (Just one example)

Also, be open to tube and SS amplification. I made the mistake of being stuck on tubes and bought speakers that didn't play well with a $17K tube amp. A $12K SS integrated made the speakers work as they should. Synergy is key, and my mistakes were expensive.  

"Phono stage is also easy Parasound JC3+ phono. $2200 don’t laugh for this system it will be perfect. It beats phono’s I heard for quadruple the price."
If your ears are made of tin then this is possibly true.