cat345
Responses from cat345
| Do I Really Need a Dedicated Streamer? I upgraded from a Squeezebox Duet to Chromecast Audio to Bluesound Node X and to the Auralic G1,1. When streaming from Qobuz, sound quality appear almost as good as when listening to my MD Étude FM tuner. I also use a Chord Qutest and a McIntosh i... | |
| DAC question - is music streamer DAC better than mcintosh DA2? @nathandfwacoustics - I'd say about 100 hours of continuous playing. IMO, you can't go wrong with the McIntosh DA2 dac module. Even if you ever find a better sounding dac, you'd have to add a lot more for decent interconnects from dac to preamp. | |
| DAC question - is music streamer DAC better than mcintosh DA2? I now prefer my MA8950’s dac board over the Chord Qutest. The DA2 started to sound better after a few weeks of playing (burn in?) so I won’t go back to the Qutest. Using a Auralic Aries as a streamer. | |
| Suggestions on improvement scott22, You don't have to spend much for a streamer. The Bluesound NODE Gen 3 which has an integrated dac, a very good software (very important) and a reasonable price would be the one to look at. | |
| Suggestions on improvement @scoot22, because you listen to The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Who and some jazz, why dont you get rid of all your beloved but cumbersome audio gear and get yourself a small but powerful Naim Audio Mu-So V2 + a Qobuz subscription. no hearin... | |
| Seeking Honest Opinions: Your Experience with McIntosh Audio Gear All have been said already but for my part, I finally bought a new McIntosh integrated and that, fifty five years after I got my first japanese receiver (Kenwood KR-2120) 😎. Tried about everything since then including tubes, class A, Naim and all... | |
| Ruminations On CD Players Naim cd5 si. Open drawer, drop 💿, press play. Benefit from Naim analogue stage. Enjoy! | |
| But is it HiFi? (Crown) I once had a Crown CE4000 powering small ProAc speakers and the sound had all the attributes of a very good hifi amplifier. The fan was annoying at low volume so I replaced it with a K2 but the latter didn't sound as good. I guess you have to try ... | |
| Pure Class-A Amp under $2000 (USED) Classe Audio real class A amplifiers are : DR-2, DR3, DR3-B (25 Watt - 65lbs.) DR3-VHC (45Watt - 99lbs) | |
| High End Intergraded comparisons, Marantz, McIntosh, Levinson, Luxman.... Other integrateds to consider are Bryston and Moon Audio. The former with a 20 year warranty and the latter with 10 years. | |
| Biggest "bang for the buck" audio gear you have owned(in your history)? Naim Nait 2Magnum Dynalab ÉtudeSota Sapphire... all bought new over 2 decades ago and still running fine | |
| Best "Bang for the Buck" you have owned? Naim Nait 2 and MD Étude tuner. Bought new in 86 and still using them | |
| Best DAC for around $2,500 or less The Chord Qutest is the one you need. For much less money, a used Hugo 1 is as good but be prepared to replace batteries every 2-3 years. | |
| Best integrated tube amplifier, under $3,000.00. No phono needed. Could be used, too.d The Conrad Johnson CAV45 can be found used under 3k. Worth looking at if you like the sound of EL-34s. | |
| Considering simplifying my system... talk me down (or whatever) @mrdecibel, I am well aware that Klipschorns are giants and can blow away little Harbeths any day but still, there are things that small speakers can do (imaging, tonality) that large speakers cannot reproduce as well. That could be an interesting... |