[luckybaer]

Rank the following components in order of their importance:

1. CD Player (Source)
2. Amplifier (NOT headphone amp)
3. Speakers (pair - floorstanding or bookshelf)
4. Interconnects (i.e. cords, cables)

In otherwords, which would be the most important to spend more money on when assembling a system?

My understanding would be as follows:

1. Speakers
2. Source
3. Amplifier
4. Interconnects

Am I right or wrong?

As you can see, I am putting myself through the painful process of deciding how to spend money on a new system - primarily for listening without headphones. Headphone experience improvement (i.e. new headphones, headphone amp, etc.) will come later, if at all. I really want to hear stuff through speakers, because I enjoy that experience more than through headphones.

 

[tkam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by luckybaer My understanding would be as follows: 1. Speakers 2. Source 3. Amplifier 4. Interconnects

I agree completely with that order. I'll mention that I think the gap between 1 and 2 is closer than the one between 2 and 3.

 

[Glod]

This is an old question to which there will never be a clear answer IMHO. To begin with, what is the budget? IMO, the prioritization is very different in low cost system than in high quality one's.

I think speakers and phones definitely have a prominent influence on the SQ in very cheap systems. And when you move upwards on the budget scale, they keep on being the biggest bang for the buck. However, quite soon, the quality of the source starts to get important. At the point where you have a very good pair of speakers/headphones, the only way of moving forward is a good source and cables. Once those are on your shelf, pick a better amp than you already, by now, had.

 

[go_vtec]

I would offer an alternative,

1. Speaker
2. Amp (Dedicated amp+preamp or Home Theater Amp/DAC)
3. Source (DVDA/SACD/CD or Transport)
4. Interconnect
5. Power conditioning/filter

Of course, someone can debate this all day long, but I would argue 1 is the most important, 2&3 are the second most important issues but nearly same importance and 4&5 are nearly the same in my humble opinion.

 

[dk123]

Amp seems more important to me than some give credit for....though I do not have experience with high end (1K+) sources. If I listen through headphones out of an ipod headphone jack, and listen to the same thing out of the headphone jack of a good pcdp, the pcdp sounds noticeably better. If I amp the lineouts of each, they sound almost identical. And this is with volume matching.

 

[luckybaer]

Budget is $1,500 USD. NO MORE! LOL!

I was figgering on about $600- $800 on speakers, and split the difference on the source and amp. I can go sorta cheap on the interconnects for now and upgrade later if necessary.

I was thinking along the lines of these for speakers:
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-dK3T5vz...00&I=700RTI10B

and this for source:
http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/summar...itle=Azur+340C

and this for amp:
http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/summar...itle=Azur+340A

That would get me right at about $1,500 (give or take a bit depending on shipping, etc.). Cables? Like I said earlier, I can go cheap for now.

 

[felixkrull6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by go_vtec I would offer an alternative, 1. Speaker 2. Amp (Dedicated amp+preamp or Home Theater Amp/DAC) 3. Source (DVDA/SACD/CD or Transport) 4. Interconnect 5. Power conditioning/filter Of course, someone can debate this all day long, but I would argue 1 is the most important, 2&3 are the second most important issues but nearly same importance and 4&5 are nearly the same in my humble opinion.

I totally agree with your list.

 

[felixkrull6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by luckybaer Budget is $1,500 USD. NO MORE! LOL! I was figgering on about $600- $800 on speakers, and split the difference on the source and amp. I can go sorta cheap on the interconnects for now and upgrade later if necessary.

I have no clue about the speakers and components you listed but the price breakdown sounds completely right to me.

 

[luckybaer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by felixkrull6 I have no clue about the speakers and components you listed but the price breakdown sounds completely right to me.

Thanks. For my neophyte mind, it seemed counter-intuitive to spend $400 on speakers and split the rest between source/amp. I mean, who cares how good your source is if your speakers sound like crap?

 

[Welly Wu]

Equipment importance list for me:

1. source component
2. headphone amplifier
3. headphones or earphones
4. not much else including cables and power conditioners

Music importance
infinitiy: music.

 

[go_vtec]

I've tried Polk Audio RTi12 and I was quite impressed. I also had a limited exposure to RTi10 (one that you are trying to purchase), and it produced surprising amount of bass. If you have a normal to smaller living room, you probably won't need a dedicate subwoofer with RTi10 for home theater application

Quote:

Originally Posted by luckybaer Budget is $1,500 USD. NO MORE! LOL! I was figgering on about $600- $800 on speakers, and split the difference on the source and amp. I can go sorta cheap on the interconnects for now and upgrade later if necessary. I was thinking along the lines of these for speakers: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-dK3T5vz...00&I=700RTI10B .... That would get me right at about $1,500 (give or take a bit depending on shipping, etc.). Cables? Like I said earlier, I can go cheap for now.

 

[memepool]

In a CD based system for listening via speakers I would say

1. Amp=Speakers give or take 1/4 which should go to the speakers rather than the amp
2. CD
3. Interconnects.

There is no point in spending a excessively more on the speakers than the amp because more revealing speakers will just reveal the weaknesses of cheaper components further up the chain.
Conversly spending a lot more on an amp than speakers will mean you won't be able to get the subtleties of the more refined amp. So if the amp costs for eg 750 USD don't spend much more than 1000USD on speakers or else they will be too unsympathetic to the other components.

Good budget CD players like the NAD 542 are really oustanding value for money and you won't really benefit proportionately by buying something twice as expensive and skimping on the amp and speakers so.



Vinyl front ends are another story...

 

[replytoken]

While there is no single correct answer, I believe it is important to ask yourself if you will be planning on any upgrades in the near future. If so, then you need to decide what compromise you will accept in the short term. If not, then I think that synergy is the most important thing to keep in mind when actually selecting specific pieces of equipment.

Having said that, I agree that when putting together a system for listening, and not taking upgrades into consideration, speakers will have the biggest impact on your system's "sound". After that, I would say that either source or amplifier, depending on which you, not anybody else, can best identify the differences. I respect Team Source, but I personally have been able to hear greater differences in amplifiers than in sources. But again, it all depends on synergy, and (for purposes of illustration) Rega and Naim equipment are two examples of that. Their amps and sources tend to play very well together.

Also, remember that just because a pair of speakers are more expensive does not mean that you will like them better, or that they will play well with the rest of your system. Perhaps you could put together your back end and then spend the majority of your time auditioning speakers with that equipment? You could do the reverse, but either way, always remember synergy (and I do not mean just intra-brand synergy).

When auditioning music, bring what you normally listen to, and remember to bring something that may not be well recorded. This will help you to determine how forgiving the equipment is. Some equipment will shine with well recorded music, but leave you disappointed with marginal recordings. Other systems may be better all around, but at the expense of outstanding playback of those well recorded CD's that we treasure.

Regarding cables, I would recommend Blue Jeans cables and speaker wire or something similar. Their IC's are very well constructed, and they use good wire. I believe that you would be better served by putting your money into the rest of the system.

This topic can go on forever, so I'll stop here since I think that I have called attention to some of the more important items for consideration. Good luck!

 

[luckybaer]

Someone else recommended Blue Jean cables, and that is where I plan to purchase.

It is tough to audition stuff here, because I do not have a place nearby that sells stuff that I can afford from NAD, CA, Marantz, etc. There's one place that sells Marantz, and when I went in and asked about the CD 5001, the rep got all snooty and told me that he didn't have one in stock. No offer to order one or anything else. I mean, just because it only costs $300 doesn't mean he had to be a pr!ck.

Anyway, Circuit City sells Polk Audio stuff, and I think they offer decent sound in my price range. I have my home theater system based around their speakers, and I am very happy - whether I play music or watch movies. Playing music on that system is what made me realize that I enjoy the sound of speakers MUCH more than headphones. So anyway, I'll be able to get an idea of what the Polk speakers sound like, albeit without them being paired with the CDP or Amp that I'm looking to buy.

 

[bigshot]

Speaker
Amp
Source

If you have any money left, don't waste it on power or cables... put it in the speakers.

See ya
Steve