[Mouzike]

I've decided on the upgrade i think is right for me, especially with the limited financial resources. I've already audtitionned most of the equipment except for the gilmore. ARE THERE ANYTHING THAT SHOULD BE CHANGED?


Music Preference: Classical (piano, symphonic, vocal), Ambient Electronic (M83)

Headphones: Sennheiser HD-600 (currently owned) for classical, Grado SR-60 (currently owned and modded, thinking of getting another pair just to stock up) for ambient, electronic, THINKING of Grado 325i ($300) or Etymotic ER-4s/p (250), or a cable upgrade for the HD-600 (~$100)

Interconnect: Radioshack Gold-plated interconnects (currently owned, ANTHING BETTER $35-50 MAX? Noticeable difference?

Amp: Cmoy (currently owned and broken), Gilmore lite ($300)

Source: iriver IMP-550 (currently owned) for portable use, SONY SCD-CE595 ($150)

BOLDED ITEMS ARE UPGRADES FOR SURE.

TOTAL UPGRADE COST: $500 ($550+ with shipping and taxes), APPROX. $1200 if i choose to also get the 325i and etys.

ANY SUGGESTIONS ON CHANGES?

 

[EdipisReks]

you might want to try the Corda HA-1 mkII. it can be had for reasonable prices, used. i'm not a big believer in cables, so i personally only get more expensive ones if they are more durable. the cheap cables are normally pretty poorly put together.

 

[fr4c]

get some Zu cables (through their eBay promo). the Zu Pivot are just some of the high class cables that wont break your bank account.

 

[rellik]

when i replaced my ratshack interconnect with a cheap but well built canare starquad cable made by ufokillerz from this forum i noticed one of the biggest changes in all of my system and it is not a very costly improvement

 

[EdipisReks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rellik when i replaced my ratshack interconnect with a cheap but well built canare starquad cable made by ufokillerz from this forum i noticed one of the biggest changes in all of my system and it is not a very costly improvement

i don't mean to be antagonistic, but i'd like to see you pass a double blind test. i noticed no difference in sound going from ratshacks to canare cable.

 

[Mouzike]

well this is it...i've decided...give me a month to rack up that cash and i'll be on my way to musical nirvana...not that i'm not already. Gilmore LIte, here i come!!!

 

[EdipisReks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mouzike well this is it...i've decided...give me a month to rack up that cash and i'll be on my way to musical nirvana...not that i'm not already. Gilmore LIte, here i come!!!

i think you made a good choice.

i was going to get a gilmore lite but i got a good deal on my Corda, so i went in that direction.

 

[Nak Man]

Good one, I was about to suggest max the budget for amp and worry about cables later, but you've got your confirmation in less than 3 hrs.

Enjoy the new toys !

 

[jpr703]

I picked up a 1 meter Zu Pivot off eBay for about $45 (including shipping). It's not as good as my Grover, but it is an improvement over the Monster Cable I was using.

 

[elrod-tom]

Regarding your choice of source:

You might consider the potential to have your source upgraded via modification. I don't believe your Sony is on the list, for example, for SACDMods.

Just a thought...the source being the most important part of the system IMHO, one might want to choose a source with future upgradeability in mind.

 

[EdipisReks]

from the reviews and impressions (real ones, not CNETesque ones) i've read of the SCD-CE595 it's supposed to be a perfectly good budget source.

 

[recstar24]

In terms of cables, i think they can make a noticeable difference, but you don't have to rbeak the bank. THe Zu pivots get lots of attention, and they can be had for less than50 off their ebay promotion. I personally can recommend the mit terminator series of cables, which you can usually get off of audiogon and ebay. I have the mit term2's, which are the best in the series, and at least to my ears, are the most natural sounding cable i have ever heard, it doesn't get in the way of the source and amplification at all. I got mine used for 45, awesome, these cables were well into the hundreds new, check them out, best bang for buck.

MIT are incredibly respected within the cable business, they are legit - the mit terminator series are discontinued, so you have to buy them used off of ebay or audiogon.

 

[elrod-tom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EdipisReks from the reviews and impressions (real ones, not CNETesque ones) i've read of the SCD-CE595 it's supposed to be a perfectly good budget source.

I didn't say that it wasn't a perfectly good budget source. I suggested that he might want to consider whether he could find something that was a good candidate for modification should he wish to upgrade it in the future.

A used SCD-CE775 would cost about the same as the SCD-CE595. However, for an additional $300 or so at some future date, it can be modified into something special.

It just depends on what the intent is in making the purchase. It's not intended as a slam on the SCD-CE595.

 

[Mouzike]

i think for 150... I'd keep the SCD-CE595 on my list. Also, Iwant to keep the sony as it is and as for further upgrades, I'd probably just get a better overall player. Thanks for the imput...i'm sure i won't be disappointed...i'm not easily disappointed.