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Lucas.C
 Join date: 2010-12-12
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Posts: 38
Location: planet earth
Age: 31
 | | Subject: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 9:52 am | |
| I've been saving hard to buy my first music centre and I'd like to treat myself to something nice the Holiday season. I have about £1500or 1800€uros burning a hole in my pocket but how should I locate my budget.
Do I still need a compact disc player. I'd like something small and good looking. |
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hg
 Join date: 2009-12-05
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Posts: 177
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 10:26 am | |
| It depends on what you want from the hardware. Some questions to kick things off:
How important are looks/status and for what audience? (This is really one for you rather than for discussion on a forum.)
How big is the room and how loud do you need?
How important is sound quality and what type of sound quality? (Technical sound quality and audiophile sound quality are different.)
What are the sources of music: records, radio, internet, CDs, DVDs, multichannel, stereo, mono,...?
You budget is more than sufficient to get you good quality sound if you spend it wisely. Unfortunately, this means recognising and ignoring a lot of the ridiculous advice you are going to get on audiophile forums.
> Do I still need a compact disc player. I'd like something small and good looking.
You will almost certainly benefit from a CD/DVD player somewhere around because they are the source of a lot of music but if, for example, you opt to play files from a hard disk as part of the setup then a CD/DVD in computer should be OK for copying or even playing live if the fiddling about with a computer is acceptable. |
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colin
Join date: 2009-10-10
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Posts: 633
Location: north lincs
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 11:17 am | |
| Only you can decide if you want a CD player, or if you are happy using a streaming/computer system.
If you you want just digital music, be it CD or 'Computer' based then you will need either a CD player and or DAC, amp and speakers.
I think given your budget I would start by finding a dealer and have a listen to say a apollo. Mira, and RS5. Not the best looking of kit may be, but a superb system, involving, even handed across music gendres, with the ability to grow with you piece by piece ove the years if you so wish.
Other than that that, I would say find the speakers that best fill your room to your taste, then find the amp that can drive them. Then sort the CD player or DAC. |
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dvv
 Join date: 2009-10-20
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Posts: 3262
Location: Serbia
Age: 58
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 12:30 pm | |
| | colin wrote: | | ... Other than that that, I would say find the speakers that best fill your room to your taste, then find the amp that can drive them. Then sort the CD player or DAC. |
That's literally all there is to it.
In my view, having a CD player or not should not be a question at all, I think it should always be there, that's if you want better quality playback off your CDs. |
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:01 pm | |
| | hg wrote: |
How important is sound quality and what type of sound quality? (Technical sound quality and audiophile sound quality are different.)
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What's the supposed to mean? |
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:02 pm | |
| | colin wrote: |
I would say find the speakers that best fill your room to your taste, then find the amp that can drive them. |
Are you saying all amplifiers sound the same? On what basis did you buy yours? |
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:05 pm | |
| | dvv wrote: |
That's literally all there is to it.
In my view, having a CD player or not should not be a question at all, I think it should always be there, that's if you want better quality playback off your CDs. |
Isn't that contradictory? haven't you being telling us the differences components make? or are you now suggesting we just buy the cheapest most powerful amplifier we can find? |
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dvv
Join date: 2009-10-20
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Posts: 3262
Location: Serbia
Age: 58
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:18 pm | |
| | greg wrote: | | Isn't that contradictory? haven't you being telling us the differences components make? or are you now suggesting we just buy the cheapest most powerful amplifier we can find? |
Exactly where did you get the basis for those comments from?
I simply stated that I think everybody should have a CD player - I made no remark as to which, how expensive or cheap, how good or not. I couldn't even if I wanted to, I don't know UK prices, I don't know if it's going to be brand new or second, etc.
I think Colin's post makes a lot of sense. There's just so much you can do with 1,800 euros' worth AND being a novice in the game, looking for a complete system. An old hand would probably fare better, and someone willing and capable of restoring vintage products would do better still. But I don't think this gentleman falls into either of those categories.
So, where's the problem? |
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:32 pm | |
| It read as get the best speakers for your room and sod the amp quality, just make sure it has enough watts to drive the speakers. Please re read. |
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dvv
Join date: 2009-10-20
Trade:
Posts: 3262
Location: Serbia
Age: 58
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:47 pm | |
| | greg wrote: | | It read as get the best speakers for your room and sod the amp quality, just make sure it has enough watts to drive the speakers. Please re read. |
Good advice, you should have done that yourself.
The original text reads: "... and then find an amp which can drive them". Perhaps not clear enough, but I and it seems everybody else understod what was Colin saying. Some otherwise good sounding amps do have problems with more difficult loads, that's a fact of life, so it's not enough to say "buy a good amp".
An amp which is both good (i.e. satisfactory to the ear of the listener) AND relatively robust enough to drive the given speakers. Saying the the purchaser has to "find" a good amp clearly indicates that he should go and listen to several variations of amp-speaker interface, not just hop in and buy the first amp he sees there.
Again, I ask - where's the problem? |
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hg
Join date: 2009-12-05
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Posts: 177
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 8:53 pm | |
| | greg wrote: | | hg wrote: |
How important is sound quality and what type of sound quality? (Technical sound quality and audiophile sound quality are different.)
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What's the supposed to mean? |
What it says. If you are having problems I think it would help if you indicated where.
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 9:14 pm | |
| I would dearly like to know what exactly is meant by technical sound quality, and what exactly is audiophile sound quality? |
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colin
Join date: 2009-10-10
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Posts: 633
Location: north lincs
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 9:18 pm | |
| | greg wrote: | | colin wrote: |
I would say find the speakers that best fill your room to your taste, then find the amp that can drive them. |
Are you saying all amplifiers sound the same? On what basis did you buy yours? |
Is that what I said?
I thought I said find the speakers that best fill your room to your taste, then find the amp that can drive them.
which is not at all the same as all amps sound the same.
What basis did I buy mine, something that I enjoyed the sound of with enough power to drive any real world speaker load I am likely to own. |
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Ozexpat
Join date: 2010-04-02
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Posts: 646
Location: Oxfordshire
Age: 52
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 9:20 pm | |
| OOOOh, I like it when it gets bitchy  |
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greg
Join date: 2010-06-25
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Posts: 356
| | Subject: Re: How to split my budget Sun Dec 12, 2010 9:45 pm | |
| Not bitchy, I just want to try to grasp the points they are trying to make, to me it reads the amp, as long as it has enough power is will suffice, I would think it would be better if the OP demoed and bought them together, that seems are more balanced approach, and I still want to know what all this technical sound quality V audiophile quality means because basically I am baffled. |
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