Put more money in a receiver or speakers

[Tiamat]

Shoot I found a pair of Thiel CS .5 speakers nearby for $400, a little out of my budget but very tempting. Would something like a $90 Sherwood RX 4105 receiver be too budget oriented when paired with speakers that retail for over 10x as much? I haven't searched pawn shops or thrift stores but I may be able to find a better stereo receiver if I consider used.

For thiel possibly yes. Not because of price but because of design. Thiels require high current due to low impedence. Low-end electronics usually do not have the heatsink surface area to dispose of the heat generated by running higher currents at the lower impedance.

 

[mshan]

If you decide to get the Thiels, might want to research Luxman R117 (don't know how powerful an amp the Thiel 0.5 needs, but if they are not as demanding as their larger brethren, the less power avrs in that series, e. g. R115, might also work). Just be aware that replacement parts are probably rare and expensive, so you would also need to research what type of maintenance is needed to bring a say 20 year old component up to working condition now.

Vandersteen 2ci /2ce series is full-bodied, perhaps a little dark, but eminently musical and easy to drove (I think even 60 watts of clean, neutral solid state would work well - heck one Vandersteen dealer found the AMC CVT3030 to be very synergistic with Vandersteen 2ci - this was in early 90s). Outlaw 1050 AVR could also work well, though my personal preference would be for something with more tube-like liquidity, such as the AMC CVT3030 mentioned above). Another Vandersteen dealer was using Spectral reference amps with the Vandersteen 2ci. IIRC, Sound by Singer also recommended a system of Vandersteen 2ci with Audible Illusions Modulus 3 tube pre-amp and Aragon solid state amp (forgot if it was 2002 or 4004) in NY Mag in 90s. I am guessing that something that is crystal clear, ideally with tube like liquidity, would work well with these speakers (I think something like Quicksilver Audio tube monoblocks might be awesome combo, though well above your stated budget). Even current generation Pioneer AVR might work well, though other options mentioned might be better in an absolute sense.

 

[kornphlake]

For thiel possibly yes. Not because of price but because of design. Thiels require high current due to low impedence. Low-end electronics usually do not have the heatsink surface area to dispose of the heat generated by running higher currents at the lower impedance.

I may pass on the Thiels simply because of the low impedance, I'm not sure how well I can hear THD but of the receivers in my price range (~$100 if I'm dumping $400 into speakers) THD is 1% or more at 8 ohms, at 4 ohms it'll be even higher. I could use a car audio amp with a more respectable THD at 4 ohms, but I'd need a 12v power supply and some kind of preamp which would add cost and frankly it's a Mickey Mouse solution built around one specific set of speakers. I've done a little more reading and I'm not sure my room is actually large enough to get the imaging the speakers are capable of anyway.

 

[mshan]

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/sho...forums/showthread.php?t=92442&highlight=adcom
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92442&highlight=adcom
(or search Audiogon.com for same components there; used NAD receiver might also work well)
Paradigm Atom + some decent stands

(in early 90s, Sound by Singer combined those Adcom separates with Heybrook 0.5 minimonitors for a friend and system sounded really good).

 

[NutBucket]

Here here!

Nakamichi TA-4A


In terms of audio quality, you would have to spend thousands and thousands.

We're talking Krell quality without exaggeration. Look up Stasis amps.

Nakamichi licensed the Stasis amp topology but unfortunately screwed it up with bad business decisions. Denon? HK? Onkyo? Junk by comparison.

I have a TA-2A, which is not as powerful, but I haven't found anything better.

I'm building some speakers to complete a 5.1 setup, but after that I'm going to make something special for it.

Ha, I was going to suggest an SR or TA series Nak....though arguably a 70's Sansui/Pioneer/Kenwood/Luxman/Marantz/etc could sound even better. Just a matter of the OP wanting to deal with analog tuners and/or units that can benefit from a good "tuneup".

 

[kornphlake]

After doing some reading I came to DIY speakers, a project I'd been considering a couple years ago but never had the money to get into it. I decided I'd order the parts to build a set of Tritrix TL speakers, I got some good feedback from the designer and I'm confident that they'll sound great for any music I listen to without a subwoofer and they should cost less than $200 to build and finish. Those who have listened to the Tritrix speakers compare them to speakers costing much more than $500.

I ended up buying a refurb HK 3385 receiver on ebay, I didn't get a great price, but it was a good price. I'd gone full circle considering a set of active studio monitors, vintage electronics, a DIY chip amp, and low cost receivers like the sherwood and sony stereo receivers. After weighing the pros and cons I just couldn't beat the value of a Harman Kardon receiver. It's got real binding post speaker terminals, not spring clips, it's got a subwoofer out and won't need to be rebuilt for many years unlike any vintage or low end equipment and I couldn't build a chip amp for much less cost and I'd have to have a pre amp which would have made the cost of a chip amp quite a bit higher. With the savings on building my own speakers I felt like spending a little more on a modern receiver with a solid reputation was a good decision.

I'm pretty interested in speaker building now that I've got my shop more or less equipped, acoustics have always fascinated me as a musician and an engineer, I'd like to pursue some high end speaker designs in the future. With my future needs in mind the HK receiver again was the best choice as it's 4 ohm stable.

I should have the parts next week, I'm waiting for a part to repair my table saw before I can get started on building the speaker enclosures but it should be done by the early part of February.

 

[fstime]

Let me start off by saying this is my opinion because many may become offended.

Spend A LOT more on speakers than your receiver.

What difference will a high end receiver do for you?

Better DAC's? Well, in my opinion and many others, all DACS sound the same. They use the same mathematical calculations and result in the same output. Anti-jitter and the rest of it are all snake oil put out there to justify $5000 CD players.

A better amp? Guess what, most amps sound the same too. Go with a high sensitivity speaker (>90db) and you will be fine with even the weakest looking amp. 1 watt of power will be enough to output 90 db at 1 foot and that is very loud.

What's the conclusion here? Most people who spend thousands of dollars on amps, cables, or receivers for "high quality" components are victims of the placebo effect. Blind tests have been conducted proving this.

Upgrading your speakers will gain you the most audible difference, period. All the other stuff is so minor that it is simply not worth it and you can put in the same pile as expensive cables.