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Advice on amp and floor speaker purchase


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Hi there

I'm looking for some advice on a new purchase. I've got a budget of around 5k you spend on a new amplifier and some floor speakers.

 

I plan on keeping my turntable which is an NAD 533 and I have the NAD pre-amp. I'm open to an integrated amp, if best.

 

I would like some decent gear for the money that i could add a cd player to, and eventually upgrade the turntable. 

 

Any advice on speaker and amp combos for the budget would be a huge help 

 

Joel

Edited by Joelb3108
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Can't go wrong with these for your budget or a fair bit more. 

 

Highly respected Aussie manufacturer in Gold Coast. You can also ring them and have a chat to the guy that built and designed them.

 

 

They will do you for many iterations of amp upgrade.

 

I own 3 pairs of their speakers. And started off with an AVR amp until I quickly saw the light. 

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I would jump on the set of Tannoy Revolution 6 Loudspeakers in the SNA Classifieds at $1000 (In Sydney too!) Why not track down a NAD Power Amp or buy a new NAD Integrated  Power Amp. That would keep inside the budget. Also put some money into good loudspeaker cable and interconnects (Aurealis Audio is my preference; good value and fantastic build quality!)

Cheers

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Also, music taste is heavy metal/ rock/ alternative. Primarily vinyl, but also, with time, if like to invest in a good cd player

 

The room size I'm looking at is around 5x10 max. 

 

I'm currently running the turntable through a Marley Bluetooth system.

 

I wouldn't mind Bluetooth connectivity in the ammo, but not essential. 

 

I'm looking for decent audiophile entry recommendations

Thanks for the replies. All good options. I'm thinking about going to have a listen to some speakers and work backwards. 

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Based on my experience with a similar budget and taste in music, I can recommend three things:

 

1) Audition, and if possible audition amp and speaker together - you may find that your ears don't agree with everything you've read online. 

 

2) At this price point don't be afraid to buck the trend and spend half or more on the amp - driving $4k speakers with a $1k amp tends not to result in as satisfying an experience as driving $2k speakers with a $3k amp, especially when you plan to crank it. In my living room I'm powering $2k KEFs with $3k of Rotel, and I doubt there's much that could better it for the price.

 

3) If buying second hand, be careful.

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9 hours ago, twofires said:

Based on my experience with a similar budget and taste in music, I can recommend three things:

 

1) Audition, and if possible audition amp and speaker together - you may find that your ears don't agree with everything you've read online. 

 

Ageed if possible. 

Quote

 

2) At this price point don't be afraid to buck the trend and spend half or more on the amp - driving $4k speakers with a $1k amp tends not to result in as satisfying an experience as driving $2k speakers with a $3k amp, especially when you plan to crank it. In my living room I'm powering $2k KEFs with $3k of Rotel, and I doubt there's much that could better it for the price.

The risk with this is you get left in no man's land on upgrade needing to start again. 

 

Whereas $3-4k on the right 2nd hand speakers goes a long way. And let's you get into something which would later benefit from a good DAC pre and monoblocks. 

 

Quote

 

3) If buying second hand, be careful.

 

Yes, but most likely the best option. 

 

I've saved 10s of $1000s buying second hand (on one purchase alone). My only new purchases have been one of my Lenehan pairs and an Oppo 205. And luckily for me the 205 has gone up. 

 

EDIT: I'm about $45k ahead buying second hand. 

Edited by DrSK
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10 minutes ago, DrSK said:

 

Ageed if possible. 

The risk with this is you get left in no man's land on upgrade needing to start again. 

 

Whereas $3-4k on the right 2nd hand speakers goes a long way. And let's you get into something which would later benefit from a good DAC pre and monoblocks. 

 

 

Yes, but most likely the best option. 

 

I've saved 10s of $1000s buying second hand (on one purchase alone). My only new purchases have been one of my Lenehan pairs and an Oppo 205. And luckily for me the 205 has gone up. 

 

EDIT: I'm about $45k ahead buying second hand. 

I agree that second hand is pretty great generally, especially on speakers, but I've also been done a couple of times. I'm still way ahead without having ever lowballed anyone, but there are definitely some sharks out there.

 

The problem with $4k on the right speakers is, in my view, you may miss the fact that the $2k speakers were the right speakers, they just dipped to 3ohms and your $1k amp couldn't deliver. I honestly believe that if you spend $4k of a $5k budget on modern speakers, your budget is actually going to wind up $7k pretty quickly. 

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11 minutes ago, twofires said:

I agree that second hand is pretty great generally, especially on speakers, but I've also been done a couple of times. I'm still way ahead without having ever lowballed anyone, but there are definitely some sharks out there.

 

The problem with $4k on the right speakers is, in my view, you may miss the fact that the $2k speakers were the right speakers, they just dipped to 3ohms and your $1k amp couldn't deliver. I honestly believe that if you spend $4k of a $5k budget on modern speakers, your budget is actually going to wind up $7k pretty quickly. 

 

Could happen. 

 

Personally for his budget at the moment, I'd take the $3k Lenehans on here in my link and I saw a $1k Redgum 120RGi amp either here or Gumtree recently plus a $650 DAC from Gieseler Audio. 

 

Then upgrade the Redgum as budget permits. 

 

Not going to lose money on these purchases maybe a few $100 at most. Plus all made in Australia with manufacturers who will back and help out on a 2nd hand purchase. 

Edited by DrSK
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At that price, I'd go Goldenear Triton 7 speakers and March p452 stereo power amp.

 

https://sydneyhifimonavale.com.au/collections/goldenear-technology/products/goldenear-triton-7-floorstanding-speakers

https://www.marchaudio.net.au/product-page/p452-stereo-power-amplifier

 

Note the March price is in USD, but it's just over 5k total AUD.

Edited by Ittaku
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14 hours ago, Joelb3108 said:

The room size I'm looking at is around 5x10 max. 

Just double checking this is 5m by 10m? 

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The main consideration is your 5x10 room. That's big. You need speakers that move a lot of air. 

The March amp suggested above should drive these to satisfying levels for your music preferences. 

 

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Thanks for the advice, everyone. Super helpful. 

 

I went and looked at a couple of units this morning. I didn't have any of my own music, but will go back aftet doing more research. 

 

I looked at Martin Logan motion 60XTI, which I liked the sound of. It wad paired with a Cambridge AXR100. 

 

The search continues...

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While I was really impressed with the Martin Logan speakers, they're taking 4k of the budget. While the Cambridge AXR100 hag plenty of power, it's really basic. I have concerns I may want to upgrade it not far into the future. 

 

For a number of reasons, I have to go new. 

 

Again, thanks so much for all the advice. This place is great

Edited by Joelb3108
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Guest Eggcup the Dafter
2 minutes ago, Joelb3108 said:

The pre-amp is just an NAD PP-1.

That's just a phono amp. You'll need an integrated for this setup and price at a guess.

New? Audition the Wharfedale Evo 4.3 and 4.4, they're among the best on the market in your price range. They're a bit difficult to find at the moment, i believe. I heard the 4.4 at Apollo and they are absolute beauties. They're not much cheaper than the MLs but should give you room for a slightly better amp if you want.

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Thanks. They look like good speakers. I'll go to Apollo and give then a listen of they're still there. 

 

Man, this is hard. It's one hell of a rabbit hole! Great fun, but just keen to find something. 

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Guest Eggcup the Dafter
50 minutes ago, Joelb3108 said:

Thanks. They look like good speakers. I'll go to Apollo and give then a listen of they're still there. 

 

Man, this is hard. It's one hell of a rabbit hole! Great fun, but just keen to find something. 

The things to remember are that there are relatively few real stinkers out there these days: that not everyone likes the same thing (you may not like the Wharfedales at all); and listen to several options before buying. Above all you need to feel good about your purchase. Doubts magnify over time...

 

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Nad makes some good streaming amps that you can find used here,( m10 ).Personally i would buy a Devialet expert 120 that you can find also used for about 3k and this gives you the option to factory upgrade latest. Regarding speakers, it's a very difficult question, heavy metal, rock, i guess you're not looking for accuracy, probably more on the dynamic, big, bassy side .Perhaps Jbl or Kipsch something.

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O ,and something different, class A audio was selling Dynaudio Focus 30 xd active wireless floorstanding speakers. At half price thy are a little more expensive than your budget 

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