Announcement

**RhinoZ** · 13 September 2003, 18:33

Hi Liquid Snake,
I'm no expert, like a few of the murc's here that know what they are talking about and will chime in soon enough, but I posted for some advice for a home theater setup a couple of weeks ago. All I want to say is have fun at the stores when you go shopping. Bring a few of your favourite cd's and listen to them now so you can get a feel for them before you use them to audition new equipment. I already picked up a NAD Audio/Video receiver (T742) by luck. It was a little more than I wanted to spend but he quoted an excellent price. The sales guy was awesome, very friendly, very knowledgable and pleasent. I talked it over with a friend of mine and he kept repeating that I would not be disappointed with the NAD, and I think it was Mutz who also liked the NAD as a better product. So I went back to the store with my cd's. He hooked up a high end pair of Paradigm speakers and we flip flopped between the NAD and a DENON AVR1603. The NAD blew away the Denon with my first cd (Mary J Blige), then he hooked it up to a Home theater setup and I really didn't hear any noticable difference between the two. Anyways long story short I bought the NAD, love B&W speakers, but now I have to paint the living room and dining room and install new mouldings before I can go out and buy new speakers ( my deal with the wife to get the NAD ). I have a very old pair of Tannoy speakers that now sound really great with the NAD receiver. But I was unluckly a couple of times as I went to two stores where the salesman was a completed d**k head.
Enjoy and take your time ( unless you get a great deal like $300 off)
R.

**gt40** · 13 September 2003, 18:44

Personally I'd stay away from Sony. over-rated and over-priced.

**K6-III** · 13 September 2003, 20:35

I would very much suggest pairing a NAD or Arcam integrated amp to KEF speakers.

KEF speakers are unbeatable for small rooms. I use their entry level Q-series bookshelf speakers, the Q1's. Due to the coaxial driver with the tweater in the middle of the woofer they are very easy to set up in a small room. (British speakers designed for British rooms)

If you can find Arcam at the right price, it would be a bit better than NAD. Another possible alternative to NAD is Proton with the D940 reciever (check the reviews out at www.audioreview.com) or AMC (solid state amps pretty much the same as NAD)

My configuration, for reference, is a Proton AP-2000II preamp, AMC 2100 amp, and KEF Q1 speakers. All were purchased used. Amp and preamp off ebay and the speakers off Audiogon.

Don't forget to budget for some decent cables. I tend to really like Tara Labs. (go Biwire for the speakers)

As for CD player, I'd suggest the Philips DVD963SA SACD/DVD-V player. Great for DVD use, but nothing comes close for either CD or SACD playback at the pricepoint. (about the same price as the SCD-C222ES you're looking at, but more like the SCD-C555ES in regards to sound quality)

**CHHAS** · 14 September 2003, 01:07

I recently bought a Cayin 252B integrated amplified, I don't know what the price would be in the US, but it just blows me away that you can get this cool an amp for the price. It's head and shoulders above anything else I've seen and heard in the pricerange.

As for CD I'd take a look at Cambridge D500SE, I'm very happy with that one as well.

**Brian Ellis** · 14 September 2003, 01:59

Small loudspeakers are always tricky on sustained basses and can often be damaged. Get a good CD with cathedral organ music, pick out a track with sustained fortissimo pedals, take it along to the shop and play it slightly louder than comfort level. If the speakers of your choice then play without distortion then you can safely buy. If not, then find another make.

**Liquid Snake** · 14 September 2003, 10:03

Thanks for the suggestions so far, guys. I've shopped for a HT system before with my dad, so I know how to demo equipment.

Brian,
I know small speakers have trouble with huge bass sections, but I'm not going to be listening to much classical, if any at all. I was actually considering some smaller speakers because the 602 is bigger than most bookshelf speakers.

K6-III,
Arcams are nice (the HT system has a CD72 player), but they're pretty much out of my budget unless I can find a really good deal. I'll take a look at NAD amps and KEF speakers. With this budget, I'm not going to spend much on cables. I'll probably just get some cheap stuff until I can afford better.

How does the Phillips player sound for CD playback? SACD playback doesn't really matter, but it's a nice bonus. I didn't really look into it because it has a DVD section that I don't need, but I'll consider it if its CD and SACD playback aren't compromised. A CD-only player is also fine if it can beat the CD playback of the Sony or Phillips players.

**KvHagedorn** · 16 September 2003, 20:46

That's a nice little system, LS, but as gt40 said, sometimes Sony is not as long-lived a product as you might want. For about the same money you might consider getting an A/V receiver and DVD player instead of the components you listed. The RX-V540 or 640 does pretty well, and you could upgrade the system later if you wanted to add a center or surround speakers. Looks like you are getting an unusually good deal on the Yamaha, and it's up to you where you buy your equipment, but if you buy it online or otherwise go outside an authorised dealer, your warranty is null and void. Check out Yamaha's website for that info. Personally, I think the 602s are an excellent speaker for the money, but do some legwork and listen to a bunch of different ones before you make your decision. Speakers are largely a matter of personal taste, so make sure yours is satisfied with what you choose. The 602s have close competition in the Paradigm Monitor 5, for instance. Some people prefer the more open sound of the Monitor 5 at low listening levels, but they crap out sooner if you crank on them.

I'm kinda shocked at how tiny your room is, but it should do alright if you put some heavy curtains against that wall with the window on it and face the speakers out from there. Good luck, and hope you are happy with what you find.

**Liquid Snake** · 17 September 2003, 15:06

I don't plan on upgrading this into a movie system. There's simply no space for that right now. I'm probably gonna move out within a few years but knowing how fast surround receivers and home theater equipment change these days (relative to stereo equipment), anything I get now will probably be outdated by that time.

I know Sony has a bad rep among audiophiles but from what I understand, their high-end ES line is pretty decent. I looked into the Phillips player that K6-III mentioned. Comments about its sound quality are very positive but the major complaint seems to be that build quality is very poor. The Sony ES player, on the other hand, is built pretty solidly. I'll find some places to check out these two players.

Don't worry about the Yamaha's price. The guy is an authorized dealer; it's just that he's a good friend of my dad so he's willing to give a bit of a discount. Of course I'm going to look at other speakers, but the 804s here in the living room kick major ass, so naturally I looked at B&W's lower-end stuff first.

I know my room is small, but it's only my bedroom. The living room with the 804/805/HTM2 system is significantly bigger.

**K6-III** · 17 September 2003, 18:41

Originally posted by Liquid Snake
K6-III,

Arcams are nice (the HT system has a CD72 player), but they're pretty much out of my budget unless I can find a really good deal. I'll take a look at NAD amps and KEF speakers. With this budget, I'm not going to spend much on cables. I'll probably just get some cheap stuff until I can afford better.

How does the Phillips player sound for CD playback? SACD playback doesn't really matter, but it's a nice bonus. I didn't really look into it because it has a DVD section that I don't need, but I'll consider it if its CD and SACD playback aren't compromised. A CD-only player is also fine if it can beat the CD playback of the Sony or Phillips players.

As far as Arcams go, you can maybe find a used integrated amp within your budget. NAD would be a good alternative.

The Philips is literally the best SACD player for regular CD playback. Better than anything Sony makes with a few $$ in mods. Read up what people say on www.head-fi.org and you'll quickly find that it is pretty much the thing to go for, outside the Pioneer DV-47Ai, but that is definitlely outside your budget...

As far as cables go, Tara Labs if you're willing to spend a bit and Canare if you're not...

Cables usually should account for 10-15% of total system cost...

az · 17 September 2003, 23:09

Originally posted by K6-III
Cables usually should account for 10-15% of total system cost...

This Guy seems to think otherwise. (read the whole page LS, it's very interesting!)

AZ

**gt40** · 18 September 2003, 03:57

Originally posted by az
This Guy seems to think otherwise. (read the whole page LS, it's very interesting!)

AZ

I've been telling people this for years - WIRE is WIRE. Putting a fancy covering on a 12 gauge cable will not make it sound any better than any other 12 gauge cable.

**MultimediaMan** · 18 September 2003, 04:06

Eyup...

**Marshmallowman** · 18 September 2003, 04:11

Cables usually should account for 10-15% of total system cost...

ehh....unless you factor in optical cables and other interconnects

**gt40** · 18 September 2003, 04:18

umm, do both of you gents (MultimediaMan, Marshmallowman) parade about in superhero outfits with big M's on them??

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