Recent content by matt49

For those interested in understanding the real differences between analog and digital, and not the subjective anecdotes, Jim Lesurf's Information and Measurement is an excellent guide.

KEF Q3 Meta A good rule of thumb is always to audition whichever KEF model suits your budget/needs.

Coincidentally my first system, given to me by my dad in 1978 when I was 14, cost around £230. Pioneer PL-512 NAD 3020 AR18s The amp and speakers are still going strong: my younger daughter has them, along with a new Projekt TT. Anyway I agree with you that price isn’t really the obstacle. Your...

OK probably best we end this. We’re arguing from entirely different premises.

You’re right of course: the Denon is a bit of an outlier price-wise for MC cartridges. But, whilst not wanting to be overly argumentative or pedantic (and I have a tendency to be both), my understanding was that the OP’s situation was a choice between two external phono amps, one MM and one...

Well, as someone who uses a low output MC cartridge that cost under £400 ('only' £250 when I bought it two years ago), I'm obviously going to take a different view.

If it were me, I'd ask myself how certain I was that I wouldn't change my mind about MC cartridges. Future-proofing is surely wise, no?

That Pioneer pre/power combo is a classic amp from the golden age of Japanese hi-fi. I'm not surprised it sounds great!

The physics of room acoustics dictates that each and every main speaker (i.e. one that puts out significant SPL below the Schroeder frequency) will benefit from bass management. Trying to address resonances by moving your speakers is largely pointless: wherever you move the speakers, there'll...

No hi-fi system will give its best without some form of bass management. That's just basic physics. I'd fully expect people who buy a NAD Master series amp with Dirac to report that they find the sound is better with Dirac than without.

Have you tried searching on the internet? e.g. "dirac live loudness management"?

I'm also sceptical about the Qutest + Anni combination, for the same reason. It's over £2000, and that's a lot of money to remove from your speaker budget. Judging by what you've said about limitations on volume, for me the priority would be speakers that sound good (i.e. retain good dynamics)...

Yes, the 3020 is one of those historic hi-fi products. Ironically, my current main system includes an amp that was manufactured between 1977 and 1979.

Moving the lines will adjust the target frequency response that Dirac aims for when it does its calculation. Don't touch the right-hand line. You can move the left hand line up or down if you want, and see if you like the results. Ultimately this is all subjective. It's up to you. Research has...

Thanks. These lines indicate the target room curve. The line on the left indicates the LF level (up to 70Hz) and the line on the right indicates the remainder (above 70Hz).