£300 setup

[admin_exported]

Hi Guys,

Im looking to start from scratch and get a completely new audio setup. My budget will be around £300 and i'd ideally like to buy from Richer sounds as there is a store local to me so it is nice and easy for me to go and pickup.

What would y'all suggest? The £300 is for amp and speakers only - I already have all the interconnects I need and will also be buying a DAC further down the line.

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

would something like this sound as good as spending £300 on seperates?

http://www.superfi.co.uk/index.cfm/page/moreinfo.cfm/Product_ID/4674

 

[Anonymous]

For that sort of money I would audition the Cambs Audio S30 speakers and 350A amp. £50 over your budget. Or the same amp with the Whafedale Diamond 9.0 which would be exactly on your budget.

 

[Anonymous]

flakmonkey:For that sort of money I would audition the Cambs Audio S30 speakers and 350A amp. £50 over your budget. Or the same amp with the Whafedale Diamond 9.0 which would be exactly on your budget.

Thanks for the reply. Is it better to spend more on the Amp than the speakers then? I've always thought spending more on the speakers would yield better results, but Im fairly new to all this.

 

[Anonymous]

Buy what combo sounds best to you.

It always used to be the 'rule' that you should spend about 2/3 the value of the amp on the speakers, so £600 amp, £400 speakers. Whether that still has any relevance I dont know. My speakers are worth a lot more than the rest of my kit put together, but it all works well together and thats what matters. I have heard some terrible combos of stuff that really should complement each other. Its hard to tell until you audition some stuff

 

[matthewpiano]

flakmonkey has given you good advice. I'm the other way round - my amp and CD are worth a lot more than my speakers, and yet the little Dalis sound stunning with such good quality electronics.

If you are buying new, the Cambridge 350A is an excellent little amp. I have one in my second system and it does a great job with Wharfedale Diamond 9.1s. If you prefer a bassier sound I'd suggest also trying to hear the NAD C316BEE which could be partnered with some Monitor Audio BR1s very successfully - although Richers don't do the MAs so you'd have to seek out a pair second hand or at another dealer.

 

[audioaffair]

It's also worth considering the NAD C315 and C515 as there are some cracking offers around on these - possibly paired with some Roth Oli1 speakers.

 

[Anonymous]

hello!

am very interested in your views as i too have a CA 350A and it's hooked up to a MA BR1. while i appreciate the detail this combination gives, i find the delivery uninvolving, almost bland even. i borrowed a friend's M-S 902i and while i found there was less overall detail/resolution, the delivery was very involving - "fun" to listen to (if i may use such terms).

flakmonkey and matthewpiano, am very much interested in your opinions. i know there is no "best" or "correct" combination, just different characterizations that will subjectively suit different preferences. how would you characterize the combinations you suggested above? do you think there is some happy middle ground between the BR1 and 902i in this situation? (i primarily listen to rock and electronic, btw.)

and teknokid, apologies if i may have hijacked your thread. perhaps flakmonkey's and matthewpiano's replies may benefit us both?

thanks!

 

[Blackdawn]

There are plenty of budget speakers for you to deside upon. How about the Tannoy Mercury V1?

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the suggestion, Blackdawn. What's deciding factor behind your reco for the Tannoy Mercury V1 vs others in its price range. I'll look into how much they cost here (am in HK, btw - comparative auditions will not always be easy to pull off). Thanks!