£700 Hi*Fi budget... Help!

[admin_exported]

Hey everyone. This is my first post - I must admit I've been a bit of a lurker on What Hi*Fi for a while now, but I recently acquired a budget for a new sound system and could really do with some help!

I've had the same setup for many years now, and it's far from fancy -

PC --->>> M-Audio Fast Track Pro (via USB) --->>> shamefully old Aiwa stereo HiFi system (think 3-CD changer, double cassette, built-in subwoofer, etc!)

That is pretty much it. I also use a pair of Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (80 Ohm) Headphones which are currently connected to the Fast Track Pro's headphone jack, but I'm well aware that they aren't being driven to their potential, at all...

All of my old CDs have been digitally archived in 320Kbps quality, and I now purchase all of my music as downloads, so I really have no use for a CD player (R.I.P)... So I figured all I would need is an integrated amp, and some Hi-Fi speakers...

My budget is around £700 - I've been looking at the Yamaha A-S500 & the B&W 685s - haven't been able to read anything about them paired together but they seem to be getting top reviews as separates, and are just about in budget... Any opinions on these as a combination?

My PC is a very decent machine and also has an optical output, so I thought if I could go from PC directly to amp then I would be getting the best quality I could, but I can't seem to find any integrated amps that have an optical input!

I know it is always said that you should go and audition/demo Hi-Fi systems to hear what's best for you, but unfortunately this is just not possible with me. I'm going to have to base my purchases purely on opinions & reviews, and just hope that it works!

This is a pic of my current setup - I'm open to suggestions... Any help on this situation is greatly appreciated!

 

[the record spot]

Are you set on separates? Looking at your photo, is space an issue? If the answer to these questions is "no" and "yes", or even "no" and "no", then your budget is getting close to Genelec 8030A territory...these are active speakers and have their own inbuilt amps (40w for the high and low frequencies each which is good for most rooms). Superb for the money (roughly £800, but I've seen them for about £699 in the past). Sound quality is excellent; clear, open, with an impressively deep bass - moreso given the box is barely 12" high. Highly recommended.

http://www.genelec.com/products/2-way-monitors/8030a/

Check out actives from Yamaha, KRK and Tannoy as well. All of whom will do speakers from £250-£500 that are seriously worthy of a listen.

Yamaha HS80:-
http://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/music-production/speakers/hs_series/hs80m/?mode=model
Tannoy Reveal 601a (which is the active model):-
http://www.tannoy.com/News.aspx
KRK Rokit 5 and 8:-
http://www.krksys.com/product_rokit.php

 

[Anonymous]

Wow - thank you for all those suggestions... I'm definitely not "set" on separates - I just assumed 'amp & speakers' as it's what most people seem to be talking about when it comes to hi-fi audio... If I could get a good sound out of some active speakers then id be more than happy to throw my entire budget into them! Do you reckon I could get better bang for buck with a pair of active speakers rather than going for separates?

The room is 3.2m x 2.9m, but to be honest I couldn't really place the speakers anywhere else other than around the unit in the picture... Unless of course I could mount them on the walls?! Not very wise when it comes to speaker placement...

The Yamaha HS80M & The Rokit 8 look very nice indeed... How would you recommend I best connect them to PC?

 

[basshead]

hi nightmaresonwax

what are you're musical tastes? (appart from the obvious)

 

[the record spot]

nightmaresonwax:
Wow - thank you for all those suggestions... I'm definitely not "set" on separates - I just assumed 'amp & speakers' as it's what most people seem to be talking about when it comes to hi-fi audio... If I could get a good sound out of some active speakers then id be more than happy to throw my entire budget into them! Do you reckon I could get better bang for buck with a pair of active speakers rather than going for separates?

The room is 3.2m x 2.9m, but to be honest I couldn't really place the speakers anywhere else other than around the unit in the picture... Unless of course I could mount them on the walls?! Not very wise when it comes to speaker placement...

The Yamaha HS80M & The Rokit 8 look very nice indeed... How would you recommend I best connect them to PC?

Hi Fi separates aren't the only way to achieve good sound. It's that simple really. Once you consider alternatives and weigh up the options, they're not the only way to go. Quality-wise, those other options are worth exploring - I've heard them all this year and recommend them. The sound is clear, but not strident, with good bass weight across the board.

In terms of connecting them, I'd suggest something like the Cakewalk UA25-EX by Roland, which is around £150 new, gives you DAC plus ADC (handy for digitising LPs or tapes for instance) as well as a stack of other functionality and build is exemplary (aluminium case). You've got optical and USB inputs as well as RCA and it powers off your computer, so no extra mains leads to worry about. Check what inputs the speakers have, but the worst case scenario might be an adapter. I've been looking at the Cakewalk for a few weeks now as it looks excellent.

The HS80M is pretty big, bass won't be an issue, and is around £350 or so, the Rokit 8s I'm not sure, but the 5s are about £230 or so.

 

[Anonymous]

Aah... Good question! Genre-wise I find it difficult to categorise, but I tend to stick with Alternative and Electronica... From the likes of Lykke Li, Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver, Beach House, The Kills, The XX, etc... To the likes of Zero 7, Chemical Bros, Simian Mobile Disco, UNKLE, Thom Yorke/Radiohead, etc... Oh, and I have a bunch of old soul/blues tracks too... That pretty much sums it up...

From the previous poster, the record spot's suggestion, I did some research into Active Speakers... I got the impression that these kind of speakers sound more "accurate" than "good"... I don't know how true this is, but I think I'm swinging more towards wanting a good sound than an accurate one!

Again any help appreciated...

 

[the record spot]

You have options - best bet is to try and hear some really if you possibly can (this applies across the board, not just to active speakers). One thing; you want accurate. No matter what you pick. What you might not like is neutral, or too neutral, which is what some active speakers are for music production purposes. Otherwise, the ones I mentioned are both accurate and good.

 

[Anonymous]

Okay cool, thanks for the advice... Well after much googling - I REALLY like the look of the Yamaha HS80M as a pair.... May I ask a few potentially dumb questions about them?

- With regards to having them connected as a pair of stereo speakers - how does that work exactly? I've looked at a picture of the back and the only thing I can think is that I need individual RCA to XLR or Jack cables to connect to each speaker from the left and right outputs on my audio interface/dac?

- The speaker is listed as 120w dynamic bi-amplified power - does this effectively mean with two speakers I'd be getting 240w?! I do like my music loud...!

- One final question - do you think it would be worth getting the related subwoofer, the hs10w, or is it unnecessary?

 

[the record spot]

If it's saying 120wpc, then you're getting 120wpc, not 120wpc times the number of speakers you have (sorry!) - for your room size, that's plenty though. I've got a good sized living room and an amp that's rated at 85wpc (nearer 100 in reality). I can turn my dial up to 9 o'clock and you'll hear it down the street. I hear that the HS80s can go deep enough alright, but whether that's deep enough for you is another matter! Personal tastes/choice, etc...

In terms of connectivity, adapters are available from the likes of Maplin that'll get round connectivity issues, thereafter, you just need to work out if you're going direct from the computer, or via a pre-amp to control volume - the likes of iTunes comes with one built in, as does WinAmp and I think most other music management apps do the same. The Yammies have variosu functions to this end too.

Lastly, don't take my word for it - I only heard them once during a demo in a pro-audio music shop in Edinburgh (Red Dog Music) and was impressed with what I heard, but that doesn't mean they're must haves on the back of that alone. Check out the likes of Sound on Sound magazine's reviews - they might have something on them - also do check out the separates options too as they might be more suitable for your needs in the end. For your room size though and your storage options, actives reduce the box count and should go some way to answering at least some of your issues for now, even the bass (maybe)!

EDIT: I mentioned this bit of kit on another thread, but it might be something you'd want to do some reading on for a possible (one of many!) DAC solution (the Roland Cakewalk UA25-EX mentioned earlier):-

http://community.whathifi.com/forums/AddPost.aspx?PostID=535718

 

[bay24]

There are some avi adm 9s on eBay for £590. (they are white though.....) they do come up every now and again and I believe they can be tweaked by avi to a new spec now.

 

[Anonymous]

Aah! Thank you for that link - I'd previously checked AVI out but obviously they are way out of price range new...

Would you say the AVI ADM9's are still up there even by todays standards for £590? I checked them out, and also checked out the newer 9.1's, and the general opinion is that they are sonically miles ahead of the ADM9's...

I've also been looking at the Yamaha HS80Ms, and the Quad 11L Active.... Aaarrggh this is so confusing! What do you think?

Yamaha HS80Ms for £360, Quad 11L Actives for £500, or ex-demo AVI ADM9s for £590?!?!

I really like the idea of active monitors rather than separates, so now it's just narrowing it down...

 

[the record spot]

Yup, all part of the fun. I think, IIRC that the ADM9 had USB connectivity, which might appeal? Do check though...

 

[bay24]

nightmaresonwax:
Aah! Thank you for that link - I'd previously checked AVI out but obviously they are way out of price range new...

Would you say the AVI ADM9's are still up there even by todays standards for £590? I checked them out, and also checked out the newer 9.1's, and the general opinion is that they are sonically miles ahead of the ADM9's...

I've also been looking at the Yamaha HS80Ms, and the Quad 11L Active.... Aaarrggh this is so confusing! What do you think?

Yamaha HS80Ms for £360, Quad 11L Actives for £500, or ex-demo AVI ADM9s for £590?!?!

I really like the idea of active monitors rather than separates, so now it's just narrowing it down...

I think £500 for the quads sounds a bit steep, I realy liked the sound of the passive version though I have not heard the actives. It may be worth e-mailing avi as they had been offering tweaks on older models it improve the sound. Saying that I don't think they were bad to start with, both 9 and 9.1 got 5 stars in what hifi and I can say that the 9.1 sound very very good. £590 is quite alot, I have seen them go for less if you are willing to be patient.

 

[the record spot]

IIRC also - the Quads are £400. £399 for the pedantic or those who need the £1 for the bus home.

 

[audioaffair]

Lots of good replies and info here to give an idea of what you're after. The Quad 11Ls are indeed great active speakers and you also have the option of the 9Ls. Aktimate Mini or Aktimate Maxi are also very good choices and come in some funky colours - the Maxi also features internet radio (with display) - not necessarily a "must" if you're using them next to your PC but its cool nevertheless. These offer the best levels of clarity of all of these options IMHO thanks to Epos speaker technology and they are very well built.

 

[bay24]

nightmaresonwax:
Aah! Thank you for that link - I'd previously checked AVI out but obviously they are way out of price range new...

Would you say the AVI ADM9's are still up there even by todays standards for £590? I checked them out, and also checked out the newer 9.1's, and the general opinion is that they are sonically miles ahead of the ADM9's...

I've also been looking at the Yamaha HS80Ms, and the Quad 11L Active.... Aaarrggh this is so confusing! What do you think?

Yamaha HS80Ms for £360, Quad 11L Actives for £500, or ex-demo AVI ADM9s for £590?!?!

I really like the idea of active monitors rather than separates, so now it's just narrowing it down...

I think £500 for the quads sounds a bit steep, I realy liked the sound of the passive version, they were my second choice when got my speakers. I have not heard the actives though. It may be worth e-mailing avi as I read on another forum that they had been offering some of the tweaks done on the new 9t on older models it improve the sound. Saying that I don't think they were bad to start with, both 9 and 9.1 got 5 stars in what hifi and I can say that the 9.1 sound very very good. £590 is quite alot, I have seen them go for less if you are willing to be patient.

 

[the record spot]

Ummm, you mentioned this on the last page...!

 

[bay24]

the record spot:Ummm, you mentioned this on the last page...!
That would be my short term memory loss......apologies these are the problems of posting via an iPhone with dodgy 3G signal.

 

[the record spot]

No worries - I've managed to do the same on the phone as well...I usually hit the "Post" button once, think the phone's missed it somehow, hit it again and, yup, two posts!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot for the helpful replies.

I've now become obsessive over wanting some budget-busting AVIs! This is just great....

£400 for the Quad 11L Actives? I can't seem to find them anywhere for less than £499...

I was contemplating putting in a bid for those ADM9s you pointed me to, but this morning discovered they'd sold! There's a pair of ADM9.1s listed on eBay but they're at £113 with 9 days to go, so I'm imagining they'll skyrocket out of my £700 budget in the last few hours... I definitely can wait a little, but am set on wanting to be done by christmas!

Aah what to do, what to do...!

 

[bay24]

nightmaresonwax:
Thanks a lot for the helpful replies.

I've now become obsessive over wanting some budget-busting AVIs! This is just great....

£400 for the Quad 11L Actives? I can't seem to find them anywhere for less than £499...

I was contemplating putting in a bid for those ADM9s you pointed me to, but this morning discovered they'd sold! There's a pair of ADM9.1s listed on eBay but they're at £113 with 9 days to go, so I'm imagining they'll skyrocket out of my £700 budget in the last few hours... I definitely can wait a little, but am set on wanting to be done by christmas!

Aah what to do, what to do...!

In the listing the seller says he is looking for 60% of the retail, by my calculation that is about £720, may be worth e-mailing with an offer?