Advice needed on buying a new system

[admin_exported]

Hi all, I'm looking to buy my first system after wearing out my dads old Kenwood separates and speakers..

At the moment I'm thinking EB Acoustics EB1s or B&W 635s with a NAD C326BEE amp or Marantz PM6003 with Chord Carnival Silverscreen wiring or Diamond wiring? I think they were mentioned in a review for the EB acoustics as being recommended.. I'll also need something to connect my iPod to the system, either a Russ Andrews GQ-24 Interconnect cable or a Cambridge Audio ID10 with remote and I'll need a cable to connect the amp to my laptop as well if I'm going to be playing music off that instead of the iPod.

Basically I have a lot of choice here, and I don't want to end up mismatching and buying stuff that won't complement each other. Does anyone have any advice? Thanks.

 

[AL13N]

ElliotLloyd:At the moment I'm thinking EB Acoustics EB1s or B&W 635s with a NAD C326BEE amp or Marantz PM6003 ... Basically I have a lot of choice here, and I don't want to end up mismatching and buying stuff that won't complement each other.
In the January Systems Supertest WHF suggested as an 'Instant upgrade' the Arcaydis DM1 with the Marantz CD/PM6003 combo, and the EB Acoustics EB1 with the NAD C545/C326BEE combo.

Also, in the First Test of the Rotel RA-04SE they recommended the B&W 685.

These are all five star products. Yes, there is a lot of choice at this price level which is a good thing for the consumer. As always, the best thing is to audition and see which one sounds best with your music. Use reviews/comments on here (and elsewhere) to draw up your list, then hit the dealers.

Good luck.

 

[matthewpiano]

Agree with AL13N. There is lots of quality kit at this price point so have fun auditioning the options.

I own a NAD C326BEE and have spent a lot of time listening to Marantz PM6003s. Both are superb amplifiers and I would strongly urge you to listen to them both.

For streaming music I would recommend the Squeezebox wholeheartedly. Sound quality is excellent and it makes a superb interface for accessing music files.

 

[the record spot]

Nothing much to add to the above, except to say that don't forget to include the likes of NAD's C355 amp, currently £249 at Richer Sounds (if you're near a branch) and also Yamaha's AS-700 and Harman Kardon's HK980 amps.

EDIT: And if you're gong down the speakers route, definitely audition the Leema Acoustics Xone standmount, price crashed to £399 at Sevenoaks - see also the Dali 2.8 (although these may be too much of a stretch for your chosen amp selection however). The Leemas would deffo be on my shortlist though; apparently a superb speaker a full price, so for less than half, they ought to give the EB1s a good run for their money and then some.