Amplifier hell!

[matthewpiano]

Thanks PP. I didn't really mean reappraise the hi-fi - that was meant more in relation to the other things occupying my mind.

I fully intend to sit back and enjoy the NAD now and I will certainly be selling any surplus kit at some point.

You are lucky that you have realised how difficult it would be to improve what you have without spending big money. If only I'd done that a while back I'd have been enjoying the music far more.

 

[the record spot]

matthewpiano:

You are absolutely right. I've had a few days off this week which has given me the time to try the Cambridge and then the Denon properly and to realise the need to go back to what I'm comfortable with - NAD.

Two things, life's too short being one and the other is that in my experience to date, there isn't a huge amount of difference between amps, barring the odd excpetion where it really is glaringly obvious. Is it more a case of trying to hard to hear the faults, when you need to retrain your mind into enjoying the 95%+ that the kit is getting right?

 

[chebby]

I suggest you empty the house of all hifi (sell everything) and buy something like like an old Roberts R737 table radio....

They cost about £20 for a working one and have a fabulous 'tone'. I think they have a 3.5mm jack plug to plug in an external source like an MP3 player.

Live with this for a month or so and refrain from all hifi mags and visiting ANY hifi shops.

Stay away from forums for a bit (or at least stay out of the hifi sections). Do some gardening, read those books you meant to catch up on. Instead of arranging hifi demos use the time for a nice walk or a visit a coffee shop.

You need the aural equivalent of a 'palette cleanser' like a refreshing sorbet between rich courses. Your ears need a break. Long enough to forget what it all sounded like.

 

[plastic penguin]

The OH and I worked something out...with surprising conclusions.

Over the past 30 years I spent fortunes on buying and modifying cars. I've had over 20 different vehicles in that period, some I loved and others were a waste of time. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is if I'd purchased just 10 of the most cherished ones, we would of had enough money for two foreign holidays a year and, crucially, I would have the money to buy a real smart hi-end stereo set-up.

If Matthew, rather than dashing out to buy another amp/CDP/speaker combo, put the money to one side, within a few months, would have the financial resources for a high end system.

Mmmm, food for thought....

 

[crusaderlord]

NAD for me are great value for the money - i owned a NAD system for over 10 years and when eventually i did upgrade i still obtained a 2nd hand C 320BEE amplifier for my 2nd system

although it can be fun trying different separates there comes a time to settle and enjoy one so enjoy your NAD system - i think its about as good as you can get in its price range

 

[Anonymous]

You seem to suffer from the same dissatisfaction I did before biting the bullet and getting some higher level kit. It's still a compromise but less of one! My Spendors make me forget about the kit and just disappear into the music.

 

[Anonymous]

you gotta be content sometime its quite uncomfortable with this silly obsession i know because i had it .Hey there is always gonna be something better you just have to settle and move on its just a stereo.I just bucked up for some cyrus gear the 8vs2,8 power biamping polk lsi9.cd 6se its incredible finally i can stop the madness and just enjoy these were expensive but i will enjoy them for a very long time, then again *** it doesnt sound that good today lol.

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:matthewpiano:jaxwired might actually be right about me. I think there is probably more to this than just 'hi-fi'. OCD?

Hiihhi

 

[JoelSim]

It seems you keep swapping for the sake of it, sideways, rather than trying to go for something at a higher level.