Change in setup?

[m0n5t3r]

I've recently been able to re-setup my hi-fi after about 18months without (long story). Because of the dogs running around I have had to get rid of my stands and mount the speakers on wall brackets, not the best but they seem to do the job quite well.

Generally the sound of my system is very good although it really shows up bad recordings. The only bugs are that it can be a touch bright with certain things as well as being slightly lean on bass.

This could be down to cables perhaps? I am currently using Van Den Hull interconnect, can't remember which model (yellow, purchased about 8 yrs ago for about £120) and Chord Carnival Silver. Currently bi-wired to the speakers but into speaker channel A on the amp, so I could split this and use A & B perhaps with different cable?

I've started streaming with Qobuz and I am currently looking at a decent DAC to go with it and i'm leaning towards the Arcam iR DAC at the moment. I would plan on running the CD63 through the DAC as well so that should also help to boost the sound quality.

All the stuff I have was award winning at the time of purchase so I am thinking that the issues are either down to compatability and/or cables?

As I will soon be listening to most music via FLAC stream I am not really that fussed about the CD player but I could be convinced to upgrade the speakers or amp.

Any ideas?

 

[m0n5t3r]

I didn't really explain myself properly before. :wall:

The speakers are pretty much exactly in the same place as they were before, everything is pretty much the same.

The speakers are not particularly fussy with positioning in the room, but do like being close to a rear wall.

The problems I mentioned have always been there, but are now more pronounced than they were. The room has also changed slightly with the carpet being replaced by wood flooring which I don't think really helps the acoustics.

Given the reviews of the equipment I have, I would guess that the speakers could be the weak link in the setup. Even though they are great for the price the amp & CD were compared to £800+ equipment, so I did wonder if I should be considering alternatives.

It's only been setup a week so I am sure that I could improve it with some small tweaks to positioning etc.

The problem is not always there though, sitting listening to Money by PF sounds almost perfect... If anything maybe 5% more bass depth would be nice. But something like Bittersweet Symphony, anything more than around 10 o clock with volume the violins are a touch painful. The setup does have a sweet spot at about 10 o clock volume.

I have always wondered about the pairing though, as the speakers are notoriously power hungry. At the time of purchasing the amp, I narrowed down to the Cyrus 6 or the Rotel RA03 and went for the Rotel in the end because of the additional power.

 

[m0n5t3r]

Do I smell or something? :read:

 

[BMFDrums]

I'm sure that it's nothing to do with your personal hygiene(!), and more to do with the fact that you have inadvertently(?) asked a question that is as contentious as anything else on these forums - cables and their influence (or not) on the sound from a hi-fi. To quote Basil Fawlty, "Don't mention The War! I did once, but I think I got away with it..."

The only bit of your kit that I know (really quite well) is the CD63 KI Sig - I had one for years and really loved it. Adding a DAC could smooth things out a bit, especially if the irDAC has the 'typical' (mellow) Arcam sound (I don't have any experience with the irDac). That may help, as may changing the speaker cable for a non-silver cable (but I hasten to add that it may not, just to placate those that will flame me for suggesting that it might have an impact!). Adding a rug and soft furnishings will probably help, and there are many on the forum that suggest that it is likely to make the biggest difference. That has not been my experience, but it's worth a crack before spending a lot of money on new kit.

At the risk of getting lynched, what interconnect are you using? I changed mine previously and found it to have a signifcant effect on the sound. You can read more on my previous experience here:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/is-it-worth-investing-in-decent-coax-cables#comment-2833331

I warn you now, though, this WILL get messy!

Welcome, by the way. I wonder how long it will be before you wish you hadn't asked the question...!

 

[cheeseboy]

The problems I mentioned have always been there, but are now more pronounced than they were. The room has also changed slightly with the carpet being replaced by wood flooring which I don't think really helps the acoustics.

cables won't help with a big room change like that.

If your system sounds almost perfect for some stuff, but not others, try an eq if you can borrow one (ducks and runs from the pictchforked masses) to see if it's possible to marginly tweak your system for different music.

 

[RobinKidderminster]

Carpet to hard floor would be my bet. Rugs. Modest room treatment.

 

[andyjm]

Carpet to hard floor would be my bet. Rugs. Modest room treatment.

Yep.

Room has more impact on sound than any other item. Replacing carpet with a wooden floor will have made a very significant change to the room acoustics. Thick rugs are a good start.

 

[m0n5t3r]

I'm sure that it's nothing to do with your personal hygiene(!), and more to do with the fact that you have inadvertently(?) asked a question that is as contentious as anything else on these forums - cables and their influence (or not) on the sound from a hi-fi. To quote Basil Fawlty, "Don't mention The War! I did once, but I think I got away with it..."

The only bit of your kit that I know (really quite well) is the CD63 KI Sig - I had one for years and really loved it. Adding a DAC could smooth things out a bit, especially if the irDAC has the 'typical' (mellow) Arcam sound (I don't have any experience with the irDac). That may help, as may changing the speaker cable for a non-silver cable (but I hasten to add that it may not, just to placate those that will flame me for suggesting that it might have an impact!). Adding a rug and soft furnishings will probably help, and there are many on the forum that suggest that it is likely to make the biggest difference. That has not been my experience, but it's worth a crack before spending a lot of money on new kit.

At the risk of getting lynched, what interconnect are you using? I changed mine previously and found it to have a signifcant effect on the sound. You can read more on my previous experience here:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/is-it-worth-investing-in-decent-coax-cables#comment-2833331

I warn you now, though, this WILL get messy!

Welcome, by the way. I wonder how long it will be before you wish you hadn't asked the question...!

Thanks for your reply.

I am currently using a Van Den Hull Interconnect which was around £120 worth, I tried about 5 different ones but these were the best by far.

With regards to cables, I have been down that road before and tried about 10 different makes which varied in price massively and found basically no difference between any of them. I suppose I was really asking if anything had changed in that regard but following your comments and other comments in other posts about cables I would guess not.

Like I mentioned in my original posts, this is a long standing issue with my setup and I am now in a better position to do something about it.

Originally I bought and paired with a Marantz KI amp, which I hated but only paid £80 off ebay as my previous amp had expired. I then tested and decided to go for the Rotel back in 2005 which seemed about the best around at the time within my price range.

I originally demo'd the 11L's with a Naim pre/power and they sounded awsome and would have guessed them to be around £800 worth if I hadn't known better. I like the Rotel amp but have read some comments regarding slightly bright at times.

Now I have a little more spare I can consider upgrading, I have looked at the Roksan Kandy K2 and the Nait 5si. Given my original demo the Naim might be a good choice but the output level would worry me slightly with the 11L's as they are notoriously power hungry (87db @ 6ohms if I remember correctly).

 

[m0n5t3r]

Carpet to hard floor would be my bet. Rugs. Modest room treatment.

Hi Yes, I have this already planned. Have a huge rug in mind and some throws and cushions etc.

 

[ifor]

some throws and cushions etc.

"Fat litter", to quote from the wonderful Coupling.

 

[m0n5t3r]

"Cat litter" ...

:O