Do I need a DacMagic?

[admin_exported]

I have a few questions about my budget system that I need helping out with. I have a Marantz 6002 CD player, CA 540 Amp and bi-wired Mordaunt Short 902i speakers, what's the best thing I can do to upgrade? Will a DacMagic give it a noticable boost or is the DAC in the Marantz CD player nearly as good? (I am not planning to use it through my PC just as an upgrade to my Hi-Fi system). If I did get the DacMagic would I then need better speakers?

Also the set up does sound a bit harsh. Having read more reviews I think that might be the CA 540 Amp? I know it's only a budget system but is that letting the rest down? If you had 300-400 quid to spend what would you get and would it make a noticable difference?

Many thanks!

 

[Anonymous]

Hi there

I think before you start upgrading DACs and the like, make sure you've got a good solid foundation. Speaker stands, cabling and equipment racks.

After that, move on to the 540A. I reckon the Marantz PM6002 will fit in nicely with your cd player. TBH Dacmagics get fantastic reviews, and I myself crave for one, and I have a CA 640C V2; but even so, i would only get it if i were to go down the NAS route.

Hope this helps!

Roman

 

[Anonymous]

I don't think a DacMagic will lead to the change / improvement in sound you are looking for. Your CD player is very capable, and while the DacMagic may just about better it, I don't think you will consider it worth the outlay.

Your amp can be a bit forward sounding and brash - a PM6002 will give you a more laid back sound, but at the expense of some of the in-your-face excitement that the Cambridge provides. It would certainly be a sideways step rather than an upgrade.

In your position I'd be saving up a bit and looking for a nice pair of speakers in the £500 range. Your CD and amp will shine with a good set of speakers in this price bracket.

 

[John Duncan]

Agreed (DACMagic owner here) - amp first, unless you want to stream (which you don't)

 

[Johnno2]

Dont get sucked into the dacmagic hype! unless you want to use it with a computer, Yes its a good device and I have one to play music through from my laptop via usb. I also run my Marantz CD7300 via the optical,but to be honest there is hardly a difference between the Marantz dac and the dacmagic. The CD 6001 will sound just as good as the dacmagic I reckon.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your input guys, really helpful you've saved me a few hundred
quid as it sounds like the dacmigic's not for me. Looks like it'll be speakers
next and possibly amp sometime down the line.

Regarding the foundations: I have an alphasson rack and some speaker
stands (I'm not sure the make but quite sturdy) I got on the cheap from ebay. I am using CA Ultra Micro speaker wire (2.50 per metre) and CA Pacific
Interconnects. Nothing too fancy but I thought it was the right sort of money
for my system?

Just one more thing! I use my headphones quite a lot (Sennheiser HD570) and it looks like you can pick up a dedicated headphone amp (Pro-ject Head Box MK11 has good reviews) for 100 quid which sounds like it could be a good upgrade, will that make much difference on my system?

Thanks for your posts