Was hoping on some guidance on possible avenues for upgrade, which I have referred to the forum on before, but since altered my thinking some what).
Hopefully my system will be shown below in my signature, which is all currently correct apart from the fact I've boxed up my Sony CD player as I'm finding I just don't use it anymore. All my music comes from my NAS or through Airplay (Airport Express) from various podcasts/soundcloud/spotify type services. The music that is ripped to my NAS has been 'Matched' via Apple (so should at least be 256Kbps - although I think to verify I'll have to do this http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-57326759-285/how-to-use-itunes-match-to-upgrade-audio-quality/) but much of the newer stuff I've ripped is at Apple Lossless.
I am therefore fully into the streaming side of things - with a mixture of half decent audio quality and some not so.
I'm thinking of first upgrading my speakers, which are clearly my weakest link (bought over 10 years ago whilst at university!) and have a budget of around £1k mark (to include stands if I go for standmounts). I can't seem to get away from the KEF LS50s, for all their reviews, but will obviously listen to these against other recommeded alternatives. I'm am more likely to go for standmounts now, as space is not as big and I will eventually move my kit into a dedicated room where space will (again) be minimal (4x3m). Others I've quickly looked at are KEF R100s and Neat Motive 3s.
After this, I'm a little stuck. Part of me is thinking of replacing my amp - at a later date - for another integrated amp that will drive my chosen speakers and will take my AEX (which basically is the 'source' for all my music now). This will mean using a DAC of some description to improve the sound from the AEX to my amp. I'm currently salavating on the Heed Obelisk Si (where the review of the LS50s seems to suggest a good match) and getting the upgraded on-board DAC (rather than fork out another £1300 on the dedicated one - would it really be that much better!?!?) I assum I could then plug my AEX via a toshlink connection to the amp and away we go?
The other option is to go down the 'music-server' route such as a Naim NAC-N172 XS or the Cyrus Streamline 2 - these would be a one stop solution, in the sense that they could connect to my NAS to play music but not allow any Airplay-action without the AEX, which I'd need to plug in (possibly needing a separate DAC again to get the most from it all)
I'm pipping for the former I think - the Synology apps on my phone/ipad all airplay to the AEX, so it seems silly to pay for a system that has features I don't really need (connecting to my NAS, showing pretty organised files etc).
Thoughts? Do I have the right train of thought above? Am I missing anything?
Any comments would be greatfully appreciated!
Thanks
PJ
Hopefully my system will be shown below in my signature, which is all currently correct apart from the fact I've boxed up my Sony CD player as I'm finding I just don't use it anymore. All my music comes from my NAS or through Airplay (Airport Express) from various podcasts/soundcloud/spotify type services. The music that is ripped to my NAS has been 'Matched' via Apple (so should at least be 256Kbps - although I think to verify I'll have to do this http://howto.cnet.com/8301-11310_39-57326759-285/how-to-use-itunes-match-to-upgrade-audio-quality/) but much of the newer stuff I've ripped is at Apple Lossless.
I am therefore fully into the streaming side of things - with a mixture of half decent audio quality and some not so.
I'm thinking of first upgrading my speakers, which are clearly my weakest link (bought over 10 years ago whilst at university!) and have a budget of around £1k mark (to include stands if I go for standmounts). I can't seem to get away from the KEF LS50s, for all their reviews, but will obviously listen to these against other recommeded alternatives. I'm am more likely to go for standmounts now, as space is not as big and I will eventually move my kit into a dedicated room where space will (again) be minimal (4x3m). Others I've quickly looked at are KEF R100s and Neat Motive 3s.
After this, I'm a little stuck. Part of me is thinking of replacing my amp - at a later date - for another integrated amp that will drive my chosen speakers and will take my AEX (which basically is the 'source' for all my music now). This will mean using a DAC of some description to improve the sound from the AEX to my amp. I'm currently salavating on the Heed Obelisk Si (where the review of the LS50s seems to suggest a good match) and getting the upgraded on-board DAC (rather than fork out another £1300 on the dedicated one - would it really be that much better!?!?) I assum I could then plug my AEX via a toshlink connection to the amp and away we go?
The other option is to go down the 'music-server' route such as a Naim NAC-N172 XS or the Cyrus Streamline 2 - these would be a one stop solution, in the sense that they could connect to my NAS to play music but not allow any Airplay-action without the AEX, which I'd need to plug in (possibly needing a separate DAC again to get the most from it all)
I'm pipping for the former I think - the Synology apps on my phone/ipad all airplay to the AEX, so it seems silly to pay for a system that has features I don't really need (connecting to my NAS, showing pretty organised files etc).
Thoughts? Do I have the right train of thought above? Am I missing anything?
Any comments would be greatfully appreciated!
Thanks
PJ