MA silver 300 or Wharfedale Evo 4.4?

Sandy2997

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Oct 18, 2020
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I'm moving into my first house and looking to get a decent hifi system to go along with it. I'm pretty much set on the Audiolab 6000a Play as my amp and source though I remain open to suggestions. Speaker choice is my main dilemma, with the Evo and Silver coming in at similar prices and offering very similar value.

I listen to a huge variety of different genres ranging from blues to pretty heavy rock. I will be sticking to streaming as my sole source for now but do hope to venture into vinyl in the not-too-distant future. Which should i go for? Or are there alternatives that would suit me even better?
 
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Welcome to the forum.
As anyone will tell you it's always best to get speakers you can actually audition. This is often difficult these days but you really should try to save disappointment.
There are many to recommend in this price range but if you cannot audition them there is little point recommending them.
For what it's worth out of your pairing I would take the Silver 300 but that's only because I have heard them.
Not too sure of the room size you will have but the 4.4's need a lot of space I am informed, but there's always the 4.3s
The Bowers & Wilkins 603 might also be added to an audition list.
 

CheshirePete

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Oct 12, 2020
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A home audition is essential in my opinion, if you buy online you can return the goods and get your money back.

Those EVO's do look like a good buy though, what about used speakers from Ebay? ... if you don't like the speakers you can always sell them on.
 
Welcome from me too, and another vote for getting out to hear and see a few contenders.

Wharfedale and MA are both long established brands and these models are both recent. But they aren’t remotely alike apart from being a similar price. The finish and impact in the room are quite distinct too. Sometimes the next model up or down will be preferable.

You might find you prefer, alternatively, say the Dali Oberon range at a few £hundreds less, or clearly enjoy ProAcs or KEFs at a higher price.
 
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nopiano makes a very good point.
Room size and layout basically determine what sort of speakers are going to work well there, and your own ears of course.
Until you get this new house and work out where you hifi is going to go don't rush into buying speakers first.
 

matthewpiano

Well-known member
I'd echo the advice already given to audition. It's the only way to find out what really suits your preferences.

I'd suggest buying the standard Audiolab 6000A (a very capable amp) and adding an alternative streamer such as the Bluesound Node 2i. The streaming element of the 6000A Play is based on the seperate 6000N. The DTS PlayFi platform on which these are based is, in my experience, stable and easy to use, but it does not support gapless playback. This has become an issue for me and it's certainly something you may wish to consider.
 
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daytona600

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6000 can be on the dry side , speaker with slight warmth will match well
14F Elipson 92db effciency & very easy to drive if required will drive a large room & plenty of punch & dynamics with 35hz extension required for rock/blues
PM7000N from marantz also a great source


 
but it does not support gapless playback. This has become an issue for me and it's certainly something you may wish to consider.
I had forgotten that, although read it somewhere else recently. It’s a shocking flaw, and really rules it out for serious consideration. On a £30 Chromecast Audio it was acceptable, just, but not several years on at umpteen times the price.
 

matthewpiano

Well-known member
I had forgotten that, although read it somewhere else recently. It’s a shocking flaw, and really rules it out for serious consideration. On a £30 Chromecast Audio it was acceptable, just, but not several years on at umpteen times the price.

It's something I never imagined would be an issue when I purchased the 6000N, especially having got around the issue back in the days of using a Logitech Squeezebox, and given that several respected brands have chosen to use PlayFi.
 
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Sandy2997

Active member
Oct 18, 2020
8
2
25
Visit site
Welcome to the forum.
As anyone will tell you it's always best to get speakers you can actually audition. This is often difficult these days but you really should try to save disappointment.
There are many to recommend in this price range but if you cannot audition them there is little point recommending them.
For what it's worth out of your pairing I would take the Silver

Welcome to the forum.
As anyone will tell you it's always best to get speakers you can actually audition. This is often difficult these days but you really should try to save disappointment.
There are many to recommend in this price range but if you cannot audition them there is little point recommending them.
For what it's worth out of your pairing I would take the Silver 300 but that's only because I have heard them.
Not too sure of the room size you will have but the 4.4's need a lot of space I am informed.
The Bowers & Wilkins 603 might also be added to an audition list.
Welcome to the forum.
As anyone will tell you it's always best to get speakers you can actually audition. This is often difficult these days but you really should try to save disappointment.
There are many to recommend in this price range but if you cannot audition them there is little point recommending them.
For what it's worth out of your pairing I would take the Silver 300 but that's only because I have heard them.
Not too sure of the room size you will have but the 4.4's need a lot of space I am informed, but there's always the 4.3s
The Bowers & Wilkins 603 might also be added to an audition list.

I'll definitely endeavour to audition every pair I can as advised. I paid my local hifi store a visit, and while they don't have either of the above models in store, I can arrange to audition the 603 and Dali Opticon 6, which I think I will. As far as room size goes, they'll being going into my living room, so I just might be able to pull off the 4.4. And yes, options at this price point seem to be infinite, I seem to be adding to the audition bucket list every day!
 

Sandy2997

Active member
Oct 18, 2020
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A home audition is essential in my opinion, if you buy online you can return the goods and get your money back.

Those EVO's do look like a good buy though, what about used speakers from Ebay? ... if you don't like the speakers you can always sell them on.

I've heard a few times that the used market has a lot to offer, but it's important to me that that my first system is hassle free. As Im I'm new to the hobby, I want a "minimal-risk" system I can learn to love quite easily. Thats far more important to me that scoring the best deal.
 

Sandy2997

Active member
Oct 18, 2020
8
2
25
Visit site
6000 can be on the dry side , speaker with slight warmth will match well
14F Elipson 92db effciency & very easy to drive if required will drive a large room & plenty of punch & dynamics with 35hz extension required for rock/blues
PM7000N from marantz also a great source



Thanks, I will definitely check them both out, particularly the Marantz. I've been keeping my eye out for other products that offer the same package - at a similar price point- as the 6000a play and the Pm7000n looks promising. Is there anything else on your radar in this category?
 

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