Need advice for amp and cd player to combine with Mission E34 speakers

[admin_exported]

I have a good price for Mission E34 speakers and would like to buy an amp and a cd player that would provide the best possible sound with it. I am a very diversified in music going from Led Zeppelin, Radiohead to some good Jazz and classical music.

I was looking at Marantz with the PM6003 with a Denon CD 2930Ci or a Cambridge 650A and 650C. I would like to pay under a thousand USD for the Amp and CD.

Thanks in advance.

Louis

 

[RCduck7]

I found the my Mission loudspeakers i used to have not to warm sounding, maybe you need a bit of a warmer sounding amp, NAD is one of them...

 

[the record spot]

Not heard the E34's but just be sure - if you can - that the Marantz / Mission combo isn't too bright and likewise with the Cambridge gear.

In other words, you might get a good midrange and bass and the clarity might all be there, but it could be too bright with the end result being a system that sounds good, but you soon get tired of the full on high-end after a while.

I've heard good things about Harman-Kardon's HK980 which is apparently punchy and for about £250-£300 might be a good partner for the Mission/Marantz or CA speaker/CDP combo.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your advices, but to be honest with you I am still unsure about what would be the best system for me.

I will start from scratch and ask you guys what would be the best system, amp, cd and speakers for a small loft. Like I said I love all kind of music and the speakers will be connected with my TV. Budget is 1500 Euros.

Thanks.

 

[the record spot]

Need a bit more background on what kind of sound you like to hear; warmer/smoother sounding, or more detailed and analytical?

 

[Anonymous]

I prefer a warmer sound than the smooth one cause I like to listen to some hard rock. However, I need to be able to get the realism of Jazz music.

Thanks for your help.

 

[the record spot]

Well, unless the E34s are warm sounding speakers, I'd maybe rethink the shortlist as I don't think any of the amp/sources you've listed will give you a warmer kind of sound as they all lean towards the brighter end of the sound spectrum (that's not to say they wouldn't work well, but both are more detailed and dynamic, but not necessarily what one might call warm).

I'd keep one or other of the amp or CDP you've gone for and try out some alternatives to change the tonal quality of the blend of the gear. There's the Harman Kardon HD990, originally £500 but you can pick up for about £350 or thereabouts. It shares much of the technology found in the Cambridge Audio 840 CDP, a pretty highly regarded beast.

Alternatively, keep your original CDP and swap it for a warmer sounding amp to balance out the sound. Not sure what you might go for here, though I would be tempted to try out the Harman Kardon HK980 amp. They're a good brand, have a long hifi pedigree and their recent range - of which the HK980 is part - has reviewed well. The higher end HK990 amp picked up a gong in the Hi Fi News awards at the end of last year too, along with the HD990 CDP aforementioned.

Hope that helps, but am sure others will chime in too.

 

[Anonymous]

I guess I'm such a moron, but why would you need both a CD-Player with a burr-brown D/A converter and a high-end amplifier "with a burr-brown D/A converter", when the signal read from the CD and passed on to the amplifier via a coaxial or optical interface is digital all the way? Wouldn't we just need the signal to be converted from binaries to analogue frequencies at just one stage?