Purchasing a new Hi-Fi on a relatively tight budget

[admin_exported]

Hello

Could I please ask your advice, I am looking to purchase a new stereo however I am on a budget of £400 and I have narrowed my options down to the Bose Wave CD player http://www.bose.co.uk/GB/en/home-entertainment/wave-systems/WMS/index.jsp

or the Denon d-m37dab

http://www.hifibitz.co.uk/product.asp?id=7724&aid=15003&gclid=CL2v6JTKu5UCFRqH1QodXxapPQ

Both have various advantages and disadvantages, and overall I've read alot more bad pubilicity about Bose in comparisson to Denon.

So wo would your opinion be on either of these systems be? I am very interested to hear what opinions people have as it will help me finalise my purchase.

Regards

 

[timwileman]

how about the onkyo 515 without spks, about 250 notes i think then use the 150 left for some nice speakers and stands??

 

[John Duncan]

timwileman:how about the onkyo 515 without spks, about 250 notes i think then use the 150 left for some nice speakers and stands??

V good call, unless it doesn't have to be quite so pretty, in which case I'd buy this.

 

[Gerrardasnails]

JohnDuncan:timwileman:how about the onkyo 515 without spks, about 250 notes i think then use the 150 left for some nice speakers and stands??

V good call, unless it doesn't have to be quite so pretty, in which case I'd buy this.

This would sound like a world apart compared to the Bose or Denon midi systems. Amazing value with money left over for some £10 Gothams and a few cds.

 

[Anonymous]

Except that the Denon is gorgeous and has DAB, CD and iPod connectivity. Just don't buy it with the bundled speakers. (£70 off) add your own, check a retailer like Richer Sounds and they'll let you test some.

For your money, you could get better sound from separates, but not in such sexy packaging as the Denon.

 

[timwileman]

JohnDuncan:timwileman:how about the onkyo 515 without spks, about 250 notes i think then use the 150 left for some nice speakers and stands??

V good call, unless it doesn't have to be quite so pretty, in which case I'd buy this.

thats pretty good value, and they say prices are going up!

 

[John Duncan]

Will Harris:Except that the Denon is gorgeous and has DAB, CD and iPod connectivity. Just don't buy it with the bundled speakers. (£70 off) add your own, check a retailer like Richer Sounds and they'll let you test some.

For your money, you could get better sound from separates, but not in such sexy packaging as the Denon.

Yah, hence my 'prettiness' caveat. But add an airport express for 65 quid and you have instant "iPod and DAB" functionality anyway.......

 

[Anonymous]

That looks like a really good price for the NAD and Tannoy combo, I was sold on the Denon with the Tannoys but you have made me think now. The only thing which concerns me is WHF's review of the NAD amp (http://whathifi.com/Review/NAD-C315BEE/) where they have some concerns "Bass lacks punch and definition; gets confused at higher volumes"

I listen to a wide range of music but do listen to quite a bit of House and Dance.

Their review of the similarly priced CA 340A is much more favourable, perhaps this combined with a CA 540A would be worth the extra.

I thought I had made my mind up and now i'm all confused again. I have been dancing around different solutions and different budgets for months now! Arghhhÿ

 

[John Duncan]

carl62:
That looks like a really good price for the NAD and Tannoy combo, I was sold on the Denon with the Tannoys but you have made me think now. The only thing which concerns me is WHF's review of the NAD amp (http://whathifi.com/Review/NAD-C315BEE/) where they have some concerns "Bass lacks punch and definition; gets confused at higher volumes"

I listen to a wide range of music but do listen to quite a bit of House and Dance.

Their review of the similarly priced CA 340A is much more favourable, perhaps this combined with a CA 540A would be worth the extra.

I thought I had made my mind up and now i'm all confused again. I have been dancing around different solutions and different budgets for months now! Arghhhÿ

Show me a 350 quid stereo where the bass doesn't lack punch and definition doesn't get confused at higher volumes, and I'll sell my Primares.........

 

[fatboyslimfast]

The 340 might have a little more "oomph" than the C315, but the C315 will have a more natural sound. So for mainly dance/house, I would possibly go 340, but if you do listen to other music (acoustic especially) more than occasionally, then for me the C315 would get it.

Horses for courses really - see if you can get to either a Richer or Superfi outlet and have a listen.

 

[Anonymous]

LOL. Valid point. So you think the NAD combo with the Tannoy F1's will sound better than the Denon M37 with the Tannoy F1's for my kind of music? Its about the same kind of money and allows for future upgrades rather than being stuck with the main unit. I'm not in to DAB either. Also do you have any recommendations on speaker stand with this system as I don't want to spend too much on stands as the system is only costing £350, but I do want to make the most of the Tannoys!

Thanksÿ

 

[John Duncan]

I haven't heard that Denon, but I would expect the NAD to sound better (since it does sound very good indeed for the money). Upgrade potential is a more valid reason.

I would scour eBay for stands by Atacama, Apollo and Target. I got my hefty Apollo AZ6s with a pair of Diamond 3s for 30 quid (and sold the speakers for 40).

eg these for 35 quid BIN.

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:I haven't heard that Denon, but I would expect the NAD to sound better (since it does sound very good indeed for the money). Upgrade potential is a more valid reason.I would scour eBay for stands by Atacama, Apollo and Target. I got my hefty Apollo AZ6s with a pair of Diamond 3s for 30 quid (and sold the speakers for 40).eg these for 35 quid BIN.

Thanks for your advice John, I think I have been converted to the idea of buying the NAD combo then having scoured the net for reviews and opinions and am suitably impressed with what I have found. They allow you to upgrade from the 315 amp to the 325 amp for £50 notes which I am considering doing.

ÿI will pop to Richer Sounds as its only 100 meters from my apartment in Birmingham and test out some systems to see what I think.

ÿ

 

[John Duncan]

Yup definitely worth a try as they may have the NAD combo as well, though Superfi tend to be a lot better on demo facilities.

 

[Gerrardasnails]

JohnDuncan:carl62:
That looks like a really good price for the NAD and Tannoy combo, I was sold on the Denon with the Tannoys but you have made me think now. The only thing which concerns me is WHF's review of the NAD amp (http://whathifi.com/Review/NAD-C315BEE/) where they have some concerns "Bass lacks punch and definition; gets confused at higher volumes"

I listen to a wide range of music but do listen to quite a bit of House and Dance.

Their review of the similarly priced CA 340A is much more favourable, perhaps this combined with a CA 540A would be worth the extra.

I thought I had made my mind up and now i'm all confused again. I have been dancing around different solutions and different budgets for months now! Arghhhÿ

Show me a 350 quid stereo where the bass doesn't lack punch and definition doesn't get confused at higher volumes, and I'll sell my Primares.........

No you wouldn't!!

 

[Gerrardasnails]

carl62:
LOL. Valid point. So you think the NAD combo with the Tannoy F1's will sound better than the Denon M37 with the Tannoy F1's for my kind of music? Its about the same kind of money and allows for future upgrades rather than being stuck with the main unit. I'm not in to DAB either. Also do you have any recommendations on speaker stand with this system as I don't want to spend too much on stands as the system is only costing £350, but I do want to make the most of the Tannoys!

Thanksÿ

If you have Sky or a freeview box, you can connect them to the NAD amp for decent radio coverage too.

 

[John Duncan]

gerrardasnails:No you wouldn't!!

Only if it had great knobs, obviously. In fact, am thinking of having some made, then I can choose whatever stereo I like.....

 

[timwileman]

JohnDuncan:gerrardasnails:No you wouldn't!!

Only if it had great knobs, obviously. In fact, am thinking of having some made, then I can choose whatever stereo I like.....

cool, so a 30 quid matsui to replace would get you a ton of money back...the wife will be well happy!

 

[John Duncan]

We have actually had that conversation: "so if you stuck great knobs on *this*, that'd be ok?"

 

[tounra]

May I add that the NAD set looks much sexier (and definitely classier) than Denon's microset?

 

[Anonymous]

tounra:May I add that the NAD set looks much sexier (and definitely classier) than Denon's microset?

Certainly looks like a more serious piece of kit than a small micro would. So do you think its worth paying £50 to upgrade from the NAD 315 amp to the NAD 325 amp? The WHF review seems to suggest its worth the extra.

Anyone else have any other thoughts on the NAD combo with the F1's which John recommended earlier? Here it is: (The option to upgrade to the 325 amp is at the bottom.

http://www.superfi.co.uk/index.cfm/page/moreinfo.cfm/Product_ID/3856ÿ

ÿThanks Allÿ

 

[Anonymous]

Hey everyone, thanks for all the answers you all make some good points, but can we get back on topic, what the pros and cons of Bose and Denon?

 

[Anonymous]

I assume the Bose is designed as a kitchen / small room system as it has built in speakers. I've not heard it but it's going to have to work really hard to sound as good as a system with properly positioned speakers.

In terms of sound, only you can tell, you need to listen to both if you're interested. In terms of other pro's and con's they appear to be different types of products with some quite obvious pro's and con's. So what's important to you?