Questions from a newcomer to Hi Fi music

[Taxiarchis]

Hello dear friends. I'm new to this forum and also new to the Hi Fi experience.

My brand new system is:

Amplifier: Denon 1910

Speakers: 2x BR-5 Monitor Audio

Cd Player (almost): Sony PS3

So far I had the PS3 connected to the Amplifier through HDMI in order to be able to send both video and audio and then another HDMI cable from the amplifier to the TV. My big problem is that I didn't like the sound at all when I was playing CDs. Even the radio stations sounded much better. Finally I found out that PS3 sends always 5.1 channels to the amplifier and then the amplifier gets confused. The solution was to connect the PS3 to the amplifier using an optical cable. What a miracle!! Suddenly I could hear real music!Now, I'm in the process of trying to make my system sound even better. So I have a couple of questions:

1. Should I change the "no name" cables I got as a gift with my speakers and buy good ones? I have in mind the Chord Carnival Silverscreen and the QED Silver anniversary XT. I can understand that in an expensive system this would be a must, but what about mine?

2. Should I buy a separate CD player over the PS3? I have read many reviews saying that PS3 is really good in CD reproduction and it also supports SACD. I have in mind the following models (Cambridge Audio Azur 340c, NAD C515BEE and Marantz CD5003).

3. Should I bi wire my speakers? They support bi wiring and Monitor Audio suggests to do so.

Sorry for my long post, but I'm new to this and I would appreciate some help.

 

[The_Lhc]

The issues here are 1) The PS3 and 2) the amp. The Denon's a good Home Cinema amp, but it's no stereo performer, check the current issue of the magazine for The Big Question, where they deal with precisely this issue.

So yes, you could buy a standalone CD player and it will improve things, however then you'll simply be limited by the amplifier.

 

[Anonymous]

and afaik the denon has no pre outs for a stereo amp , so thats not really an option unless you want to keep switching cables around ..looks like a cd player and hope you enjoy the sound it creates with the denon . is your best option ..

 

[josh05]

A new CDP would make a diference but not much especially because of the amp. Your best bet would be an integrated amplifier however then you would have too get a DAC for the PS3. This option would be the most pricey but a huge gain in over all quality, A lot more than just a CDP upgrade. It might be worth looking into selling the Denon and picking up a second hand integrated amp.

 

[Taxiarchis]

Thank you very much for all your replies.

Let me clarify one thing. I'm not looking to have just a Stereo Hi Fi system, but I would like to combine home cinema and music.

So, the question is what I can do in order to improve my system. 2 months ago I spent 1200 Euros for the denon and the speakers, so I need to focus on the 3 questions above (CD player, Speaker Cables, Bi wiring)

 

[josh05]

Both speaker cable and a new CDP would be good, If you can demo i would try a CDP Running through digital or if the amp has a pure direct mode try a new CDP through analogue. Im not real sure about bi-wiring although i have heard it doesnt really do a great deal. A new CDP should give you more detail and a more organised and better presented soundstage, maybe more clarity aswell.

hope this helps

 

[josh05]

Also thought i would mention that better speaker cable and interconnects will make the above improvements stand out more, but if you can only go for one, i would go for a new CDP.

 

[Anonymous]

HI Taxiarchis and welcome.

I've used a PS3 with a stereo amp and found it lacking. Also, only the first models supported SACD - if you check some of the websites around they'll tell you which - the newer ones (as in HDD>60gb) don't.

If you decide to buy a CD player then I wouldn't spend a fortune. AV amps aren't known for their musicality, which isn't to say they'll sound dreadful, only that their purpose is home cinema after all and the compromise is usually on the music side of things.

As to cables I'm the wrong person to ask. There are people who swear blind they make a huge difference while there's others like me who don't hear much difference if any.

 

[WishTree]

Hi.. This is my first post but I have been reading for some time and thought this might benefit you

I have 1910 and I have been trying to tune the system for a month or so and I drive it with PS3 ONLY

- As expected Denon 1910 is awesome in Cinema Mode in my 25 SqMt room

- PS3 CD performance is below normal

- I have been trying to improvise starting from the source which means I switched to FLAC converted to .m4a and copied them to PS3 Hard drive. This combination is the best. (Actually given so many permutations and usual caveats it is almost a Holy Grail search to extract the best performance combination!)

- I frequent the local Hifi shop and am with the current quality am still trying to justify my future purchase as I can perceive no substantial difference with Marantz SR6004

- I was bitten by cable bug and got some extreme Kimber cable but sold it off on ebay in a week as I heard no difference. Current cables are not even worth mentioning (some 5 euro meter cable)

- The best tuning ever done was the subwoofer. the PV1 was always over powering in my setup and it took a very long time for me to realize that the settings were too high for my liking and more is not good some times. I run it at 1/3 level on PV1 and control the rest with the receiver

-My speakers are bi-amped now with 1910 - I find it to be better but there is a voice in my head which says this made not too much of a difference. The voice in my head and me agree unanimously that bi-wiring made no difference.

Hope this helps!