Recommendations on cheap Hi-Fi system

[Emerekel]

Hello! After being at my father’s place a couple of times, listening to his stereo setup. I decided to get better audio for myself. But since i’m very new to the subject it’s all very confusing.

I will mainly be streaming music from Spotify and likewise and i want that really clear audio you can hear when listening to a good setup.

Since the system is gonna be placed in the Livingroom i’d love if i could have the system wired up with my TV and other HDMI units.

Are there any good home theater amps that bring justice to the music i’m playing or Will they only give me a good movie experience?

I planned on a budget of a 1000$, preferebly below.

What kind of setup should i get and how should i distribute the money for the best music audio?

I mostly listen to Hard rock and Metal from the 70’s to up untill now, but also some extreme metal and hip hop from time to time.

Please help out a confused fellow.

 

[blackstrat]

I have a sony str1050 which is good for music for an av amp i would imagine the newest str1080 is just as good or better?

 

[Emerekel]

I have a sony str1050 which is good for music for an av amp i would imagine the newest str1080 is just as good or better?

Alright, what speakers are you using with your 1050?

Found a pair of used Canton GLE436 for 420$, might be a good match?

 

[blackstrat]

i was using monitor audio rs6 silver series now swapped to quad s2

 

[Dom]

Hi there, with a grand I would highly recommend going second hand. If you have to buy blind go for names that sound like you would like. Cyrus, Roksan, Marantz? Speaker wise Acoustic Energy, Dynaudio, Fyne Audio, Definitive Technology?

 

[jjbomber]

Marantz AVR with built in Spotify Connect. That should be perfect for Spotify Premium.

Speakers are very much a personal choice. You really need to listen to a few, preferably with a Marantz and Spotify.

When you say $1,000, which part of the world are you in?

 

[xcentric]

buy used. 4x the value, and you can resell with liittle to no loss if you decide you don't like them. And listen to see what sort of sound you like, and if you're not sure buy a brand you've heard of and that gets good reviews.....

 

[Emerekel]

Hi there, with a grand I would highly recommend going second hand. If you have to buy blind go for names that sound like you would like. Cyrus, Roksan, Marantz? Speaker wise Acoustic Energy, Dynaudio, Fyne Audio, Definitive Technology?

Alright, what kind of setup should i go for with my budget?
Stereo-amp with streamer/dac and a hdmi-splitter or would you go for a more expensive hometheater-amp?

i stand clueless when it comes to what i should look for, i don’t just want to start buying stuff.

 

[Emerekel]

Marantz AVR with built in Spotify Connect. That should be perfect for Spotify Premium.

Speakers are very much a personal choice. You really need to listen to a few, preferably with a Marantz and Spotify.

When you say $1,000, which part of the world are you in?

Alright, thanks for the tip!
Since i don’t really know what sound i’m looking for it’s kinda Hard to know. My father has the Dynaudio Evoke 30 and i love the kind of sound those makes, although i’m well aware that with my budget i’m not gonna come near that kind of sound.

I live in Sweden, so the prices are obviously very different, i wrote 1000$ just so you’d have a hunch on what i’m willing to spend.

 

[Emerekel]

buy used. 4x the value, and you can resell with liittle to no loss if you decide you don't like them. And listen to see what sort of sound you like, and if you're not sure buy a brand you've heard of and that gets good reviews.....

Alright, the kind of sound i want is to me unknown since the only Hi-Fi speakers i’ve listened to is my father’s Dynaudio Evoke 30. Love that kind of sound though.

 

[Dom]

Dynaudio Evoke 30 look wonderful. Unfortunately speakers vary wildly as you go up and down the price range. So keep trying. Save a wad and buy the Evoke 50. Only way to be sure.

 

[Emerekel]

Dynaudio Evoke 30 look wonderful. Unfortunately speakers vary wildly as you go up and down the price range. So keep trying. Save a wad and buy the Evoke 50. Only way to be sure.

Audio is such a jungle, haha. Well even if i had the money i wouldn’t spend that much on my first speakers. Might have to look around and listen.

 

[Dom]

For your first speaker I would recommend, B&W 606?

 

[jjbomber]

Alright, thanks for the tip!
My father has the Dynaudio Evoke 30 and i love the kind of sound those makes, although i’m well aware that with my budget i’m not gonna come near that kind of sound.

I live in Sweden, so the prices are obviously very different, i wrote 1000$ just so you’d have a hunch on what i’m willing to spend.

Firstly you have to convince your father to upgrade his speakers to the Evoke 50, so that he'll give the Evoke 30 speakers to you.

Being in Sweden you should still be able to go out shopping. Try listening to the Dynaudio Emits, though they are stand-mounted, so may not have the sound you are after.

 

[rainsoothe]

Hi. Is this budget for amplifier only or the entire setup?

 

[Emerekel]

Firstly you have to convince your father to upgrade his speakers to the Evoke 50, so that he'll give the Evoke 30 speakers to you.

Being in Sweden you should still be able to go out shopping. Try listening to the Dynaudio Emits, though they are stand-mounted, so may not have the sound you are after.

Apparently i was wrong, he has the Excite X44. An he’s not planning on a trade up in a while. Haha

 

[Emerekel]

Hi. Is this budget for amplifier only or the entire setup?

This is for the entire setup, so an Amp, Speakers and a streamer. I think that’s the most budget friendly setup i can get, right?

 

[Emerekel]

For your first speaker I would recommend, B&W 606?

Gonna see if i can find someone around who has a pair i could listen to.

 

[Dom]

Speakers do all sound different, so please audition until you find the sound your after. Good Luck.

 

[rainsoothe]

I don't think you will find a streaming amp with HDMI inputs, unless it's an AV receiver. But if your TV has an optical output (that's how I use mine, for example), you definitely should get a dedicated stereo setup. With music, at least, it will optperform any AV receiver, no question about it. And still do a decent job with movies, imo. For your budget, I would look at something like Quad Vena Play (at the upper end) or Bluesound powernode 2i with a pair of B&W 607 (or even 606 if you have the budget and the space), or Elac Debut 6.2. Ideally, you'll put them on stands (like Atacama Nexus 6i), but if they need to be on furniture, put at least some sorbothane feet or blue-tak under the speakers (or ISOacoustics l8r 155 ministands, if they fit your budget. And some decent speaker cable - probably any budget offering from Chord or Audioquest should work just fine (I hate QED )

Personally, I'd get the better one-box (which is the Quad Vena 2 Play) and the cheaper speakers (the Elacs) instead of the other way around.

Good luck!

 

[Emerekel]

I don't think you will find a streaming amp with HDMI inputs, unless it's an AV receiver. But if your TV has an optical output (that's how I use mine, for example), you definitely should get a dedicated stereo setup. With music, at least, it will optperform any AV receiver, no question about it. And still do a decent job with movies, imo. For your budget, I would look at something like Quad Vena Play (at the upper end) or Bluesound powernode 2i with a pair of B&W 607 (or even 606 if you have the budget and the space), or Elac Debut 6.2. Ideally, you'll put them on stands (like Atacama Nexus 6i), but if they need to be on furniture, put at least some sorbothane feet or blue-tak under the speakers (or ISOacoustics l8r 155 ministands, if they fit your budget. And some decent speaker cable - probably any budget offering from Chord or Audioquest should work just fine (I hate QED )

Personally, I'd get the better one-box (which is the Quad Vena 2 Play) and the cheaper speakers (the Elacs) instead of the other way around.

Good luck!

Thanks for the recommendations, unfortunately the Quad vena 2 play is 90% of my budget here in Sweden. But i’m gonna see if i can find a used one somewhere near.

really appreciate the tips!

 

[rainsoothe]

Thanks for the recommendations, unfortunately the Quad vena 2 play is 90% of my budget here in Sweden. But i’m gonna see if i can find a used one somewhere near.

really appreciate the tips!

You could just order from the UK, couldn't you?

EDIT: oh, it's 800 quid, I see what you mean. Well maybe you can get a good deal on one, maybe dealer will make an offer if you also purchase speakers, or something. If not, you could go for the Bluesound.

 

[Emerekel]

You could just order from the UK, couldn't you?

EDIT: oh, it's 800 quid, I see what you mean. Well maybe you can get a good deal on one, maybe dealer will make an offer if you also purchase speakers, or something. If not, you could go for the Bluesound.

Yeah, the budget isn’t really set in stone. I’d rather pay a couple of hundred bucks more and be satisfied.
If i were to upgrade the speakers in the future, would i need to replace the quad vena 2 play or is there some way to up the power?

 

[rainsoothe]

Yeah, the budget isn’t really set in stone. I’d rather pay a couple of hundred bucks more and be satisfied.
If i were to upgrade the speakers in the future, would i need to replace the quad vena 2 play or is there some way to up the power?

Spending more in the beginning always saves you money in the long run.

The Vena is not a powerhouse, but don't look a the number of watts alone - doubling the watts only yields a 3 db increase in percieved volume. And, just for reference, the Moon Neo Ace is 3-4 times the price, and has 50w/ch. Also, I don't think you'll find better for the money and, if I'm not mistaken, the Quad also has pre outs, so you can add a power amp later on, or use it with active speakers. Speaking of which, another option well worth considering is a Yamaha WXC 50 (NOT wxA, which also has a power amp) or Cambridge Audio CXN v2 with a pair of Acoustic Energy AE 1 active speakers.

Back to the Quad, it will have no trouble driving a wide range of speakers. Maybe it's not really appropriate for stuff like ATC (and by this I mean it won't drive them to their full potential, or if you want super loudness, otherwise it will work just fine), but it will have no trouble with the likes of Focals, Revels, Martin Logan, Monitor Audio, Dali, Dynaudios etc. I'd even recommend a used Naim Unitiqute 2, which is only 30w/ch - but when you hear it, you wouldn't believe it, and the sound would trump an av reciever with so-called 80 or 100 w/ch.

 

[Emerekel]

Spending more in the beginning always saves you money in the long run.

The Vena is not a powerhouse, but don't look a the number of watts alone - doubling the watts only yields a 3 db increase in percieved volume. And, just for reference, the Moon Neo Ace is 3-4 times the price, and has 50w/ch. Also, I don't think you'll find better for the money and, if I'm not mistaken, the Quad also has pre outs, so you can add a power amp later on, or use it with active speakers. Speaking of which, another option well worth considering is a Yamaha WXC 50 (NOT wxA, which also has a power amp) or Cambridge Audio CXN v2 with a pair of Acoustic Energy AE 1 active speakers.

Back to the Quad, it will have no trouble driving a wide range of speakers. Maybe it's not really appropriate for stuff like ATC (and by this I mean it won't drive them to their full potential, or if you want super loudness, otherwise it will work just fine), but it will have no trouble with the likes of Focals, Revels, Martin Logan, Monitor Audio, Dali, Dynaudios etc. I'd even recommend a used Naim Unitiqute 2, which is only 30w/ch - but when you hear it, you wouldn't believe it, and the sound would trump an av reciever with so-called 80 or 100 w/ch.

Alright, this is all so new to me 😅

what are the pros/cons of active speakers? Do they produce different sounds or is the way they’re powered the only difference?
They were quite expensive though.

Question regarding the Vena, can i Stream Spotify or Tidal through it or is it only local files?