Right Amp and Speakers

[admin_exported]

Hi, Just been down to my local RicherSounds to road test a new system consisting of: Cambridge Audio A5 Project Debut III Mordaunt Short 302 AVANT My budget is £500 (inclusive of cabling, interconnects and speaker stands), but I can extend a little higher if necessary. I tried the following albums: Dark Side of The Moon, In Utero, The Warning (Hot Chip), Three of a Perfect Pair (King Crimson) and Appetite for Destruction. With the exception of TOAPP and, to a lesser extent, DSOTM, all the albums were lacking bass and had an excessive amount of treble. Otherwise the system sounded great, especially when I compensated for this by adjusting the tone controls. However, I can't help but feel there may be a more suitable amp/speaker combination out there for my ears. Any recommendations? Cheers, Rob.

 

[Anonymous]

You must try the Marantz PM4001 or the NAD C515BEE amplifiers and then get try a Cambridge 640P phono pre-amp with the Debut III. Also switch to the Wharfedale Diamond 9.1. That's £99 for the Marantz + £60 for the 640P + £160 for the Debut + £150 for the 9.1 + £80 for stands/cables is £550. BARGAIN.

 

[Anonymous]

I am a big big big fan of Epos Speakers. I have the M5's which are the babies (were £350 but you can get them now for £250 I think). They also do a slightly larger 12.2.. I tried loads of Speakers before choosing and the Epos really stood our for me. They like to be fairly close to the wall to get the right level of Bass but apart from that they are easy to set up and teh sound is very neutral. Compared to other speakers at teh price I think they also look pretty good and are def. well built. The older version, like mine, has a rather heavy duty metal grill - I removed this as it looks better without and maybe helps the sound. The newer version has standard material grill covers.
Make sure you try these and let me know what you think.

 

[crusaderlord]

If you are finding Cambridge Audio light on bass (i also did on both the 340 and 540 models) i would also recommend trying NAD instead - at the budget end i found them to have more punch and drive which may suit you and they have a good headphone socket sound too if thats of any use. I cant fault the Epos M5 speakers, i bought them for my budget NAD system but still have them even though i have upgraded well into a mid price Arcam system now. However they do like a bit of power behind them to bring out the strongest bass but at the discounter price of £250 they are amazing value being fast, lively, timely and detailed, and good close to a wall (which i needed). Wharfdale would also be worth a try.