Question Suggestions for foundational parts of a longer term vinyl setup

[Fandango Andy]

I've done a bit of furniture shuffling and will clean up the speaker stands (they were in a shed for about a decade), get the speakers down from the loft and put things in general place tomorrow.

I'm not sure wall mounting is a great option here as there's no available "either side" of that chimney breast; the left-side is inaccessible as it's a kitchen cupboard. Just moving the turntable into the kitchen has shown that it just works in terms of how "right" it looks in that space and how natural it is to sit on the sofa and listen to it, or to prep and cook at the hob while listening to it. It's more comfortable in the kitchen than that middle room so it ticks a few boxes in terms of how we live, if not in terms of the best place to listen to it.

I think once the speakers are raised on their stands it'll resolve some of the general space / positioning issues, so if nothing else, standing and listening to it from the other side of the kitchen could actually be rather acceptable.

sounds like a plan! good luck

 

[RTHerringbone]

Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today? I got a bit excited and have set things up roughly where they'll end up. It fits and I added a second photo to show that the right speaker isn't as close to the island as it looks on the wider shot. Let's see how this goes.

I'll crack on and get an amp ordered as the priority just so we can see how things sound, before we commit to the turntable upgrade.

 

[RTHerringbone]

Oh and another silly question. Getting the speakers out reminded me that they have bi-wire terminals and I therefore have decent Chord cables with 4 banana plugs at one end and 2 at the other.

Was bi-wiring ever actually proven to be worthwhile? I'm assuming that whatever amp I get, I'll still want to use these existing cables as from memory they weren't cheap.

 

[Revolutions]

Oh and another silly question. Getting the speakers out reminded me that they have bi-wire terminals and I therefore have decent Chord cables with 4 banana plugs at one end and 2 at the other.

Was bi-wiring ever actually proven to be worthwhile? I'm assuming that whatever amp I get, I'll still want to use these existing cables as from memory they weren't cheap.

Don’t worry about bi-wiring. No benefit whatsoever.

Looking good, btw 🎵

 

[daytona600]

Was bi-wiring ever actually proven to be worthwhile?
Yes for makers of speaker cables

 

[Fandango Andy]

Oh and another silly question. Getting the speakers out reminded me that they have bi-wire terminals and I therefore have decent Chord cables with 4 banana plugs at one end and 2 at the other.

Was bi-wiring ever actually proven to be worthwhile? I'm assuming that whatever amp I get, I'll still want to use these existing cables as from memory they weren't cheap.

if you have the cables and they are set up for bi-wiring it won't do any harm, otherwise don't bother.

check the cables are in decent condition, copper can oxidise especially if left in damp conditions.

 

[Fandango Andy]

Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today? I got a bit excited and have set things up roughly where they'll end up. It fits and I added a second photo to show that the right speaker isn't as close to the island as it looks on the wider shot. Let's see how this goes.

I'll crack on and get an amp ordered as the priority just so we can see how things sound, before we commit to the turntable upgrade.

That escalated quickly. I see a trip to a hifi store in your future!

 

[RTHerringbone]

Another day, another question (or two).

1. The supermarket turntable is called a Silvercrest SUP128 A1. It currently has a RCA to 3.5mm cable to connect to the Roberts CD/Radio and reading the manual it clearly states "don't connect this to an amp phono stage", which implies that the preamp in the turntable can't be switched off. I'm likely to get the recommended Marantz PM6007 amp which has no line-in. Am I right in assuming that if I use a 2-Male to 2-Male RCA cable and connect it to any Audio In RCAs apart from the Phono on the amp, that it will be OK?

It's just going to be temporary. As soon as we're happy that the speakers have survived their stay in the loft and that the amp is working, I'll be replacing that turntable FAST.

2. As an extension of that - if at some point I look to integrate some sort of streaming hardware into the setup and choose to connect that via an Analogue rather than Digital input, presumably I can shove it into any of the Audio In slots on the amp (currently labelled CD, Tuner, Recorder and Network) apart from the Phono?

 

[Revolutions]

Yes & yes

 

[RTHerringbone]

Purchase #1 inbound.

I've decided to stop procrastinating by going with the Rega Planar 1 for the turntable. Sure, there are better options that I can afford and different cartridges I could get but frankly, my ears won't notice and the upgrade from what we have to what we're getting should be significant as it is. The local record shop does stock Rega kit, so I may accidentally stroll over this afternoon.

My next decision will be to look into what streaming solution best fits this setup. All I want is to be able to stream from Spotify into the new amp and the RX1s. Any recommendations gladly received. I've seen WiiM mentioned a lot with my initial investigations - any good?