Time to upgrade, advice appreciated

[ProgRockVinyl]

Hi there, i'm a new member here.

Avid reader of what hi-fi for many years but only just dipping my toes into the forum.

i've had my current setup for a while now.

Amps: Rotel RA-01, Technics SU-VZ220

Turntable: Project Genie Mk1, Shure M75ED type 2

CD Player: NAD C515BEE

Speakers: Wharfdale Diamond 9.0 wired with QED silver aniversary.

Misc: Apple TV

The rotel is about 10+ years old now and ready for retiring, never been the same since my idiot brother spilt tea into it. My mate lent me an older techincs unit that i've setup for now, but find it harsh compared to the rotel. Maybe my ears are just used to that sound.

Turntable is ok, but has a noise issue when picking up the tonearm to place it on the record. Think it's an earth issue but it doesn't effect sound during playback. the cartrdige was from my grandads old turntable and still sounds good, but could be bettered.

Happy with my CD player, as i mainly play vinyl. so that wouldn't be biggie to upgrade.

Speakers were a stop gap, but liked the sound at the time. seemed to work well with the rotel but not so much with the techincs. quite bright sounding.

what would you suggest as the best upgrade path, open to all ideas. it might be a bit by bit upgrade, so what would be the first stage to upgrade?

look foward to joining in on here.

 

[matthewpiano]

I'd start with a new amp as it is the heart of the system and if the Rotel is damaged and the Technics too bright it seems a sensible way to go. You don't say how much you wish to spend, but I'd suggest a trip to a dealer and starting by hearing a good budget amp and speaker combination to give you a base level to work from.

The Marantz PM6005 with a pair of Q Acoustics Concept 20 speakers would be a good combination to hear. You might find this gives you all you need and you can then start by buying the Marantz, with an upgrade to the Concept 20s to come next. Would also be worth hearing the Dali Zensor 3s with the PM6005 as well as trying the Concept 20s with a different amp such as the Rotel RA10. The Denon PMA720AE is also excellent and will work well with the Qs.

If none of these combinations do the job you'll have to consider moving up the tree a little. As you like vinyl, the Rega Brio-R is well worth a listen with the Concept 20s.

 

[matthewpiano]

Oh, and get shot of that QED Silver Anniversary. Its dreadful stuff.

Seeking out a good multi-strand copper speaker cable will instantly take some of the brightness away from your existing equipment while you enjoy the fun of finding out what will satisfy you long term.

 

[CarlDW]

I would echo MP's advice. The PM6005 amp is a good place to start. Speaker wise the Zensor 3's and Concept 20's would be a good match. In regards to speaker cable, you don't have to spend a fortune - Van Damme speaker cable is good enough and can be found on Amazon.

 

[matthewpiano]

PS If the Concept 20s are a bit too much, the 2020i are well worth a listen as well. Very nice speakers for small outlay.

 

[the record spot]

I'd you're auditioning smaller speakers, I can't recommend the Tannoy DC4 highly enough. Terrific little speaker. Very clear, non-fatiguing, dual concentric driver that gives a big soundstage especially in smaller settings. Delighted with mine and had them for two and a half years now.

 

[James7]

All sound advice I feel. Given your preference for vinyl I think it may well be worth auditioning the Rega Brio-R, which has a very good on-board phono stage. But the Marantz PM 6005 seems a bargain to me, has a phono stage too, and would also allow you to plug your CD player into its onboard DAC, which might prove a useful upgrade for your occasional CD-listening.

 

[ProgRockVinyl]

thanks for the replies.

i've always had a soft spot for the rega kit since seeing the brio review. did think about getting an updated rotel, but think it's time to go up the bracket a little.

i'm thinking of maybe spending about £600-700 to start with. depends if i splash i little more on the amp and change the speakers later or go for a decent amp/speaker combo for that price. the 9.0 arent't too bad, but tend to be harsh if not paired with the right amp.

 

[Esra]

Take a look also to Peachtree Hybrid amps,excellent for Phono and Headphones and great built in dac for digital sources.Maybe ex-demo or second hand as they are quite costly new.

 

[ProgRockVinyl]

so, apologes for no repsonses. didnt get any notifications when a response was posted.

i've made some big uprades to the system in the past couple of months which are as follows.

Turntable: Project Genie Mk1, Shure M75ED type 2: This has now been replaced with a Project Debut Carbon MSL Edition. This has the Matt Black Finish and comes FItted with the 2M Silver. I've since brought the arylic-it platter, which sounds great and looks very nice.

CD Player: NAD C515BEE: No Change

Speakers: Wharfdale Diamond 9.0 wired with QED silver aniversary: Now have a pair of Q Acoutsic 2020i's with a pair of B&W Stands filled with Kiln Dried Sand. very solid and match the graphite finish speakers. I've also Bi-wried with some new AudioQuest Cable.

Interconnects: I've Upgraded the turntables's interconnect to the Atlas Element Integra. i had some old QED interconnect before which i got cheap and the right channel failed on it. the atlas is really great, well made and quite reasonable cost wise.
i'm really happy with the results, before my system was quite bright almost harsh on the top end and not enough low end. now the system is very balanced, spinning some of my old albums i know well, seem to have a new lease of life. i'm picking out sounds and parts in the music i've not been hearing before. my only debate now is wether it would be to upgrade the amp or not. keep toying with a brio r but would worry that it might not make masses of improvement compared to my rotel ra-01 hopefully i'll reply sooner