What should I upgrade?

Belgium chum

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Mar 14, 2022
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Hello! I'm approaching 50 years by leaps and bounds and one of the positive things about it is that I can with a clear conscience blame the midlife crisis and spend a little extra money on things that I might not otherwise prioritize😊 I listen to a lot of music and have a set up that in my ears sounds very good.
It consists of a Thorens TD-160 turntable, a DENON DRA-375RD amplifier and a pair of Sony speakers SS-E315 V. I Have not managed to dig up so much info about the speakers other than they deliver nice straight sound on a daily basis. I do not have an astronomical budget and with future interest rate jumps etc on the horizon, it is wise to be a little restrained, but what I wonder is, what part is it I can possibly replace that gives a boost acoustically without mortgaging the house. I basically think that the turntable is good enough even though its quite old. So it stands between amplifier and speakers. I'm probably a fan of a slightly warm soundscape without it going to the detriment of details and such. It is also nice if the look is matching the turntable which I find very pretty to look at. Does anyone have an opinion on this? The selection of Hifi equipment is so huge that it would have been very helpful with some tips and pointers. I probably have a budget somewhere between 1 and 2 thousand euros, but anything good and more affordable than that is interesting. Have a great day! Cheers from a legal alien in Belgium
 

doifeellucky

Well-known member
I’d suggest taking what you have to a dealer and comparing. Might be a bit of a faff but it’s the only way to be sure. You might find what you have already is more than good enough. When I was in my early to mid 20’s I did the same and the dealer tried to convince me that what he was showing me at 2-3 times the price of my gear was far superior. When I asked him to give me examples of how it was better I couldn’t hear the difference. I left satisfied I wasn’t stuck with a poor system. That being said I’m of a similar vintage and am thinking of doing the same. I demoed several £1k speakers before Christmas, but wasn’t ‘blown away’ by any of them, and don’t want to waste money. Upgrading my 42” plasma just makes far more sense.
 
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robdmarsh

Well-known member
If you like Denon, then I think the Denon pma 800ne would be a good amplifier upgrade. The specs are not much higher than what you have on paper but I think this new amplifier has a punch and dynamic range that cannot be matched by their older designs. I had a Denon amp back in the day about 25 years ago and though good, the 800ne is in a different league. One of these can be found for about £300 - £350 nearly new if you are patient.
That would leave you a fair slice of your budget for speakers. I am a big fan of Triangle. The borea br02 or br03 are good (smallish and quite large bookshelf respectively) and the Esprit Titus EZ is superb.
 

shadders

Well-known member
Upgrading my 42” plasma just makes far more sense.
Hi,
Just upgraded my 42" plasma to 48" OLED. The reason for doing this was purely based on power consumption.

When i look at my power monitor with the plasma on, there is a range of extra power consumption of between 200watts to 500watts, some peaks at 600watts.

The change in electricity prices this April 2022, i will save £400 per year based on reduced power consumption.

This is also the reason i moved from Class AB amplifiers for my active speakers, to Class D (6 amplifiers as a 3-way system).

Regards,
Shadders.
 

doifeellucky

Well-known member
Hi,
Just upgraded my 42" plasma to 48" OLED. The reason for doing this was purely based on power consumption.

When i look at my power monitor with the plasma on, there is a range of extra power consumption of between 200watts to 500watts, some peaks at 600watts.

The change in electricity prices this April 2022, i will save £400 per year based on reduced power consumption.

This is also the reason i moved from Class AB amplifiers for my active speakers, to Class D (6 amplifiers as a 3-way system).

Regards,
Shadders.
Thanks Shadders. I appreciate the feedback.
 

rainsoothe

Well-known member
Hello! I'm approaching 50 years by leaps and bounds and one of the positive things about it is that I can with a clear conscience blame the midlife crisis and spend a little extra money on things that I might not otherwise prioritize😊 I listen to a lot of music and have a set up that in my ears sounds very good.
It consists of a Thorens TD-160 turntable, a DENON DRA-375RD amplifier and a pair of Sony speakers SS-E315 V. I Have not managed to dig up so much info about the speakers other than they deliver nice straight sound on a daily basis. I do not have an astronomical budget and with future interest rate jumps etc on the horizon, it is wise to be a little restrained, but what I wonder is, what part is it I can possibly replace that gives a boost acoustically without mortgaging the house. I basically think that the turntable is good enough even though its quite old. So it stands between amplifier and speakers. I'm probably a fan of a slightly warm soundscape without it going to the detriment of details and such. It is also nice if the look is matching the turntable which I find very pretty to look at. Does anyone have an opinion on this? The selection of Hifi equipment is so huge that it would have been very helpful with some tips and pointers. I probably have a budget somewhere between 1 and 2 thousand euros, but anything good and more affordable than that is interesting. Have a great day! Cheers from a legal alien in Belgium
Hi. I think with that budget you can actually get a pretty good upgrade over what you have.

Before offering my suggestions, I gotta ask a few questions:

1. From reading around, your amp is a reciever that has an FM tuner. Is FM radio an important feature for you, or you're not using it at all? Also, would internet radio be a good enough substitute? (provided you have an easy means to connect a piece of gear to your internet)

2. How big is your room?

3. Where are the speakers going to be placed? Is placing them on stands on a floor or something an option? Also, how far away from the back wall can they be?
 

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