What's the most important upgrade in my system

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Yeah, I got attracted to some Evoke 50's at (Only) £2700 on eBay and started dreaming. The reality is, I need that money for other things.
Ok, lets get to the meat... Looks like one cracking amplifier. A real beauty. But £1800 is still a lot. I'm not rich. But what is money for exactly ? I could get one. Or not. I don't know. I have 6 months to decide.

A used pair at £2700 is still nearly a grand more than the Tucana I showed you. Originally 5k you won't find better for the price. It competes with any sub-£10k amp.

If I had my business still going I wouldn't hesitate to buy this one. It ticks all the right boxes for a used unit, incl a 14 days return. I only sold mine to help finance a replacement van last year - which is now redundant.

I'm lucky I had the Pulse to fall back on. Nowhere near as good as the Tucana but great for the money.
 

Willsmusic

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Mar 7, 2020
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The Dyns have a 87db efficiency so are not the easiest to drive.
On paper your K2 looks as if it will be ok, but I doubt it will get the best out of the Dyns.
If your heart is set on the Dyns - go for it, but maybe get a demo with a higher specced amplifier and try to compare.
The Roksan will be fine. Energetic and robust. Not the subtlest. But will get plenty out of most speakers.
 
About what to upgrade. I don't know if I should shoot for a new amp or something else.

In all fairness they suggested a amp between 8-10k, or have I got that wrong? That's just sales nonsense.

I wouldn't trust Audio-T because they are trying to fleece you of every penny you have.

The suggestion I made was of a amp that competes and betters most amps above 6k mark for less than 2k ... and it comes with a 14 day returns. You will not find a better option -- there's also that 14 day safety net.
 

rainsoothe

Well-known member
You are swapping out one perfectly good amplifier for one that's a few dbs more powerful, but it isn't going to change the sound much.
Much as I'd love to disagree with TrevC, I can't
Might as well just burn some money.

On the amp front, though, I disagree and I'm actually an "amplifier first" type (kind of). I mean yes, speakers will make the most noticeable difference, but once you settle on something you like, the amplification matters a lot - and in your case, imo the Dynaudios are pretty gimped by the Roksan (which is a good amp, but not good enough for your speakers).

Do NOT waste your money on mains conditioners (not because they don't work, I actually have no idea - but even if they did, any benefit would just be a minor tweak). In your case, it's the amp that needs an upgrade for sure - I was gonna suggest a Supernait 3 at a minimum, but the Leema linked by PP is a steal and you should get on that ASAP imo. Could always return it if you don't find it brings enough, but I severely doubt that. It's a cheaper and much bigger improvement to your system than swappin the 30 to the 50 (which would just make the Roksan even more out of it's depth).
 

Dom

Well-known member
I was going to buy a Supernait 3, but at 3K I chickened out. Anyway The Kandy sounds fine through the Dyns. If I were to make a criticism, it's a sounds a little grainy. Where a mains conditioner might help. And I can home demo that.
I have ages to think about it too.
I understand what your saying, swap out the amp to something more suitable, but £1800 - £3500 is too much for my little bank account. FWIW I placed an offer of 1.5K for a Leema Tucana 2 on eBay, but I doubt it will be accepted.
 
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TrevC

Well-known member
The point being whether spending £5k on a pair of speakers is worth it if there's a good chance you won't hear them at their best due to the amplification.
As long as the amplifier is powerful enough to drive them at sufficient volume what it costs compared to the speakers is irrelevant. The best speakers in the world will produce far more distortion than even a budget amp.
 

jonathanRD

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Jan 27, 2011
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As long as the amplifier is powerful enough to drive them at sufficient volume what it costs compared to the speakers is irrelevant. The best speakers in the world will produce far more distortion than even a budget amp.
Maybe it's time to stop this conversation as each subsequent reply is out of context from the previous post which was a reply out of context from the previous one, and so on.... :)
 
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