Got my first halfway serious (used) hifi system used last week. It's pretty old; nothing like you guys would pay attention to but pretty decent and it does sound good. The system consists of a/d/s L310 speakers, an SVS SB1000 sealed subwoofer, a Dared SL-2000A linestage/preamp, and a NAD 906 power amp. Lurking this forum, I added a slightly used Topping D50S DAC because it got a good review and seemed like a lot of bang for the buck; it came with the matching linear power supply which seems totally unnecessary according to this site but anyway it's there. So far I have set it up to stream Apple Music/iTunes from an Apple TV 3rd-generation, connected into the DAC by a Toslink cable. Seems to work fine -- farrrr better than anything I have ever had but I just had pretty low-end systems -- but I am wondering about a few things:
1. First of all, what's the point of a tube preamp? I also play guitar and the reason almost all serious players use tube amps is to intentionally _get_ distortion, not minimize it. Its looks awesome but I assume it's probably more show than go.
2. The NAD power amp is kind of cool. There are 6 channels, which can be bridged to 3. I only need two. The manual says it can be set up for bridging. Should I do this? I can't imagine those little speakers need all that much grunt but if it's a better way to go, I will do it. Also, the rear of the amp has tiny knobs that allow you to set the output volume ... what should they be set at?
3. I'm confused at how to set up the subwoofer. The system doesn't have any special sub-out LTE connection, so I have just connected it with regular RCA cables to the Line Out jacks on the power amp. What do I set the crossover at? Even more confusing is, how do I set the "Phase" knob? ... I can't hear any difference whereever it's turned to.
4. Is it really so bad to just put the speakers in a bookcase? Unless it really hurts someone's feelings, I would like to put them on a high bookshelf and put the subwoofer in an old unused fireplace down below them. Will this really mess up the sound?
Many thanks if one of the hotrodders here can offer a couple of heads-ups!
1. First of all, what's the point of a tube preamp? I also play guitar and the reason almost all serious players use tube amps is to intentionally _get_ distortion, not minimize it. Its looks awesome but I assume it's probably more show than go.
2. The NAD power amp is kind of cool. There are 6 channels, which can be bridged to 3. I only need two. The manual says it can be set up for bridging. Should I do this? I can't imagine those little speakers need all that much grunt but if it's a better way to go, I will do it. Also, the rear of the amp has tiny knobs that allow you to set the output volume ... what should they be set at?
3. I'm confused at how to set up the subwoofer. The system doesn't have any special sub-out LTE connection, so I have just connected it with regular RCA cables to the Line Out jacks on the power amp. What do I set the crossover at? Even more confusing is, how do I set the "Phase" knob? ... I can't hear any difference whereever it's turned to.
4. Is it really so bad to just put the speakers in a bookcase? Unless it really hurts someone's feelings, I would like to put them on a high bookshelf and put the subwoofer in an old unused fireplace down below them. Will this really mess up the sound?
Many thanks if one of the hotrodders here can offer a couple of heads-ups!