Advice for a basic cheap upgrade

[Chromatischism]

This is simply getting silly. I have not at any point made any such statement or implication. I pointed out the simple fact that the room has the most influence on the sound. Good speakers in a bad room will sound bad. Bad speakers in a good room will sound bad. Good speakers in a good room will sound good. Is this hard?

It's simple. Great speakers in a poor room will sound better than poor speakers in a great room. Therefore, the first thing you should do is get the best speakers you can. Ideally, you work on the room to get the most out of them. Proper placement of everything is probably 75% of the job.

 

[Chromatischism]

Not sure why more people aren't telling you to add a subwoofer. Before upgrading anything at least get the full range of music in your setup. There is a ton of perceived benefit in having a subwoofer added to your system to give you better low end response. You cross over your mains at 80hz and it removes a lot of the load from your existing amp and speakers. You can also place your subwoofer somewhere else in the room to optimize for low end performance. Don't spend your money on anything else until you have a subwoofer and are hearing all the musical information.

If folks don't believe me just look and Amirs reviews with the speaker preference scores. They all jump up 1+ points when adding a subwoofer. Because smooth low end extension has a large impact on listener preference.

Agree, but this is simply impossible on his budget. It requires both a sub and electronics with bass management and EQ.

 

[Beershaun]

Agree, but this is simply impossible on his budget. It requires both a sub and electronics with bass management and EQ.

OK. So if we agree then the next question is what are their options for adding a subwoofer so they can save their money or scout the used market. If they can find a used SW with a built in cross over like an SVS pro that will get them where they need to go.

 

[Beershaun]

Here is an example of a Polk TL1600 for $29.00+Shipping on Ebay. It has a cross over built in and speaker level in and out. So it would integrate into their system. I understand the OP is in Europe so they will need to scout in their home country for something else like this. But this would be an example of a solution for them.

Polk Audio TL1600 Powered Subwoofer | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Polk Audio TL1600 Powered Subwoofer at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[ShadowBoxer]

Imo:

< $100: Wiim mini (because of PEQ)
< $150: Fosi V3 amp + Wiim mini
> $200: both above + new spkrs $ TBD