Help me with my first setup

[aaronsarkissian]

Hi,

I'm new to the Hi-Fi and audiophile world and want to setup a new home system.
My room size is about 25 Sqm (270 sqft).

I don't have room for a Surround system so I decided to go for a decent stereo setup and maybe add subwoofer later if needed.
So here are the products I chose:
Speakers: Klipsch RP-600M II (Ordered them already at ~$460)
AMP: Audiolab 7000A (Will buy it soon at around ~$1500)
Turntable: In the research phase (Something under ~$500)
Power Stabilizer: Some local brand that I used for years and have trust (~$80)

I'm going to use this system for listening to music (from Phono, PC, and AUX), watching movies (Netflix and Apple TV+ mainly), and playing games (Xbox Series S).

I need help understanding what I need, and how to setup them the right way.
So my main questions are:
1. What type of cables do I need? (Power, Speaker, HDMI, RCA, AUX, PC USB) am I missing something?
2. How to choose good cables without sacrificing quality or overspending on this system?
3. What software do I need to be able to play DSD, FLAC, WAV quality? (I'm using MacBook Pro)
4. Should I buy cables and plugs and setup them up by myself (especially speaker cables) or just buy preconfigured ones?
5. Anything else that I'm not aware of?


Note 1: I live in Armenia so my electricity is 220V.
Note 2: My only option to buy all the products is to order them online from US and Europe.

 

[staticV3]

Speakers: Klipsch RP-600M II (Ordered them already at ~$460)
AMP: Audiolab 7000A (Will buy it soon at around ~$1500)

that's a terrible way to distribute your budget if you're after good value and sound quality.

 

[Keith_W]

Welcome to ASR!

1. You need speaker cable (to connect amp to speakers), and a pair of interconnects (either RCA or XLR) to connect each source component to your amp. The only considerations for cable is that they are the correct length, have the correct termination, and are inexpensive. Power cables should be included with your purchase. The Xbox Series S does not have any analog outputs, as far as I can tell the only output is via HDMI. It appears that the Audiolab 7000A you have chosen has a HDMI input, so you will also need a HDMI cable.

2. The best place to get cables is in a pro audio store. Choose the cheapest cables that fulfil the requirements listed in (1)

3. I will defer to Mac experts for this one.

4. You can save money by constructing your own cables. It is easy to do if you are handy with a soldering iron.

5. Don't waste money on a turntable. Get better speakers instead. That speaker you chose seems quite decent but if it was me I would choose a budget KEF instead.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

that's a terrible way to distribute your budget if you're after good value and sound quality.

When choosing Speaker and Amplifier I had a few things in mind.
One, I want my Amp to have a bypass, so when I need it to act as Poweramp I’ll not need a new one. (connect it to AVR pre-out)
Two, this amp has a decent DAC inside and has ARC
Three, I chose bookshelf speakers so when I decide to setup a surround system I'll just move them to the sides and buy tower speakers

But I'll be glad to hear ideas and suggestions

 

[aaronsarkissian]

Welcome to ASR!

1. You need speaker cable (to connect amp to speakers), and a pair of interconnects (either RCA or XLR) to connect each source component to your amp. The only considerations for cable is that they are the correct length, have the correct termination, and are inexpensive. Power cables should be included with your purchase. The Xbox Series S does not have any analog outputs, as far as I can tell the only output is via HDMI. It appears that the Audiolab 7000A you have chosen has a HDMI input, so you will also need a HDMI cable.

2. The best place to get cables is in a pro audio store. Choose the cheapest cables that fulfil the requirements listed in (1)

3. I will defer to Mac experts for this one.

4. You can save money by constructing your own cables. It is easy to do if you are handy with a soldering iron.

5. Don't waste money on a turntable. Get better speakers instead. That speaker you chose seems quite decent but if it was me I would choose a budget KEF instead.

Thanks for the details!
So I'll not buy separate power cables and will use Xbox's HDMI cable to connect it to the TV.
As for the HDMI from TV to AMP, I found something reasonable (Zeskit Maya at $13) which seems to be popular for both audio and video use cases.

For the speaker cables, I'm thinking about buying naked wires from Monoprice and Sewell Deadbolt banana plugs and setting them up myself.

Not sure about the USB B to C cable. The cheap ones are $5, and the good ones start at $80+ (AudioQuest). There are no mid-price/quality ones. I want to use it to connect it to my computer.

Are there any RCA and 3.5mm jack cable brands that I can consider?

For the turntable, I got a gift a few years back (Crosley voyager) and it was basically trash. Lots of noise and needle issues. So I want something decent. If I can get at around $200 then it is great, my maximum budget for it is $500 if it actually adds value to my experience.

I loved how Klipsch's looked and I got them at a very good price (30% off). If it wasn’t the sale, KEF Q150 was an option too.

 

[Keith_W]

Cables do not make any audible difference. Any cable that is electrically sound will be sufficient. I have a system that costs a bit more than yours, and I am using cables that I picked up for $20. Like I said, the only consideration for cables is that they have the right connectors, are of the proper length, and are inexpensive. I would spend money on higher quality connectors and more robust cable since they are nicer to use, but I do it knowing full well that it is aesthetics and "niceness" that I am spending money on rather than sound quality. For a low budget setup, spending more money than you need to on cables is a complete waste of money and you should be allocating that money to more important aspects of your build, like speakers.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

Cables do not make any audible difference. Any cable that is electrically sound will be sufficient. I have a system that costs a bit more than yours, and I am using cables that I picked up for $20. Like I said, the only consideration for cables is that they have the right connectors, are of the proper length, and are inexpensive. I would spend money on higher quality connectors and more robust cable since they are nicer to use, but I do it knowing full well that it is aesthetics and "niceness" that I am spending money on rather than sound quality. For a low budget setup, spending more money than you need to on cables is a complete waste of money and you should be allocating that money to more important aspects of your build, like speakers.

Will keep that in mind! Thanks

 

[Waxx]

For a turntable, the Audio Technica AT-LP120 is about the cheapest i would recommend (350€), cheaper in general is trash. You may have to look at the second hand market for something decent. Technics in good shape is always good, and can be found for that price. But the trick is "good shape". For cells, the AT-VM95E is cheap and very good for it's price and in general and very compatible with everything. It's a no brainer starter cell that is good enough for 95% of the people or more. It's standard included with that AT-LP120 turntable.

And yes, many will argue against vinyl here because it's inferior to digital technically. But that does not help you with the choice if you insist on vinyl (i do). Many still love it for a reason, even if it's technical inferior to digital.

For cables, as long as it is copper for the analog connections (for digital cca is also good), well build and the right size for speaker cables (1.5mm stranded is good enough for almost all) it does not matter what cable you have. Brands that are very good and not tht expensive are Bleu Jeans and Mogami. But it does not have to be that. Connectors are trickier. Sure shots are brands like Switchcraft or Neutrik, but many other good are arround also. I make most of my cables with generic OFC stranded copper that i buy in large quantities on spools and neutrick connectors.

Software: vlc plays almost everything and is free. Foobar is also free but more targetted to audio and not userfriendly for not so technical people. I use JRiver and it does it also and more (libary managment, dsp, ...) but is not free. The price is reasonable altough. Roon is also very popular here, but very expensive and i don't know if it can do all you want.

 

[Waxx]

btw, digital cables does even matter less than analog. As long as they work and are solid even the cheapest ones are as good as it gets. Audioquest is a scam, selling way overpriced cables, that half the time or more are not even meeting the basic electric standards. A USB or a HDMI cable of short distance should not cost more than 20€ and probally even way less.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

For a turntable, the Audio Technica AT-LP120 is about the cheapest i would recommend (350€), cheaper in general is trash. You may have to look at the second hand market for something decent. Technics in good shape is always good, and can be found for that price. But the trick is "good shape". For cells, the AT-VM95E is cheap and very good for it's price and in general and very compatible with everything. It's a no brainer starter cell that is good enough for 95% of the people or more. It's standard included with that AT-LP120 turntable.

And yes, many will argue against vinyl here because it's inferior to digital technically. But that does not help you with the choice if you insist on vinyl (i do). Many still love it for a reason, even if it's technical inferior to digital.

For cables, as long as it is copper for the analog connections (for digital cca is also good), well build and the right size for speaker cables (1.5mm stranded is good enough for almost all) it does not matter what cable you have. Brands that are very good and not tht expensive are Bleu Jeans and Mogami. But it does not have to be that. Connectors are trickier. Sure shots are brands like Switchcraft or Neutrik, but many other good are arround also. I make most of my cables with generic OFC stranded copper that i buy in large quantities on spools and neutrick connectors.

Software: vlc plays almost everything and is free. Foobar is also free but more targetted to audio and not userfriendly for not so technical people. I use JRiver and it does it also and more (libary managment, dsp, ...) but is not free. The price is reasonable altough. Roon is also very popular here, but very expensive and i don't know if it can do all you want.

Thanks for the helpful information that you shared. I really appreciate it.

Yeah probably will get the bulk wire and banana plugs and build them myself.

For digital cables, I will get something popular on Amazon which is not expensive.

And for Software, I'll experiment when devices arrive. There are multiple options I want to try out.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

Wanted to update here. As in the other thread, I got some suggestions did some research, and went with the following setup.

I love the sound combo it is very detailed and all instruments are very clear. However, with my friend's Focal CHORA 826, the sound is much wider and open. They are different but both are appealing.

My full build is the following:
Speakers: Klipsch RP-600M II
Streamer: Wiim Pro Plus
Power AMP: Schiit Vidar 2
Preamp: Schiit Kara
RCA Cables: Amazon Basics 4 feet (streamer -> preamp -> power amp)
Speaker Cables: Micca cable 12 feet
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO (will purchase soon they have a promo for gifting Sumiko Olympia)
Phono preamp: Schiit Mani (will purchase soon)

 

[Tangband]

Hi,

I'm new to the Hi-Fi and audiophile world and want to setup a new home system.
My room size is about 25 Sqm (270 sqft).

I don't have room for a Surround system so I decided to go for a decent stereo setup and maybe add subwoofer later if needed.
So here are the products I chose:
Speakers: Klipsch RP-600M II (Ordered them already at ~$460)
AMP: Audiolab 7000A (Will buy it soon at around ~$1500)
Turntable: In the research phase (Something under ~$500)
Power Stabilizer: Some local brand that I used for years and have trust (~$80)

I'm going to use this system for listening to music (from Phono, PC, and AUX), watching movies (Netflix and Apple TV+ mainly), and playing games (Xbox Series S).

I need help understanding what I need, and how to setup them the right way.
So my main questions are:
1. What type of cables do I need? (Power, Speaker, HDMI, RCA, AUX, PC USB) am I missing something?
2. How to choose good cables without sacrificing quality or overspending on this system?
3. What software do I need to be able to play DSD, FLAC, WAV quality? (I'm using MacBook Pro)
4. Should I buy cables and plugs and setup them up by myself (especially speaker cables) or just buy preconfigured ones?
5. Anything else that I'm not aware of?


Note 1: I live in Armenia so my electricity is 220V.
Note 2: My only option to buy all the products is to order them online from US and Europe.

I would buy a WiiM pro + , a class D power amp like a HYPEX ncore from Audiophonics and ditsch the turntable . I would take the sound from Apple TV with AirPlay to the WiiM when watching movies .
No separate preamp needed.

Lots of loudspeaker for the money left - and thats a very personal choice . No advice on that front , but you cold buy a pair of Genelec 8030c and then you dont need a ncore amplifier . Just use the WiiM pro+ together with the 8030c .

I wouldnt buy a class A/B amp . In my comparisons this summer, no class A/B amplifier below 1000 dollars sounded good enough , or offered any improvement over a cheap Aiyima a04.

Buy a proper stable loudspeaker stand .

 

[GaryY]

AMP: Audiolab 7000A (Will buy it soon at around ~$1500)

I was exactly in same boat before coming to this site, ASR. But with USD 1500, you can buy (streamer + DAC+ pre amplifier) in one box like 180~860 euro (wiim pro plus ~ eversolo) with measured/guaranteed sound quality. I was also in rush to buy something, but ASR site save me. Please take your time and check reviews here as many as possible for the most efficient purchase. Good Luck!