How Much is Undoubtedly Too Much?

[polocolo]

These would be near enough for many folks. I think one may need to spend a little on a streamer to have a complete system. But then building a complete system is a lot like picking ties. Personal taste plays a large role.

yeah, I kinda wish they existed in a more... traditional appearance!

 

[polocolo]

$2000 for speakers, $1000 for a class D amp and $100 for a DAC.

thanks! How much for the phono preamp?

 

[VMAT4]

yeah, I kinda wish they existed in a more... traditional appearance!

You could get grey or white, maybe?

 

[Petrushka]

Just to complicate things, near field is cheaper than whole room. If you eliminate room effects, you can get hair curling sound for not much money.

 

[Chrispy]

This just for 2ch systems?

 

[polocolo]

You could get grey or white, maybe?

yeah no, idk, it's not just the color... I can't help but find the appearance important...

 

[polocolo]

Just to complicate things, near field is cheaper than whole room. If you eliminate room effects, you can get hair curling sound for not much money.

yeah, you're right, I should have said in the first message: "not near field". I had in mind something like "on the couch/in the armchair, 8-10 ft away from the speakers"

 

[Doodski]

thanks! How much for the phono preamp?

Gee... I'm not up to speed on good phono preamps but the affordable Cambridge Audio Solo rings bells as being a decent one tested here at ASR. It is a MM design.

Search results for query: cambridge phono

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[polocolo]

This just for 2ch systems?

Yes!

 

[polocolo]

Gee... I'm not up to speed on good phone preamps but the Cambridge Audio Solo rings bells as being a decent one tested here at ASR. It is a MM design.

Search results for query: cambridge phono

www.audiosciencereview.com

Oh, yeah, I know there are decent ones but I was making a joke, since, you know, we're tying to get the best audio for the least amount of money, so, it kinda excludes analog lol
sorry I wasn't clear enough

 

[JeffS7444]

thanks! How much for the phono preamp?

According to some folks around here, any amount of money is too much to pay for phono

But I'm mulling over $500 for a Parksaudio Waxwing.

 

[MoreWatts]

Class D Hypex/Purifi/ICE amps really have changed the game for power per dollar.

How about a stereo amp with 350/500 watts per channel (8/4 ohms) for only $695! (Buckeye Hypex NC502MP NCORE).

My dream system - to mess with audiophile heads - would be this amp and whatever is the cheapest streamer/DAC combo with balanced outputs (guessing under a $1000 - I'm not shopping so not up on latest models. 2 subwoofer outputs would be nice for my favored 2.2 system.)

Combined with something like Revel PerformaBe F328Be (~$18K msrp), or similar Perlistens or JBLs. Heck, might not need the subwoofers. My guess is this combo would fill up even most mansion living rooms just fine.

Average size living rooms would do great with something like the PerformaBe F228Be (~$8K) or discontinued Performa F208 (~$4-5K), and wouldn't need even this much amp. Buckeye Hypex NC252MP NCORE with 150/250 watts at 8/4 ohms for $575.

We've reached the point where you can have all the living-room power you need for under $700 and all the desk-top/bedroom power for under $300.

 

[Ropeburn]

yes, thank you, that's another way to look at it.

I suppose, all things considered, more powerful amps are generally more expensive.

Not necessarily. Power at quality has become ridiculously cheap these days. You can get class D amplifiers at exceptional, certainly state of the art quality with 2x500W, for, what, 2000 moneys (€/$/£) these days. At the same time, you can pay the same money for 2x100W or less, if you want. It would be hard to argue anyone needs more than 2x500W in any realistic home listening scenario. Most of the time, it's much less.

I'm really pleased to see we (I mean the audio industry and its products) have arrived at a point where amp power at very high quality is really cheap. It's pretty much a solved problem. Spend 1000-2000 moneys and you're absolutely golden most of the time. Anything above that is for niche uses, and convenience features and finish.

 

[VMAT4]

Everyone, including myself, thinks of Class D amps for inexpensive power. But, the Outlaw Audio Model 2220 is available at $400 per mono block.

 

[MattHooper]

How much?

Less than I paid.

 

[VMAT4]

Everyone, including myself, thinks of Class D amps for inexpensive power. But, the Outlaw Audio Model 2220 is available at $400 per mono block.

BTW, Outlaw runs a Holiday sale every year and it should start soon.

 

[BDWoody]

yes, cause these can get REALLY expensive! But I take from your message that there is a case to be made that someone can spend 15k on speakers for good "audio only" reasons

I would say $15-20k should give a 'no apologies needed' system. Going loud and going low are where a lot of that money is going. If one listens at relatively lower volumes, and can give up a bit on needing flat down that last octave to 20Hz, it can be had for much less.

The handful of studio monitors mentioned, along with the D&D and maybe couple others will get you there in a one box solution.

 

[Ropeburn]

I would say $15-20k should give a 'no apologies needed' system. Going loud and going low are where a lot of that money is going. If one listens at relatively lower volumes, and can give up a bit on needing flat down that last octave to 20Hz, it can be had for much less.

The handful of studio monitors mentioned, along with the D&D and maybe couple others will get you there in a one box solution.

Just found this on classified ads the other day...

 

[Robin L]

"Too much of everything is just enough"

Bob Weir/John Barlow

 

[JustJones]

Price and availability will depend on where you're located. You mention a room in sq meters and a listening position in feet. You say bucks and use k for thousands. So are we talking $, €, £ ?