Greetings! I really enjoy reading all the posts on Audio Science Review as I find this a very unbiased platform that lets science aka the number manage one's baseline expectations over the equipment before the subjective appeals, personal tastes etc precede over.
A quick introduction about myself: I have a set of Denon AVR-X1600H + Jamo S 626 HCS fed by a PC. When I bought this system my main objective was for home theatre so this was a good value to me and I am happy with its performance for home theatre so far. I have recently begun listening to my favourite vocal & jazz on this system (mainly Tidal & lossless flac from the PC as well) and realise it lacks the clarity I'm seeking for, especially from my vocal albums. I did some research on this forum, with a hope of gradually upgrading my system, ie I was hoping I could buy a better DAC + Amplifier and reuse my Jamo S 626 floor standing speaker first, stretch its limit before investing on another set of better floor standing speakers.
The research concluded with integrating my existing 5.1 AVR (with bi-amp) with another stereo amplifier, and switching the systems to the same speaker will be almost an impossible mission (correct me if I'm wrong) and I might be better off starting with another stereo set.
Here comes my beginner's questions:
For my main requirement
1) My couch is around 3.5-4 meters from the front wall. There's about 5-6 meters behind the couch to the back wall. Am I right to say that for such a distance, floor standing speakers will definitely produce better sound over bookshelf speaker? Clarity is my main goal as I'm listening to mostly vocals & jazz. For listening to music using my current setup, AVR volume is usually 50% and 60% is deemed uncomfortably loud.
2) I noted that the DBR-62 scored exceptionally well (here) and is in fact one of the best value speakers reviewed here. My question is, is the Carina series even better?
A set of ELAC Carina Floorstand Speaker (FS247.4) costs slightly more than twice of ELAC Debut Reference Floorstanding Speaker (DFR52). Is it realistic to expect twice the performance in tandem with twice the price tag?
3) My local dealer for ELAC is fond of pairing the speakers to either a Cambridge Audio CXA80, or with a Cambridge Audio DAC + Rega Elex-R, if I prefer to split the DAC from the amplifier. I don't fault my local dealer because they only carry certain brands, and the sales person has not heard of most of the equipment being reviewed here. Not wanting to limit my choices to what the dealer has, for either of the ELAC speakers, would it be a better option with:
a) Integrated setup using only SMSL VMV A2 (here) which I think beats the Cambridge Audio CXA80 hands down, with savings in cost; or
b) Split setup using Topping D90SE (here) and an amplifier -- I read about the Hypex Ncore here but I'm still wondering whether Class D is suitable for me.
For my workstation
I spend the most time at my desk, in front of my laptop computer and it is a punishment to my ears to listen to Tidal from the built-in speakers Hence, I would like to consider a better setup, ie a DAC + bookshelf speaker. My only concern is the front wall is slightly less than 1m from me, and the back wall is slightly more than 1m from me. Thus, I'm not sure if this space is too small for anything. Preference is again vocal & jazz.
Thank you very much for your comments!
A quick introduction about myself: I have a set of Denon AVR-X1600H + Jamo S 626 HCS fed by a PC. When I bought this system my main objective was for home theatre so this was a good value to me and I am happy with its performance for home theatre so far. I have recently begun listening to my favourite vocal & jazz on this system (mainly Tidal & lossless flac from the PC as well) and realise it lacks the clarity I'm seeking for, especially from my vocal albums. I did some research on this forum, with a hope of gradually upgrading my system, ie I was hoping I could buy a better DAC + Amplifier and reuse my Jamo S 626 floor standing speaker first, stretch its limit before investing on another set of better floor standing speakers.
The research concluded with integrating my existing 5.1 AVR (with bi-amp) with another stereo amplifier, and switching the systems to the same speaker will be almost an impossible mission (correct me if I'm wrong) and I might be better off starting with another stereo set.
Here comes my beginner's questions:
For my main requirement
1) My couch is around 3.5-4 meters from the front wall. There's about 5-6 meters behind the couch to the back wall. Am I right to say that for such a distance, floor standing speakers will definitely produce better sound over bookshelf speaker? Clarity is my main goal as I'm listening to mostly vocals & jazz. For listening to music using my current setup, AVR volume is usually 50% and 60% is deemed uncomfortably loud.
2) I noted that the DBR-62 scored exceptionally well (here) and is in fact one of the best value speakers reviewed here. My question is, is the Carina series even better?
A set of ELAC Carina Floorstand Speaker (FS247.4) costs slightly more than twice of ELAC Debut Reference Floorstanding Speaker (DFR52). Is it realistic to expect twice the performance in tandem with twice the price tag?
3) My local dealer for ELAC is fond of pairing the speakers to either a Cambridge Audio CXA80, or with a Cambridge Audio DAC + Rega Elex-R, if I prefer to split the DAC from the amplifier. I don't fault my local dealer because they only carry certain brands, and the sales person has not heard of most of the equipment being reviewed here. Not wanting to limit my choices to what the dealer has, for either of the ELAC speakers, would it be a better option with:
a) Integrated setup using only SMSL VMV A2 (here) which I think beats the Cambridge Audio CXA80 hands down, with savings in cost; or
b) Split setup using Topping D90SE (here) and an amplifier -- I read about the Hypex Ncore here but I'm still wondering whether Class D is suitable for me.
For my workstation
I spend the most time at my desk, in front of my laptop computer and it is a punishment to my ears to listen to Tidal from the built-in speakers Hence, I would like to consider a better setup, ie a DAC + bookshelf speaker. My only concern is the front wall is slightly less than 1m from me, and the back wall is slightly more than 1m from me. Thus, I'm not sure if this space is too small for anything. Preference is again vocal & jazz.
Thank you very much for your comments!