Challenge for the modern fans - The best $1000 system.

[Putterman]

I'd like to throw in a changeup and make it the best $1000 system that can be made into an AV starter system that is still good for stereo.

Speakers - Pioneer SP-FS52 $125 each Best Buy $250
(AV) Receiver - Marantz 1403 or Denon 1613 Best Buy $400
DVD/CD Player - SONY BDPS 390 Best Buy $130 ($100)
Subwoofer- Pioneer SW-8MK2 Best Buy $160 ($130)
Total $940 ($880)

The difference can be used for wires, power strips and IC's. The prices are list with current sale price in ( ). Online prices are generally better.

The Infinity Primus P163BK and possibly the floorstanding models,263 or 363 on a good sale could be sub'ed on speakers.

The Denon appears to have more power, but the Marantz has the ability to connect a separate amp to power the left and and right fronts if you go to 5.1. Both are the cheapest to have Audyssey MultiEq which corrects for room reflections and helps tame low frequency room resonances and cancellation, IMO the most problematic issue for speakers.

The SONY AFAIK is the cheapest player for SACD.

There have been other subs already listed by previous posters that may be better values than the Pioneer.

 

[PAGS]

This thread is amazing! Being pretty new to this game, and very new to owning modern equipment, I'm ecstatic to see that I already own some equipment that has been mentioned here. I love my icepower amp and my paradigm mini monitors. actually, now that I think about it, the only thing I currently have active in my system that is more than 5 years old in my technics 1200.

I found this thread because I was researching modern preamps. the icepower sounds great, but from what I read it is a little picky about its input source impedance. I'm using a grant fidelity DAC 11 for digital conversion and volume control. Though from what I read it is not ideal for the icepower based on its output impedance.

it seems to me, not many of the systems listed here are using dedicated preamps. do the toppings chip amps simply have passive volume control? I'm wondering what to put upstream of my ice power amp. I have not had a chance to try anything aside from my DAC11 feeding into the icepower, so I'm curious about what I may be missing.

Please keep the $1000 system suggestions coming!



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Not sure what you mean by passive volume control on a Topping T-amp. My TP60 has an Alps potentiometer. It seems to do the trick (makes the sound louder and quieter).

If you want a low budget preamp, you might what to look at some of the passives on Ebay (which I guess technically aren't preamps). Something like this maybe: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Passive-pre..._Audio_Amplifiers_Preamps&hash=item2c6c4a080a

 

[tim0]

Woods Patio Cord?

@Poultrygeist

Hail your Scottish blood!
Here's a naive question for you: when you use the woods patio cord as a single speaker wire, do you use one (of +, -, ground) or all three (+, -, ground) for a single run?, i.e.

(+, -, ground) > Left, +
(+, -, ground) > Left, -

OR

any one (of +, -, ground) > Left, +
any one (of +, -, ground) > Left, -

Thanks for all of your other fantastic recommendations.

The Scottish blood in me loves this topic. So here's another $1000 system:

Horn Shoppe Horns ( highly rated by Art Dudley ) - $875 shipped

Topping TP30 amp with built in USB DAC source ( nice owner reviews at PE ) - $109 shipped

$16 balance more than enough to cover Monoprice RCA's and Walmart Woods Patio Cord speaker wires

 

[wphelps]

Ok, so lets give this a try....

Cambridge Audio - Topaz - AM10 - Integrated Amp....$349

Cambridge Audio - Sonata - CD30 - Compact CD Player...$249

PSB - Alpha B1 - Bookshelf Speakers....$299.95

AudioQuest - Type 4 Speaker Cable....$69.00
AudioQuest - Evergreen Interconnect RCA...$28.75
Total.....$996.70

 

[Poultrygeist]

@Poultrygeist

Hail your Scottish blood!
Here's a naive question for you: when you use the woods patio cord as a single speaker wire, do you use one (of +, -, ground) or all three (+, -, ground) for a single run?, i.e.

(+, -, ground) > Left, +
(+, -, ground) > Left, -

OR

any one (of +, -, ground) > Left, +
any one (of +, -, ground) > Left, -

Thanks for all of your other fantastic recommendations.

You're more than welcome. I like the white and green twisted together (+) and the black (-) by itself.

 

[llanger]

As all of my stuff is no longer available new, I'm cheating...

Adcom Gcd-700 $125.00
Angstrom 100 $200.00
Hafler 9270 $150.00
PSB Stratus Mini$300.00
$775.00

 

[Poultrygeist]

Class A Single Ended FU50 with USB DAC ( aka Sweet Peach ) - $342 shipped

Axiom M3v3 speakers - $378

Dayton Audio 12" powered subwoofer - $129

 

[Spektre]

Wharfedale Diamond 10.1

NAD C316BEE & NAD C515BEE

Loom with Blue Jeans cables.

Another vote for the Diamond 10.1 speakers. I currently have them in my main system and they are embarrassing speakers in the $2500 range with their detail, balance and even handedness.

 

[montana girl]

My secondary system - $700

Hi Everyone, I have 2 systems, one rather spendy, but my secondary system consists of this for $700: Sherwood receiver RX4109 ($100-has a phono input), Sony record player PSLX250H ($130), just bought a brand new Teac PDH600 CD player that sounds absolutely fantastic ($400-company was consolidating 2 stores and had a big sale), Polk Monitor 40's ($65). This system sounds so good, especially for the price I paid for all of it. The Polks were used, everything else brand new.

 

[davidro]

Another vote for the Diamond 10.1 speakers. I currently have them in my main system and they are embarrassing speakers in the $2500 range with their detail, balance and even handedness.

agreed. my office setup speakers. the balance is just right.

 

[montana girl]

I forgot that I paid $10 for the Walmart patio cable that I cut up and use for speaker wires, I have a cheap set of interconnects from Radio Shack, probably paid $7 or $8 for them.

 

[matt94gt]

Hey all I just have a question. Ive recently really gotten into vinyl and want to start looking at a stereo for it, right now I just have it plugged into my yamaha sound bar and its decent but I want the warmth and full sound a proper setup.

Now are most people using an analog setup? Or what do you do there? Tube amps?

 

[montana girl]

What is your budget?

 

[roscoofyore]

nice thread. i'll contribute. behold! my initial 'office' system before the great upgrade of 2012, source is my computer. i put most of my $$ into the speakers:

1. Polk LSi7 - $600

2. AudioSource AMP-102 Stereo Amplifier - $160

3. HRT Music Streamer II - $180

 

[estreeter]

How are you finding the LSi7s ? They seem to have a bit of a fanbase among the Polkies

 

[roscoofyore]

How are you finding the LSi7s ? They seem to have a bit of a fanbase among the Polkies

very clean sounding, good detail. they were replaced when i aquired a pair of vintage Celestion Ditton 110 speakers and a PSB sub, much smoother sounding. the HRT dac was replaced with a musichall DAC 25.3 and the amp with a mcintosh 4100. then the 4100 replaced with separates that included a mcintosh c26 with a nakamichi PA-7Aii. the overwhelmed Dittons and sub were replaced with a pair of magneplanars. my neighbors hate me now.

cheers everyone.

 

[gongli]

Poisonous mercury in the paint on the speakers!

Can the amp be inside the speakers?

I was impressed with the value of the bi-amped M-Audio powered monitors I had. Chip-amps, one each for the 8" woofer and 1" dome tweeter, active x-over.

Mine were the M-Audio BX8a's, which have been replaced with a newer model, around $500.

Just mate with a DAC and your existing PC.

Avoid these speakers! If you have them, don't touch them.:nono:

 

[dumptruck]

Poisonous mercury in the paint on the speakers! Avoid these speakers! If you have them, don't touch them.:nono:

Well, thank you for the warning, but how do you know this?

 

[estreeter]

Reminds me of the warning that said that there is no toilet paper in the factory that builds the Monitor Audio range - between that and the mercury (!), it must be a hell of a place to work ..... :scratch2:

gongli, seriously - surely any imported product sold in the States has to meet certain safety standards ? Does Customs simply wave these speakers through at the dock ?

 

[BayouTiger]

Avoid these speakers! If you have them, don't touch them.:nono:

???

I have a pair of BX5a's that I enjoyed for a long time before deciding to move my office music off my desk and to a dedicated stereo system for the office. The BX5a's coupled with a Yamaha 8" powered sub worked pretty well. So well that they are still stacked in the corner. I can't bring myself to get rid of them.

I did have to recap the BX5's though.