What I was saying is that doing SET right likely requires a full system change-out from the amp on out to the speakers. Is that correct?
Yes and no. Speakers are really an issue of taste, however high efficiency speakers will respond better to a SET amp. Look at the post of my pics, BadAssBob has the same set up. Amp, speakers and then the sources of your choice.
audiodon said:
2. If so, do speaker cables become more important?
Y'know, most guys just use solid core copper wire from a hardware store. Again, this is a matter of your own tastes and philosophies but there are no hard rules.
audiodon said:
3. Are we talking about a lifestyle decision to a certain extent? I've got a house full of kids coming and going and you can hear the dishwasher or fridge compressor kicking on and off while listening to my reference system. Are we talking about the kind of difference that requires a very silent room noise floor for that low level detail?
Absolutely not. I have 3 young kids all 6 and under. Hot tubes are a ssafety hazard, nothing that a cage can't fix (for the tubes not the kids).
4. I respect that there are SET advocates and all that, and I'm not faulting your choices, but are you limiting yourselves to certain kinds of music listening when going with such a low power system such as this?
If no, please explain.
If yes, are you keeping other systems that do that other music well?
Generally speaking...no. However its a situational question as some speaker/amp combos will be faster than others, more/less detailed, etc, etc. I personally isten to majority jazz, soul, r&b, rock, blues and hip hop. They all sound exceptional. The better the recording, the closer to the floor your jaw will drop.
Much like poultygeists quote, once I finished my system, I never looked back. I have been happily off of the merry go round for the better part of 2 years now. I NEVER think about gear anymore, just listening to tunes and buying great albums as I can afford them.
I wouldn't recommend droppping everything for a SET system, but consider it as an alternative to what you have now. I still have a full SS system in my family room, but my SET amp is my pride and joy. I am listening to Sonny Red right now and let me tell ya, those mids are up front and center...just breathtaking. Here's a point I am adament about, mids are the be all end all of a system. If your amp can't do them right, then who cares about anything else. They make up the majority of our hearing's range, and the majority of where music is played and sang at. Who cares about annoying, thumping bass... or screeching dog whistle highs.... sure they are important and comprise a part of the whole, but its the mids you are hearing for the most part. This is where a SET amp simply dominates, and the reason they are hard to walk away from.