How much RM$ needed to get a "High" quality stereo system?

Hi all,

Just wandered into this forum by chance and found it to be full of good advice. I am very new to all this hi fi stuff, but very keen to learn more.

Have not visited the hifi retail shops yet. But I am looking for quality systems that can provide the

I basically have to start from scratch, that is, without any audio equipment, (got an old minicompo from the 1990's but its pretty much in a sorry state now). So how much money would be really needed for a system if I wanted a really high quality listening experience.

I know this may be subjective but somehow I had a good feel of the clarity during a recent audition, but that system costs about RM19,000 ( it was just a simple system, TT, a pair of bookshelf speakers and an integrated amp, with a power conditioner), phewww... but it was like being in audio heaven, if you know what I mean., the clear sounds, adequate bass, could almost feel the instruments...

would appreciate if you can point me in some direction....

Looking at a CD player, Int amp, and a pair of good speakers.


So far, I gather the good stuff is like Denon, KEF, Paradigm, Epos, Marantz, Rega, Q Acoustics, Rogers ....
But I am still quite lost as a beginner, due to the vast amount of brands and models,

thanks for any advice!

Hi happett,
Basically, how "High" is your high quality sound?? It is always quality=money. It is depend on type of music you are listening to, room size, also budget you are welling to pay.

Most of the system you list down are good stuff, however it carry own characteristic. Spend more time for audition in shop & friends system, in addition choose the one you prefer (There is no best system but just what you prefer).

Good luck & happy listening,

Hello...

I suggest you to go for more rounds of auditions 1st before making any decisions. Dont be too hasty.
Keep the money at home until you find out what you like most in a system and also with the budget in your mind.
The stuffs written here serve as a guideline only and we hardly know your taste and preference.
You will know what you want after many rounds of auditioning.

Cheers..

1. Think carefully about your music preference and choice. What is important to you (lots of bass ? very clear highs ? Female vocal ?)
2. Decide on a budget. How much do you have and how much of it are you willing to spend

For 1, it will help if you can list down the components of the 19k system which took you to audio heaven. From the components, we can decipher what kind of sound it will probably give and then give suggestions. If all else fails, just splurge and buy that 19k system !!

This has got to be the MILLION DOLLAR Question, ... for a Million Dollar System !!

WongKN wrote:1. Think carefully about your music preference and choice. What is important to you (lots of bass ? very clear highs ? Female vocal ?)
2. Decide on a budget. How much do you have and how much of it are you willing to spend

For 1, it will help if you can list down the components of the 19k system which took you to audio heaven. From the components, we can decipher what kind of sound it will probably give and then give suggestions. If all else fails, just splurge and buy that 19k system !!

Good question....
Music preference? Some of the current female pop, yesteryear's slow instruments, some slow jazz, Kenny G ,,, I guess its a mixture, but I generally prefer music that helps one to relax....

Budget? Not totally sure yet but hope to get it below 15K - 16K..

But I am also trying hard not to let my better half know what the cost of this hi fi stuff may come up to..

The system I heard? It was a Rega P3-24 TT, Rega Elicit int amp, and a pair of paradigm S2 signature bookshelf speakers - 2 driver, 2 way on a stand.

Is this worth considering or are better options available?

thanks and cheers.

Hmmm... for these kind of music, valves can do quite well. Also you have been exposed to a competent analogue setup but the issue is whether you have the 'source' or not. Meaning: do you already have a music collection ? If so, LPs or CDs ? Bad news is current songs difficult to get good selection on LP, must be CD. Old songs, LPs can be found but you will have to work hard to find and some are expensive.

My suggestions:
1. If you don't already have a good LP collection, then I suggest you go to a CD based system. Bear in mind a CD Player than can match the Rega P3 is going to be quite expensive..... (bad news). Also CD has different sonic quality/tonal balance than LP. So you need to listen to it, compare to LP and decide if you can accept CD or not (you may not have a choice actually).

2. Go listen to valve amps. You already heard a good solid state (Rega Elicit). Then decide which one appeals to you more.

3. You probably need to stick to bookshelf speakers at the price range.

4. Bear in mind 15 - 16k is a lot of money for salaried workers, a significant part of anyone's lifetime savings. But unfortunately in the world of hifi, it is NOT a lot of money. It can get you a very good basic system however, one that is good enough to bring you to 'audio heaven' everytime you listen to it. But it is not anywhere near high-end. You will enjoy it I am sure. Until the bekside starts to get itchy lar, that is My opinions lar of course.

I think you need to decide on Qs 1 and 2 asap before you move on to the next step.

you shld wait for the kl av show a few months from now so that u can audition a wide range of components at one venue before deciding which to buy.

also, there are always special discounts during the kl av show.

in the meantime, u can check out the hi fi showrooms in kl/pj.

That is actually half a year away. Wonder if he can wait that long. Also, KLAVS usually is very jam packed and it can be tough to really listen seriously. There are also a lot of distractions. For e.g., last year I made the extra special effort to go early, only to end up spending most of the day at the EMI stall where they were clearing their warehouse LPs.

sflam wrote:you shld wait for the kl av show a few months from now
so that u can audition a wide range of components at one venue before
deciding which to buy.

Aiya... KLAVS environment is not very conducive for proper & serious auditions of any system. Its more of a "showcase" event. Just Like Tokyo Auto Salon. U get to see hot cars and some other hotter eye-candy, but no one really gets to test drive anything (i.e. the cars and the eye candies). Its all see-no-touch only.
For any serious auditions:
Need to go to the shop, properly book an audition time, and bring your own music that u are familiar with to really listen and see how good (or crappy) the potential system sounds.

Of course, best is u can arrange for home-demos but very few if any hifi shops locally actually arrange for such sessions.

happett wrote:

Budget? Not totally sure yet but hope to get it below 15K - 16K..

But I am also trying hard not to let my better half know what the cost of this hi fi stuff may come up to..

These sentences remind me of my friend who under declared the price to his other half. A classic tactic.. hahahahaha..

Go listen somemore before u decide........in most cases i come across, the owners usually regret their purchase, for a combination of reasons.
Usually, it's too late to find out that's the sound u have but finally decide that's not exactly what u can live with for the next many years!

ASK FOR INVITATIONS TO GO AUDITION SOME MORE OF SETUPS. THE MOST UNUSUAL SETUPS MAY TURN OUT TO BE WHAT U ARE LOOKING FOR........WELL SOMETIMES....

Good advice uncle_vic!
It took me some good years (of listening/auditioning)before I finally settle with the system I really like and that lasts about 20 years before I want to upgrade, in this case a complete system change..
Keyword here is, don't rush yourself!

Hi !

Thanks for all your advice!
It is very much appreciated. I guess I better do a bit more listening / audition different systems before I get my money into someone else's pocket!

I can wait a while more. No hurry actually. I haven't listened to any tube amps yet. Will wait for KLAV soon.

And it will be good to do more looking around especially now that I think perhaps I may need more than RM20K to get a good or great system. Wow ... I can see the amount of money flying off.... in return for some high quality stuff...

Big boys toys, right?

All above are very good advice ... but ultimately how many of us can stand the itch of just going around listening & not carting back home the set that appeals to you ?? I think most of us (if not all) ultimately made the jump at one point, own the system,... listen happilly for some time... then go on listening to other systems (be it shop of friends or show) & then decided to change when we find something more suited to us.... so... it is all good intentioned advice to prevent one from buying the wrong thing... but then this itch .. is hard to ease it off ... & you will need to jump in at some point... listening to a set for an audition is one thing.. owning it for a longer term is another... There is also the choice of going the 2nd hand route, with a very nice start up set much lower than 10k....
just my 2sens....

For 20k, there is an ARC LS2 preamp in the FS forum. Worth investigating IMHO. Sometimes we might have to slowly assemble the system from scratch, component by component, especially if we want value for money used items.

For speaker, I suggest you audition Harbeth excellent for voice & dynamic. Harbeth also value for money (reasonable price with good resale value - if you want upgrade later). I'm still waiting people selling used Dynaudio S1.4 (or C1 - in my dream).

hi happett...go to amcorp mall go audition some of the the tube amp there with horn speaker...maybe can suit ur needs..matching set up is important for quality sound..

If u ever in Subang, go to Audio Impression at Submit. Was there yesterday and got poison by their high end stuff..costing about RM100k. Got some valuable advise from Mr Roy as well. Nice chap who is willing to part his knowledge & experience. He may b able to assist with your budget set up.

Recently, went there once with a friend to listen to some setups.

The guy at the shop hooked up a system to let my friend audition it with the speakers out-of-phase. I just sat there for a good 10 minutes until i tak boleh tahan and told the shop guy to check the speaker connections.

Oh well, So much for that shop guy's hearing "acumen".

Oooo...
I should find a day to check out the Summit shop too.

Hi Happett, just a suggestion, sometimes we got to go mix with other hifi kakis to listen and learn, of course the problem may arise u may end up learning the 'wrong thing' la. Then again, if u recover fast enuf u may learn more along the way of listening more of other setups. The point is not so much of listening more, it's about u getting to know more of the other hifi enthusiasts and to understand what, why and how they listen the way they listen, and u may build up your listening experiences and sharpen your listening acumens.


Build up your knowledge on diy and along your hifi journey practice some diy project, you may end up a very very experience hifi enthusiast. Probably in the shortest time possible. Most of the time hifi enthusiasts have their own ideas of things hifi and would usually not bulge or move an inch even in times of discussions or questionings. If u remember this much u can get yourself around and get 'circulated' among the learned hifi enthusiasts and u could choose what u want to learn.

Just my 2 sens.

Adding on to uncle_vic's 2 cents,

Learning the "wrong thing" usually arises from lack of proper knowledge and a general ignorance of the basic fundamental laws of physics.

When all else fails, start from scratch, unlearn the "wrong things" and begin afresh. A good book is always a safe bet to start as opposed to forum opinions and other people's ideas (yes, including mine.) .

For starters:

Robert Harley's Complete Guide to High-End Audio.
Now in it's 3rd Edition.

Master Handbook of Acoustics, F Alton Everest
Probably in it's 5th Edition already.

Available from Amazon.com , or from that "other" hifi shop at jaya-1, PJ. The shop that sells McIntosh & Russound systems. They got lots of the 2nd Edition though, maybe can haggle them to "clear stock" cheap cheap!

People won't learn the "wrong thing" if they actually had good textbook foundations to begin with. The rest would be real-world experiences and the other intangibles.

Exactly my thoughts! Thanks, Mugenfoo.

I thought that the fastest way would be through some good books, so I got two of Robert Harley's: High-Performance Audio systems (2007) and the one recommended by you mugenfoo, The Complete Guide to High End Audio (3rd Ed: 2004). Did get some discount at Music by Design at Jaya 1. That was last weekend but did not get to see Simon who was out for an installation. Business must be good.

Now to look for Master handbook of Acoustics at amazon.com .. or is there anyone who has no more use of his/hers, do let this newbie know.


And thanks for the advice, Uncle vic. Now to find some friends who has hi fi sets ... where to look? At retail outlets, only can discuss so much on what they have to sell.

Also went for some auditions at Perfect Hi Fi and Asia Sound Equipment at Amcorp (met up with JR who exposed me to Paradigm speakers. And I think the Reference Signature ones are very good. This is the top of the line.) Also went to Audio Synthesis (met a friendly guy there who was advocating some quality equipment from China). Heard his demo set. The source was a valve tube CD player with a Shanling int amp and Image speakers. It sounded very good too.

I can now tell that the quality of music and RM$ has a more or less direct relationship.


One request: Can anyone who has experienced a good trade off, that is, getting a good system for a reasonable amount of money, please let me know your thoughts. Brand / models mentioned would be most helpful to me.

From what I understand, the amp and speaker system matching would be quite a key decision in this area.

Happett, How much moolah are you looking to sinfully splurge on your new-found interest?

Mugen, that's a good one......sinful spending of $$$$.........what about obsence display of wealth? hah hah hah!!!! Lots of hi ends gears but don't sound anyway near to decent sounding? Dealers can't setup properly for the rich unker? The unker can't setup himself? Now, now!! This seldom happens la. Just kidding! But there are some hifi enthusiasts with very refined tastes may still think it's not done properly la.


I was told by some sifu sr that how well one can setup the hifi system and how good it sounds depends on 'how pure that person is'!!!! Pure as in thoughts and mind.........example don't envy what others have and don't look down on what others don't have la!!!
I think those senior sifus have a good point!


Anyway, Happett I will pm u if u want to find out how bad my system sounds la. It's a start isn't it? Hah hah hah!!!

uncle_vic wrote:.....
I was told by some sifu sr that how well one can setup the hifi system and how good it sounds depends on 'how pure that person is'!!!! Pure as in thoughts and mind.........example don't envy what others have and don't look down on what others don't have la!!!
I think those senior sifus have a good point!
....

How very true this is !

'Pure thought' as in no envy, no jealously, just honest to goodness, down to earth sharing of enjoying each other's hifi system and music. It's not always possible but we owe it to ourselves to try.

The thing is if we go listen and develop any ill feelings, whether to higher end systems or lower-end ones (compared to what we have), we automatically close off our mind to learning something from the session. Often the best systems contains some nice 'tricks' or set-up tweaks that we can take home with us and apply to our own system. Sometimes that high end system might have some features that we find is available using alternatives of much more affordable cost.

Similary with that lower-end system. We can't just assume that something 'lower-end' will always sound worse than our system. If not in every area, there is still a good chance a 'lower end' system can outdo our own in some areas. With an attitude that it can't be better we close our eyes to learning anything but with an open mind, just like with that super system, we often can take back some new tricks or set-up tweaks to improve our own system.

If anything, sometimes we visit a 'cheap' system and find out that maybe it images so much better than what we expect and beats our own system hands down. Well, then it tells us that either our set-up is not good enough or perhaps there are some mismatches in our own system ? As they say, knowing the problem is the first and often most important step to resolving it. And in hifi, resolving a problem simply means better sound and more enjoyment of the music.

Hey thanks all.

The more I read and study, the more I think I need a lot more time before making any decision. The learning curve is quite steep, but no worries, learning new things is never wasted.

As your average wage earner in KL, I would need to take my time as it involves quite a bit of hard earned money. If I make a wrong decision, it will be a heartache.


From what I can tell, a music lover does not need to spend a huge fortune to enjoy a good reasonable quality music. So now it got me to thinking that it may be a good start for me to start tinkling with pre-owned units and get the hang of things. There is nothing to beat hands on learning by doing. Books can only tell so much.

But the books has helped me to understand what audiophiles are looking for. So it is a matter of me trying to learn how to listen well now and what to look out for in audio world.

Thanks Uncle vic, will catch up with you one day.

The Robert Harley Book is good, I read it twice the latest edition. All I can say is if u know and understand all that is being said.........u are already there la! Just go listen and that part of the book which reminds u of what u are listening will help u strengthen your thoughts and reinforce your depth of the subject. What u gain will be forever yours to keep! Good luck.

Pre owned is the way to go but i'll stay off this topic for a bit because right now if you ask me how much you should pay fo your "High" Fi, my advice would be to get the most expensive source component you can afford then spend your lunch money on the rest. RM10K for a CD player sound just about OK! (in my current state of mind that is)

bimmerman wrote:Pre owned is the way to go but i'll stay off this topic for a bit because right now if you ask me how much you should pay fo your "High" Fi, my advice would be to get the most expensive source component you can afford then spend your lunch money on the rest. RM10K for a CD player sound just about OK! (in my current state of mind that is)

wow... bimmerman, >rm10k cdp eh!!! can crash your gate...




cheers
kooman

with 2nd hand equipment, with careful choice and testing can get pretty good sound around rm10k.

e.g. cd rm1k
amp rm3k
spekrs rm 5k ,
misc, rm1k.

thats my own opinion.

musikaki wrote:with 2nd hand equipment, with careful choice and testing can get pretty good sound around rm10k.

e.g. cd rm1k
amp rm3k
spekrs rm 5k ,
misc, rm1k.

thats my own opinion.

Heloooo?

Bimmerman says that the RM10K is for just the s/hand CD Player alone !



This means, the CD player when new, would probably be RM20~30+K

Yup, thanks for pointing that out Mugenfoo.

You see, the way I see it you can spend on cables, cables, cables, acessories, cones, pucks, stones, slates, treatment, tar, wax, oil, and plugs etc... but if you feed your system with garbage source, it's going to be garbage out the speaker end. Albeit garbage refined by the abovementioned cables, acessories, cones, etc... but ultimately still garbage.

RM10K cash for CD player then slowly fix your amplification and transducer needs. Go swipe your credit card for the rest and slowly pay up. Skip a meal everyday to help pay your debts.

You'll tank me for losing weight too.

Bimmerman's suggestion holds their own weight as well. However, I do want to add in my own opinion that you should NOT limit yourself to just used only or new only. The thing is if you buy used, you are almost entirely on your own. Whereas if you buy from a dealer, someone who's good, he can often give you invaluable advice on how to get the best out of the system. After all, we only get to tinker with our own system, and if lucky, a friend or two's. But a good dealer, he listens to hifi for a living, and he's tuned countless system including (the good ones) difficult ones like in troublesome rooms, etc. Also, don't always discount dealers as sources for new equipment. Most dealers also have a choice selection of used equipment as well.

If you ask me I would say buy used if you can find what you want. I used to build my system from new components but ended up selling them away after few years time with around 50% loss. Right now I upgrade from used gears or dirt cheap new gears bought from oversea. At least won't feel much pain when sells them away.

For me, I will find a pair of speaker that I like the most n suitable for the size of my listern room. Then find an amp to drive it. U may need to decide wheather to go for intergrated or pre n poweramp. For source, a reasonable good cdp like marrantz cd60 will be a very good start. New or used doesn't matter as long as it matches your system , that's the best for u.

The more u learn, the more$$$$ u need to invest into it. The more indept u go , the dipper u will step into the Hifi hole. The higher end u go, the more money to spend. That's no end to it, u need to know where u stand n how far u want to go.

uncle_vic wrote:The Robert Harley Book is good, I read it twice the latest edition. All I can say is if u know and understand all that is being said.........u are already there la! Just go listen and that part of the book which reminds u of what u are listening will help u strengthen your thoughts and reinforce your depth of the subject. What u gain will be forever yours to keep! Good luck.

Uncle Vic, ... yours is the 3rd edition ? I got the 2nd Edition. Not sure what was added and revised in the 3rd edition book though.



One thing to add is although listening to alot of hifi systems defintely helps, there is also no substitute to live and actual performances. Granted that even those sounds are "tuned" (like the Petronas Phil. Hall, the dimensions and panelling are all "tunable" to suit the type of concert/performance being held) and there really is no ultimate reference point except for the very instance of "first captured recording", Wide experience in hearing how a Violin or Piano sounds in REAL LIFE is totally crucial in deciding if a particular system has its merits in "sonic realism" or not.

The rest of the audio characteristics like "warm sounding", or " thick fat lush vocals" or even "Boomy boom boom bass" are at-best labelled as taste and preferences only, or at-worse labelled as sonic colourations and poor reproduction of the original sound.

And by live music, one of the best references would typically be those Open air Italian Opera performances and more traditional concert halls with at least minimal (or better yet, no) sound reinforcement via electronic means.

A good example would be a church or hall recital. Note the acoustics of the environment and how it adds richness to the performance. Same goes for concert halls like Dewan Petronas and even the ones at KL Conv. Ctr, but some degree of sonic reinforcement via amps and speakers is unavoidable.

A bad example would be a live band playing at Alexis, Great Eastern Mall KL. Sure, the band may be playing live there, real drum kits, real guitars, but with all that miking and big phat tripod mounted PA-system style speakers, the sonic presentation is nothing more than a big mashup of everything that band is playing and yelling thru the mikes.


Bottom line: A good system would be able to play almost anything extremely well. But given the real world economics, some (actually alot of) compromises are unavoidable. So best to get a system that:
1. Excels in your main genre of music to be played,
2. Suits the environment where the equipment are to be used (including spousal acceptance factors), and most importantly...
3. A price tag that will not force you to eat Maggi mee for the next 7 years.

bimmerman wrote:Yup, thanks for pointing that out Mugenfoo.

You see, the way I see it you can spend on cables, cables, cables, acessories, cones, pucks, stones, slates, treatment, tar, wax, oil, and plugs etc... but if you feed your system with garbage source, it's going to be garbage out the speaker end. Albeit garbage refined by the abovementioned cables, acessories, cones, etc... but ultimately still garbage.

RM10K cash for CD player then slowly fix your amplification and transducer needs. Go swipe your credit card for the rest and slowly pay up. Skip a meal everyday to help pay your debts.

You'll tank me for losing weight too.

Hey Beemie,

Don't forget to splurge on the music too! Software is even more important!
Unless, you're a bitTorrent freak and just steal anything and everything fair and square from the 'net !

Then in this case, an iPod with a headphone-to-RCA cable would more than suffice over the RM10K CD Player!


Speaking of garbage... Ever heard of the term "Good Shit" ?

Hey Moogen, yeah why not an iPod. I've got an iPod but a teensy 8GB one. I was thinking to get a motha-capacity iPod and then get the Wadia dock and rip all my treasured music lossless. Don't need to spend megabucks on something like a Meridian Screwloose system. Hmmm. why not. But the Levinson No.390s is still too purty for me to ignore.

noodle88 wrote:For me, I will find a pair of speaker that I like the most n suitable for the size of my listern room. Then find an amp to drive it. U may need to decide wheather to go for intergrated or pre n poweramp. For source, a reasonable good cdp like marrantz cd60 will be a very good start. New or used doesn't matter as long as it matches your system , that's the best for u.

The more u learn, the more$$$$ u need to invest into it. The more indept u go , the dipper u will step into the Hifi hole. The higher end u go, the more money to spend. That's no end to it, u need to know where u stand n how far u want to go.

give me "5' my logics resemble... room dictates "accomodatable" spkrs, then suitable amp to drive, while source is important, air of the room makes direct contacts with eardrums & of course belly/skin, i thus dont trust tt source cld ever play the ultimate role, again, direct contacts with eardrums...



cheers

Hi Mugen, Ooophs......just checked 2nd edition la.....sori for misleading. Tot I had the latest.

Agreed 1st thing 1st, at least get to set up a system that can replay what music we like to listen........and (and i said and)....if possible could replay all sorts of music.......without breaking the bank la. Also agreed that not many systems out there could actually replay all sorts of music without exceptions. Then again we may have several or more perceptions of the sound reproductions la. It may sound like a good enough faithful reproduction of the recording or it may sound life like or it may sound damn good to one set of ears (mostly the owner's) but sound damn shitty to others(visitors la). Whichever has the flattest frequency response of the gears in that particular room is any bodys' guess!

tlkoo wrote: my logics resemble... room dictates "accomodatable" spkrs, then suitable amp to drive, while source is important, air of the room makes direct contacts with eardrums & of course belly/skin, i thus dont trust tt source cld ever play the ultimate role, again, direct contacts with eardrums...

The reason why Linn is such a well revered name in the industry and that the Linn Sondek LP12 went on to become ranked no.1 in "40 years of Stereophile: The Hot 100 Products" is because of founder Ivor Tiefenbrun's philosophy that "The Source is the Most Important link in the hi-fi chain".
Ok, that's perhaps the other extreme end of the same spectrum. But to date, no one has really proven him wrong here. His brand, his products and his industry and peer recognition are a testament to this philosophy.

But to state "i thus dont trust tt source cld ever play the ultimate role" ? C'mon .... tell me you're kidding here.

The speaker needs the signal from the amp, and the amp also needs the signal from the TT or CD player, and all equipments need power from the wall socket (which is why AC cords & wall plugs and sockets and fancy fuses and the inwall cabling from the DB panel all effects the sound , or do you disagree here? ) .

<<< LOGICAL Hi-Fi CHAIN >>>

Then by any amount of bulletproof reasoning, the ULTIMATE role has got to be the electricity from TNB !

Case in point: If there was a neighbourhood blackout and you don't happen to have a diesel or backup generator for your home, whats there to really cause the speakers move for "direct contacts with eardrums" ?


Curious question:
Is there anyone here having something akin to a RM50K system driven with a RM120 "Akira" DVD player source to play CDs ? Anyone ... anyone ?

the spkrs need signals while the sources must hv spkrs, amps etc in the chain of music repro, need i mention the ears to hear & skin to feel, heart to interpret etc etc... ru here to advocate chicken comes first or egg does? me not! u needn't "throw" magazines, dictionary, cables etc herein

i never claimed neither wld i insinuate tt spkrs play the ultimate role likewise not sources let alone amps, cables... but one goes all out with source, only left less than proportionate budget for other similarly important components within the chain! again i don't trust tt source cld ever play the ultimate role!!!

oh ya, sorry to throw in an out-of-context childish-ly mediocre question: has anyone with turntable of tangential arm & programmable laser cartrige deployed some rm99 jilakak branded 2.1 spkr system bought from lowyat??? come on... don't argue for its sake!!!


i rest my case from "chicken & egg" before some guy may "throw" in the hen then, hen's hubbie thereof, the hen coop etc...




rgds/tlkoo

From my own humble experience I've found that that electrical wall plug and socket and the electricity therein plays a very very major part in the overall presentation of your audio. UK type plugs/sockets or US type plugs/sockets, fused, unfused, switched, no switch, can limit or unleash the full potential of your ausio. Kid you not.

[quote="mugenfoo

Curious question:
Is there anyone here having something akin to a RM50K system driven with a RM120 "Akira" DVD player source to play CDs ? Anyone ... anyone ?[/quote]

Going on basis of ratio, does an Audio Research CD7 (RM34,000) with a Luxman integrated circa '80 (RM600) count?

No it does not count because it's a superior source component doing an inferior amp which can still sound fine. Should sound better than Akira on 50K amp.

tlkoo wrote:the spkrs need signals while the sources must hv spkrs, amps etc in the chain of music repro, need i mention the ears to hear & skin to feel, heart to interpret etc etc... ru here to advocate chicken comes first or egg does? me not! u needn't "throw" magazines, dictionary, cables etc herein

i never claimed neither wld i insinuate tt spkrs play the ultimate role likewise not sources let alone amps, cables... but one goes all out with source, only left less than proportionate budget for other similarly important components within the chain! again i don't trust tt source cld ever play the ultimate role!!!

oh ya, sorry to throw in an out-of-context childish-ly mediocre question: has anyone with turntable of tangential arm & programmable laser cartrige deployed some rm99 jilakak branded 2.1 spkr system bought from lowyat??? come on... don't argue for its sake!!!


i rest my case from "chicken & egg" before some guy may "throw" in the hen then, hen's hubbie thereof, the hen coop etc...




rgds/tlkoo

Ahhh.. thank you ... at least some of us here are CAPABLE of a well worded response ! ... God knows these are in such short supply lately.

Now back to the matter at hand . OK, so it can be established that Neither extremes could be the final say. The chicken is not the ultimate, neither is the egg.

tlkoo, So, it can it be said that you also won't TRUST the speaker to be the ULTIMATE role as well ?

So what are we left with here ? Its the CHICKEN AND EGG that completes the eco-system and therefore, ALL are important? Korrekto ?

Bimmer,

Sorry but doesnt that support your point of spending on source, GIGO.

If the music is the ultimate objective then how can the amp be inferior if it achieves that goal? Are we back to the issue of should the equipment glorify the music or the other way around?

Hi happett,

For speaker, I would suggest you to try the Audio Physic Yara II Evolution (Floor stander), the entry level model of Audio Physic. It cost you slightly more than RM4K + for a new pair & it is Germany made. Eventhough it is the lowest range, it sounds very good, wide staging, pin point imaging.

You may try it out at Audio Image, PJ. They have a ready pair on display now.