I m a beginner. Please help

Welcome Dave, great advice above. I agree with most and feel you've gotten some great guidence. I would prioritize speakers of 90db or higher as your first concern. Once you've established one or two speakers you like I'd test for good matching with an amp. or if your budget is limited a good integrated. Once you've established your system look for a good matching front end. I would not skimp on the cd player though, just leave it till the end. I think a guideline for budget might be 35% speakers,30% amp/pre-amp,25% front end and 10% interconnects and cables. This is only a guideline but something on this order is a good start. I would recommend getting "The Complete Guide to High-End Audio" by Robert Harley. This book is avalible at most bookstores and make a great read for the beginner. Later once your system is up and running you may decide to try conditioners, power cords, different cables, footers and shelving, etc. but don't rush into it. I'm afraid some of us (me) get way to passionate about our systems and talk about these tweaks as if that was the end all, it's not. You must start somewhere and the advice above all leads to the begining. Feel free to write me or any of us through our e-mails if you want more in depth help. I'm alway very honored and excited when people write for advice or just to chat. Have fun above all, good-luck, it's nice to have you aboard. J.D.

Great post Jadem6.Check out www.uhfmag.com they have a 20 minute HIFI course.also 2 books for beginers
They tell a good story .

Dave: Since a few posters are pushing Harley's book, let me push the antidote. Call or write The Audio Critic (PO Box 978, Quakertown PA 18951; 215-538-9555) and order back issues #16 and 20. #16 has an article called "Basic Issues of Equipment Reviewing and Critical Listening" along with a technical analysis of the real sonic effects of speaker cables. #20 features a piece called "The Tweaks vs. the Pros," which gets to the root of the disparate advice you've gotten above. Either #24 or #25 has a similar summary article, but I don't remember which and I've loaned my copies out. Anyway, 4 issues will cost you $24, and it'll at least give you the other side of the argument, if you believe there's a legitimate argument here.

The Audio Critic is not what we would want anyone with an interest in hifi to read.The guy is a lunatic.
When someone makes statments like all amplifiers sound the same.This is a direct quote.Well do you really want to read more.

Besides Leafs' point above, "The Audio Critic" has been proven to be a liar, scammer, deceiver and manipulator. How "fair" is it to review a set of speakers, give them glowing praise, say that they are amongst the finest you've ever heard and then forget to mention that you ( the reviewer ) are the owner and designer of said speakers and speaker company ???? That's what the "audio critic" did... Sean
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