What to add or change for my system?


This is my first post, so please have pity on me if I break any rules.... :)

I immersed myself in this hobby a few years ago, and I'm completely hooked.  And best of all, my wife is.....almost hooked.  I initially purchased speakers from Axiom, OPPO 103D from OPPO, and Parasound preamp and amp from a local dealer.  These were connected with Kimber Timbre cables.  I also have a Furman Elite power conditioner.

All of that changed in December.  My system now consists of:
  • Martin Logan Summit X speakers; purcahsed new on AG
  • Plinius Hautonga integrated amp; purcahsed on AG
  • Oppo 105 that has been modded by Tweak Audio for even better audio; purchased on AG
  • Bryston BDP-1; purcahsed on AG
  • Gustard X20 DAC that has been modded by Tweak Audio; purcahsed on AG
  • Gustard U12 USB interface; purchsed new on Amazon
  • Clear Day silver speaker cables; direct from Paul, a wonderful person!
  • Avanti Audio interconnects; direct from Avanti
  • Furman Elite power conditioner; Audioadvisor

As luck would have it, I just got a nice bonus and feel the itch to add to, or make better my system.  Not knowing what to consider, I'm hopeful to get some suggestions from you.  If this was your system, and you had $3-4 thousand to spend, what you add or replace?

Thanks for your thoughts!!!
smills59
Expand your source to include either a great table/cart/ and phono section or a Reel to Reel.

That will keep you busy, engaged, happy and frustrated for many moons to come.
auxinput, I still really like the SR Black fuses, but I confess these are the only ones I've tried so have no comparison.  You are right, they are expensive.  I had to get five of them!  :(   I like your comments on the silver cables versus others.  Perhaps that's a good next step for me.  Any suggestion given the gear I have now?  

raymonda, I know, I keep looking at turntables on Audiogon and  also magazines I get, but so far have resisted the temptation.  As much as I love the musical side of this hobby, and I do, I also love the technical side.  The gear, the cables, etc. fascinate me.  I want to try them all, but alas, money and family are a good limiting factor for me.

Thanks again everyone!


For speaker wire, if you want to wet your feet very cheaply, I always suggest getting some basic 12awg stranded OFC copper speaker wire from Monoprice (or any other source). At $15 for 50 feet, it’s such a cheap way to see how copper works in your system. Honestly, they aren’t that bad.

If you are okay with a DIY approach, you could get some Neotech NES-3002 speaker wire from VH Audio and cut/strip the individual solid-core strands and mount them in Furutech FP-201 (gold or rhodium) spades. It’s not difficult, but just takes a little time on your part. This speaker wire is on my list to try (I’m currently just using the 12awg stranded).

If you want to get a manufactured speaker cable, the Wire World Equinox 7 comes to mind, or the Wire World Eclipse 7 (if you’re willing to spend the money).

I don’t know about other speaker cables, but one thing I make sure to look for is OCC Copper and solid-core conductors. You could look at Kimber 8TC, which is a good cable. Kimber is not OCC, but close. It’s also not solid-core, but the varistrands only have 7 strands in each bundle.

For interconnects, I have tried the Wire World Eclipse 7. It is a very good copper interconnect. I would say it’s somewhat on the soft / laid back side, but everything is there. I hand-make all my own cables and I haven’t found a manufactured cable that can compete.

I do have a set of Audio Sensibility XLR cables up for sale on audiogon, but again they are solid-core silver. They use three OCC solid-core conductors per signal leg (20 / 22/ 24 awg). This makes for a 17awg cable, which is significantly larger than your 26awg. It is a very fast and clear cable, revealing very minute details in the music. It’s about the best silver cable I have heard, but again it is silver. It will translate waveforms to be a higher frequency than they should be. This is excellent for sources/equipment that have a very slow slew rate and are very warm.