Help a confused newbie build his first setup...

Going in just remember this, "Everything Matters" ... especially if you want to be a card carrying audio nut or if you are, but don't know it yet.

How much does eeach area (amps, speakers, sources, cables, conditioning, isolation, acoustical treatments)matter?

Well now... that's the $64 question, or the $1K, $2K, $3K or $30K or $$$$$$, question.

IMHO.... If you take the ‘front to back ’ approach of system building, wherein you begin with the source and move towards the speakers, rather than the “speaker first” path, you’ll save money initially.

That’s the way I’ve nearly always began building a stereo outfit.

Great speakers normally require great front ends, (sources, preamps, amps, cabling, conditioning too maybe) to sound their best.

Great sources, preamps and amps, along with good cables and possibly some power line conditioning, if needs be, can do very very well with far less than superior speakers.

AS for monitors vs floorstanders… there are numerous pages right here in the disscussion forum archives that may add to the pros and and cons for each…. Normally, both types take up roughly the same foot print or floor space.

Searching the “Virtual systems” that contain PCs and/or Airport Express units also could be helpful.

You’ve got a pretty decent sized space to fill out given the openings to another room… so depending on how important bass is to you, and of course it do seem you’ll need to continue to address that particular part of the audio rig now and then, you can pretty much determine the minimum power/speaker ratings up front. Do know this however… more power is better than not enough power if ever in doubt.

A good DAC IMHO should be your first concern. Not top of the line now but as good as you can afford now… IMO a good to pretty good DAC = $500 to $1,000. IF PC audio is your sole source, and none other is desired, picking a DAC which can remotely adjust the volume eliminates the need for a preamp, now or entirely. A pretty good SS amp can be had for $1K or less… preowned. Again, IMHO. Leaving you with only the need for loudspeakers. Monitors at first look seem the proper path to save funds and gain better bang for buck. Add in the notion that good stands for those monitors will definitely reflect in how well they’ll perform, and they are NEEDED, and the monitor price rises. Add in too another couple or three feet are needed to connect cables to tall stand mounted monitors , and the price again goes up.

The poster above that mentioned the Quadds is a good idea I suppose. They do get a lot of positive press . So do many others. Totems for instance also get some great following, and many other names come to mind. Silverline two ways are very nice. All that said, I bought a pr of older towers locally from another member for under $700 that don’t look great, but play super with about any amplification and setting. Phase TechnologiesPC 10.5. In a 16 x 12 x 8.5 room with 100 wpc @ 8 ohms, they work very well indeed. Larger room? There they will need more juice as they are 87db & 4 ohm or less speakers.. In my 21 x 14 x 8.5 room, 200 wpc @ 8 ohms ought be adequate for starters….. again… more is better. In there I used a BAT vk500 w/BAT pk amp to drive them, 250wpc @ 8 ohms.

My Bel Canto e one DAC3, + Odyssey Stratos Plus amp + PT PC 10.5, + Synergistic Research speaker cables and Audio Art Interconnects or Kimber Hero’s, Nordost Blue Heavens, or even some Micro Pearl ICs, should make a nice sounding outfit that has a very good degree of honesty and neutrality. I do prefer tubes, but that ain’t a bad setup. Your wallet might agree with it/them, but it always comes down to the ears and sometimes the eyes.

As for how much money is needed to first get going? That’s all up to you. Matching the power ratings of amps to the needs of the speakers is a very, very key thing. The initial outlay likely will come down to how much paitience you have on tap, and how picky you are overall or how compromising you can be.

Integrated amps are a sound choice too initially. Keep to popular trens right off and you can do the Audiogon shuffle, buy try, and sell later if not a good fit for you, or it’s time to move on…

The more eclectic your choices the tuffer it’ll be to move them out later on…. Just a heads up. Heed or ignore at will.

A Blue Circle, Bel Canto, Peach tree, Nuforce, Wyred 4 Sound and lots of other, LSA, ETC. ARE SOLID integrated amp CHOICES….

Get out and listen to as much as you can now…. And see what’s going for what.. price to sound-wise. Then… have fun. It ain’t a heart transplant or anything nearly as critical… it’s a hobby.. a past time, and should be fun. Always.

Good luck

Aldres, buying lower level gear will cost you more since eventually you'll replace it - unless you have, like many of us, "gardener's syndrome" and need to trim and re-pot anyway. I would buy at least one main component of high quality that you can live with. The biggest change for me (eye opening) was the speaker Hyperion HPS-938. It is imitation (but according to reviews even better sounding) of very expensive Wilson Puppy. Read reviews here: http://www.hyperionsound.com/hps-938_Review.htm
It also got whole bunch of awards (including "speaker of the decade"). What surprised me the most was quality of the bass. I knew about breathtaking midrange but bass was complete surprise. It is not the fact that bass is tight and very dynamic but rather that it sounds very natural/musical at the same time. Attack and decay of the bass string, for instance, sounds very realistic and pleasant. This speaker cost more than $5k but I bought 6 month old dealer demo (dealer in Pennsylvania) for $3k with full warranty and like new condition. Perhaps dealer is willing to negotiate even better deal now (slow sales). Used are sometimes sold at Audiogon at approx. $2k. It is very warm sounding speaker that is easy to drive (6ohm, 3.8ohm min, 90dB/W) that works great with my 100/200W Icepower amp.

Your question suggest $3k as your absolute max. I would try to get Hyperions and fit it with $100 receiver + cheapest cables for now. When you can save more get better amp and CDP or DAC - one by one. My setup is very simple - DAC with volume control + power amp (Rowland 102) using cheap DVD player or Airport Express as a source, but sound quality is first grade. There is something about these speakers that make them 10x better sounding than 3x less expensive Paradigm Studio/60 I had before. By better I don't mean more impressive, just the opposite - less hi-fiish and more natural (better integrated) with lifelike imaging.

Put most of your budget into the speakers. I suggest looking at used ProAc, either the 1SC's or 140's. As a musician I think you would like the sound of the tube Cayin 100T, often available used for about $1800. I've paired the latter with both of the ProAc speakers and really enjoy the sound, it is warm and female vocals are stellar.

IMHO. . . a pair of used Vandersteen 2ce's would do well for your speaker needs, and see if you can mate it with a nice integrated tube amp, or for your ss preference, consider a used YBA integra, NAD, or Creek integrated. There are many others to choose from. My first setup was a Dynaco/Rectilinear speakers, and AR TT. I remember my excitement when I first got this rig, and how well it serviced me over the years. Happy Listening

Get out to some decent stores and listen to some systems to get an idea of the type of sound you like. See if you can find a club in your area that will provide you with some in-home listening sessions (and exposure to people in the hobby). Don't buy anything you haven't heard in own your home. Look for good deals on used gear that you can sell for close to the same price when you want to change. Take your time.