Newbie help - Building a system from scratch


Hello all, long time lurker here, looking for advice :)

Due to the Covid-19 situation, I haven’t been able to travel around and test equipment so I’m most likely to buy completely blind. Therefore, I’ve done quite a bit of research. Here is where I’m at:

  • Monitor Audio Silver 300

  • Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum III

  • Rega Planar 3


How does this look? Do you think this would be a good match?

1. What is your budget?

I’m OK to spend about 7k to 10k on this.

2. What are you looking for?
  • Floor speakers

  • Tube Amp

  • Turntable

  • Optional: Streamer for Tidal

3. How will you typically be using the gear?

I will use them in a large room for targeted listening

4. What gear do you own?

Nada

5. What do you intend on using for a source?

Turntable and perhaps a streamer

6. What material will you be using your gear for?

Music only - I listen to Jazz, rock, soul, primarily. Some classical sometimes.

7. Are you willing to buy used?

I’m willing to buy used.


Any pointers are welcome :) 

swissified
I like your tube integrated/turntable idea. Its exactly what I do. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367 You would be astounded at how good that can be. But the major components are only a part of the whole. A lot of it is wire, accessories, and tweaks. A significant amount of the total system budget, probably about half. Not saying you should go that far, but do not leave wire for last. Don't plan to spend $10k and still be using freebie rubber power cords and patch cords.  

With speakers, you are right at my cutoff 90dB sensitivity. With that you can use just about any 30-50 watt tube amp. I did for years. Higher sensitivity is a big plus though. In your budget range I would be looking at Tekton Double Impacts. Far better speakers, far more efficient. Highly recommended.

So we have:
Double Impacts $3k  
Rogue $3k  
Rega $1k  
Wire and tweaks $2k.  

Admittedly, this system is a bit back-end heavy. That is, the speakers and amp are strong, the front end (turntable, cart, phono stage) a bit weak. Relatively speaking. However, there's some big pro's to doing it this way. Outstanding speakers and amp will make it super easy to hear when anything else is improved. The Rega has its own RCA and the Rogue has its own phono stage so you only need one power cord and speaker cables. $500 or less will get you a Master Coupler power cord, another $500 some darn good speaker cables, and still have about $1k in the budget for stuff like HFT, PHT, record care products, etc.  


Wow, thanks for a very detailed answer. Much appreciated. I'm blown away by your setup btw. 

The Tektons look awesome and reviews are great but I'm afraid they are;

a. Too big
b. Wouldn't pass the wife test :)

Still, I will keep them in mind for if/when we move and I have a dedicated listening room. 

Also, thanks also for the wisdom on cabling etc. I thought to start with the major components and sort out "details" later. 

On another forum, somebody pointed out that the amp is too expensive for the speakers I've chosen. How do you feel about that? Is this a hard-fast rule?

Background:

As I wrote, I've been doing online research about different components. I've read some pretty good reviews about the MA Silver 300s that included certain words that picked my interest so decided to use that as a starting point. After that, I started looking for a matching amp and saw some recommendations. Also, I've been meaning to build an analog system all along so started looking at mentioned tube amps. Finally boiled that down to Rogue Audio and PrimaLuna. Rogue Audio is better priced and has more available power to drive the MAs, so landed on that.


swissified,

"Is this a hard-fast rule?"
There are no hard and fast rules.

You did not inquire about the cartridge for your turntable although it will be a very important piece of the picture. I see that turntable can be ordered with no cartridge, or with different ones ( https://www.audioadvice.com/rega-planar-3-2016-turntable.html ). The price doubles and performance certainly follows (not linearly, though).

Monitor Audio Silver 300 are great speakers that you could probably even audition at home (Crutchfield!), if you do not mind the trouble of shipping them back. They are very non-intrusive in the room and come in different finishes. Your wife may be satisfied.

However, at that price range there is a batallion of great speakers worth considering. It would be the best if, after reading reviews, you could hear a few of them so you get a feeling of what kind of sound you do like. All can be pleasing, but not all to everyone while they can all cost the same. Words in written reviews can mean different things to different people. Differences may be subtle, but important to you. Allocate another $1000 to speakers and choices will become overwhelming.

Get the real equipment first and play with whatever add-ons later.

EDIT: If the room is larger and you pick Monitor Audio Silver 300, you may consider a subwoofer, too.
wecan help we have a  a Huge selection and wealways have some good trade ins some good trad ins

Dave and troy a0dio intellect nj