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Seeking advice what to upgrade

I am a newbie at this hobby and am respectfully seeking recommendations on what component in my system would be best to consider for a next upgrade. My humble and cobbled together system currently consists of:

 

10 Octave LP1 tube preamp – two gentlemen out of GA who used to do special effects electronics for movies

Carver M-1.0t mkII opt002 amp upgraded by Nelion Audio

Cambridge Audio Dacmagic Plus used as a DAC

SOtM SMS 200 Neo streamer w Sbooster power supply running Roon

Rega Planar 3 (vintage) with Blue Point MC cartridge and Schiit Mani pre – sounds as good as streaming to me

Klipsch Forte 1 w Crites crossover and tweeter upgrade

Blue Jean speaker cables – actually made a noticeable difference over Home Depot

Lots of room treatment which made a huge improvement in sound stage definition

 

Some previous components:

Ohm Walsh 3xo speakers – nice but blurred soundstage compared to the Forte’s

Jadis Orchestra Reference integrated – very nice, articulate, but weak base compared to current components

 

Overall, I am pretty happy with how it sounds – very nice sound stage and definition, plenty of bass for my ears, great for Jazz and vocals, and generally very clean. I probably stream more than play records as my LP collection is pretty limited at this point. That said, listening fatigue sets in after 30-45 minutes at higher volumes (which the wife likes) and my gut says the overall sound may be a bit bright though I don’t feel the Forte’s are shouty as some have described horn loaded speakers (but I don’t have years of trying different components to compare to).

 

I don’t have a huge budget, maybe 2-3K, which is problematic for this hobby, but you have to start somewhere.

 

Anyway, you all are the experts and have been down this road already. Looking for some navigation guidance on my next move. Thanks much.




dmartens
fuzztone's avatar
fuzztone
5,629 posts
 
I saw an observation. If it’s taken as a insult all I see is thin skin.
I’d get a Puffin for the Blue Point and a better DAC for digital. I don’t care for Klipsche but if you do better initial source processing will make a bigger difference at the stated budget.
80s_forever
43 posts
 
Are you using cheap interconnect cables?  Nice interconnects plus changing to a solid core speaker wire can help tame the harshness of those tweeters.
gregm
3,405 posts
 
SQ wise, the weakest devices in your system are the Klipsch & the DAC.
As mentioned above, teh Klipsch may be fatiguing despite the mods which should make them more palatable.*So, I would go for the DAC first (a benchmark or an Ideon, or similar)
*I would also try out interconnects, single-core as suggested are an excellent option. A reasonably priced improvement.* Vibration control for the tubed pre (inexpensive)* Rega 3 with the 300 arm? If not, go for the 300.

Good luck!


dmartens OP
3 posts
 
Thanks all for the suggestions starting w MC. I have admired the Tecktons and have them at the top of my speaker list. Upgrading interconnects, going to solid core speaker cable (any recommendations?) and springs will be a great experiment to work with. A new dac has been on the list as well.  I know Benchmark has been a perennial favorite and I need to check out Ideon (have also been eyeing Denefrips, though China...).  And part of the fun of a vintage Rega is upgrading - arm, platter, cartridge etc.  And I am sure trying different pre/amp combos will be in the mix somewhere.     You all have given me some great ideas to keep me occupied this ‘vid winter. Much appreciated. 
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
I'm afraid your sonic priorities are all over the place.  Normally, unless something else egregious is going on, changing the speaker will make the biggest single change to the sound of a system.  In your case, you mention listener fatigue.  Suspicion naturally falls on the Klipsch.  The first thing to do, then, would be to get a couple of other speakers in house and see how you like them.  Look at Audio Adviser, Music Direct, and Crutchfield for 30- or 60-day in-house auditions.  Evidently, the rest of your system offers plenty of scope for tinkering and tweaking, but unless you start here, you're just going to be applying elaborate and potentially expensive band-aids.
For instance, I don't see the Benchmark really ameliorating listener fatigue, if it's already there somewhere in the system.
Oh, and the most important single piece of advice is to ignore completely the first response that you received to your post.
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