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Want to enhance my Audio system, need suggestions

I am a budget audio guy and currently have following two systems. My room size is 17ft x 14 ft x 8ft and I sit roughly ten feet from speakers.

System1: Harbeth P3ESR + Exposure 2010S2 + Oppo dvd player (this system is used for good quality recorded material)

System2: Tekton 4.5single driver monitors + Dayens Ampino/Miniwatt N3 + DacMagic + Oppo dvd player (mostly used for poorly recorded material and movies)

And I am planning to change the above to either of the following combinations.

Combination1:
System1: Harbeth P3ESR/Usher Be-718 monitors + Exposure 2010S2 + Oppo dvd player (placing the speakers on TV table, roughly 4 ft apart. If this sounds too bad then I don’t mind leaving them on stands)
System2: Omega Super6 XRS/Hoyt-Bedford Type2 floor standers + Dayens Ampino/Miniwatt N3 + DacMagic + Oppo dvd player

Combination2:
System1: Omega Super6/Hoyt-Bedford Type1 monitors + Dayens Ampino/Miniwatt N3 + DacMagic + Oppo (placing the speakers on to TV table, roughly 4 ft apart)
System2: Usher Dancer Mini 1/V 602/ProAc D-18 floor standers + Exposure 2010S2 + Oppo player

Which of the above combinations you guys would recommend. Ideally I want to have one of my systems with good midrange and other system with big and punchy sound.

I mostly listen to Rock, blues, East Asian (Indian) instrumental and East Asian (Indian) songs from 50s, 60s and 70s. All the East Asian material is very poorly recorded and I can’t change that fact nor I can change my music tastes just because of the recording quality!

I know that I should audition myself to see which one suits my requirements. But for above combinations, there is little scope for auditioning where I live.
Any suggestions and comments are highly welcome!
rktxyz
inna
7,296 posts
 
REL or JL sub in apartment? He'll get evicted and fined in no time.
I would bother to get good stands with spikes or something else perhaps depending on whether you have carpeted or wooden floor and good cones between speakers and stands.
Not all wooden stands created equal you know, just like everything else.
rktxyz OP
23 posts
 
@Inna: I agree with you. Considering the fact that i live in 3rd floor apt, people living below my apt won't appreaiciate loud and thumping music ;-)

My first hifi speakes were Yamaha speakers with a nice Yamaha stereo reciever. That time i bought wooden stands from best buy (the best they have got!). They are okay, but not solidly built.

Currently i use small isolation pads between my speakers and stands. In terms of source and stands i certainly need to imrove the things.

Any suggestions on CD players?
alfa100's avatar
alfa100
220 posts
 
what is your budget for cd player?
ebm
9,311 posts
 
Spent cash NOW!!
kbarkamian
647 posts
 
I threw the sub suggestion out there because you said you wanted to try speakers with a "big and punchy sound" twice.

A sub doesn't have to be cranked up and shake the walls and floors. They actually have volume/level adjustments. They shouldn't be louder than the rest of the system IMO. What they'll do is fill in the rest of the frequency response, and give the Harbeths a bit of a break from trying to reproduce the lower end of their frequency response. A great sub dialed in and set up right can transform a system. Not an easy task at all, but it can be done. It doesn't have to be set any louder than a full size tower speaker would sound.

I'm not saying a sub would be the best bet nor the easiest. Depending on how your speakers are interacting with the room and what you're looking for sonically, it may be a better immediate upgrade than a CDP.

As far as CDPs, it really depends on what you're looking for sonically and budget wise. Have you considered a DAC and using your Oppo as a transport? A DAC can sound just as good, and it'll give you the flexibility of digital inputs. There are a lot of great DACs out there at a lot of different price points.
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