System recommendations


Good afternoon.

I have an older system that I am thinking about making some changes to.  I feel I can get more out of the speakers than what I have currently.  Perhaps a different preamp, or maybe a new amp and preamp.  Here is my system: 

Aragon 8008 mk2/Amp
Aragon 28k mk2/Pre
Cary CDP1/Source
Dynaudio Excite 44/Speakers 

All cables are Wireworld Eclipse 8.  Interconnects are RCA not balanced as the pre is RCA only.

Power Cords are all Shunyata Venom VR10.  All plugged into a Shunyata PS8/Defender using a Shunyata Alpha HC 20amp to the wall.

I look forward to your responses.  

Thank you.  




  




sinatra
I’ve never heard Aragon so can’t comment on that but agree with millcarbon that speaker & component isolation improves sound quality a lot.
In addition to that:
- A couple of subs (more than one at least) would be a great improvement.
- Although you didn’t mention your room, if you haven’t done anything with the first reflection points, you would be amazed at the improvements there.
Keep the Aragon preamp and amp. They were expensive when new and were considered top category components! The biggest improvement will be new speakers! The Dynaudio Excite's are excellent! What don't you like about them? I am surprised that millercarbon hasn't already recommended Tekton's! Speakers are such a personal matter that it is difficult to make a recommendation without knowing what your musical choices are! Maybe you could elaborate!
For instance KEF LS50's are world's apart from Ohm Walsh's, though each has their fans! As posted above you can stick with the Dynaudio's and just add a sub or two or three or four ... this would give a big improvement in bass power and definition! 

I’m no fan of ports, if so, front only.

Those speakers ought to have darn good bass without subs. Perhaps tighten the bass by closing the rear ports.

Did you ever try Dynaudio’s Port Plugs? Or blocking/stuffing them yourself?

Dynaudio’s Speaker Positioning Info is very informative

https://www.dynaudio.com/discontinued-models/excite/x44/support/manual/en/positioning-installation

excerpt:

"Dynaudio speakers are designed to perform at their best when positioned as far from any walls as possible. Ideally, try to aim for a minimum distance of 50 cm (18 in) from each speaker to any wall. Diagram 3 illustrates room boundary distances.

Diagram 3: Distance to walls

Speaker positioning – using port plugs

If your Dynaudio speakers have reflex ports and are supplied with foam plugs, these can be fitted to reduce the bass emphasis that may be apparent if the speakers are placed close to room boundaries. Some Dynaudio port plugs can be split to provide optional levels of bass volume reduction. For mild bass reduction, fit only the outer foam ring by sliding it in the port tube so that it sits just inside the flared port exit – making sure it retains its shape to minimise airflow turbulence. For more extreme bass reduction, fit the complete plug so that the port is blocked. Diagram 4 illustrates the use of port plugs and their effect on speaker frequency response."

.....................................................

After closing the rear ports, ’tightening’ the front bass, then, discover if you want ’lower’ bass (not ’more’ bass).


IF so, I recommend a ’stereo pair’ of front facing self-powered subs located adjacent to the mains. Both the fundamentals and their overtones, i.e. 36, 72, 144 ... provide directional information, you will know where the bass player is standing!


Even if you have plenty of bass at normal listening levels:

For low level listening, due to our ear’s variable characteristics, you need to boost the bass to maintain it’s volume relative to other frequencies,

the easiest is a fletcher munson filter, progressively increased bass as volume diminishes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal-loudness_contour


Proper setup, point of engagement, of ’loudness’ (stupid name) filters is important, many misuse it.





Thank you for the responses so far.  I do need to work on the room a bit, although I will be moving over the next 12 months.  The current room I have has the left speaker along a wall and the right is more open.  The left side sounds a bit more dynamic and precise if that makes sense. 

The Aragon 8008 has plenty of current which the Dynaudio's like, and the bass response is very good. They are about 3-4 feet from the rear wall.  I thought about the new Halo amps as a replacement for the Aragon 8008 & 28k, but that might be a lateral move unless I go up to the JC1+.