Raven Audio and Beyond...

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"The lady doth protest too much, methinks"  William Shakespeare.

@millercarbon said:

No baby steps, each one a major improvement, the kind of thing many audiophiles would say is out of balance or not matched. So? If you are building a system the smart way to do it is great strides....What you want do is avoid incremental improvement, at least in components. In tweaks, fine. Incremental tweaks really add up. Add Pods, elevators, HFT, Podiums, etc they all combine to make something really special. With components though it is better to make a significant commitment with each one. This is how you build for the long term.

I'm new at this -- just a couple years of putting together a system and reading a lot -- but this seems like the right advice. Tarun (YouTube) said the same thing in one of his early videos, saying that if one wants to ensure a change, that spending 2x to 3x is best (if possible). Best part about this advice is that it is scaleable. The person with $700 speakers (e.g.) can save a bit and spring for $2k speakers the next time. But what they should not do is just buy $900 speakers and expect a big improvement (unless they're changing designs or correcting a room or amp-synergy problem)

@mijale 

If you have a small room and only listen to “girl with guitar” music, 20 watts should be fine. But if you care a whit about dynamics and realism, 20 watts with 85 db speakers ain’t gonna get the job done. Doesn’t matter how much you wish it so.

@mijale 

Amp upgrade first given that you have never heard how good your Dynaudios can sound. Consider buying a nice integrated with an inboard phono stage to maximize your spend. Disclaimer: I have heard extensively or owned everything I will mention below but no longer own or have any affiliations.

Given your budget, consider a phono stage equipped primalina evo 300 for tubes. The Ravens are fine amps but you would also need a phono stage, you would be limited to the 6l6gc output tube and frankly it doesnt stand out from the crowd sonically in any meaningful way. I may get flamed but between Primaluna and Raven….no contest. Tube options galore, strong resale, excellent service.

Given that you have a schiit dac, you might consider their integrated with the inboard phono stage. For a real upgrade maybe consider the Schiit tube preamp, phono stage and a vidar. You could later add another vidar for monoblock performance. If you went the schiit route, you would have cash left to upgrade your speakers, dac or phono.

Another interesting possibility, the Sugden a21se signature with phono would kind of straddle the two different topologies. Given your equipment list, this would be a considerable upgrade for both your phono performance as well as provide reasonable current and power to enjoy your present speakers. The upgrade in musicality and tone would blow you away. It is also one of the few amps in this pricepoint (given your budget and current gear) that would never be the weakest link in the chain until you upgrade everything else considerably.

OR/AND

You might try, depending on where you live, shopping your local craigslist carefully. You might get lucky and find a reasonably priced pair of preowned Kilpsch heritage or even Altec Valencia/Flamenco/VOTT speakers if you have the room and permission to drop in a couple of large boxes. These speakers offer alot of bang for the buck, reasonably full range presentation and a live feeling due to their high sensitivity. These typically sell for alot less than other decent speakers because: their original packing materials were not designed for multiple use, they are difficult to ship and thus when someone is ready to move on from them, their market is limited for resale (beware, the same applies to you…lower entry price, lower exit price). Your dynaudios will sell easily. These kinds of speakers, like MC was explaining, will open up your amp options.

Regarding all the different camps of buy this or buy that, buy the company…buy the dealer….buy their track record of excellent service. New or used.