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Recommendations for HiFi Listening Room

Newbie here.  Wife and I are looking to turn our Great Room into a listening room.  It’s roughly 21’X’19 and has a cathedral ceiling that is 11’ tall at the wall and 20’ tall at the apex.  Spoke to a good hifi dealer in the area who made the following recommendations/proposal and I’m curious if this group may have any input for getting maximum bang for my buck.  Basically, with a budget around 35k (or thereabouts) would you buy something similar or are there any components you’d add or swap out?

Paradigm Persona 3F

McIntosh MA8950

Pro-Ject Xtension 9 w/ Ortofon Black Cartridge 

Sony ES DSD Music Server (this one concerns me a touch in that it appears to be an 8 yr old product line).

Thanks so much in advance for your collective expertise.  My wife isn’t going to let me drop money into this for another 15 years so I need to get it right the first time. 

If it matters, our musical taste is quite varied: classical, jazz, classic rock, alternative, hip hop.  My mother complained in my youth that if i had 10 bucks I would just buy a CD with it.  She is still right. 

brewerslaw
sunshdw's avatar
sunshdw
283 posts
 

Instead of the McIntosh, I'd go with the Anthem STR Integrated and jump to the 5F Persona

ghdprentice
8,129 posts
 

I have to recommend extensive auditioning of systems from different high end dealers. You want to find the sound you are really emotionally drawn to. It is ok to audition really expensive equipment… to find “the sound” you guys like. Include tube equipment. I am sure the dealer you are talking with is recommending a good system from his knowledge of you and what he Carries. But, it would not hurt to spend time with other systems. See, what sounds right to you. Be careful of trebly systems, they can sound detailed… then over time you realize that is not good, that is harsh. Pay attention to your wife. She has better hearing… she will be drawn to more musical systems… pay attention to her.

larry5729's avatar
larry5729
1,016 posts
 

My sister lives in Appleton.  Nice place to live and houses are affordable.

urbie
275 posts
 

get rid of the paradigm persona that beryllium Tweeter and midrange are very bright and edgy, go listen to the monitor audio platinum 200 ll or 300 ll much better speaker, more natural sounding and way more three-dimensional, the sound  just wraps around and envelops the room and that MPD tweeter is much more natural sounding as well and three dimensional.

 

urbie
275 posts
 

don't listen to audio Troy he's just pushing his stuff, the paradigm persona are very bright and edgy I guarantee you won't like them, if you have them in your town like I said go listen to the monitor audio platinum they're much more musical and natural sounding and way more three-dimensional than the paradigm persona will ever be.

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