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Room setting: new amp or new speakers?

hello gys,

My Hi-Fi journey is rolling on, and over the past few weeks, I’ve had the chance to dive into some amazing gear—like tube amps and high-efficiency speakers. It’s been super fun, but now I’ve hit a bit of a dilemma.

Here’s my current setup:

  • Amp: Yamaha AX-396, pretty old, low value

  • Speakers: Sonus Faber Venere 1.5 bookshelf speakers, definitely ’better’ than the amp

  • Streamer: Bluesound Node N130

I’m planning a big overhaul of my system, but I can’t decide what to upgrade first

A little more info:

  • Room size: 55m² (so, pretty spacious).

  • Current speaker placement: Sitting on a bookshelf, positioned to the side of the sofa (definitely not ideal) - see pic

  • Ideal setup: Properly placed speakers facing the sofa for proper sound.

My thoughts:

  • If I upgrade the amp first, I might squeeze more out of my current speakers - which are not as bad —but will their awkward placement limit the improvement?

  • Upgrading the speakers with floorstanding will come with new position + higher quality (2x the ROI?) AFAIK they account for big big part of the final sound. then will do the amp.

I’d love to hear what you think! Have you been in a similar spot? Which upgrade made the biggest difference for you?

Let me know your thoughts! thank you so much

albymana
evanpress
23 posts
 

I second soix's recommendation to start with speakers, then electronics.  And speaker placement makes or breaks a good speaker.  Good luck and enjoy.

 

albymana OP
4 posts
 

Thank you so much for the very insightful replies!

to your point @soix , I had the chance of listening to a pair of Devore o/baby and pair of Audio Note An/k both of which I liked a lot: big sound stage, very live feeling. For my room, a pair of AN/E would definitely fit
 

also listened to a few less “exotic” brand like KEF R2, Monitor audio, Sonus Faber: but none really impressed me like the AN and Devore. 

electronic wise: Audio Note I Zero - despite being 8wpc and entry level - impressed me the most. The Oto also was amazing. Along solid states I liked Naim Xs3 > Rega Elicit while I felt Hegel 190 was too “thin”

albymana OP
4 posts
 

PS none of the sessions I did was with a sub, and honestly I did not feel the necessity (in particular, AN + Devore, AN + AN/K)

goofyfoot's avatar
goofyfoot
1,380 posts
 

I can recommend what I have; ASR Emitter 2 Exclusive amp and Quad 2912 ESL speakers. I would advise not to underestimate the value of having a great amp.

soix
9,693 posts
 

Sounds like Audio Note is really striking a chord with you — that’s a good sign.  Their speakers are very placement friendly and work well near walls, which may be a benefit in your situation I’m guessing. They also make excellent DACs if/when you get to that point.  Best of luck. 

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