How cheap can you go and still be happy with the sound?
I would think many guys on this forum are spoilt by the gear they have and never listen anymore on cheap rigs.
I was listening recently on my younger daughter’s PC audio rig and got reminded again of how good it sounds. There is a fairly high level of clarity, detail, tonal balance and great bass in this rig.
- Yamaha HS8 powered monitors: $700 to $800
- Yamaha WXC-50 MusicCast streamer+dac+preamp: $450, often found on A4L for around $300
- Audioquest Powerquest PQ3 (was around $200 or so)
IMO, this would qualify as a high quality (sonically) charity price hifi rig for any younger or older person w.r.t small room nearfield or midfield listening.
What is the cheapest rig that has brought you happiness these days?
There is another saying in my circles, for those who love to travel: anyone can travel around the world from a lot of money. Only the smart one can make it work on a limited budget. Somewhat similar in audio, you might get to learn and explore more from less money. My hifi is midfi mostly but sounds terrific |
One thing that most audiophile here dont get often :
There is No comparison between a system never mind his price BEFORE mechanical, electrical and acoustical optimization and AFTER optimization. NONE... Then when we compare systems at different price levels most of the times we dont know what we speak about because the threefold set of optimal conditions are not there... A usual normal room must be designed acoustically to compensate and help ONE gear/speakers system...( relatively low cost is possible )
Or we build from the scratch a very costly acoustic dedicated room of good dimension able to serve and help most speakers /gear...
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@grislybutter Loved my old Hafler DH-200. It plugged on for nearly 40 years until the bad luck of water from the fire department took it out. Still sounded good after all that time. I remember adjusting the bias on it once during its long happy life. Other than that and occasionally replacing a fuse it was trouble free and built like a tank. All audio gear should have that kind of longevity in a more perfect world. |
@livinon2wheels re Hafler - it's a pretty amazing piece of hardware. I opened it the other day and it looks pretty old and rusty inside like if I had touched it, it would fall apart into ashes. BUT, it still sounds awesome |
@waytoomuchstuff - Yeah I get that for sure. In today's rather insane terms, my favorite driver is a 4 cyl subaru wagon. Albeit one with everything except the engine upgraded. So it handles, stops and has much better response to control inputs than the stock car it came from. Is it fast? Well, not in todays terms at all 0-60 in about 8 seconds is not fast but on a backroad where I do close to half of my driving, its a great choice. Great on the highway, at least here in VA where there are a ton of 55 mph roads and Interstate speed limits dont exceed 70. Its also reckless driving for anything over 75 regardless of speed limit...so its fast enough, torquey enough and enough fun to be a good all rounder. The more capable exhaust system helps it breathe a bit better than stock and make nice noises but its nothing raucous, just healthy sounding. My other wagon is an automatic and its dog slow. the BRZ is the quickest of the bunch but I like the ergos in the stick shift wagon the best. |
