Options to upgrade from Cambridge Integrated

Ok, its been a few weeks but here's an update.

We have found a house and will be closing/moving in by Dec 1st or so. The issue now is that the listening room is much bigger (22x25 or so) and is a "great room" with two-story vaulted ceiling. Our listening preferences have not changed, just the room. My question is will the short list of speakers still work or not and what about the 60wpc Cambridge integrated? What would be some suggested options keeping the same budget in mind ($1000-$1500)

Hi Rule,

I think you will find all 60WPC integrateds meek in your new space. I did when I demoed them in a large living room.

The most bang for the buck on amplification will be to pair a high-quality pre-amp with a lower-quality but decent amp. You can always upgrade the amp later, but the pre-amp is the bigger factor.

The problem is budget. I would expect to pay $500+ for the preamp, and $300-$400 for the amp, even used/demo. If you stick with integrateds, the 100+ WPC integrateds are all out of your range as well.

If you really can't stretch your amplification budget, perhaps the best route is to go with Tobias' advice -- go with new speakers now, and live with the Cambridge until funds permit a more substantial upgrade to you amps.

Home demos of speakers will be important in your space. If the dealer is nice, try to borrow reasonably-priced electronics with more power than the Cambridge, so you can compare.

Best,

Eric

Of the speakers on the short list, I think the vandies will not only have the best overall sound, but will also work best in your large room, especially if you're able to place them out in the room at least a couple of feet. I had 2ce's and ran them with a 50 wpc cambridge integrated for a while. Worked fine, though they did sound better when I moved to a 100wpc mccormack amp and tube pre. But in with your budget, you might be able to have it all. Used 2ce's go for around 400. That leaves 1000 for a more powerful integrated or used, older seperates. Congrats on the new space I bet jazz and vocals are going to sound killer, though rock may not have the punch or slam you'd want.

Nice to have the update!

Your new listening room dimensions have indeed changed the equation. You are not looking at steadily improving your present system any more, starting with speakers (the weakest element right now) and later changing the amp. This is because neither your present speakers nor your amp is well-suited to a large room. If you want to try to match your system to the new room, you will need to take a big step.

My take would be this: unless you plan to listen nearfield (and forgo the "room-filling sound" experience), you will need speakers that can move a lot of air. That means forget monitors, you need big woofers, or multiple woofers. Such speakers need muscle unless they are very efficient, and muscle costs.

Speakers with an efficiency rating under 88 dB will need a big amp, at least 150 wpc if solid-state and about half that if tubed. If you can find a speaker you like with a 90 dB rating you can cut your required amplifier power in half. That's a lot less money, and often better sound, since IME the smaller amps take less engineering and fewer exotic parts to sound good.

My first notion would be to listen to one of the Triangle floorstanders. (I would be tempted to say, the bigger the better!) These are efficient speakers with terrific imaging, very lively and fast and not terribly costly for their quality. Their sweetness depends on what's upstream of them, though, and tubes are a good bet here. Another good bet speaker-wise would be Reference 3A, but these are more costly than Triangles. There are sure to be other efficient larger speakers I can't think of right now.

Vandersteens are not the worst idea with your current amp but I agree that this setup will sound meek, even a bit lost, in your new space. However a budget revision, upwards, may not be feasible under the circumstances.

OK Tobias, you have introduced another speaker into the mix. Now I'm going to have to listen to them, darn :)
Where can I get to listen to the Triangles. Any chance there is a dealer in the Atlanta area?

I will start listening within the next week or so. I agree that the size of the room will be better served with higher efficiency speakers, especially if I want to stay in my budget, at least for now. Post any other suggested ideas and I'll update everyone on my progress.