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New Audiophile - Upgrade Amp First or CDP First?

I'm somewhat ashamed to say (at least in this crowd) that I've been living with Technics and Philips for years and years. I always wanted an audiophile system, but never wanted to invest the funds before now. At least I had a pair of Infinity RS-5B speakers.

Anyway, it was recently that I knew I finally had to bite the bullet and upgrade. I started with a great used pair of Paradigm 11se Mk II speakers. Not brand new or anything major in the audiophile world, but a world of difference for me who needs to start at a budget.

My plans next are to upgrade to getting an Outlaw RR2150 receiver and an Ah! Njoe Tjoeb 4000 CDP with the updgrades including the upsampler.

My question is, which one should I get first? I'll only likely be able to afford one at a time. Which would make the biggest impact in improving my system - replacing my Technics amp with the Outlaw or replacing my Philips CDP with the Ah! Njoe Tjoeb?

Also, I'm open to any other advice/suggestions from people who've been doing this longer or a lot longer than me. Thanks!
soulgoober
czbbcl's avatar
czbbcl
1,752 posts
 
Sounds like you answered your own question! If your player is not working properly why would you not replace it first.
strateahed
305 posts
 
Sounds like you are at the same place I started a little over a year ago. My suggestion: upgrade the amp and cabling first. As suggested earlier, unless you're listening to the radio it's maybe not worth getting the receiver. If your receiver has pre/outs, you can use it as a preamp/processor. I started with Outlaw's 2200 mono-blocks, and changed out all I/C's, power cords, and speaker cables with Signal Cables gear (signalcables.com). The Silver Resolution Series is reference level. Check them out. They're audiophile quality at affordable prices. Next, you could start out with either the Sony CE595 or Sony 2000ES changer ... $150 or $400 respectively. The 2000ES is quite nice as a stock unit. Later you can upgrade to another level with any of the mods suggested in your CDP thread. This changes will take you a long way.
sidssp
1,077 posts
 
In your situation, for $1600 budget, here is what I would do if I were you. I would get a new amp and improve the CDP at the same time. I would keep the Philips CDP and buy a Benchmark DAC-1 to improve its sound. The DAC-1 is a hot item but I have seen it for sale here for about $750 used. That leaves you $850 to spend on the amp. Since the DAC-1 has a preamp built-in with volume control, you can just buy a power amp and have much more choices. I have seen quite a lot of great amps for around $850 listed here. For example, right now, there is a Quad 909 listed for $825, a Jeff Rowland 102 for $875, a Bryston 4B-NRB for $875, Classe CA-101 for $850, etc... Any one of them will do and they are all great amps.

This setup will sound considerably better than getting the Ah! Njoe Tjoeb 4000 or the Outlaw RR2150 and it will open up much more possibilities in the future.
elevick
2,638 posts
 
I'm confused? A home theater receiver with a nice 2 channel cd? Do you have another DVD to use?
My opinion, the CD player is wayyy nicer than the Outlaw and perhaps too much. In my opinion, the Outlaw will limit the sound that the Tjoeb is putting out. A denon receiver will do a better job. You really should look for a pre-amp with 2 channel direct if you want to use the Tjoeb. And that's with a basic Tjoeb. To even come close to hearing the upgrades, you will need a nice pre-amp (Anthem, sunfire, Adcom, Rotel or the likes...).
Try the balanced outlook: Spend more on the receiver and less on the CD? How about a nice Denon unit with a pre-amp/amp combo or even a higher end receiver? If you then decide that you are missing something sonically, you can easily have the denon upgraded as much as you like. Also, the Denon will play CD/DVD/SACD/DVD-A and more!
shockg
9 posts
 
Ask 10 different audiophiles about equipment and you will get 10 different answers and possibly 50 different recommendations. I think that you should at least listen to some of this equipment. Make a plan to audition the next time you travel to Portland, Seattle or San Francisco or wherever else you may travel. Listen to different amps through the Paradigms. Listen to equipment out of your price range so you have a reference. It sounds like a substantial investment for you so make it worth it. Now, here is what I think you should get. . .
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