The ‘Modern Hi-Fi’ thread....

[Drago]

Fortunately, the law prevents Motorhead being played at low volumes.

 

[Maenchi]

[QUOTE 5176480, member: 259"]Cambridge Audio amps all sound a bit dull at low volumes. I'm not a fan personally.[/QUOTE]
nope, can't agree with that, before getting the DAC maybe a bit flat, but now with that and new speakers it's anything but dull......

 

[keithmac]

Music saved on a NAS drive, plus internet radio (none stop 60’s), with Sonos Speakers in every room, controlled by an App on phone. Sort of reliving our youth, but, with gadgets!

I've gone Sonos multi-room as well, 5.1 in living room (Playbar/ Play1's and sub), we use this more for music though!.

Play:3 on landing does upstairs and couple of Play1's in the Kitchen.

NAS drive with all my CDs on and Deezer Premium.

It's been a revalation, my Wife uses it as well which is saying something!.

To be fair it's mostly playing Absolute Radio 90's or 00's.

Wouldn't be without it now.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

When my Arcam amp died after 20 years I bought new stuff, sold the CD player and parked the ancient Tannoys(never the same after ‘someone’ poked in the tweeters).

I bought a Yamaha amp and a Yamaha Blu Ray which also plays CD and SACD, got some wharfdale shelf speakers on stands (with inert filler in the hollow legs, oh yes!). I've also attached a Yamaha Bluetooth thingy so I can play from a phone or laptop if I'm feeling lazy. I kept the vpi record player and added a switch that allows you to play mono records and get the full benefit of mono!

It’s a nice set up, didn’t cost tons and sounds great.

 

[Maenchi]

[QUOTE 5176518, member: 259"]Good for you. My daughter''s got our old Azur amp and she plays everything at 11![/QUOTE]
11.... very spinal tap..

 

[FishFright]

http://www.emporiumhifi.com/amplifiers/?sort=priceasc

This guy comes recommended by a couple of hifi people but the prices go up to a level that would really upset the people who swear you cant tell the difference between an MP3 and a 24/96 FLAC

 

[Fab Foodie]

When my Arcam amp died after 20 years I bought new stuff, sold the CD player and parked the ancient Tannoys(never the same after ‘someone’ poked in the tweeters).

I bought a Yamaha amp and a Yamaha Blu Ray which also plays CD and SACD, got some wharfdale shelf speakers on stands (with inert filler in the hollow legs, oh yes!). I've also attached a Yamaha Bluetooth thingy so I can play from a phone or laptop if I'm feeling lazy. I kept the vpi record player and added a switch that allows you to play mono records and get the full benefit of mono!

It’s a nice set up, didn’t cost tons and sounds great.

Yeah, yeah.... but you listen to all that C&W carp...

 

[Fab Foodie]

Have to say based on a few reviews, the Rega Brio looks one to investigate.

The tone-control thing is a safety net. I never used them on my audiolab despite having my system installed in some 5 different rooms. Maybe I shoukd do without.
Also, the IPL’s are tuneable to a certain extent...

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I'd have a look at the Rega Brio, I've never heard one but I've heard good things about it. No tone controls but it does have a phono section (something the Cambridge lacks)

Ah - you beat me to it.

My mate has just purchased one and it's a lovely piece of kit. £100 over the OP's budget but worth it imo.

Not too many amp's around at that price point that do not have tone controls.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

This is what I bought to play through some fairly decent kit using an offboard DAC. I honestly can't tell the difference between a CD recorded on here in a lossless format and the original CD. Clever piece of equipment.

http://www.novafidelity.co.uk/x12features/

That's a neat piece of kit - decent price too.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

The Yamaha amp I have has tone controls but also a direct button which bypasses all that nonsense, that's what I use for listening to the shite that I play.

 

[Fab Foodie]

The Yamaha amp I have has tone controls but also a direct button which bypasses all that nonsense, that's what I use for listening to the shite that I play.

As I have always used my Audiolab.

 

[raleighnut]

The Yamaha amp I have has tone controls but also a direct button which bypasses all that nonsense, that's what I use for listening to the shite that I play.

I remember in the mid 80s when 'tone defeat/bypass' became a thing on Amps going into Leicester HiFi Co. for something (a CD player I think) and the owners son Jon telling me about the new Pioneer with this fitted (at the time I had a Pioneer SA540) He knew at the time I'd got Mission 707s so he hooked up this new Pioneer which was about the same power output as mine to a pair of 707s in the shop to audition the CD through and let me play some tracks then said "Now listen to this" and pressed the bypass button, nothing happened to the sound and he looked most perplexed until he noticed what I had done with the tone controls. Having used my own Pioneer for about 6yrs at this point I'd worked out the best sound was achieved by lifting the bass/treble controls slightly off their centre stops (not by much though, just halfway between zero and 1 on the dial) the Amp was in fact running 'flat' so I'd done this to the one in the shop. The theory behind this is that if tone controls are fitted the signal path does degrade the sound but giving a little bit of power to the circuit negates this effect.

Mind you a couple of months later I bought my QUAD

 

[KneesUp]

It's not about absolute quality and faithful reproduction for me - my Arcam has a 'Direct' button, but at the volumes I listen it sounds 'thin' that way - I have the bass on about 75% (assuming the click stop at 12 o'clock is 50%) and the treble on about 60%, and it sounds much better - maybe not as 'pure', but more listenable. Mind you, and entire teenage-era listening to a Walkman too loudly probably hasn't done my hearing any favours.

 

[raleighnut]

It's not about absolute quality and faithful reproduction for me - my Arcam has a 'Direct' button, but at the volumes I listen it sounds 'thin' that way - I have the bass on about 75% (assuming the click stop at 12 o'clock is 50%) and the treble on about 60%, and it sounds much better - maybe not as 'pure', but more listenable. Mind you, and entire teenage-era listening to a Walkman too loudly probably hasn't done my hearing any favours.

No the 'click stop' is zero (no effect) one way (+) increases it and the other decreases how much bass/treble there is.