Please help me in improving my Music experience

Manish_M

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Joined
May 15, 2021
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10
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Location
Lucknow
5 years back I purchased a Sony HT-RT3 sound bar, which I am using with my TV as well as for my music needs.

Now, I am thinking of buying an Integrated AMP with a decent set of speakers.

Music:Movies = 50:50

Music Type: Bollywood (<1990), Pop & Rock (1970-1999) & Ghazals. Preference for clear Vocals. Not into heavy bass.

Movies : Action, Drama & Comedy (English & Hindi)

Sources : Online (Amazon Prime membership, may move to spotify),
CDs (I have a CD player),
Vinyl (next purchase, in 4-6 mths),
MP3 (external HDD / Laptop)

Channels : Starting with 2. Will upgrade later.

Budget : Rs 1 lakh +/- 10%

Room Size : presently 14X16. I am in a transferable job (PSU), and usually move places every 3-4 years. Room size may vary, but in India, it usually is around 12X14 .

Challenges :
1. Auditioning. There is only 1 decent Audio/Video solution provider in Lucknow, but it too focuses primarily on Home theater. I visited his shop. Sampled Denon 1600H with Jamo 809 (in Jamo HCS 809 setup) and Klipsch Reference 5.1 theater pack. Not much else for demo. Did sound better than my present system, but have nothing to compare them against.
2. Not all online stores deliver to Lucknow.

Therefore, I have been searching Youtube and this forum for possible solutions. After a couple of weeks of search, I have shortlisted the Marantz NR1200 (75k) with QA 3030i (35k). These offers have been given by My Audio Visuals store in Surat with delivery to Lucknow in 7 days.
Why Marantz NR 1200?
1. Music orientation
2. pre-outs
3. Phono input
4. Bass and Tone control on front.
5. Built in HEOS
6. HDMI for connecting TV

Why QA 3030i?
1. Many here have recommended it works well with Marantz NR 1200.

In all likely hood, mine would be worse than an arranged marriage, as I will not be able to see or listen to what I finally purchase.

So all the help that more experienced fellows will give will be wholeheartedly welcome.

Do they work good together?
What other options I have within my Budget?
 
welcome.. since you already have a CD player , if i may, I would suggest spending around 60% on the speaker and a good stand ( unless you want a floor stander) and the rest on the amp. The +10% can be for cables ( speaker/Interconnect)

Assuming you do not have a phono stage a Denon PMA 800 has everything for around 40K and a Monitor audio bronze at 50K a really good speaker. budget around 10K for a pair of sturdy stands and your speaker will sing

There are many combinations and enough experienced FMs will have their suggestions and you can find the best deal. look for a speaker which can give you at least 45Hz at the lowest and you will be good in most rooms hifimart.com and revolver club.com as well..
 
Thanks ARJ for a quick response.


welcome.. since you already have a CD player , if i may, I would suggest spending around 60% on the speaker and a good stand ( unless you want a floor stander) and the rest on the amp. The +10% can be for cables ( speaker/Interconnect)

Assuming you do not have a phono stage a Denon PMA 800 has everything for around 40K and a Monitor audio bronze at 50K a really good speaker. budget around 10K for a pair of sturdy stands and your speaker will sing

There are many combinations and enough experienced FMs will have their suggestions and you can find the best deal. look for a speaker which can give you at least 45Hz at the lowest and you will be good in most rooms hifimart.com and revolver club.com as well..
Budget bifurcation, Suggestion accepted. Means, i either scale up my budget to 1.5-1.6 Lakhs or change the receiver in the same budget.

I had not considered the cost of a speaker stand in my calculation. Thanks. just checked that the difference between stand + 3030i and cost of 3050i is around 30%.

Went through hifimart for bookshelf speaker stands. most are speaker specific. Are there any generic stands available which can be used with any bookshelf speaker? If yes, where?

I dont presently have a Phono stage and will buy it maybe 6-8 mths down the line.
 
Any reason for the Marantz 1200 .. is it for the video features ? While I am not very knowledgeable about this, less than 75K gets you a lot more options like NAD int amps,vor the cheaper Marantz PM series which will do music really better at less than 50K.

If you can increase the budget then I would suggest a speaker like the Fyne Audio F500 with a nice Marantz PM6007 at less than 1.25L. Just get the amazon basic copper 12 gauge speaker cables

On stands, they are not usually brand specific and any good steel stand will do very well and heavier the better .

Check out the above combo on you tube with a decent pair of headphones-

Ignore the bass as his subwoofer is not well set up.
 
Any reason for the Marantz 1200 .. is it for the video features ? While I am not very knowledgeable about this, less than 75K gets you a lot more options like NAD int amps,vor the cheaper Marantz PM series which will do music really better at less than 50K.

If you can increase the budget then I would suggest a speaker like the Fyne Audio F500 with a nice Marantz PM6007 at less than 1.25L. Just get the amazon basic copper 12 gauge speaker cables

On stands, they are not usually brand specific and any good steel stand will do very well and heavier the better .

Check out the above combo on you tube with a decent pair of headphones-

Ignore the bass as his subwoofer is not well set up.
Yes, for its video feature. I also had Yamaha V6A in mind, but it is not available in most stores.
Besides, I am planning of scaling this setup to a 5.1 in 2 years without compromising on audio quality.
I was initially thinking of buying 3030i, and maybe next year, buy the 3050i with a center channel and sub woofer and complete my 5.1 home theater. After your first reply, i am really thinking of buying floor standing speakers first, and add other speakers and a 5.1 AVR later.
In that case, I will have to expand my budget to 1.5K and that means delay the purchase for another 2 months.

PS. The bass in the video was truly bad...
 
There is a decent deal of a combo on HiFimart.com. The Marantz in Combo is very good and is a replacement for NR1200. You can check with Anil to replace Bookshelf of your choice in Combo.
Looks tempting. thanks.
the number on the website is of Amit?
 
after a week of thinking and discussions with family, i have decided to wait for lockdown to get over and sample speakers first. as much as i can in lucknow. i remember the vendor also had KEF LS50. nly after i have shortlisted the speakers will start thinking about the Int Amp/AVR.\
Meanwhile, have started shortlisting songs for testing.
One thing I noticed, which i didnt earlier, was that how bad MP3 recordings are that I had been happily listening for the last decade+ on my CD player, Mobile etc. Songs were much more alive on Amazon Music. I will have to dig out my CDs and see how many are in using condition.
 
5 years back I purchased a Sony HT-RT3 sound bar, which I am using with my TV as well as for my music needs.

Now, I am thinking of buying an Integrated AMP with a decent set of speakers.

Music:Movies = 50:50

Music Type: Bollywood (<1990), Pop & Rock (1970-1999) & Ghazals. Preference for clear Vocals. Not into heavy bass.

Movies : Action, Drama & Comedy (English & Hindi)

Sources : Online (Amazon Prime membership, may move to spotify),
CDs (I have a CD player),
Vinyl (next purchase, in 4-6 mths),
MP3 (external HDD / Laptop)

Channels : Starting with 2. Will upgrade later.

Budget : Rs 1 lakh +/- 10%

Room Size : presently 14X16. I am in a transferable job (PSU), and usually move places every 3-4 years. Room size may vary, but in India, it usually is around 12X14 .

Challenges :
1. Auditioning. There is only 1 decent Audio/Video solution provider in Lucknow, but it too focuses primarily on Home theater. I visited his shop. Sampled Denon 1600H with Jamo 809 (in Jamo HCS 809 setup) and Klipsch Reference 5.1 theater pack. Not much else for demo. Did sound better than my present system, but have nothing to compare them against.
2. Not all online stores deliver to Lucknow.

Therefore, I have been searching Youtube and this forum for possible solutions. After a couple of weeks of search, I have shortlisted the Marantz NR1200 (75k) with QA 3030i (35k). These offers have been given by My Audio Visuals store in Surat with delivery to Lucknow in 7 days.
Why Marantz NR 1200?
1. Music orientation
2. pre-outs
3. Phono input
4. Bass and Tone control on front.
5. Built in HEOS
6. HDMI for connecting TV

Why QA 3030i?
1. Many here have recommended it works well with Marantz NR 1200.

In all likely hood, mine would be worse than an arranged marriage, as I will not be able to see or listen to what I finally purchase.

So all the help that more experienced fellows will give will be wholeheartedly welcome.

Do they work good together?
What other options I have within my Budget?
Marantz nr 1200 is a good budget amplifier, no doubt but rethink about spkrs kef, mission, moder short, they can get hi fi mart India’s online store
 
Marantz nr 1200 is a good budget amplifier, no doubt but rethink about spkrs kef, mission, moder short, they can get hi fi mart India’s online store
Thank you Murti Sir. Will keep that in mind

With lockdowns extending, the itch to purchase is very high. Really testing my patience.
 
Hi Manish.

Some alternate thoughts, for your consideration.

Try and decide upfront whether your ultimate goal is a 5.1 surround system, or a stereo system.

If a 5.1 system, then you need to buy an AV receiver now, rather than a stereo amp.

Whilst the Marantz NR1200 has HDMI ports, it is a stereo amp. It cannot be "upgraded" to handle 5 speakers, at a later date.

My view :
- You can get a really good stereo system at less than Rs 1 lac
- For a 5.1 , you may struggle within that budget, but can get a AVR + 2 speakers


For a stereo system (my thoughts) :
- Choose bookshelf speakers in to 20K - 40K range
- These are easy to drive (ie work well with any amp), and offer really good quality, and value
- As you go up the ladder in speakers (eg KEF LS50), you will need to spend on far more expensive amplifiers to get good results

My suggestion for your needs :

- The Q Acoustics 3030i is really good choice. Go for it

- These can be easily driven by a stereo amp like the Marantz PM6007

This Maranzt amp also :
- has a optical input, which will allow you to connect your TV to the amp
- has a sub-woofer out, which allows you to add a sub at a later date



If your ultimate goal is a 5.1 system, start by buying an AV receiver.

For example the Marantz NR1510

Or

The Denon X1600H


The Q Acoustics 3030i will also pair well with these.

And you can gradually add, sub, centre and surround speakers.


Do keep in mind, that a stereo amp, will give you superior sound quality for music.

But if you want to enjoy movies with surround sound and all the fireworks and explosions, you need an AV Receiver.

Do let us know what you finally choose.
 
Hi Manish.

Some alternate thoughts, for your consideration.

Try and decide upfront whether your ultimate goal is a 5.1 surround system, or a stereo system.

If a 5.1 system, then you need to buy an AV receiver now, rather than a stereo amp.

Whilst the Marantz NR1200 has HDMI ports, it is a stereo amp. It cannot be "upgraded" to handle 5 speakers, at a later date.

My view :
- You can get a really good stereo system at less than Rs 1 lac
- For a 5.1 , you may struggle within that budget, but can get a AVR + 2 speakers


For a stereo system (my thoughts) :
- Choose bookshelf speakers in to 20K - 40K range
- These are easy to drive (ie work well with any amp), and offer really good quality, and value
- As you go up the ladder in speakers (eg KEF LS50), you will need to spend on far more expensive amplifiers to get good results

My suggestion for your needs :

- The Q Acoustics 3030i is really good choice. Go for it

- These can be easily driven by a stereo amp like the Marantz PM6007

This Maranzt amp also :
- has a optical input, which will allow you to connect your TV to the amp
- has a sub-woofer out, which allows you to add a sub at a later date



If your ultimate goal is a 5.1 system, start by buying an AV receiver.

For example the Marantz NR1510

Or

The Denon X1600H


The Q Acoustics 3030i will also pair well with these.

And you can gradually add, sub, centre and surround speakers.


Do keep in mind, that a stereo amp, will give you superior sound quality for music.

But if you want to enjoy movies with surround sound and all the fireworks and explosions, you need an AV Receiver.

Do let us know what you finally choose.
Thank you sir for a comprehensive reply. will keep it in mind.
 
For excellent sound that won't break the bank, the 5 Star Award Winning Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 Bookshelf Speakers is the one to consider!
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