What to upgrade first?

[Mi_10]

I gave up my Yamaha AVR as movie watching in stereo is enough for me. But my priority is music hence no need for all those extra channels.

These are the type of decisions a matured (should i call audio upgrade-hardened) soul will take.
2 Key thumb rules in deciding AV equipment
Rule 1: Be clear in your requirement and stand by it
Rule 2: Never Add AV components just because the system can take it

@Akshit2111 For 20% of Movies, you don't need an AVR. PCM audio will work double fine !

 

[Akshit2111]

These are the type of decisions a matured (should i call audio upgrade-hardened) soul will take.
2 Key thumb rules in deciding AV equipment
Rule 1: Be clear in your requirement and stand by it
Rule 2: Never Add AV components just because the system can take it

@Akshit2111 For 20% of Movies, you don't need an AVR. PCM audio will work double fine !

Thanks.. so ill look forward to this dac+amp thing.. Will keep my basic AVR for movies.. now ill see how i can save some money on dac.. can anybody suggest where in delhi can i get used stuff.. ill buy new crown amp but wont have much left for ifi aidio idsd.. if anyone can help? Found second hand on headphonez.in for 31k.

 

[newlash09]

I would like to add 2 other rules to the above :

Rule 3 : Have a long term plan of where you want your system to be. And spend time to short list possible candidates to get there. Rome wasn't built in a year. Buy the next kit as and when possible.

Rule 4 : Spend more on kit that lasts long. Like a good poweramp, if looked after properly will last 10 years. Maybe even 20. And spend less on ever changing tech like, dac's, avr's and streamers.

 

[ssf]

Run your speakers full range. Crossovers are set only when you have a sub.

Clarity in your current setup will depend largely on your source. Improve that and see if there is a difference.

80 Watts per channel 2 channels driven 8 ohms is not too bad. Also your room does not look too big. In my opinion, running your speakers full range and improving your source should give you the desired effect. However, adding a sub will bring you a noticeable improvement to the overall sound both for movies and music especially at lower volumes. Less load on the receiver, and other speakers.

Also, run room correction in your avr. It might improve the sound.

 

[flute]

My suggestion is go for speakers with passive crossover its hassle free people who cannot make it go for active.

 

[prateekatasniya]

Run your speakers full range. Crossovers are set only when you have a sub.

Clarity in your current setup will depend largely on your source. Improve that and see if there is a difference.

80 Watts per channel 2 channels driven 8 ohms is not too bad. Also your room does not look too big. In my opinion, running your speakers full range and improving your source should give you the desired effect. However, adding a sub will bring you a noticeable improvement to the overall sound both for movies and music especially at lower volumes. Less load on the receiver, and other speakers.

Also, run room correction in your avr. It might improve the sound.

A good power amp with as little as 50w output will blow his mind with the change in sound.

 

[Akshit2111]

People please help.. a close relative is going to dubai next week.. the ifi audio idsd pre amp(as suggested) costs 44k new in india.. will getting one from dubai help save some cash? Online i could find it for 38k on souq.com! If anybody knows some other good source.. least i could find was 30K for second hand in india...

 

[Akshit2111]

Good questions.
1)The crown amp has lower distortion and lower noise floor(very important in an amp). Because they are well built to be tossed on tours and events, they don't have fancy looking plates, and anyone who says that the Crown XLS has no place in home,has never heard one. There are users around the world who have paired this amp with speakers in the range of 2 to 10 lakhs. Even sensitive speakers sing with it because of its smoothness.
You may want to read this one thread out of hundreds on the net singing praise for its musical abilities.https://www.stereophile.com/content/crown-xls-series-any-good-severe-bargain-pro-amp
a preamp is what you need to control your source and volume. If you get something like the Schitt SYS, around 6000RS, it's a passive preamp, it has two RCA inputs, and one RCA output that goes into the power amp. But then you will need a DAC (again easy to find something in your budget.)
You can plug a Bluetooth adapter, But Chromecast is better IMHO.
3) I think the answer is in the above point #2.
Now , When you buy an AVR ,You are paying for a lot of things that a stereo setup does not need, like HDMI connectivity, Dolby,DTS codecs, room correction software,and a host of DSP features that may or may not be used at all. So all these features are not needed when it comes to music only playback.

Sir a request can you please explain the connections in detail.. quite new to all this.. i am sorry but can u please feed the basics to me.. i get this amp and dac as suggested by you.. now how do i play music and where do i play it from.. can you please explain the connections in little bit of detail like how to attach a pre amp to power amp and whats the use of chromecast audio in this how does it help...what if i want to play some content on my tv then that case what should be done..

 

[tuff]

Sir a request can you please explain the connections in detail.. quite new to all this.. i am sorry but can u please feed the basics to me.. i get this amp and dac as suggested by you.. now how do i play music and where do i play it from.. can you please explain the connections in little bit of detail like how to attach a pre amp to power amp and whats the use of chromecast audio in this how does it help...what if i want to play some content on my tv then that case what should be done..

What is your source currently?

 

[Akshit2111]

Sir currently have a smart samsung tv.. play youtube from there sometimes.. other than this i have hooked up fire tv stick(hdmi) straight to my AVR.. i play music on gaana app on fire tv or play videos on youtube on fire tv stick.. then theres netflix amazon prime.. thats it.. no blu ray no dvd nothing as such.

 

[tuff]

Please don't sir me. Does your TV have optical output?

 

[flute]

please dont go for crown etc they are not audiophile amplifiers.Its my sincere advise rest all depends on you.

 

[tuff]

please dont go for crown etc they are not audiophile amplifiers.Its my sincere advise rest all depends on you.

Have you heard it?

 

[Akshit2111]

Please don't sir me. Does your TV have optical output?

Yes

 

[tuff]

Too bad you stay in Delhi, but you can still come to Thane and hear my system. You would be surprised.

 

[tuff]

Could you also mention a few amplifiers that you consider" audiophile"?

 

[Akshit2111]

Too bad you stay in Delhi, but you can still come to Thane and hear my system. You would be surprised.

a pic of your system can help me understand the connections better

 

[tuff]

a pic of your system can help me understand the connections better

Here you go. The Peachtree is acting as a preamp/DAC. Computer connection is via USB. CD player via Optical. Peachtree preamp outputs go into the Crown XLS 1502.
In your case, to use your TV and Amazon stick as your source, you will have to take a digital out from your TV and send it to a preamp/DAC that sends analog out to the power amp.

 

[tuff]

this is an old pic i found of the speakers I use. The power amp you see is an Arcam delta 290P. It is deployed to drive my smaller Magnepan setup using Schitt SYS as a preamp and Chromecast audio as source.

 

[Akshit2111]

Here you go. The Peachtree is acting as a preamp/DAC. Computer connection is via USB. CD player via Optical. Peachtree preamp outputs go into the Crown XLS 1502.
In your case, to use your TV and Amazon stick as your source, you will have to take a digital out from your TV and send it to a preamp/DAC that sends analog out to the power amp. View attachment 30856

When u have such a capable amp like peachtree then why are u using crown? Also when u suggested ifi audio idsd as a pre amp was there a specific reason for that.. its a headphone amp basically.. is it because its a preamp+dac combo? How do we select a good preamp or a good dac?
Ill connect my amazon fire to my tv take the coaxial from my tv and put it in pre amp.. where would chromecast audio fit in the equation.. whats the use? And where will i attach the chromecast.. if you know any step by step video..please do share..thanks