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New member Username: LaurencekarlPost Number: 8 Registered: Feb-04 | I picked up an old 2 channel NAD 2600A amp on Ebay for not too much. It runs 150 wpc at 8 ohm. It gets very good consumer reviews here. http://www.audioreview.com/Amplifiers/NAD/PRD_116006_1583crx.aspx First I will say that I am not an audio snob but do listen to sound very closely and in fact most of my preferences would probably horrify the audiophiles. I am throwing out personal preferences and anecdotes in the hope that someone who understands what I am looking for has travelled this path already. E.g. On many systems I like to turn turn bass and treble up instead of leaving at the center mark (granted this depends greatly on the system and on a lot of systems it is variable). I also tend to fiddle a lot with the EQ settings and DSP modes depending on the type of music or even the song that I am listening to. I am going to assume that the 2600A sounds like other NAD amps from the late 80s and early 90s which would probably be similar to today. I plan on using it for stereo at the moment. I like trance, techno, rock, classical and sountracks. I do not like pronounced, muddy, midrange. I have a pair of Polk Rti38s/70s that exemplify exactly what I do not like in the midrange area. I like bass to be really deep and tight not boomy. On a scale ranging from highs that make your ears bleed to highs that get lost in the music I would lean toward the ear bleeding end because I love electronic music. I also find that my violin does produce higher hissing sounds that many systems that have bloated midrange and scaled back high have no hope of emulating. I think that I would probably prefer a metal tweeter because of this fact. I listened to the Polk LSi series and I am pretty happy with them. I do like the detail from those speakers and the orchestral sound track that I was listening to on them sounded almost there. The highs are very good but I would like to remove just a little bit more midrange. Just to give an example I have heard some Klipsch ProMedia 5.1 computer speakers that produced the artificial sound of an electronic ambient orchestra that I would like the speakers to be able to produce if required. This is just an example and I don't like the horn based home audio Klipsch speakers nearly as much because they sound sort of thin to me. My RTi70s and RTi38s do an excellent job with certain types of music but they cannot produce electronic music and rock at all. They sound very dead at times and I do not want this problem with this system as I am hooking it up to my computer and a DVD-Audio player. I want the system to sound spectacular with the sound from Battle Field 1942 (computer game), Aqua, A*Teens, Diana Fox, Dj Tiesto, BT, ATB, Amber, Alice Deejay, Ian Van Dahl, Fragma, Milk Inc. etc. in addition to the standard Mozart-Requiem, Bach-Air.., Vivaldi-4 Seasons, Dave Matthews Band, BackStreet Boys, Britney Spears, Diana Krall, Alison Krauss, Sarah McLachlan, movie sountracks, Maroon 5, Muse, Ozzie, Metallica, Rammstein, Our Lady Peace, Papa Roach etc. Also I found that cd through a digital out to the receiver where I could use the DSP/Tonal sounds much better than DVD-Audio. The analog output from the DVD-Audio sucks and is sort of dead to listen to. I think that much of this is due to the characteristics of my receiver and speakers but cd's sound awesome in comparison. I am thinking metal tweeter and small midrange driver to cure this problem. If anyone can sort of understand where I am coming from and can offer advice on speakers it would be much appreciated. I am thinking something hopefully $600 or less. I will also be getting a sub in a little while so the speakers don't have to produce great bass. I am thinking about one of the ~$400 - $600 SVS probably the 20-39CS. Please note that the amp will probably put out 250-300 wpc at 4ohm. I am looking for book shelf due to price but floor standing is fine. I think that I can get the LSi9s for around that and unfortunately that is all that I have the opportunity to listen to. Obviously if I can get something for less that would be good. I am open to anything and have always been tempted to try the Magnepan MMGs based on reviews but it sounds like they are better for acoustic/classical and I really want something that can do trance/techno/pop as well. I have also read about the PSB brand and Paradigm Mini Monitor, Monitor 5 but I have never heard them. Should I maybe try to find some better Klipsch speakers? I will go listen to them again at Best Buy. The larger ones sound the best to me but I don't want to put $1000+ into them. |
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Bronze Member Username: JamespMansfield , TX USA Post Number: 88 Registered: Apr-04 | From your listening preferences Klipsch may suit you well. ALso try listening to Monitor Audio, B&W, and Cerwin-Vega. |
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Stealth C Unregistered guest | Look at the Klipsch Reference and Heritage lines as they blow the Synergy line at Best Buy away. As for pricing, ebay is your friend. |
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Bronze Member Username: LaurencekarlPost Number: 11 Registered: Feb-04 | As it stands now I am going to go with the RB-25s. At ~$300 they seem like a bargain. I am going to get a sub and use this as a 2 channel rig and for my PC. I want to demo Monitor Audio. The Bronze 2s look very good. I did like the sound of B&W as well. |