New Speakers. Now What?

So I recently picked up a pair of KEF Q150s. We're in love. I'm thinking of taking them to Niagara Falls for a honeymoon.

But of course, the new speakers raise all sorts of questions. A little background info:

The KEFs replaced a 10-12 year old of Paradigm Studio 20s. Real champs, the Paradigms. Both speakers have been driven by an Arcam Solo, of about the same vintage as the Paradigms.

So, to the questions:

The KEFs are a life-changing upgrade. Will changing the electronics have anything like the same impact?

I do most of my listening on CD. That will likely continue, and I'm shopping (if I'm shopping) for an integrated amp and CD player. But if I'm getting new stuff, they should be capable of all this new-fangled streaming. Is that all standard practice now?

If I do change, the leading contenders (on paper, at least) are: Cambridge Topaz, NAD Bee, Marantz 5005 (a bit of a splurge), Yamaha (of some model number that I can't possible keep straight). Thoughts, comments, criticism?

It's early in the game with the KEFs, but any idea with what they might match best?

The Paradigms may have outdone the KEFs in the bass department. (Heresy!) Will any electronics provide a boost in the low end?

Anything else to keep in mind?

Many thanks, from this newbie!

 

Maybe I should mention that I'm a straight-ahead two channel stereo guy. No home theater aspirations.

 

The Arcam Solo is a decent amp. If you change to another amp in the price range of $700 - $1,000 (such as those in your list), I think you will get a different sound, but not necessarily a higher-quality sound. It seems that you enjoy the current sound, and so I would continue to enjoy it. If you want more low frequencies, you may want to consider getting a subwoofer.

If you want a new amp to take advantage of streaming, you can look at the Yamaha R-N602 stereo receiver (or the upcoming R-N803). Onkyo and Pioneer make stereo receivers that can do streaming as well. Of course, you can alternatively us a stand-alone streaming tool such as Chromecast or Apple TV with your current Arcam. But my experience with Apple TV is that it is not as stable as the built-in streaming function in the receiver (e.g., Spotify Connect). I do not know why.

 

Consider a Yamaha A-S501. Comes with no unnecessary frills and will sound better than most of the affordable networking units. These amps can also produce lower bass than many expensive models from competitors. I don't know how they do it, but these $400 Yamahas can outperform $3500 units in that regard.

An outboard streamer can be added for around $100 and it would plug directly into the amp's DAC.

 

The Arcam ran closer to $2,000 in it's day, while the amps I'm considering (not the CD players) run $3-4-500 at most Not exactly the highest form of proof, but still something. Somewhere, someone advised me to turn the amp high up high, and see what I hear.d (Hiss, etc.) IDead silence, even at the loudest levels. One vote for Arcam. And then I tweaked—and I mean tweaked, by the inch—the speaker placement and the bass responded notably. Another vote for Arcam.

But I want to buy something new! Upgrade-itis! Or Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS), as we photographers call it. And I don't have a lot of money to throw around. (Not that any decisions have been made.)

 

It's hard to offer good advice on upgrading your electronics when your profile presently tells us nothing about what you are currently running.

 

I'm running the KEFs and the Arcam.

 

IMO, skip receivers with integrated streaming, etc. and just get an AirPort Express if you want that.

As far as your choices, I’d say either an NAD 316bee or, a step up, the Schiit Ragnarok or one of their Vidar/preamp combos.

 

Yamaha. Trust me.

 

Most decent amplifiers will drive your new loudspeakers just fine. Now, the biggest factors are (1) well-recorded music, (2) the room, i.e., your listening room, and (3) positioning your speakers in your listening room.

 

Hey, I was just there Sunday, didn't see you there!

Probably not. Speakers are very inaccurate and each sounds very different from another. The differences are orders of magnitude more than electronics. What I'd suggest instead is a subwoofer, to ease the strain of the very lowest frequencies on the relatively small woofers of your KEFs. However, I don't know if your Arcam can correctly accommodate a subwoofer (i.e. with a high pass crossover to cut the bass out of the Arcam's amp section and therefore out of the KEFs)

 

+1 on the (3).

 

I would think the KEFQ150s would be a step down from the Paradigm Studio 20s. I'm a huge believer in paradigm and their ability to go toe-to-toe with anything in there given price range and the studio 20s used to be $1500 a pair this is the kef's at $500

 

This is exactly what you'll get with the newer Yamaha integrateds. In fact, even their cheap AVRs have this trait. It makes for some eerily awesome late night listening sessions, when vocals appear out of total silence.

This trait is more common with amps that use a two prong power cable.

The same cannot be said for many other brands that produce hum, either through the speakers or transformer itself.

 

What stands are you going to use? Proper set up should also help get the most out of them, particularly in the bass.

Sensitivity is on the lower end, so an amp with a bit of heft would make a world of difference. 80-100w would be my call.

 

When I'm a fan of Paradigm, myself. But long ago, when I bought these, 2005-ish, list price was under $800. And they've been used hard ever since. But they took the abuse and kept coming. Nothing like the clarity of the KEFs, though.

 

Got them on all-metal stands that were relatively cheap on Amazon.

This is the first time that I've really played with positioning. Shocking how much a few inches makes.

The Arcam are 50 watts per channel into 8 ohms. (Someday I'll lean what an Ohm is.) They also advertise "Twin toroidal transformers with oversized power amp supply." That sounds good, right?

 

Got them on what seem like good stands. All metal, spikes at both top and bottom. Question: Does filling the stands with sand or something similar really make a difference?

 

Let them burn in for a bit before shopping for a new amp. If you want to warm it up at some point I'd go with a restored sansui g9000.

 

It's amazing how badly some music is recorded! As I write this, I'm listening to Infidels by Bob Dylan. Just awful. Still, it's a great album. I'd rather have good music that sounds bad than vice-versa.

 

Just a note to thank so many people for replying so quickly. This is a forum I can believe in!

 

It would be my call, too. Now if I could just get the money.

 

I would make use of the sub out and add a 12" Hsu or SVS. If that seems to work out, I would then add one of these:
DSPeaker-Anti-Mode 8033
I use the 8033SII to run two subs in dual mono.

 

Out of curiosity are they the V4 or v5

 

Congrats on your new KEF's from a lifelong owner . Agree with davidb1 that a sub may give you the most performance bang for your buck. If your committed to upgrading your amp Musical Fidelity integrateds typically work well with KEF's due to their high current capability. Maybe the M3I model?