Please recommend me a good new system.

Hi everyone,

It's time to upgrade my decrepit old system to something nicer. It's my first time shopping for my own equipment and there's an overwhelming amount of brands and sales talk, so expert suggestions would be much appreciated.

I'm lookng for a good pair of speakers and an amplifier with a total budget of about $4k. Mostly I will be playing lossless digital files and vinyl, so good laptop and turntable connectivity is a must. You can see what I usually listen to here. Please suggest some good brands, websites or physical stores in the Los Angeles area. Thanks in advance!

 

What is your old system?

 

Do you already have a DAC and phono preamp?

 

This ancient Panasonic CD changer and these Sony speakers. Plus a Vaio laptop and Audio Technica AT-PL 120 turntable with a Nagaoka cartridge. The latter two I plan to keep using with the new system.

 

Nope. The Panasonic unit is currently handling all that to the best of its ability.

 

IMO, it would be a disservice to $4000 worth of new equipment by hooking a laptop up directly to it via its headphone jack instead of using a DAC. That would also be a pretty high-end setup to be using the built-in phono preamp of your turntable. I’d leave some of your budget open for those two things.

 

Makes sense. Then I'll need suggestions on those two things as well.

 

Integrated amp with DAC and speakers. How big is the room?

 

Visit your local dealers and listen. You might get a plethora of suggestions here, all pulling you in different directions. None of which will get you closer to your goal as the proof is in the pudding. You can certainly get some ideas about what shops might carry better gear in your price range here, but I would not exclude any place convenient to you simply based upon hearsay here or anywhere else. You have an advantage to most folks on every forum just by being in LA, thus being close to many places that will have some nice gear. Use that to your advantage and go out and listen.
-Bill

 

Parasound Halo integrated *Black

DAC, Phono and plenty of power.

 

Peachtree Audio Nova 150 (plenty of power, great DAC and very respectable phono pre) and Monitor Audio Silver 300 speakers. Beautiful real wood on both as a bonus. Done.

 

KEF LS50 Wireless $2200
SVS SB1000 Sub $600
iPhono2 $550
Pioneer PLX1000 $700

Keep the Nagaoka.

Went $50 over, but you can sell the old TT and get under. This is a system you can live with for a LONG time!

 

Another awesome option!

 

It's posts like these that make me wish I didn't already have 4 systems... This really looks killer for the price! Always heard great things about the Peachtree.... One of these days I might have to upgrade the garage!!

 

The Nova150 is all that and more. I don’t know if it is the perfect integrated for these times, but it is powerful, clean, and efficient. Also has a very good DAC, a more than respectable MM phono stage AND a very useful processor loop. I love the 150 in my office so much that had I not moved to the LS50W’s in the den, I could easily see me with a matching Nova300 for my “big” system.

 

Peachtree is good stuff. This is my iNova, it is an older model, dating back to about 2010 (on bottom).



I use it for its outstanding DAC. The Nova 150 has the newest version of this DAC.



Another option, which is similar to the Peachtree is a Parasound Halo. As much as I like Peachtree and I have many of their products, this is probably a better unit and one of our members happens to have an almost new on for sale, where you can save several hundred dollars. They use the Saber DAC too. this is a seriously good piece of equipment. Get a great pair of speakers and you are good to go, just add on any analog or digital sources of your choice.

Parasound HALO Integrated Amplifier (Absolutely AS NEW)

 

The Peachrtee and Parasound units being "integrated" means I won't need a separate preamp or DAC, correct? That sounds like a great deal.
I'm interested in the Parasound amp above, but when I click on the link it says "You do not have permission to view this page or perform this action", does that mean it's been sold?

Average sized bedroom. I will probably be moving around in the next few years, so I'd like something reasonably movable.

 

Cyrus make great amps with a top quality DAC. Worth looking at

 

As mentioned above, both the Parasound Hint and Peachtree options are great starting points for you. I would imagine you should be able to find a dealer for both of these so that you can take a listen.
Or if you wanted to go slightly less expensive on the integrated and budget a little more towards speakers, the PS Audio Sprout100 would be an additional one that you might want to check out.

 

Correct.. it's an amp, preamp, headphone amp, and has both a DAC and a phone pre. The Hint link works for me.. it's possible that you don't have enough posts yet to get into the classified section? Someone else will know. Good luck.
A couple diffs between the Peachtree and the Parasound that might matter to you: The Hint also has a MC phono input, and has bass/sub management if you were thinking of monitors plus sub.

 

"No, it doesn't. If it was sold, it would be marked sold. The system was just letting you know that you do not have permission to view anything in the Equipment for Sale Forum.

I checked and that you have joined in March of this year, you have made only sixteen posts. More posts are required before you have access to the For Sale Forums. You have to have a certain number of posts before you can send PM's, so you may not be able to even communicate with him via PM yet, we shall see.

If he cannot make contact with you, he will let me know and I will post to this thread.

I'll shoot him a quick PM and see if he can contact you directly via a PM.

I have purchased from him myself. All of his gear is in showroom condition, We will converse by PM on occasion, he is a good guy.

PM sent.

I have the previous "Sprout", there is a newer version out now. While the Sprout is a nice piece of equipment, it is an integrated amp that you can put in your pocket and the list price is $600. This is something that you might be using in a dorm, but not as your main integrated amplifier.

Just a note, the forum member that is selling the Parasound integrated has all high end "really expensive" gear from PS Audio, who makes the Sprout. The Sprout is like the lowest end piece of gear that PS Audio makes.

The Parasound integrated is one of the best integrated amplifier's on the planet! You will have this amp forever. It would be difficult to buy better if you tried. You would have to be north of $5k to better it.

 

If you can buy second hand gear you can have the best bang for the buck. Same price double quality.

 

And the best place to buy quality used gear is right hear on the forum from out other members.

 

My system likes to be in a good sized room so I won’t push Pendragons, but I very much like my Rogue Sphinx, including its phono pre. So that and a good DAC leaves a decent budget for speakers. The Rogue has enough power that you aren’t limited to highly efficient speakers. Lots of good monitors in the under $2000 band. I like Revels a lot and there are lots of places to hear them. If you go used, the list gets way larger. Some smaller Harbeths might be in reach.

 

I think the HINT is a pretty big step up from the Nova150. Just about everything about it is an upgrade, but at a [pretty big cost jump. I compare the HINT to my prior Parasound separates (P5 + A23) but I think it is better than those as well. For me the Nova was a really nice sweet spot. But the HINT is always on my short list if I ever go big again!