cesarleeds
Established Member
Hi guys
I´m currently in the process of transferring my CD collection to Flac files stored in a NAS, so I can play them anytime anywhere.
We used to listen music in our bedroom on a very decent Panasonic SC-PMX70 with Chromecast audio attached, just some CD´s, mp3´s… but I wanna do some justice to my music so it is time for an upgrade.
I decided to move the main listening place to our living room, I know if it´s not the ideal place, but it´s the only one available and the one where we spend more time on, yes, there is furniture, yes there are windows, there´s even a closed terrace, so for you guys to have a proper idea of what i´m talking about, this is the living room including the location of where the speakers are.
My first budget was around 600 GBP, so I went for a Marantz MCR611+Q Acoustics 3020 set, the Marantz is a very nice machine, nothing is missing there, but the speakers didn´t seem to suit it very well, considering the wonderful reviews this speakers had I have to say I end up disappointed, I consider this more a question of pairing though, so I decided to change the speakers.
At the same time I had the chance to try some speakers attached to another MCR611 unit, Diamond 220, Audio Bronze 2, Zensor 3 , and what is perhaps the first thing WAT and myself agree when it comes to technology (I remember when we seriously upgraded our projector, she was still saying movies looked exactly the same), we concluded the Zensor where the ones with better sound, very clear and warmth sound, u could listen to every single detail and the bass was there.
I was sold on the Zensor 3, they were ok, not astonishing, but sure with time they will do the job perfectly…but I made the mistake of asking for a demo of the Zensor 5, u know, it can´t hurt, right, they look nice, they are small, it caught my lady´s eye, so let´s do it…and I enjoyed them more than the 3, fuller sound, front bass gives some extra punch, they played for me this acoustic song from Dream Theater “The Answer”, and that smile showed at my face, you know, the smile when music sounds so good u can´t help but laugh.
So budget had to be increased right there, unfortunately I was not able to commit on that increase, some unexpected familiar issues happened, so being unable to jump on the Zensor 5 I decided to return the whole thing, take a deep breath and start over again when the right time comes.
Thank god those familiar issues are now gone, so I´m back.
I decided to increase budget to something like 1100 GBP/1200 GBP, I do wanna respect that budget, once u start increasing it…it never ends, u always want more.
Now, what I need, well being able to play gapless from my NAS is a must (Hifi Cast does that for Chromecast, but I would prefer a proper network player), I would also like to have DAB+, CD player, an a USB port (if if reads 2.5HDD much better), for the speakers I really need them to fill the room, have very good bass, while sounding clean and with punch, I mainly listen to rock, hard rock but also some Prodigy or Daft Punk, so they have to work for both worlds.
So:
1) Single unit or separates : I really liked the Marantz MCR611 in the sense that it was small, and had everything I needed, but of course I know if I go on a different route, separates, audio quality will increase, thing it is not easy to find a proper set of components with all I need, CD+Network Player+Amp, while respecting the budget I set. The MCR611 (2x60W 6ohm 1khz) can be amplified but with that power output, is it really needed?
2) Speakers, bookshelves or floorstandings?…can´t really decide, i´m ok with the Zensors, but if there is something out there on this price range that I hadn’t had the chance to try, i´m listening….
Both the 3 &5 were fine, while I liked the 5´s more, it might be better to use some budget on better sources and stay on the 3´s…but at the same time i´m thinking….is it too brave to go for the 7s?, are they too big for my living room?, are the 5´s big enough for the same purpose?
So I´m a bit undecided here as well, mind tells me to go for the 5´s that I know…devil says go for the 7´s…or try more speakers!!
So this is is basically where I am, as you can see many factors to be considered, single unit vs components, speakers, room size and type…but i´m pretty sure with some tips, help and guidance I will get there and end up enjoying a very nice set up.
I´m currently in the process of transferring my CD collection to Flac files stored in a NAS, so I can play them anytime anywhere.
We used to listen music in our bedroom on a very decent Panasonic SC-PMX70 with Chromecast audio attached, just some CD´s, mp3´s… but I wanna do some justice to my music so it is time for an upgrade.
I decided to move the main listening place to our living room, I know if it´s not the ideal place, but it´s the only one available and the one where we spend more time on, yes, there is furniture, yes there are windows, there´s even a closed terrace, so for you guys to have a proper idea of what i´m talking about, this is the living room including the location of where the speakers are.
My first budget was around 600 GBP, so I went for a Marantz MCR611+Q Acoustics 3020 set, the Marantz is a very nice machine, nothing is missing there, but the speakers didn´t seem to suit it very well, considering the wonderful reviews this speakers had I have to say I end up disappointed, I consider this more a question of pairing though, so I decided to change the speakers.
At the same time I had the chance to try some speakers attached to another MCR611 unit, Diamond 220, Audio Bronze 2, Zensor 3 , and what is perhaps the first thing WAT and myself agree when it comes to technology (I remember when we seriously upgraded our projector, she was still saying movies looked exactly the same), we concluded the Zensor where the ones with better sound, very clear and warmth sound, u could listen to every single detail and the bass was there.
I was sold on the Zensor 3, they were ok, not astonishing, but sure with time they will do the job perfectly…but I made the mistake of asking for a demo of the Zensor 5, u know, it can´t hurt, right, they look nice, they are small, it caught my lady´s eye, so let´s do it…and I enjoyed them more than the 3, fuller sound, front bass gives some extra punch, they played for me this acoustic song from Dream Theater “The Answer”, and that smile showed at my face, you know, the smile when music sounds so good u can´t help but laugh.
So budget had to be increased right there, unfortunately I was not able to commit on that increase, some unexpected familiar issues happened, so being unable to jump on the Zensor 5 I decided to return the whole thing, take a deep breath and start over again when the right time comes.
Thank god those familiar issues are now gone, so I´m back.
I decided to increase budget to something like 1100 GBP/1200 GBP, I do wanna respect that budget, once u start increasing it…it never ends, u always want more.
Now, what I need, well being able to play gapless from my NAS is a must (Hifi Cast does that for Chromecast, but I would prefer a proper network player), I would also like to have DAB+, CD player, an a USB port (if if reads 2.5HDD much better), for the speakers I really need them to fill the room, have very good bass, while sounding clean and with punch, I mainly listen to rock, hard rock but also some Prodigy or Daft Punk, so they have to work for both worlds.
So:
1) Single unit or separates : I really liked the Marantz MCR611 in the sense that it was small, and had everything I needed, but of course I know if I go on a different route, separates, audio quality will increase, thing it is not easy to find a proper set of components with all I need, CD+Network Player+Amp, while respecting the budget I set. The MCR611 (2x60W 6ohm 1khz) can be amplified but with that power output, is it really needed?
2) Speakers, bookshelves or floorstandings?…can´t really decide, i´m ok with the Zensors, but if there is something out there on this price range that I hadn’t had the chance to try, i´m listening….
Both the 3 &5 were fine, while I liked the 5´s more, it might be better to use some budget on better sources and stay on the 3´s…but at the same time i´m thinking….is it too brave to go for the 7s?, are they too big for my living room?, are the 5´s big enough for the same purpose?
So I´m a bit undecided here as well, mind tells me to go for the 5´s that I know…devil says go for the 7´s…or try more speakers!!
So this is is basically where I am, as you can see many factors to be considered, single unit vs components, speakers, room size and type…but i´m pretty sure with some tips, help and guidance I will get there and end up enjoying a very nice set up.