Mini Hifi Setup for Turntable

[ifenelon]

Hi,

My current setup is as follows -

Panasonic Mini Hifi SA-PM03 - with original Panasonic shelf speakers
Trio KD-1033B turntable
Behringer PP400 pre-amp.

All is working, but I am wondering if I can easily upgrade sounds quality for not too much money.

I am considering replacing the Panasonic mini hifi for a used Denon UD-M31 Micro CD Receiver and a pair of Mission SCM51 speakers.

Would this provide an upgraded sound output?

I am trying to avoid using anything with a bigger footprint so if any pther micro / mini hifi devices are recommended , please let me know.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Ugg10]

do you use any other sources e.g. CD, Tuner, Streaming etc. as a simple amp and speakers without other complications should give better sound for the £. The Rega IO comes into this category and has a built in phono preamp that should be better than the Behringer.

Are you interested in going second hand as again there are some good combination to look at there.

Finally do you have a max budget in mind ?

 

[ifenelon]

Thanks - I was looking at 2nd hand and I would like to keep all the functionality of the Panasonic I currently have. ie radio, CD. I have a bluetooth "dongle" I can attach to an aux for streaming , so thats not essential. The Denon I quoted has 2 Line-ins, so could add the bluetooth dongle to one and use the other for the preamp. Budget - under £150. The Denon can be got for < £100, good, used.

 

[Ascotbilly]

I had the Denon for years, a great little system. See if you can get the Mission M72 speakers as they were available as an upgrade, SCM31’s were still good. Be careful as UDM31 is an old player and was replaced by DM38, etc etc which may be worth looking at also.

 

[karlsushi]

The question of the CD player is important because if you can move away from that into streaming, then this creates more options and arguably reduces your footprint even more.

I'm thinking specifically about wireless speakers. Again, depends on budget but examples being the Ruark Audio mr1 or the Q Acoustics M20 that were very favourably reviewed on this site the other day: Q Acoustics M20 Powered Speaker System Review

Both of these examples I believe have an analogue input, so you could still hook up your turntable using your existing phono stage.

(EDIT: Sorry, just crossed your message about wanting a CD player, so scrap that!)

 

[Paul7777x]

I’d forget all about mini systems and their attendant speakers. That are poor at best.

Instead buy these active speaker and feed them with the line output from the Panasonic until you can afford a better source.

It is the speakers that make the sound, and these are better than any that are bundled with mini systems by a long mile.

Edifier R2000DB Home Audio Active 120 Watts Speakers Black | eBay

120 watts sound output. Optical and dual rca inputs for connectivity to multiple audio sources.

www.ebay.co.uk

You’ll be delighted.

 

[Paul7777x]

These too. They fall within your budget.

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Bluetooth/Optical Input Speakers Gloss 875674003295 | eBay

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Speakers Black Gloss. DIGITAL / ANALOG INPUTS – RCA/Aux for PC, turntables, etc; Optical/Coaxial for lossless connection; Bluetooth for convenience.

www.ebay.co.uk

Both have an optical input too so you could upgrade your tv sound too rather impressively as well.

 

[Paul7777x]

Ps, l’d plug the Behringer straight into the Edifiers second line input. It’s way better than the Panasonic’s.

 

[ifenelon]

Many thanks for all your replies

So many options.
I hadn't considered , or even knew about active speakers and their capabilities.

My current thoughts:

I have one line-in port on the old Panasonic mini system.
In order to retain the CD player functionality, if I go with the Edifiers,
a) I would plug the pre-amp directly into the Edifiers as you say.
b) I would plug the Panasonic mini-hifi line-out into the other line-in on the Edifiers.
c) I could then plug my Bluetooth adapter into the Line In of the Panasonic and get away with the non bluetooth versions of the Edifiers (which are £99 on Amazon) which would allow me to stream to the Panasonic which would then play through the Edifiers ?

If the sound quality will improve greatly by having my vinyl turntable / pre-amp going directly thru the Edifiers, I think I will probably go down this route.

Thanks for all your help.

 

[ifenelon]

Sorry - I think the £100 speakers (model 1280T) may be a different animal to the ones mentioned - no optical or bluetooth and probably lower specced generally.

Amazon product

 

[Paul7777x]

Sorry - I think the £100 speakers (model 1280T) may be a different animal to the ones mentioned - no optical or bluetooth and probably lower specced generally.

Amazon product

Indeed. These are not active speakers at all and aren’t a patch on the ones listed earlier.

 

[ifenelon]

The 1280Ts do get good reviews though.
EDIT - ignore me - saw your later post. Not active ...

 

[Paul7777x]

Many thanks for all your replies

So many options.
I hadn't considered , or even knew about active speakers and their capabilities.

My current thoughts:

I have one line-in port on the old Panasonic mini system.
In order to retain the CD player functionality, if I go with the Edifiers,
a) I would plug the pre-amp directly into the Edifiers as you say.
b) I would plug the Panasonic mini-hifi line-out into the other line-in on the Edifiers.
c) I could then plug my Bluetooth adapter into the Line In of the Panasonic and get away with the non bluetooth versions of the Edifiers (which are £99 on Amazon) which would allow me to stream to the Panasonic which would then play through the Edifiers ?

If the sound quality will improve greatly by having my vinyl turntable / pre-amp going directly thru the Edifiers, I think I will probably go down this route.

Thanks for all your help.

All correct sir.

But the Edifiers on Amazon are not up to scratch really. There’s a big difference between them and these.

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Bluetooth/Optical Input Speakers Gloss 875674003295 | eBay

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Speakers Black Gloss. DIGITAL / ANALOG INPUTS – RCA/Aux for PC, turntables, etc; Optical/Coaxial for lossless connection; Bluetooth for convenience.

www.ebay.co.uk

I’d serious search for or save the extra £39. Well worth it by a goodly amount.

 

[Paul7777x]

Or an extra £29 for these.

Edifier R1700BT Active Bluetooth Speakers Bookshelf Stereo HIFI TV MAC PC 6923520265916 | eBay

The R1700BT is a powerful studio speaker set with an edgy design. A front facing bass reflex port emphasises lower frequencies, allowing for richer bass performance. Audio devices can be connected using Bluetooth, dual RCA inputs.

www.ebay.co.uk

and used

Edifier R1700BT Bookshelf Active Speakers with Bluetooth 6923520265916 | eBay

Bluetooth pairing capability, simply connect your phone, tablet or supported device. In very good condition.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[karlsushi]

Or save up a bit more (and if you can bear the studio monitor aesthetics), go for a pair of these: JBL LSR305 MKII Studio Monitor - Pair

Nothing but excellent reviews on these and I have a friend who has some and can vouch that they are excellent value for money. You might be able to pick up a pair second hand close to your budget.

No bluetooth or digital inputs though, just straight powered speakers.

 

[karlsushi]

All correct sir.

But the Edifiers on Amazon are not up to scratch really. There’s a big difference between them and these.

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Bluetooth/Optical Input Speakers Gloss 875674003295 | eBay

Edifier R1850DB Active Bookshelf Studio Speakers Black Gloss. DIGITAL / ANALOG INPUTS – RCA/Aux for PC, turntables, etc; Optical/Coaxial for lossless connection; Bluetooth for convenience.

www.ebay.co.uk

I’d serious search for or save the extra £39. Well worth it by a goodly amount.

Are you sure those prices are for a pair?

Hard to tell, but I may be wrong.

Just be careful when looking at studio monitors that they often sell them as singles.

 

[ifenelon]

Thanks everyone - I took the plunge and went for these.

Amazon product

Same as the 1850s but with upgraded BT and a different remote, apparently. I got them for £120., if they turn up

 

[Paul7777x]

Thanks everyone - I took the plunge and went for these.

Amazon product

Same as the 1850s but with upgraded BT and a different remote, apparently. I got them for £120., if they turn up

A bargain imo.

I’ll be interested to hear what you think of them when they arrive

 

[Paul7777x]

Are you sure those prices are for a pair?

Hard to tell, but I may be wrong.

Just be careful when looking at studio monitors that they often sell them as singles.

Edifier sell their speaker systems in pairs.

 

[ifenelon]

A bargain imo.

I’ll be interested to hear what you think of them when they arrive

I will update when they get here

 

[ifenelon]

The speakers arrived.
They are great - Thank You for the suggestion!

I have a slight hum (Ground Hum?) from the turntable, but I put this down to the Behringer pre-amp - PP400. I will check connections again , but even if I can sort this, I dont notice it when playing records. All other inputs to the speakers are fine - no noise / hum at all.

 

[Paul7777x]

You could try a wire between the Berlinger chassis and the backplate of one of the speakers if they use earthed power cables.

 

[ifenelon]

Sorry about the delayed reply. I have got rid of the hum - connected a ground wire from the Pre-Amp to a screw on the Edifier speaker with the inputs - I used a screw near the coax input. Those on the edge of the casing made no difference. Happy days - many thanks !

 

[Paul7777x]

Great news all round

How are you getting along with the speakers now that you’re used to them?

I assume you consider them a bit of an upgrade on the Panasonic and the associated speakers?

 

[ifenelon]

They are great thanks - just the job in fact!
I got a Denon UD-M31 amp / CD unit on ebay as an upgrade to the Panasonic unit which came with a separate cassette deck - a couple of minor issues with the cassette deck, but overall I'm very pleased with my great sounding "retro meets the present" setup . Thanks again.