What to upgrade first in your system

If you have the components working in your hifi system, what's the next thing to focus on upgrading?

[billimbriale]

Very nice of you Paul to answer this type of specific question.

[bikdav]

That’s an interesting question. Over the years on occasion, I’ve heard good speakers mated to ‘mediocre’ electronics and it was pleasant to listen to. I think that speakers can make the bigger difference.

[davidlane]

Hey Paul, 'Ole Audiophile here. Most of my system is previously constructed so this query I originally worked in reverse order. You've recently posted some very interesting info on developing DAC tech. Hmmm, a mulitple of four, where have I heard that before about DACs? Oh, yeah, 176.4 kHz on oversampling with a variable DAC unit. Always worked for me even if others didn't seem to hear the improvement. We don't all have to agree on what works for us, it sure worked for me starting with my Panasonic DVD audio player that included Double Remastering as part of it's CD playback through its analog outputs. What you described with the DAC you suggested hit right at home in this household. Besides, starting at the central source of the entire digital playback system makes perfect sense to me/thanx Paul!

[tacofortgens]

Amp with great dac, and coaxial spdif from cd changer to Intergrated amp.

[motuknight]

While waiting for new Revel Proforma speakers to arrive and hook up to the new MA8950 integrated, I hooked up the new Lumin U2 mini to the existing legacy KEF LSX 2’s set up via Toslink just for fun. Wow!! Insane improvement over the built in streamer in the Kefs.

[hugobloemers]

As soon as I heard AVR, my first thought was: "Ditch it!!"
Could this be the first video where everybody can agree? Let's see :)

[andlum]

Denon PMA 1700ne! Just bought that at could not be happier.

[oliverbeard]

For what it's worth I'm going to suggest something a little left of field regarding upgrading his electronics. If the sound is to his liking and one he has lived with happily for some time, I would recommend an enhanced version of the same. For the autochanger a Trichord clock 4 and never connected power supply will lift everything noticeably without altering the sonic "flavour" the poster is used to listening to.Similarly for the AV receiver, have a chat with AG Yeung regarding a possible power supply upgrade. Again, you should get more of everything without altering the flavour/tone of what's already enjoyable. Going this route isn't new and shiny, but will offer a bigger bang for buck improvement than simply swapping for something newer. PSU and clock upgrades will provide a better foundation for the rest of the audio chain to work with.

[birgerolovsson]

Nice looking Mono-amps down there, if I'm not guessing wrong.

[marcseen]

I've been a Hi-Fi enthusiast for 44 years, and I strongly DISAGREE with Paul! ... You start at the SOURCE, and work your way up, not the other way around!

In the late 70's, I always lusted after the legendary Scottish turntable the Linn Sondek LP12 (I never did get one). Linn Products mantra was "garbage in, garbage out." Stressing the importance of a good source. That is my belief too.

[BrianHall-Oklahoma]

Why do the better (more expensive) preamps never seem to include enough separate inputs? I need inputs for CD, 4k Blue Ray player, turntable, streamer, Xbox Series X, and Fire TV cube. Why no HDMI inputs and at least one HDMI output? What is the point of a preamp with only 4 or less inputs? Also the expensive amps I see don't include enough outputs for surround sound setups. Only cheaper integrated amps seem to provide enough inputs and outputs. Why spend money for only 2 or 3 inputs and strictly stereo output?

[JJ-noob]

Unless the Def Techs are your endgame, speakers 1st -they make the largest change sonically. Then build your front end one piece at a time IMHO .

[MrBazsi]

The last part is the dac... for average joe system. Most important is source. For normal joe system we should look at audio note soro single ended integrated + digital source from computer with a proper ddc.

[sidesup]

It would have been great if the letter writer would have mentioned a price range. It sounds like he might have about a $1, 000 system, or a little more.The source would be my first inclination to upgrade. Are there any great sounding Cd changers on the market? Anyone lazy enough to need to use a cd changer, might view sound quality as secondary, to convenience. So this is a hard one. Assuming he is energetic enough to get out of his armchair and put a cd on and then take it off when it's done, if he wants to play another one; there could be modern cd players at Best Buy or elsewhere which are generations advanced & removed from his player, that would sound more analog like; smoother, less sharp, cleaner. clearer and more open sounding. If I was on a budget, I'd look to the used market. For sort of a mechanical device, I can't say I have ever experienced a used cd player that that just stopped working.They give you a lot of years. Wish I could say the same thing for tape decks.

He mentioned he had Denon for amplification; an A/V job. I've never heard a Denon A/V amp, but A/V amps in general have not such a good reputation for sterling sound quality. I remember a a vintage Denon Optical Class A integrated amp I had in the basement.for years. I had moved on to several other more more powerful integrateds. One day on a whim knowing my source components had changed over the years, I brought the Denon up the steps and put it into my system. Surprise...it was a better sounding amp than the ones I had been using for years. It was one I had highly modified years ago agoand had used it about a year, and with my better source, it revealed itself to be a master at spatiality with much more space between the instruments. It also revealed itself to be a champ at deep tone colors and naturalness of reproduction. I realized the other amps I had been using for years, deserved to be in the basement instead. Anytime you change a component or two & have other stuff you've used in the past lying around, put it back into the system as an experiment some day; you might be really pleasantly surprised!

[odizcvw]

Seems like great advice.
Many believe all amps sound the same. In recent years there is great value in entry level stuff.
My own experience I have a Denon integrated with Totem speakers. Small bookshelf stuff for the living room. You might think it sounds fine.
But compared to good triodes in the dedicated listening space?? Not worth listening to the Denon.

[mortengammelgaard]

Buy a streamer with a decent built in DAC and cd-ripper. get rid of the cd-changer!

[ryanschipp]

Paul makes a declarative statement saying that the Definitive Technology speakers are good but not great. Paul, when is the last time you heard a Definitive Technology speaker and what model was it?

[papagen]

Sometime ago I quit buying expensive audiophile gear and used the funds to go to live concerts. Then I found out professional musicians in an orchestra mostly have crappy audio systems at home, while most audiophiles seldom go to live concerts. Interesting!

[GTRxMan]

The weakest point of that system is the AVR. Assuming he still wants to use the system for home theater, then buying a new multi-channel amplifier and DAC for the CDs would be a good solution. The amp would be a tremendous upgrade over the AVR. The AVR would remain to act as a preamp and could decode the video. He could upgrade to a higher end HT processor at a later date.

[harackmw]

Cables! That is where you should start. Tighten up that low end and get some sparkly highs! If you listen closely in your room, even when nothing is hooked up and only cables are in there they still sound better than bad cables. Especially cables that can't levitate on their own above the floor, don't get me started on that!