[skyforger]

Good morning from Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

I started with a simple Yamaha amp and a pair of Energy speakers (about 25 years ago), and while on tour in Afghanistan (and with maybe a little tax free cash burning in my pocket) decided to improve my audio experience on the move to using an Astell&Kern player or an audioengine D1 on my MacBook Pro using Fidelia as software to play FLACs of the best recordings I could get along with a pair of PSB M4U headphones.  Just that improved resulted in me trashing a lot of the recordings I had as the increased level of transparency from the setup led me to detect a lot of really poor studio engineering.  I spent the next while on the hunt for good recordings which I got from sites like QOBUZ.  When I moved back to Canada I decided to invest in a new setup and decided to go with some Cambridge Audio equipment.  I currently have a CXA80 amp which I use with their CXN player which makes it very easy to connect to a hard drive full of FLACs.  So far so good.  I then got a set of used Paradigm Monitor 9v6 speakers and some Unity Audio Solid Link speaker cable as I reasoned that I would get better value for money buying Canadian speakers in Canada (still not sure about that one, but I digress).  I made what I think is an upgrade to the desktop setup - Fidelia has a crummy interface so I switched to Audirvana Plus and a pair of Bowers&Wilkins P7.  The result is coldly transparent which is great for a lot of the music I listen to.  Two things I would like to do with my setups - get a better set of floor standing speakers, and get something warmer sounding in terms of an amplifier for my desktop setup.  I have looked at a lot of items online but unfortunately I live in a small city which doesn't have much of an audio shop community as there is only one store and they don't keep much in stock, which is a crummy business model as I suspect most folks want to hear things before they buy them, myself included.  I prefer buying used as most items quickly lose value, our local kijiji is full of speakers bought for $3k and selling for $800 - unfortunately they aren't brands I have much interest in.  I will also be moving to Washington, DC, this summer, and my new place is a four storey town home.  One of the challenges I will have is that I want to listen to music in the kitchen (2nd floor), living room (2nd floor), and my formal music listening area (4th floor).  So at this point I had a bunch of questions and was hoping to take advantage of this online community to ask which is why I joined up.

1) With a budget of $500 US, what would be a significant upgrade to the audio engine D1 to warm things up?
2) With a budget of $2000 US, what would be the best bang for buck upgrade to the Paradigm speakers?  My local audio shop sells Castle, Focal, and Monitor speakers which I don't know much about, but I am not against waiting to get to DC to find something on the local used market.
3) Using the Cambridge Audio CXN as a base, what would be the best way of getting music to the three rooms?  I am not against getting additional amplifiers.

Although I think a good set of speakers should be able to play any kind of music well, it's always cool to know what others are listening to.
I am a huge fan of Tangerine Dream and Ulrich Schnauss, and I also listen to a lot of piano-based jazz (Brad Mehldau, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Chick Corea) and some classic heavy rock/metal (UFO, Iron Maiden, Deep Purple, Ghost) with a dash of J-Pop (Utada Hikaru, Perfume) and soundtracks from composers like Yoko Kanno and Kenji Kawai.  Basically the audio setup will get a full spectrum workout.

Thanks for your patience in reading this,

Sean

[ArthurDent]

Greetings & Welcome to AC Sean     Fear not, you'll get lots of input from a lot of generous & knowledgeable folks around here. Enjoy the hunt. Have wanted to pick up some Yoko for some time, just not willing to pay the price so far. If I really feel a need I just run some Cowboy Bebop. 

[Phil A]

Welcome to AC!

[Phil A]

There are also brands that sell direct to the consumer with an in-home trial period.

[skyforger]

Greetings & Welcome to AC Sean     Fear not, you'll get lots of input from a lot of generous & knowledgeable folks around here. Enjoy the hunt. Have wanted to pick up some Yoko for some time, just not willing to pay the price so far. If I really feel a need I just run some Cowboy Bebop. 

Thanks!  Yoko has made some really amazing music and is such a talented composer, I highly recommend her work on Sakamichi no Apollon (Kids on a Slope) and Turn a Gundam.

S.

[ntjetsmoke]

Welcome to the AC, Sean!

[Wind Chaser]

Welcome!

[JLM]

Welcome.

I'd wait until you get to D.C. so you can audition lots of options.

Check out audiosciencereview.com for lower priced DAC/preamps, I believe the DX7s is still a strong contender in that price range.

Recommend reading Floyd Toole's "Sound Reproduction" 3rd edition to learn the basics of how speakers/rooms interact.  Toole would suggest monitors plus multiple subs. 

[JDoyle]

Good morning from Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

I am a huge fan of Tangerine Dream and Ulrich Schnauss, and I also listen to a lot of piano-based jazz (Brad Mehldau, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Chick Corea) and some classic heavy rock/metal (UFO, Iron Maiden, Deep Purple, Ghost) with a dash of J-Pop (Utada Hikaru, Perfume) and soundtracks from composers like Yoko Kanno and Kenji Kawai.  Basically the audio setup will get a full spectrum workout.

Thanks for your patience in reading this,

Sean

What? Being from Kingston, You gotta list “The Hip”...

Welcome and have fun with your search, the journey is one of the best parts of this hobby.

JD

[skyforger]

What? Being from Kingston, You gotta list “The Hip”...

Welcome and have fun with your search, the journey is one of the best parts of this hobby.

JD

Hi JD, thanks for the welcome.  I'm actually from Quebec City, but I may have seen the Hip a few times.  I'm already neck-deep in a search for speakers - I like the ones I have but there certainly is room for improvement.

Sean

[skyforger]

Welcome.

I'd wait until you get to D.C. so you can audition lots of options.

Check out audiosciencereview.com for lower priced DAC/preamps, I believe the DX7s is still a strong contender in that price range.

Recommend reading Floyd Toole's "Sound Reproduction" 3rd edition to learn the basics of how speakers/rooms interact.  Toole would suggest monitors plus multiple subs.

Thanks for the recommendation, I will have a look.  Monitors and subs would definitely be an approach I need to learn more about.  Checking out the audiosciencereview site now, it's new for me so I've got reading to do!

Regards,

Sean

[FireGuy]

Next time you're in Dwight, look up Axiom Audio.  Great vendor and great products.  Compete very nicely with PSB... also Canadian.  Only 321 KM x 2.