[indiesound]

Hi i am a newbie and just purchased a pair of Usher Be 718s. I am currently ordering a Tadac(will use as a preamp and dac) and a pair of Tad 125 monoblocks. I am using Best deal cables, probably equivalent to Blue Jeans cable or maybe a little better. Also ordered with it 2 Ironfish power cords.
($29 each)

I live in a rental apartment, can't create a dedicated line (powerwise). Plan on purchasing a Pioneer 51fd Blu Ray or the new Oppo. Currently using a $35 DVD/CD player from Walmart that i will return soon. Need to purchase a digital interconnect from the computer to the dac and a usb to digital conversion device.

Which do you reccommend?

1. Getting a $500 (used) CD player or transport, recommendations? Will using a better CD player/transport improve the sound despite using a DAC? Or will getting a Monarchy Dip be the better solution?
2. Upgrade cables (still within their 30 day return period, need to decide in the next week or so.) Will upgrading to say Morrow cables or JPS superconductors be a big improvement or can i get better bang for the buck elsewhere?
3. Get better power cords
4. Get a power conditioner
5. Purchase a Promiteus TVC to use as a preamp.
6. Purchase a Monarchy dip to reduce jitter and other issues between transport and DAC.

Will spend no more than $300 on any individual cable or power cord(used). Can someone recommend a sub$300 power conditioner?
Are Morrow cables comparable to say the JPS Superconductor series?

Where should i place my 2 power cords? On the CD player & Tadac, or the 2 monoblocks?

May look into purchasing a Squeezebox.

Any other tweaks or stuff i should purchase to make my system sound its best?

PLease place the numbers 1-6 in order of bang for the buck improvements to my system, or in other words in what order i should spend my money! Thanks!!

[MaxCast]

My suggestion is room treatments.

[Kenobi]

Hello and welcome. 
For digital coaxial cable, I recommend the Stereovox XV2 (about $125-150 used in Audiogon).
For power conditioning, check out Alan Maher's offerings(various prices)--do a search on this site.
For toslink optical cable and converter box, try monoprice.com

Good luck,

Kenobi

[ajzepp]

My suggestion is room treatments.

Absolutely.

[Wayne1]

I completely agree with ajzepp and MaxCast.

Cables can be used to tune you system to your preferences. First you must get it sounding as good as possible in your room.

Room treatments will make the BIGGEST difference for dollar spent.

Once you get the room treated, get a good set of stands for the Usher speakers. Spend some time in getting them positioned correctly in your room.

Make sure the electronics are housed in a good rack.

These are the basics you should get down first before you go tweaking.

Maybe room treatments and moving speakers about aren't as sexy as new cables, but they will make a bigger difference to the sound of your system.

Take it from a guy who sells cables. 

Good luck. The Be-718s are a great pair of speakers

[dave_c]

I agree with others that cables should drop in priority.  It sounds like you're unsure what to do about transport.  If you have a large collection of ripped media go for the usb converter route.  I can't imagine playing cd's anymore.  Are you using a laptop or desktop or a server in another room?

[batmanslc2]

i am a very happy owner of  http://www.diffractionbegone.com/ on my quad 12L active
these do make a very noticable difference for way less than $100
read the testimonials they are right on.
Really, try it and then let us know!

[mikef]

My advice is a little different, since you don't even have all of your gear yet, and it will all be brand new to you. First, after you receive everything, make sure it's all working properly. Hook it all up, and concentrate on speaker positioning. Get the initial setup tuned in.

Then, live with your system for a while. Get used to what you have, and enjoy tunes through your new system. Play around more with setup. After a couple of months in which you have tried to extract all you could out of your system, then begin to think about upgrades. Think about what you like about your system, and what you want to improve. Only then can you make informed decisions about upgrading.

Remember, audio is not a race. It's first and foremost about enjoying music.

Just my 2c.

Mike Fox

[max190]

My advice is a little different, since you don't even have all of your gear yet, and it will all be brand new to you. First, after you receive everything, make sure it's all working properly. Hook it all up, and concentrate on speaker positioning. Get the initial setup tuned in.

Then, live with your system for a while. Get used to what you have, and enjoy tunes through your new system. Play around more with setup. After a couple of months in which you have tried to extract all you could out of your system, then begin to think about upgrades. Think about what you like about your system, and what you want to improve. Only then can you make informed decisions about upgrading.

Remember, audio is not a race. It's first and foremost about enjoying music.

Just my 2c.

Mike Fox

Mike, you have under estimated your 2c sir.  This is very wise info...

[bluemike]

3  things to concentrate on (in no particular order)

1)Be sure to have clean power either have dedicated lines or good power conditioning.  You won't be able to discrern cable diffeerences without ..digital for sure 

2)Play around with Speaker positioning

3)Address first reflections in the room

[indiesound]

The reason why i am focused on cables is that i don't have any!! I need to return the ones i have-- started out with a much lower end overall system.  I've more or less decided that i will buy Morrow cables and the Anti-cables and send one back.

I will purchase a Squeezebox to use as a transport and will try the process of converting my CD's.

Which is better, optical or digital coax? Was thinking about buying the Anticables Coax or a pair of glass optical cables.

Where do i get info about room treatments and speaker positioning. I live in an apartment and will move in the next year, so am hesitant to use room treatments if i just have to do it all over again. also hesitant to buy a good rack as i will have to move that too, and may move halfway across the country.

Is buying a good CD player worth it? Why are some so called transports $2000? That's as much as a CD player. Do i need to buy a server?

I realize that it is not a race, but i don't even have the equipment necessary to use the equipment i've purchased.

What is more important power cord, power conditioning or cables?

Am concerned about power conditioning because i DO need a surge protector right away, lots of storms and electricty issues in my area, and would not like to have a new plasma tv or amps not work due to it. Thinking about using a PS audio duet, but heard that it can also take away from the sound.

Thanks!!

[dave_c]

I'm sure a lot of people will chime in but here are my .02

1.  Squeezebox:  You don't need a dedicated server (You could use your desktop but the Slimserver software will have to run on it) but it will probably be more convenient with one.  Once you begin ripping you will come to realize it is good to have you files in one place.  If you don't have a server and don't plan on getting one you way want to consider using a USB converter for whatever computer you do have.  The advantage that the Squeezebox and server setup has is that you can keep the noisy server in another room and have the quiet SB near your system.  You can build a quiet computer or laptop but that's another can of worms. 

2.  Cables:  I think both companies are good inexpensive cables.  If you want to go super cheap check out Blue Jeans Cables.  No nonsense stuff that will do the job until you're ready to get into the crazy world of cable upgrades.  Coax is usually preferred over Toslink.  Blue Jeans Digital cable is a very good deal.

3.  Transport:  Another highly debatable topic that I don't think you want to get into.  It sounds like having a transport is a good idea for you right now since you have to rip most of your stuff.  You might want to try an Oppo 981 or 983 DVD player as a transport 1st as many love it. 

You've invested a good amount of money on some nice gear.  Since it sounds like this is your first system I would reiterate what an earlier poster said about getting to know the main components of your gear and your habits before you go out and blow a bunch of cash on items that won't bring about wholesale changes to the sound of your system.  Since you're moving room treatments may not seem to make a whole lot of sense but they are generally moveable so I would still consider them:

Here are two companies with good reps:

http://www.asc-home-theater.com/
http://www.realtraps.com/

Like you said, its not a race.  I think many of us are in it just to try new gear and hear differences.  Sometimes the journey is more fun than the destination so enjoy it!

[richidoo]

Those Usher tweeters are very rewarding, but also very demanding - I have them too  They will reveal the strengths and weaknesses of your system. I believe they are worth the extra effort, but it can be a steep chase. Nice speakers!! The crossovers were designed by AC's very own Danny Richie, who hosts the GR Research Circle.

A transformer based power conditioner like Equitech, BPT, Torus will make a big improvement, especially with a tube power amp. They are pricey but worth it. I recommend those over a filter type conditioner on a tube power amp.

As long as you run your CD player through the DAC and it combs out jitter to some extent, then it probably doesn't matter what CD transport you get, go for features/price. The network players are revolutionary and will change the way you listen to music, so even if they are same sound quality as a CD transport, your enjoyment will be greater with your whole music collection at your fingertips. But there is a cost in ripping and organizing your collection on harddrive, running a network, etc. Most people find it worth the investment. Ripped music through a netplayer usually sounds better than CD player for the same price equipment. 

Your cabling is fine for now, not as revealling as possible, but no sins of commission. Gradually improve it as you can afford. I own JPS SC3 and absolutely LOVE them, but they are pricey and you might find the money spent better in other areas at first. JPS makes lower grades than Superconductor, and they are all excellent value for the price. There are many other wire makers with good value too. You usually get what you pay for.

As many have already mentioned, acoustics is the final frontier, and most bang for the buck. If you don't care what the room looks like, you are my hero and can get a great sound for minimal investment even with cheap gear. If you're wife/gf is a pro decorator (or wannabe) then I offer my condolences, and welcome to the AFMA club!  (Acoustically Frustrated Married Audiophiles... )   

Check out "The Starting Block" circle for newbies and read the back topics on AC, there's treasures to be found. Take your time, enjoy the fun! Welcome to AC!
Rich

[lonewolfny42]

Rich...

As many have already mentioned, acoustics is the final frontier, and most bang for the buck. If you don't care what the room looks like, you are my hero and can get a great sound for minimal investment even with cheap gear. If you're wife/gf is a pro decorator (or wannabe) then I offer my condolences, and welcome to the AFMA club!  (Acoustically Frustrated Married Audiophiles... )

But things are getting better on....that front......