Jolida 100a. The above posters are correct about price vs. quality, but obviously cost is a concern to you without having to sacrifice good sound. The Jolida is forgiving, musical, easy to upgrade, a pleasure to listen to.
Picked it up used, of course--they come up every so often on Audiogon. I first swapped out tubes with some old Telefunken's, hoping to capitalize on that famous tone--a horrible mix. Then got a set of the new Sovtek LPS's--nice improvement. Swapped out the stock PC for a DIY cord I had laying around--another nice improvement. Bought a Black Mountain PC that come up for auction here, and muttered my disappointment upon un-boxing it; the cable is a frail, feathery thing, so unlike the massive hoses we have become used to. I replaced the stock PC with the Black Mountain, put on Morphine's last recording, was smacked in the face with awe. My wife was called into the room by this change, and at the end of the album, said only, "Wow." We went into some serious listening, making sure to include much orchestral work. The difference from the stock PC is not subtle--improvement across the board: dynamics, depth, soundstage, articulation, clarity, etc. And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I replaced the Sovtek's with a set of NOS Ei's. Damn. The Jolida is even more resolving, quicker, and the very breadth of sound is inspiring.
With a few minor changes, you would be hard-pressed to find something as terrific in this price range. The Jolida is a thoughfully engineered machine that allows you to enjoy the music, rather than looking about your gear, worrying over improvements.
If the price/musicality question requires even more savings, consider the early PlayStationOne. The DAC chipset on the 1001 and 5500 models is unique, delivering warm, rich, detailed tone. Either jack one through an exterior DAC unit or right into your rig, and you'll be pleasantly surprised. The 1001 already has a set of RCA jacks in it, although the tracking is better on the 5500. They are easily modified, plenty of information on the Web, and if you don't care for it, you can be proud of your donation to Goodwill (and, really, they aren't that expensive, even here, so you can afford to hear what the buzz was all about)...I don't have much money to throw around, myself, so I use PS1's in both my office and studio systems, and I am not unhappy. I might even have one tucked away, if you want to listen to it...
My two cents. Hope your quest goes well. Let us know how you make out. Cheers from Montana...
Picked it up used, of course--they come up every so often on Audiogon. I first swapped out tubes with some old Telefunken's, hoping to capitalize on that famous tone--a horrible mix. Then got a set of the new Sovtek LPS's--nice improvement. Swapped out the stock PC for a DIY cord I had laying around--another nice improvement. Bought a Black Mountain PC that come up for auction here, and muttered my disappointment upon un-boxing it; the cable is a frail, feathery thing, so unlike the massive hoses we have become used to. I replaced the stock PC with the Black Mountain, put on Morphine's last recording, was smacked in the face with awe. My wife was called into the room by this change, and at the end of the album, said only, "Wow." We went into some serious listening, making sure to include much orchestral work. The difference from the stock PC is not subtle--improvement across the board: dynamics, depth, soundstage, articulation, clarity, etc. And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I replaced the Sovtek's with a set of NOS Ei's. Damn. The Jolida is even more resolving, quicker, and the very breadth of sound is inspiring.
With a few minor changes, you would be hard-pressed to find something as terrific in this price range. The Jolida is a thoughfully engineered machine that allows you to enjoy the music, rather than looking about your gear, worrying over improvements.
If the price/musicality question requires even more savings, consider the early PlayStationOne. The DAC chipset on the 1001 and 5500 models is unique, delivering warm, rich, detailed tone. Either jack one through an exterior DAC unit or right into your rig, and you'll be pleasantly surprised. The 1001 already has a set of RCA jacks in it, although the tracking is better on the 5500. They are easily modified, plenty of information on the Web, and if you don't care for it, you can be proud of your donation to Goodwill (and, really, they aren't that expensive, even here, so you can afford to hear what the buzz was all about)...I don't have much money to throw around, myself, so I use PS1's in both my office and studio systems, and I am not unhappy. I might even have one tucked away, if you want to listen to it...
My two cents. Hope your quest goes well. Let us know how you make out. Cheers from Montana...