If I were in your position, I would look for a tubed integrated... it eliminates one component, one interconnect and one power cord... and the possibility and added noise. There are some integrated tube setups that are outstanding, especially for 5,000.00 When you are all done, i'd like to help you demo some Speaker wire. Oliver 973-812-6707 www.delveaudio.com
Do I really need separates?
Currently the main system is a Anthem Integrated 2 fed by a Sonic Frontiers SFCD-1 through XLO ref. Speakers are Near 50meII. Cables MIT MH-750 bi-wires. Would I really hear a difference if I replaced the integrated with tube separates from BAT or Sonic Frontiers. Also, will a 50 watt tube amp push as much current as a solid state amp. My wife has suddenly got the audiophile bug worse than me. She really wants tubes (I guess I do to) but we also want to hear an improvement over the current rig. The cd-player we both love as well as the speakers. I guess we are a little confused. What happened to the good old days when I didn't even have the money to consider all this. Or max price point for making the switch is about 5k. please can someone help?