Ayre QX8, but an additional phono pre would be required.
Upgrade advice from Parasound P5/A23 combo to an integrated amp solution?
Greetings-this is my first post on Audiogon. I've purchased several pieces of gear here, and greatly appreciate the lively forum interactions and passion for great sound. I come from the broadcast industry, and have been involved with professional sound for my entire 30 year plus career. However high end audio at home is a more recent pursuit, I have much to learn, and have a very modest start to this new found hobby.
We live in a small home where my "listening space" is also our main living area, so the aesthetic appearance of the gear is important to us. Tube gear is a "no go" for us. The small living space also means no option for floor standing speakers unfortunately.
I currently have the Parasound P5 preamp and A23 amp connected to Monitor Audio Gold 100 speakers. I have a REL T5i subwoofer. Sources are a Rega Planar 3 turntable with a Nagaoka MP 110 cartridge, Marantz CD6006 CD player, an Audio Engine B1 Bluetooth receiver, as well as the optical out of the TV connected to an AppleTV device. The P5 serves as DAC and phono preamp.
In an effort to cut down on cabling and minimize my audio footprint, I am considering an integrated amp. My ability to audition gear is almost non-existent, so I am asking here for advice about gear I have read about online, but have no first hand listening knowledge of.
Would the Marantz PM KI Ruby be an upgrade in sound quality over my Parasound gear? How about the Anthem STR integrated? Or the Luxman L505-UXII? Or Hegel H190? Musical Fidelity M6i? Some day I would love to have something like the Mark Levinson 5805, but that is way out of my league right now.
I realize these pieces of gear have varying features, some with phono stages, some with DACs, some are class A/B amps, the Marantz is class D. I am interested in evaluation of sound quality from those who have them, or have heard them. What is the sound stage like, the dynamics, and tonality? I appreciate your advice and knowledgeable ears in advance-thank you!
We live in a small home where my "listening space" is also our main living area, so the aesthetic appearance of the gear is important to us. Tube gear is a "no go" for us. The small living space also means no option for floor standing speakers unfortunately.
I currently have the Parasound P5 preamp and A23 amp connected to Monitor Audio Gold 100 speakers. I have a REL T5i subwoofer. Sources are a Rega Planar 3 turntable with a Nagaoka MP 110 cartridge, Marantz CD6006 CD player, an Audio Engine B1 Bluetooth receiver, as well as the optical out of the TV connected to an AppleTV device. The P5 serves as DAC and phono preamp.
In an effort to cut down on cabling and minimize my audio footprint, I am considering an integrated amp. My ability to audition gear is almost non-existent, so I am asking here for advice about gear I have read about online, but have no first hand listening knowledge of.
Would the Marantz PM KI Ruby be an upgrade in sound quality over my Parasound gear? How about the Anthem STR integrated? Or the Luxman L505-UXII? Or Hegel H190? Musical Fidelity M6i? Some day I would love to have something like the Mark Levinson 5805, but that is way out of my league right now.
I realize these pieces of gear have varying features, some with phono stages, some with DACs, some are class A/B amps, the Marantz is class D. I am interested in evaluation of sound quality from those who have them, or have heard them. What is the sound stage like, the dynamics, and tonality? I appreciate your advice and knowledgeable ears in advance-thank you!