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Which to Upgrade first? My Amplifier or Speakers?

I have owned a nice system for years, but I am hardly an audiophile. You people impress me with your depth of knowledge of audio. I've been following this site for some time. This is my first post.
From time to time I replace or upgrade components. I've got a tricked out Linn Sondek LP 12 turntable. I recently acquired a McIntosh MP 100 phono amp and am hearing LP's now that exceed anything I've heard on CD's and equal if not exceed the output of my SACD's. I bring this up only to give a flavor of what I listen to.
The issue is as follows: I have a McIntosh MC 206 Amp that I bought in 2003 that puts out 200 watts per channel. I have no issues with it, although I've never had anything to compare it with. I've read some impressive reviews of how much of a difference an amplifier can make to the quality of sound output. For speakers I have Magnepan 3.6R's that I also bought in 2003. I love them. I can only afford to upgrade one at a time - let's say in the neighborhood of 10 - 12K. So, I'd like to hear what this august body has to say about which I should upgrade first and why? The amp or the speakers? Thank you.
normantaylor
ieales's avatar
ieales
1,201 posts
 
The room.
Only if it is seriously flawed. Rooms can be designed & furnished that don't require 'treatment'

Having worked in and built recording studios, a lot of the treatment I see on line is hideous. Many retailer room treatment is all wrong.
8th-note
341 posts
 
My recommendation is to take part of your upgrade budget and a couple days of PTO and attend AXPONA this winter. This will help you calibrate your expectations by hearing other systems. You will get a chance to hear a wide range of speakers and electronics but most important it will give you a good sense of how your system stacks up to the current state of the art. Besides, it's just plain fun to geek out on this hobby for 3 days.

My guess is that you will conclude that your system sounds pretty damn good. That was certainly the case with me. I heard many rooms where the value of the cords, cables, and interconnects exceeded the value of my entire system and the whole thing didn't sound as good as my setup. I also heard other rooms that sounded gorgeous and it helped me better determine where my system could use improvement.

You have a very difficult upgrade situation because you are starting from such a solid platform. It's a good problem to have.
pizzano's avatar
pizzano
14 posts
 
A pair of REL top notch subs will upgrade your low end and also your midrange/soundstage
and especially with the Maggies, plus you will have some cash left over, object here is to allow the maggies you love sound that much better!!!!
asvjerry's avatar
asvjerry
4,252 posts
 
....just wandering by...

I’ll vote with @erik_squires ....but one can be subtle about it. Dipoles like Maggie’s deserve that...;)

Adding a sub could also be an easy +...but MHO, you ought to be able to ’do’ a better ’sub-weight’ than a barbell weight. (Unless you already ’do' weight training...*shrug*)  A nicely wrought box, matching the top dimensions of the unit as well as the finish would have a nice esthetic. Fill it with as much lead shot as desired...

You might look into active eq...that in itself can accomplish amazing results without having to get ’heavy handed’ about it, either.

If you love what you’re running now, minor tweaks vs. major moves seems more the way to go....beats ’buyer’s remorse’, too.

We all read about That a lot around here...probably more than we should. ;)
asvjerry's avatar
asvjerry
4,252 posts
 
...as for interconnects, power cables, all that....

Read the existing forums first before pulling That trigger....
See what's already getting attached to Maggie's and Mac's already and place your bet thereby....

(Copy someone else's homework...*L*  Nice, old tradition, that.)
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