10K system

Lots of variables here.  

I personally use a Bluesound Node 2i streamer($420 refurbished) and a Topping D90($700). The Topping and my music service both have volume control so I don't use a pre amp. I do not have a turntable.  That is several thousand more I think.  I have not checked out.  I am still heartbroken oven selling all my albums. 

Then you have to choose the speakers.  Efficient?  Sub?  Monitors with stands?  Size of room? I have a dedicated room so I have big Crites speakers and subs.  The Crites were about $2000.  I have had the subs, crossover and amp for quite a while.  If you want the sub, SVS has some good ones for reasonable pricing.  Most subs now are powered and no crossover is needed.  The biggest mistake I see is people have nice speakers and then they jam them against the back wall with an equipment stand in between them.  No way the system is optimized at that point. 

Room treatments are important but not easy if you are combining your system with living area.  But $1500 will get you quite a bit. I got 6 first reflection panels, 3 diffusion panels on rear wall, and sub traps behind my system.  I also have lower quality corner traps. This setup may not be the same for you but GIK is quite helpful and have experienced people.
I have a Schiit Aegir which is $800.  l think it is a superb sounding amp.  If you choose a small Class A amp then your speakers need to be over 90dB.  Efficiency needs to be higher than that if you want to play the system loud.  If you end up with less efficient speakers, the Parasound power amps look good.  The used A23 is reasonable($700).  A new A21+ is about $3000.  Either one has lots of power.  These are Class AB amps.  A Pass Labs amp is a good choice but entry level appears to be $4K.  The Pass Labs XA25 is rated for 25W but will put out about 80W.  Once again, you would need some fairly efficient speakers for an amp such as that. 

For cables,cords and interconnects, I bought most everything from Pine Tree Audio but there are many out there. I have about $1100 in everything.  I think mine sound fine but not here to debate.  You could skip the cords to start with and buy them later. 

In summary:

Source:  $1000-3000Speakers $1500-6000Amp:  $500-$4000Sub(s)  $1000-3000Wires:  $1000-$2000Sound treatment:  $1500

So many choices.  I have about $7000 in mine and I think it sounds wonderful but I already had the subs.  I also sold some other equipment so you could subtract that.   The biggest thing is you match everything correctly to your liking, not someone else's.  Lots of good sounding stuff out there. 

What audio system would put together for 10K?

Its a trick question. Not what system would YOU put together- "What audio system would put together?" Itself.

great  comments from everyone here

@maholl50 My take on your thread is that you are interested in learning about what other A'goners have setup for there own pleasure at the 10K price point. Make sense to me to learn from those examples. The issues about sound preference dictate the gear we get. The system that I have listed above is not a warm system, but a system that makes me think I am in the studio with the performers or at the live event that it was recorded at.

Another system I am putting together (unfortunately for the same room) will be considered much warmer than the 10K system listed above. Though that one will bleed much more money from me. I will get a warmer amp and a warmer speaker for that one.

If a had a friend looking to put together a $10K system, I'd recommend buying used whenever possible and it would look something like this:

INTEGRATED AMP ($2K budget): I like the combination of a tube preamp and a solid stare amp; so, you're choices of a "hybrid" preamp are fairly limited, such as the offerings from Exposure. Pathos, Rogue Audio or Vincent Audio.

SPEAKERS ($3K budget): Too many choices; plus, you've got to trust your own ears. So, demo as many speakers as you can and also read as many reviews as you can.

SUBWOOFER ($1K budget): Golden Ear, JL Audio, REL & Velodyne. However, it's hard to find anything by JL Audio in this price range.

DIGITAL ($500 budget): I'm a big believer in using a "universal player" that can handle CD - DVD - SACD & DVD Audio: so, Oppo and Marantz are probably your best bets.

DAC ($1,000 budget): Too many choices; plus, you've got to trust your own ears. So, demo as many DAC's as you can and also read as many reviews as you can.

POWER CONDITIONER/SURGE PROTECTION ($500 budget):  Too many choices; read as many reviews as you can and try to find the best deal that you can.

POWER CABLES/INTERCONNECTS/ISOLATION ($2000 budget): Too many choices; read as many reviews as you can and try to find the best deal that you can.

I hope this helps and good luck with your search!

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