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Thoughts on a system upgrade.

I have been following and enjoying the posts on Audiogon for about six months now and am posting for the first time looking for advise and ideas on what to do next with my system. I would consider myself a budget Audiophile although some of you may have a different opinion of my self assigned classification. 

I am looking for ideas on improving the weak link(s) in my system possibly with replacing one component and am looking to invest approximately another $2500. I also understand that I could use many smaller improvement tweaks and welcome all comments. 

My system is in a 14’ x 14’ room with a 12’ ceiling. My speakers are about 12’ apart and my primary listening position is centered at the 12’ point of the triangle from the speakers and consists of the following.

PS Audio Stellar Gain Cell Preamplifier/DAC

Music Hall MMF-5 Turntable with Hana EL MC Low Output Cartridge

Clearaudio Smart Phonostage V2

Bluesound Node 2i 

Nakamichi MB-10 CD Player

The Power Cables on the electronics above are a combination of Shunyata Yenom 3 and V14, and Audioquest NRG-Y2. Interconnect Cables are a combination of Pangea Premier and Premier SE. 

The electronics are housed on the wall to the right of the speaker wall on the top half of a very heavy two piece wall unit. I have no options to move them anywhere else.

The electrical outlets are on a dedicated line to the breaker box with standard household wiring. 

PS Audio Stellar S300 Power Amp positioned to the center of Vandersteen Treo speakers and connected with Bluejeans-Belden 12 AWG speaker cables. The Amp is connected to the Preamplifier with 22’ Bluejeans-Belden XLR Balanced Interconnects. The Amp is positioned on the bottom shelf of an end table with a Butcher Block Acoustics platform. I don’t have an option for a dedicated Amp Stand.

The Amp is connected to the wall outlet and a Furman 215A Conditioner with Audioquest NRG-4 Power Cables.

I listen to Classic Rock, Progressive Rock, and Americana for the most part and occasionally Jazz and Classical. Vinyl when in a serious listening mood and CD’s and Streaming for exploring and convenience.

I have been considering upgrading my TT to a Clearaudio Concept w/Satisfy Tonearm and a Hana Shibata MC Cartridge. I’m not actually sure if the TT is the weak link in my system so welcome comments. 

 I’ve read many times on this forum that your ears are the best test of what sounds good and mine are quite happy but I have the bug to keep improving and as a friend of mine says it’s a slippery slope.

With that said I welcome comments and I hope I have given enough detail as I will not be available real time to answer any question. Thanks to everyone.



128x128relayer101
anzaanimalclinic's avatar
anzaanimalclinic
239 posts
 
I agree you system is nice and well balanced.  I think you could go after the Bluejeans and Pangea cables.  I have no experience with Pangea but I had Bluejeans XLR interconnects and while they are better than stock and a great value it was easy to hear what I was missing with Wireworld eclipse 7's.  I have moved on to mostly Wywire's for interconnects and power cords.  Using the digital power cords for digital does make a difference in resolution.
I have also gone nuts with PS Noise Harvesters, its crazy what a few of them can do to quiet the background.  But the interconnects and PC's used.
relayer101's avatar
relayer101 OP
606 posts
 
Thanks for all of the input on acoustic treatments and while I don't doubt I could get some improvement the layout of the room with a wall unit, windows (with shutters), and glass doors limits the amount of wall space that I have for hanging just about anything. With that said I do have a few spots where I could experiment with a few 12" x 36"- 48" panels and will see what I can find in that size range. 
relayer101's avatar
relayer101 OP
606 posts
 
cd318, thanks for the input on the turntables. I have a basic surround sound system in our family room and I have my old Technics SL-3200 on that system and it is still kicking and doesn't sound bad but gets very little use. I didn't realize Technics was still in the TT game and will look into them when researching TT's in the future when I'm ready to take that next step. I had mentioned that I was also looking at Clearaudio and can't say I have ever seen anyone on Audiogon promote them. 
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,830 posts
 
You know how they say a supermodel works the runway?

Super audiophiles work the same way. They have the goods and know it because they learned how to work the room. They might actually end up saving a lot of money  if they learn to do it really well.
three_easy_payments's avatar
three_easy_payments
2,097 posts
 
Tweaks are capable of bending the laws of physics and can turn square acoustics into rectangular ones. You just aren’t using the right mat or have enough subs. A well-placed cone can actually alter the speed of sound thereby improving acoustic reflections. Skip the room treatments and get a better fuse in your amp. This is so simple.
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