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What Does 80 Grand Get You Nowadays?

A system was playing in a shop. I sat down and pretty soon I thought gosh, I’m glad my system sounds better than this.

That system - just preamp, amp, and speakers - cost about $80,000 new.

I didn’t make the speakers at first, because Sabrinas look far better than the usual Wilson house look. They were driven by one of those new high-end Marantz amps, and I don’t think that was a match made in heaven. The Marantz was driven by a Dan D’Agostino pre that looked like a Minion had been crushed in a hydraulic press. Audiophile music was streaming, but I did not catch whence issued those dulcet ones and zeroes.

I suppose that system constitutes high-end for some. Now, it certainly sounded competent, but it also sounded boring. I thought, this is the Audi SUV of audio: competent and boring.

Conversely, I was impressed and pleased to no end that the end sound of my modest system from the last century could play in the same league as an almost-six figure modern system, and do so in a more engaging and fun fashion - to my ears, at least.

I’m biased, of course; and I am certain many high-priced systems out there leave mine in the dust. Still, I would have thought $80,000 guaranteed a better baseline sound.

How about you, have you heard a lot of gear whose sound was way out of whack with its price?

 

devinplombier
kennyc
2,916 posts
 

What Does 80 Grand Get You Nowadays?

@devinplombier 

I’m hoping to get there with Vimberg Mino D speakers plus an Audionet Humboldt integrated amplifier. Purchase AXPONA demo speakers at deep discount, and the integrated used.  Couldn’t afford new above $80k

I approached high-end audio by listening to the best I could find the sound I resonated with, then try to recreate sonics at home within budget. This became very daunting as my tastes run to Magico and YG.  Try as I might Wilson never pulled me into the music.  Matching SS electronics like Boulder, Dartzeel, CH Precision, Constellation, Soulution, etc were also pricy.  

The Audionet Stern and HEISENBERG preamp+amp was the German scientists’s all out price no object to create a state of the art sonic performance.  After succeeding, they used this knowledge to shrink it down to the single box Humboldt while trying to preserve the sonic excellence.

I viewed the Humboldt as the lowest cost into the very best SS Sonics available.  Reviews are extremely very positive.  I’m very fortunate to find one used in my budget range and especially in my 120 voltage standard.  It will be replacing my TAS Top 50 Audio Bargains Constellation Inspiration Pre+Stereo  

 

yyzsantabarbara
5,557 posts
 

$15K for Yamaha NS-5000’s (with powerful class D amps) is all you need to spend.

@incorrigable 

I haven’t auditioned the NS-5000 yet, but I hear a lot about them and the feedback is always positive. Folks who own them rave about them, including some members here.

This post motivated me to try my $2000 Schiit Wotan amp, that I rave about on this site, on the NS5000. The Wotan is now perfectly broken in. I have owned a few Class D amps and liked the Wotan more. It is a Class AB amp with some warmth and great bass control.

The Wotan immediately sounds different. It sounds pretty good but compared to the CODA #16 that is normally in place it is missing a bit of that rich Class A sound. I think you need some really great amps on the NS5000 to make them shine. I would not use any Class D with these speakers.

BTW - the NS5000 + used CODA #16 cost me a little under $20k.

devinplombier OP
1,668 posts
 

@kennyc 

Best of luck with your newest acquisition. Interested to hear your review of the Vimberg / Audionet pairing.

You mentioned Audionet Heisenbergs, these are beauties!

devinplombier OP
1,668 posts
 

@yyzsantabarbara 

It is always good to experiment, even when the results are somewhat predictable :)

Great speakers call for great amps, or at the very least amps with great headroom and vast reserves of power. Too often you see systems’ end sound being unnecessarily throttled by merely adequate amplification.

Of course, listening preferences and musical tastes also play a great role. Blasting symphony or industrial calls for very different gear than light chamber music or unplugged singer-songwriters. That said, gear that is good with the former should be good with the latter, but that probably won't be true the other way around.

 

yyzsantabarbara
5,557 posts
 

@devinplombier I am getting into this comparison thing and trying the Schiit Yggi+ MIB (a warmer DAC over the Schiit Yggi+ OG) with the Wotan and the NS5000. Now this is a bit better sounding and getting closer to the CODA #16 and the Yggi+ OG. 

The best DAC I ever heard in my house on the NS5000 was the Allnic D-15000 Signature OTL/OCL tube DAC.

With the Wotan and NS5000 pairing I am having some crazy thoughts of selling some gear to get that DAC. I am going to give Wotan and NS5000 a few months of listening.

 

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