fineberg

Responses from fineberg

Suggestions for a DAC
With what you have, I don't think you'll get much improvement unless you go to DAC's in the $1k-$1.5k used range. I had a DAC 1.1 and it is indeed very good and quite different than the 506.24 but it is not clearly better. For that you need to loo... 
Small monitors for a dear aunt
I have often reccommended many of the things listed above, but lately I think one can do better. The Musical Fidelity A3 integratedcould be found used or demo for 500-600 anda pair of Sonus Faber Concertos could be found used for the same amount a... 
Affordable cables
I think the best buy is the analysis plus entry line (I think its called 'the one') 
Magnepan..the sun rises and sets on..or does it??
I have the older version of the 1.6 (the 1.5Qr) driven by Musical Fidelity A3cr power/pre combo and love them. I would not buy anything else even at 3x the price (though I would get the 3.6's if I could. I listen to mostly classical and I think ma... 
Thiels 2.3 vs. Heron i:Just Different or Better?
I agree with unsound that you didn't get a true appreciation of the Thiels, since their imaging when well setup is phenomenal. I personally prefer Planar Speaker and in that range the Magnepan 3.6 are unbelievable (but take a lot of space in a roo... 
Budget speaker wire B&W 803 from Classe CA101
The Analysis Plus Oval 9 outclasses anything else in the pirce range IMHO. If you can afford it, it biwires well with their oval 12 (for the the treble). 
Maggie 3.6 amplification concern
If you give up on tubes, the new musical Fidelity A300cr ($3200 new I think) would be the way to go. It is the big brother to the A3cr and has an almost tube-like sound but with real solid state power. 
What is the best matching DAC for Sony SCD-1 ?
Muse Model 296 or the new one ninety-two are unbelievably good sounding DACs. 
Transport for Second System
You can often get a used Arcam Alpha 7se CD player in this range. Because this player was made to be upgradable to the much more expensive Alpha 9se with an internal DAC change, they put a very high end transport in it for a unit in that price. I ... 
Used DAC or Used CD Player???
I also have the MF A3cr and tried alot of DACS before finding the Muse 296. It runs $1250-$1500 used, but is absolutely wonderful. 
Musical Fidelity A3cr Owners--Help
When I got mine, I had a problem with and intermitant right channel. It turned out to be a cable problem and has not come back in the 9 months since. Check carefully all youir connections.Good luck. 
Please suggest Preamp
If I were in your position, I would get an excellent analogue pre-amp Musical Fidelity, BAT, Rogue, Sim Audio, Bel Canto (some of these have built in phone stages or at least optional ones) and use an outboard AtoD converter. For example the MSB P... 
Digital Interconnect - Silver?
I have used a number of different digital cables between my transport and DAC. The best results were with an Analysis Plus digital oval (copper) and the Illuminations D-60 (silver). If you want copper, the A+ is a great sounding cable in my system... 
Small Room, Move Often, Speaker Suggestions.
Sonus Fabers small speakers are amazing. The Concertos sound very fine, but if you can afford them the Guaneri Homage is unreal for a small speaker. 
Powerful Integrated Amp for Inefficient Speakers
Musical Fidelity A300 - this is a stereophile class 'A' integrated (if you care about that) and is only $1600 new. It is a phenomenal sounding unit and value. It should have plenty of power for your application.