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I can't and don't disagree with anything that you have said, but I might make a few tweaks.
There are situation where Pre/Power have an advantage, but it is not in sound. For example, If you have Pre/Power it is easier to add third party Bass Management. Also, Pre and Power each have their own separate Power Supplies. But these are either rare or subtle things. And ...yes... you are right Pre/Power can be pretty expensive. The cost of the near identical Pre-Amp is roughly the cost of the same Integrated Amp model.
£945 = Rotel RC-1572 Pre-Amp.. -
£845 = Rotel RB-1552 MII Power (120w/ch)
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£1790 = Total
£1395 = Rotel RA-1572 Integrated (120w/ch)
As far as sound, no, I would expect Pre/Pwr and Integrated to sound virtually the same assuming they are from the same Brand.
There is a durability element to better RCA cables. But you don't have to go much over the cheapest of the cheap to find that durability. Then there is cosmetic appearance. Most of what you are buying in more expensive cable is the appearance, but that appearance does truly cost money.
Balanced Cables are about Noise Rejection. As others have indicated, XLR have an advantage over longer distances, but remember that at normal distances, about 90% of the audio world is happily using RCA with no problems.
I've not found that it does. I even used spacers to separate my Bi-Wires by about 2" to 3" to minimize cross talk. Used them that way for quite a while and heard no difference. Eventually switched back to standard wiring.
The pseudo-science behind the idea is that while the signal voltage on each cable pair is the same, the Current Flow is different. In standard single pair cable, the current is a composite of both bass-current and treble-current. In Bi-Wire cable, those two current flows are separated. But there is no evidence that this matters. All Current Flow is a composite, and it tends to work just fine.
So, while this theory is correct, the current flow is separated, there is nothing to indicate that this actually matters. And if it did matter, I would assume you would have to have some expensive and highly detailed equipment to reveal the difference ... which most people don't have and can't afford.
There is debate on this, but I agree it sometimes can make a difference. In my case, I bi-amp the Mid/High with an Onkyo which are very clear, but perhaps not the best for bass. And on the Low I used a Yamaha, which is a more smooth amp with less Mid/High emphasis.
I never before or after heard my speaker sound better. But I now have a £1400 Rotel RA-1570, seems a shame to spend that much money only to run the bass driver. Plus while I was able to set the system up for the test, it was impractical on a daily basis as my equipment rack was already full.
In this case, yes, sometimes it can make a difference, a very expensive difference.
Obviously the answer is Yes and No, or more accurately - maybe. This is also subjective, what one person likes another person hates. So ... choose wisely, more money does not necessarily mean better for YOU.
This is tricky. In theory it shouldn't but I'm convinced that it does. Even the weather can make a difference. This may be Psychological or partly Psychological, or it could be to some degree environmental. This is way I recommend that you audition equipment in person, on different days, and if possible at different dealers.
I like to remind people that Room Correction is not Magic. It has the ability to make a good room better, but it simply can not make a Bad Room good. From what I am gathering from feedback, Lyngdorf is among the best, if not THE best, out there. But it is still not magic.
In my opinion, this is not a discussion worth having. All music Sources have their time and place. There is no reason to exclude one type over another. Play what you have, and enjoy. If your are interested in Vinyl and want to make the investment, it is stupid for anyone to try to dissuade you. Though they can try to add some perspective so you know what you are getting into. And if you are a Vinyl Purist, there is absolutely no reason to reject Streaming if you are interested.
For me it is not a question of what is better, it is a matter of -
Play what you have. Play what you like. Get what you want.
Nothing else matters.
Again, this one is difficult. True Class-A sound stunningly good, assuming they didn't screw up the design, but they tend to be Low-Power, High-Heat, and generally Expensive.
Class-D in a very broad sense are less than ideal. Though that was more back at the beginning. Today, with refinements in the design, Class-D can sound VERY impressive.
Personally, I can't afford Class-A, and have no interest in Class-D unless they are low cost compact amps, so I will stick with the tried and true proven Class-A/B. Class-A/B is not without its flaw, but it has been serving the Audio World faithfully for nearly a Century.
On this I'm not a purist. I believe Speaker Cable CAN make a difference, but I also believe that they rarely do. Most people obsessing over Speaker Cable are no in a class of equipment where it will make a difference. As with RCA Cables, a LOT of what you are paying for is purely cosmetic. The same is true for Speaker Cable. It does cost money to dress those cable up in fancy pants and jacket. But fancy does not improve the sound.
I did some research that indicated that most people spend in the 2% to 5% range relative to system cost on ALL cable and wire regardless of system cost. Though of course, 5% of £15,000 is considerably more than 5% of £1500.
Most stores would recommend that you spend 10% to 20% of the total system cost on Cable and Wire. You are certainly free to do that, but I'm not sure it actually brings anything to the table.
Stupidest thing Logitech ever did was discontinue these Streamers. Just as they were about to corner the market, they stopped. For what I heard Logitech bought the company making these Streamer and re-branded them. They were compact with a big screens and they worked exceptionally well, and at the time they were dominating the market.
I see no logical reason to discontinue a successful product in a growing market.
I suspect all DACs do sound the same or at least similar, but it it not the DAC you are listing to, or more accurately the DAC-Chip. Rather you are hearing all the support equipment attached to the DAC-Chip. A DAC has one simple job - convert numbers into voltages. If there is a difference in the sound quality, it is not what it does with the numbers, but rather what it does with the voltages.
Hard to get reliable equipment from Slave Labor. This is variable - maybe yes, maybe no. I have heard of several people who switched from relatively expensive equipment to more common equipment simply because of reliability issues.
The important things is to be able to separate the two. When you are listening to music, just listen to the music and forget the equipment. When you are fiddling with the equipment, fine, but don't think that is going to produce the most enjoyable listening experience in the moment.
We all need to be able to let go of the equipment, and just focus on the music. No matter how much you obsess about it, it is not going to sound any better than it sounds in the moment.
I know people who make a life-long hobby out of buying, selling, trading used equipment. And they get to experience a lot of great equipment. At some point they may come across a Dud or two, but generally they win much more than they lose. And they get to know equipment exceptionally well and probably have the best sense of what does and doesn't work. But again, this tends to be hobby.
Myself I tend to take my time and chase the bargains. Being on the lower side of the economic scale, I have to plan my upgrades, sometimes for years. But eventually I find a bargain that I just can't resist, so I go for it.
Most of my life I have bought Mail-Order equipment unheard, and have been very successful. I
went through about 4 good sounding systems until I hit on one that lasted me decades. At one point I was able to buy equipment for Wholesale which really helped maximize my money. Since that decade long system I had, I have been through about 3 more systems. Not bad for someone on the low end of the economic scale.
Just a few thoughts.
Steve/bluewizard |
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28-11-2019 01:21:57
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