I've owned the Outlaw rr2160 since Feb, driving Monitor Audio Silver 300's.. I can confirm everything Steve has said about it.. It is a beast.. you can feel the build quality, i often tell people its a "throw back" to a time when equipment was just built to last when asked to describe it
Same here. I've had my Outlaw for about the same amount of time. Love it. It does just about everything I want a receiver or amplifier to do. You could get better, but you would have to pay much, much more to get it. Very happy with this purchase. Also have a pair of the RP600M's and his review is spot on. Having owned many Klipsch speakers in the past, I kind of knew what to expect with these and was not disappointed. Concur on the weak bottom end, but these are bookshelf speakers and that is to be expected. The magic is in the mid/highs. That horn is amazing. I have a subwoofer to fill in the rest. And thanks Steve for these terrific videos.
Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac - killer Combo for under $1200 ? . Crown XLS1502 Drivecore Amplifier Shiit Saga-S Preamp Shiit Modi DAC Elac Debut 2.0 6.2 Speakers Love to see Audiophiliac test that against other systems for under $1200 !
I use to work for Klipsch, was fortunate to know Paul Klipsch personally. When I worked there I thought they were outstanding. I’m proud to say my name is on the back of thousands of them, as I was a speaker tester. It’s good to see them on this list.
It's nice to meet you .I have a pair of heresies . I bought them in 1977 .and they are still kickin ass . All of my saround sound and subwoofers are klipsch. Wow, it must have been great to work with Paul W. Klipsch 👍
I miss your CNET reviews, Steve. But this video is brilliant work. Perhaps the best rundown of inexpensive audio in existence. Good luck in this new venture and thank you for your many excellent contributions to home audio over the years.
Steve it would be extremely helpful to know the types of music you enjoy and which components and combinations thereof work best with which type of music. I’m sure your subscribers have wide ranging tastes, so this would cap your recommendations off nicely!
Great show and choices, Steve. Keep this 'systems series' coming! Now, may I add a suggestion for one? 'The best headphone systems' for...$500? $300? $600? This would be : 1. amp (include jds atom, liquid spark, something portable? ) 2. Wired headphones (open back, closed back - $100, $200, $300..), planar (H400i), and vc based (be sure to include shp9500 besides the Grados) 3. separate DAC, perhaps with bt 5.0, aptx, aptx HD (or stand-alone bt..) 4. Phono preamp.. This type of system show would really be appreciated by many of us stuck in apartments or with family/wife who give us nothing but grief when we listen to speaker-based systems. Thanks! Chris
I once went to an audiophiles house. He had an empty room with an armchair at one end and his system at the other, he put a record on and it sounded like the artist was in the room with us. Amazing.
I had that experience a few years ago. I could draw a diagram and tell you exactly where every artist was standing in the recording. I was blown away. I have the same music recording at home. Doesn't get me the same result. This is what they mean by detail and soundstage, I guess.
Steve! I've posted this to my FB page. Recently, you helped me pull the trigger on the KEF R3 after what seemed like a year of research. This is a great teaching. And I'd wager the audience for this is huge. Nice!
I'm a first-time visitor, and I immediately subscribed! Thank you for all the info. For what it's worth, I'm still in love with my Definitive Technology BP6 's. I've had them 20 + years.
I have the same set. Plus bp 30 and bp 10 The bp 30 are the best sounding speaker I've still ever heard. Glad to see a older def tec lover. The line up we have are the best they ever made. Sandy Cros def tec inventor built those him self before he sold the company. He also started Polk Audio and now he's doing Golden Ear speakers I believe. Cheers
I've been amazed at what kind of speakers you can find at yard sales. Especially high quality vintage speakers. JBL studio monitors, ADS, Bose 901s, Altec Lansing studio monitors. Children liquidating their parents stereos. There was this pathologist in town and I picked up a pair of speakers for $75. Beautiful ADS, high quality wood cabinets, with spiked stands. I bet the roughest kind of dinner music that had ever been played through them was Gershwin.
Love all your interesting recommendations! I actually didn't realize how great a $1200 system could be until I recently got my current hifi setup together. Fosi ZA3 amp, Kef q150 and SVS Micro 3000 sub. Phenomenal sound that'll knocked my socks off and never ceases to put a goofy smile on my face.
Wow, you bring me back to when I was 15, and salivating over a Fischer/Scott/Pioneer/Sansui amplifier, Garrard turn table, JBL speakers, 15" subwoofer, ... those were the days !
I was thinking the same thing. In 1972 I logged aver 100 hours in various stereo stores to find my best sound for a budget of $400 dollars. Same cost as a semester's worth of tuition back then. I bought small Advent speakers,Marantz 1060 amp and an AR single speed turntable. It was awesome.
1966, $300 got you a little Fischer 25 watt tube amp, a Dual 1019 changer/turntable and 2 AR 4a sealed speakers. It lasted into the 80's when the speaker cones wore out, probably could've been reconed! $300 was 3 semesters of tuition at my university.
Your comments about the Magnepans are so relatable. My favourite speaker of all time, and still the ones in my main system are the old babies, the MG1C. Have had several large Magneplanars driven by serious amplifiers but the little ones are just sooooo sweet. Have a spare set that I think I paid $300 for, 10 years ago. Such delight.
Sounds like an honest review to me. I haven’t bought audio gear in years because I built a system that I’m quite happy with after years of suffering from constant upgraditis. This video should help those getting into the hobby at a nice price point.
First of all, I would like to say how much I enjoy your videos. I am 65, so you and I go back to the glory days of Hi-F. I have a set of Klipsch RP-600M bookshelf speakers, a Klipsch SPL-100 Sub and a Onkyo TX-8140 stereo receiver that has 80watts/channel. It sounds great with music and movies. Retail was around 1500.00, but I was able to buy the whole system for 900.00. I wonder if you would answer a question for me? I talked to Onkyo about maybe adding another set of bookshelf speakers to the B inputs and then running on A+B to get a little more sound. Onkyo told me that their TX-8140 receiver with 80watts/channel was already under powered for the RP-600M's and that I would eventually burn their amplifier out and damage the speakers because of clipping. I must admit, that seems very strange to me. I can only turn the volume up about half way at the loudest I can stand as it is. Is 80watts/channel really under powered for these speakers? Thanks
I bought the Cambridge AXA35 and a pair of Dali Oberon 5 (€800 a pair). Later a little DacMagic 100 joined in the party to play FLAC from the PC and CD from the BluRay player. I couldn't be happier for the money spent. I'm also still using a sweet old Denon DCD-685 CD player and a ProJect Debut with Sumiko Pearl cartridge. This AXA35 + Oberon 5 combination really gets the soul of the music out of the recordings with plenty of detail, punch and very satisfying bass.
Cambridge makes some beautiful amps ..I had the CXA81 for a month ; almost decided on DALIs too before opting for Kef instead. Didn't keep the amp though, too many features I didn't need -- So I went with a $150 Fosi ZA3 that sounded just as good to me. Though maybe my ears aren't sophisticated enough yet to appreciate the subtleties of premium A/B amplification.
What a fantastic rundown. I'd love to see this sort of list become an annual thing here. It's so helpful. Seriously, awesome stuff. I look forward to the day I start to rebuild my system from scratch. Mine is currently based on a Raspberry Pi running a Boss ALLO DAC into an old pair of Genelec 1029a studio monitors - they're small but mighty.
Living in Australia, it absolutely kills me to think of how far your dollar goes towards hifi audio compared with ours. That said, I enjoyed this video very much.
I live in Australia also (assuming Tasmania qualifies ;-). My system is perhaps twice what Steve is recommending here, but then (most of) it's nearly 20 years old. It has cost me less than the price of a cup of coffee per week. When I was first bitten by the bug in the early 1970s my system cost me the best part of three months' pay as a base grade clerk. As Steve says in the intro today, we never had it so good.
Depending on where you live, there's good deals to be had second hand. Especially given how everything seems to have a markup for shipping here if it's new. Or you may have to save up and try some of the local speaker brands if that's something that interests you. I think I'm lucky though that the city I live in is the perfect size for Gumtree etc.
@@RennieAsh I have a pair of Phil Vafiadis's DC-Xs and only rarely do they come up for sale second-hand even though VAF sold tens of thousands. Mine too have my cold, dead fingers award ;-) Much patience called for to acquire the really good stuff. Frustrating when it's pick-up only and the item's in QLD, NSW, or VIC and you live in TAS. Shipping from overseas has become much cheaper and easier of late. Check out shipporter.com. I expect to save ~$5,000 importing my new cooking range from the UK where they cost ~$5,000. They are well north of $10,000 here in Oz. Living in Tasmania you get used to the "cost of shipping" bullshit and I have saved heaps importing from the mainland. Even Huon Pine is cheaper imported from VIC than it is here in the Huon where it grew!
It depends. Some brands like Rega, Naim, Kef, Focal, Musical fidelity, Exposure, Vincent, B&W, Primaluna cost very similar. Also AU wages are higher. + local brands with usually high quality.
I had a tube pre-amp and 2x 25 watt and 2x 40 watt tube power amps built by Elson Silva in Sydney and they were very reasonably priced. And I had large Timberwolf speakers built by Adelaide Speakers at a very good price.
Good review as always on those speakers. I still love my Elac debut 6.2 that I bought at limit time 1/2 off their regular price. They are still at $299.00 pair at Best Buy at the moment. They just are so nice sounding and easy on the ear for hours of listening. They perform well with any genre of music I listen to. A hand clap to Andrew Jones for his amazing work.
Steve, I am still out there pulling vintage speakers from yard sales and craigslist. One of my favorites is a pair of Electro-Voice full-range 12 speakers. No tweeters or midrange and the sound is beautiful. My most unique speaker is a pair of flyable church speakers made by OAB audio. The horns are incredible and the 15" coaxial speaker delivers a crisp mid base. They do however lack a deep base.
I paired a Reisong A10 amp ($450) with a pair of Klipsch RB 61 II speakers (discontinued - $300 on E-bay). The Reisong has some rolloff in the treble regions, but with the Klipsch speakers, that's not a bad thing. The Klipsch speakers are very efficient (95db), which the 6 watt/channel Reisong needs. Add a Zen Dac V2 ($159) and a set of Perlesmith speaker stands ($90) and you're right at $1000. You could add an Emotiva Airmotiv SE8 subwoofer ($300) and be just over the $1250 limit.
@@V1ralB1ack With the subwoofer, it's quite good for movies. Bass is good for bookshelf speakers, but much better with the sub. The Emotiva sub also has a high-pass filter, for bass management. Connect your source/preamp to the line in on the sub, connect the line out to the amp, and the sub strips out the low bass before sending the signal to the amp. This saves the amp from having to waste power on low bass notes.
@@careylymanjones I actually just experienced this at a friend's house and when the bookshelves were handling the full signal it sounded great but when the sub was activated the sound came to life. The highs were better the mids continued to sound perfect and the bass was more full and perfectly integrated. It surprised me
@@V1ralB1ack The Klipsch/A10 pairing is a classic example of choosing components that cover each others' shortcomings. The Klipsch have too much treble, the A10, too little. Put them together and they're just right. One of the less-frequently mentioned benefits of a subwoofer is that they can expand the soundstage, adding additional depth. If your friend has EQ capability, have him try about a 3db boost at around 1950 Hz, with a Q of about 1.3. Most Klipsch bookshelf speakers have a bit of a dip around 2000 Hz
@@careylymanjones My friend uses Dirac live through a processor and he said he spent hours and hours fine tuning it with minidsp as well. It really blows me away. All you said is true.
Love this the 2nd time, Steve! ❤️. What about a 2nd video with a $4,000 limit? Then we can get into some high end integrated amps, and some even better speakers!
You're a man after my own heart Steve! Thanks for the heads up on the pre-amp. Just bought 2 Schiit from Amazon. Will compare to Dyna PAS, 1970s Nakamichi, McIntosh C26, Carver, and so on. Hard to know. I go for beauty, a beautiful experience. Like you. That's why you had me with this video at "magic". Magic is what I want from my machines! And I GET it. Just setup a 5.1 all 1960s surround system with Sansui SP-3500 front, 2500 center, 1500 rear and dual subwoofers front corners. First time I ever even liked Sansui loudspeakers. But I just had this feeling it would work magic-wise. Listened to Allman's Eat A Peach, Woodstock, Solti Tannhauser, Alien Resurrection, Gabor Szabo Mizrab, Peter Ivers Knight of the Blue Communion . . . Wow! SO that's what these speakers are good for. Also, in last week rebuilt Criterion 2005 (ear blasters, but great brass), Infinity Qa (polite, too polite, no authority), Dynaco A25s (smooth boom), Mirage SM-3s (Wow!), Design Acoustics D-12s (damn fine staging, actually uncanny, actually I got up to answer the door with Ry Cooder's Bop Till You Drop and Everest 35mm Flamenco, fooled me completely twice), Polk Studio 7s (bachelor pad magic snap, mid-nirvana, weird lovely bass), big Sony APMs (eek! So controlled . . . ), Jensen 25s with Technical Pro Z-15s (BIG BIG BIG), and too many other old retired amps, turntables (Technics 1200MK2, JC Penny special (fantastic table!!!), Denon L72 and, well, almost the entire history of hifi has passed through my hands and ears since this damn pandemic began, even an old acoustic Victrola (the big one, first folded horn!) which actually sounds quite good with a cactus needle (no kidding) and the doors ajar just right . . . Anyway, thanks a million for the heads up on Schiit Audio. They look like the Dyna of 2021 minus owning your own soldering iron. Live long and prosper.
I recently got pair of Elacs DBR 62 and NAD D3020 v2, about 430 dollars (350 Euro) for speakers, and 600 dollars (499 euro) for amp. This channel partially helped me to decide for the speakers. I know its unusual but its for PC. Main reason is for watching newer bluray formats which do have lossless audio, CDs, FLACs and also playing games which actually have really good orchestral score.
Steve, how much can you squeeze in one video. Amazing! You have covered in one video what a magazine tries to cover in one issue! Brilliantly informative and useful.
Thank you for your videos. Having an audiophile setup is a dream of mine and all the info you provide is just great for newbs like me. Someday I will use the info in this video and get there!
Thanks Steve, I got the Mytek Liberty DAC today after your video on it. I will try it out tomorrow when I find the 1/4" adapter. Oh I ordered it one week ago and it arrived 7 days later from the U.S.A. It arrived as fast or faster that local deliveries in Thailand!
I don't know who you are and I've never seen one of your videos before but I really enjoyed it. I was stuck by your authenticity and passion for the hobby. Keep up the good work although I doubt anything could stop you anyway.
Steve, this is one of your best videos. You have covered a ton of stuff and have given the viewer plenty of options. For anyone with this kind of budget this is the video that I recommend they watch. Nicely done!
You’re The Greatest, Steve! I just enjoy watching fully functioning systems go about their chores, delivering fantastic transparent, and illuminating insights of some of the world’s greatest performances. Thank you 🙏 Steve.
Enjoying your enthusiasm and sincere reviews Steve. On your recommendation and after extensive reading I have made a UK deal on the purchase of a pair of Magnepan LRS speakers. I have the wonderful IMO Yammy 803D as source and driver and vintage Rotel 965BX CD player plus Yammy CT 1010 tuner alongside so expecting great things.My Clearaudio Emotion with Goldring 1042 MM completes the burgeoning picture.Excited.Can’t wait!. Hoping the report back a magical experience.
Great well needed video fills a void in audiophile world where some audiophile snobs think high price defines audiophile, thank you. I trust your real world reviews.
I have watched many of your videos, liked a lot, never followed you, but this one ended with great reasons to follow you. Playlists for speakers, and other items, interviews it all sounds good. You got me!
Which would you recommend, I'd like to buy the pro-ject s2 for a full MQA decoding and a 300 amplifier and a 600 usd speaker to listen rock, jazz and classical, whick you recommend me?
@@carloschamba4996 Only you can make the determination depending on what you value in your sound. My shortlist includes the Lore Reference, the Wharfdale Denton 85, and the new Reference B6 coming out from ELAC. One thing for certain, I won't buy anything I can't return with no questions asked.
Good stuff! Most of my gear I bought used, but I am using the Schiit Mani phono stage connected to a Technics SL 1100a w/Nagaoka MP 150 cart. Sounds superb. Thanks for all your info with these videos.
Nice wrap up of options, thanks for the video. I was listening in on my Magni/Modi 2 combo and Sennheiser 650s. With young twins sleeping, I can't drive any big speakers these days :)
Some excellent choices! I have a budget system I put together about a decade ago consisting of "refurb" equipment (they were New In Box with full warranties and free shipping) from Harman's eBay store. It consists of an HK3490 stereo receiver for $99, an HK DVD48 DVD/CD for $37, a pair of Infinity Primus 362 floorstanders for $200, and a wonky Infinity Primus PS210 subwoofer for $103 (I only used it for occasional movies). In my living room/listening room, in my Brooklyn apartment, it's a super system for under $500 all in. I recently added a Etekcity Unify bluetooth receiver for about $25 to bring it up to date.
Funny you mentioned the HK3490. I saved up the summer before my senior year of college and purchased a refurbished 3390. Served me well through a lot of music and movies for seven years before I sold it to upgrade to a more modern Yamaha. I had my 3390 paired with Sony SS-B3000s that I still use, but am upgrading this week to RP-280Fs and a 440C center, along with a JBL sub that I’ve had for two years. Feels a little sad moving completely away from my “first” sound system.
@@brandonlesco8738 Those HK stereo receivers were beasts, but have one of the very worst remotes ever designed! Lol. I'm in my 50s, so my first system (a terrible Marantz "Gold Series" setup circa 1983?) is long gone. Congratulations on the new gear! Enjoy it!
@@MrChristopherMolloy Uggh, the remote! Horrible. But the 3390 still served me well for over seven years, and is now being enjoyed by someone else. Honestly, I would have never upgraded except I was having such a difficult time hearing dialogue that I needed the center channel option, hence the Yamaha upgrade. I added a Polk center channel I got on sale, but it sounded noticeably different my Sony speakers. Excited to have a matching 3.1 channel system for movies and television. Not really a surround guy! Putting my Sony SS-B3000s in a spare room for music :)
Steve! This is my new favorite. Great video! Folks you can’t go wrong with anything on this list, but listen to every word. When he says the ELAC UB5s need power, he is not kidding and the Maggie’s need to be way out in the room to do what they do.
This was a great video & I'd love to see the Steve do this at several other price points - say, $2500 and $5000. A multi-channel post like this would be great too!
Thanks for recommending amps that pair well with speakers. Invaluable info for guys like me who are ordering blind off the internet. A sincere thanks for giving me the details I want to know.
Check my post all I do is review specifications online I brought the klipsh r820f a bit pricey no on hand display specifications only.... . Wow they blew me away and I've been into audio since the eight track...but...I will day get an equalizer if you want to hear the best of the best and you can tune it to your environment..... superb and sick everyone who visits I cant wsi9to give a demo and.....I cant turn it up halfway that loud and gets clearer with more volume..
Yamaha aventage 880 and denon x3500h have good room correction software. I got the Yamaha for slightly under $600 on Amazon and the denon for $533 on eBay. I think you could pair them with just about anything decent out (Polk, elac, Klipsch, etc) and then use the room correction. I have the Klipsch 280f bi-amped and they have plenty of power.
As the proud new owner of a pair of LRS’s just picked up after a nearly four month wait I can verify the wait was well worth it! I can also verify that these speakers need and deserve all the clean power you can provide. Most stereo receivers just do not have the grunt to bring these to their potential. I would recommend an amp that can output 200 watts or better into four ohms. I’ve only had them for two days so still experimenting but as Steve mentioned they need to be away from the back walls 3-4 ft minimum. As always, the sweet spot yields the best soundstage and so far, for me, performance drops noticeably to either side and not the ear opening experience that the sweet spot is. If you have only heard dipoles in a showroom you haven’t heard them at their best and that is in your own home!
I haven’t tested myself the rest of the recommended gear, however I do have the Shiit mani phono preamp and it is absolutely amazing for the price. Very highly recommended
I love Steve for making me love my KEF LS50 speakers even more. It's definitely nice to have one of your choices validated by him. They are, without question, fine speakers.
Lepai 2020a , pioneer andrew jones, polk or similar small sub, use your phone or pc as the source. Excellent if not exceptional sound , around 225 dollars new.
Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac: I'm putting together an audio system to replace the one I lost in Hurrican Katrina. I had a pair of TDL 0.5 Studio Monitors driven by a 125 watt per channel Denon reciever that had (believe it or not) a class A amp in it, and a Nad CD deck (I don't remember the model number but it was great). I've never heard any other system that sounded as good; base was precise and accurate-beyond-belief, midrage was clear and perfectly detailed, and high frequencies were crystal, shimmering, and profoundly realistic - not overpowering (a clash of symbols sounded exactly like a cash of real symbols). It was one of those systems which, when you play a CD on it, you hear parts of the music that you hadn't heard before. The components I'm putting together now include a pair of used TDL RTL (Reference Transmission Line?) 1 speakers (I've yet to try them out and, if they don't sound good enough, I will return them and replace them with a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 Anniversary speakers), a Yamaha A-S501 integrate amplifier, and a Yamaha CD-C600 CD changer. Please let me know what you think of my choices; any suggestions and changes would be very much appreciated. Wasn't the 'rock' music of the 60's and early 70's remarkable? The music of the different groups was so unique, creative, and inmaginative; you could never mistake the sound/music of one group for that of another. Some of the songs even had a message; in one of Jethro Tull's songs Ian Anderson sang, "......and everyday - has the same old way - of giving me too much to do...". And then there wa that line from one of The Moody Blues' s songs: "Live hand in hand - and together we'll stand - on the threshold of a dream". I like jazz and classical too. Have you ever heard Ralph Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending? Or Weather Report's Nubian Sundance? Or Miles Davis's album Kind of Blue?
I have a Denon PMA 2000 and now I added the Schiit Mani, it transferred my system to another level, this little cheap beast is the best piece ever, for the price it is a steal.
First I love these Schiit Mani preamps, but they have what seems to be a common issue that is very easy to fix. I bought 6 of these a while back after trying one on Steve's advice. My helpful hint: 3 of the 6 sounded terrible when I unboxed them. One even had a dead channel with lots of crackling. All this was fixed by moving the switches on the bottom back and forth a few times. The problem was that the switches were not thrown all the way; they were in the middle in a dead or distortion area. And the contact was bad. But once I clicked them back and forth a few times and made sure they were fully clicked into position all 6 sounded fantastic! Hey, this is a $130 dollar phono preamp. And I am used to clean Dyna tube preamps and lots of others that are generally around $500 to $1500. But at $130 this Schiit is simply unbeatable. Used with Shure V15 III/V15II Improved/V15V with a Shibata. AT-2214 with hyper elliptical. Grados, Empires, Denon 103 moving coil, AT95 with Shibata, and lots of others including Natural Linear Contact styli on AT 1200 Mk2, Denon L72, Philips 777, Lenco L75, and a dozen others. Love analogue. It's like fine wine and no headaches the next morning! Rock, jazz, classical, lots of direct-to-disc-- OK. This preamp compares well to Macs and Nakamichi preamps that sell for $1000+. And, frankly, I heard things in the Jam on the Allman Bros Eat a Peach that I just did not think were there to be heard. I was wrong. Best damn budget preamp I ever enjoyed. If you are like me and need lots of preamps for a whole room full of turntables, this will fill the room at less than the cost of one regular audiophile phono preamp. It is not consistently magical, but it has moments! And for $130, wow!
I have a NAD D 3045 and ELAC UB5 which is a sweet setup. The NAD is extremely versatile with HDMI input, MQA and DSD capable USB DAC built in, phono stage, subwoofer output with crossover options and the power to drive the ELAC’s. Only the remote is kinda funny but you have the options to teach buttons of another remote (like from your TV) for volume/mute and ON. Sadly not the source select.
Thanks Steve, this puts things in perspective. Prices does vary A LOT depending on where we live. In Norway a pair of Klipsch RP 600M will set you back a whopping $890! But the NAD C316BEEv2 can be yours, shipping included for only $333
OTOH you're probably not far from SEAS. They make really excellent drivers and no doubt there are local speaker mfrs using them. Or you could build your own; THOR for example :-)
@@jonathansturm4163 For sure! SEAS, Scan-Speak, Peerless and more, lots of options for DIY. I actually researched the Thor kit when looking for new speakers, it is around $1800 ex shipping, i ended up with something completely different :) The 2nd hand market is like a candy store over here :) So it is possible to get pretty decent stuff without breaking the bank.
@@jan9 So Thor is expensive even over there. Glad you have more affordable alternatives :-) I mentioned Thor only because it bears more than a passing resemblance to my own speakers that I have loved for nearly two decades. The speakers they replaced had SEAS drivers also. And funnily enough the speakers I hope to build will use SEAS drivers.
@@jonathansturm4163 In this day and age 2nd hand reuse is a win-win :) Actually, most of the components in my setup has had previous owners. With patience and luck i landed a very decent rig indeed :) What are you planing to build?
@@jan9 I want to build a Voigt Pipe using SEAS top-of-the-line 8 inch full-range driver, the Exotic. Voigt Pipes combine a back-loaded horn with a transmission line so the combs from each of the two portions of the pipe cancel out. It's largely curiosity that drives me.
Steve I can attest that the Rp-600m + vista spark is one hell of a pairing. My experience with this system’s bass has been of great, great satisfaction. I have tested that it goes down to 40 hz. Sometimes I find myself trying to tame the bass rather that boost it (And I am a campfire vega user) but probably it’s because my listening space is small ,I guess.
@Larry Warner This system images pretty good and it is remarkable in the depth department, especially when the speakers are properly placed (at least 1 meter from the wall). Soundstage is good with sound coming sometimes half a meter beyond the speaker’s sides. Of course, the dac / phono preamp is also playing a role here. (I use chord mojo and schiit mani) I listen to a lot of jazz too. The system is so good with piano trios (I have been obsessively listening to phronesis lately) It can be a little bit harsh with some trumpet recordings. In the end I think of it as neutral and non-forgiving. It won’t put any false warmth when there is none. It won’t make bright tracks sound good, but it would make beautiful records shine and sound pretty human.
Love watching your videos and learning so much from them. Bought my first nice system in the 70’s that consisted of a Sansui receiver, Pioneer turntable and Norman Lab floor standing speakers. No amps. I’ve noticed on most of the videos that amps are quite often included in a system. Do you need an amp if you have a receiver with phono in and your turntable doesn’t have a built in amp. I currently don’t have a system but would love to create a new one.
Excellent recommendations and coverage, Steve. Really helpful. I'd be curious to know how the Klipsch RP600M's would fare driven by the Decware Zen Trioide.
My mom, in 1984, bought a whole new rig for about $500! -Pair EPI TE-100 speakers -JVC cassette deck -Technics dual spindle automatic platter(you could swap out the short manual spindle for an equipped changer spindle). All tied to a Sony STR-AVX 350 receiver, one of the first in its class to provide A/V hookups, albeit stereo only, no surround processing Pretty good sounding back then, even with my Dad's stingy 22AWG speaker wire! lol
Hi Steve, really enjoy your videos! In your list of speakers you didn’t mention Ohm. They have one called the Micro Walsh for $700.00. Does it belong in that list? Tx
What I can't believe is that there's actually a company called "Shiit Audio." I want to buy something from them just so I can tell others it's the shit.
Because of space limitation and budgeting at the time, I built my audio system around 2nd hand Leak Stereo 50 from Gumtree, a new pair of Audioengine A5+'s, some nice 2nd hand silver cables, an old Thorens record deck and a Leak receiver. The speakers had built in 24-bit Dacs and sounded lovely. If you're not new to semi-high-end audio, nothing screams audiophile authority like a valve amp. Warm, gorgeous sounding glowing pieces of kit aren't out of anyone's league if money is tight if you have the nous to shop around.
Great content Steve, however lacking a bit in the source options. For this kind of money you're better off looking for quality second hand gear. You could easily pick up a system worth double your budget.
The thing with 2nd hand gear is it varies so much in price and availability based on your location. I’ve got some awesome 2nd hand gear. Not quite in the same league as what Steve is going through, but more than enough clarity and bass for my listening environment, doesn’t annoy the neighbours too much, it’s cost a fraction of these setups and gives me a huge amount of enjoyment. It has though taken me around 2 years to find the right bits for the right price.
T_Dogg Patience has its rewards in searching for quality pre-owned audio gear. In my experience it always seems that just when I close a deal on an item, soon after a better deal comes up and I start to regret my impatience and wished I could have just waited another week or so. Story of my life. Hahaha
@@Aswaguespack haha. I agree totally. This just happened to me with a rare Aaron preamp that I picked up for less than half it's original price only to see another for even less a week later. I guess you've Just got to be happy with what you have. It's all part of the audiophile journey.
@@tomholton235 it helps if you have a good audiophile knowledge and maintain an eye on new products every now and then. Of course with some brands you can't go wrong regardless of the age as long as they've been well loved.
Love all things audio, but get the most fun from bang for the buck reviews like this one. Of course , for $1,250 I would probably scour Audiogon for hours. Make that days. Weeks. First new system, circa 1974: Hartley Zodiacs. $205 each. Ten inch 2-way bass reflex towers. Sherwood 8900 FM only receiver. 60 watts/ch. $360. Phillip's GA 212 semiautomatic turntable with ADC XLM or Shure Type III cartridge. Less than $ 200. Sound? Amazing. Warm, alive, and killer bass in my dorm room. About $ 800 total. 2nd system about 17 years later: NAD 3025 receiver. $ 360. Sounded like 80-90 watts, rated at about 1/3 of that. Vandersteen 1B speakers.$ 650/pr. 2-way, easy to drive, and very transparent. Imaged well. Linn LP12 with new Linn K9 cartridge, Akito arm. $ 1,700 gently used. Silver speaker cable, $ 5.50 / foot. Total cost: $ 2,760. Other than the bass and dynamics, better in every other way from my college setup.
My current stereo system consists of a pair of Optimus STS 100 speakers,a Optimus Pro SW 12 subwoofer,a Sony STRDH 130 AM/FM receiver, and a Sony DVP SR510H player. Total cost was less than $400. You don't have to break the bank when building a home stereo system. Mine is built totally for my music cd collection. I've ordered a dozen isolation feet for my Optimus STS 100 speakers and Sony DVP SR510H player. They cost a shade over $10. I'm totally happy with my music system. 💿
For using it as a stereo home theater setup, I would assume. Some audiophiles choose to combine their setups for budget purposes, after all. Many would rather have a powerful and detailed 2.0 setup than a cheap or puny sound bar, or simple 5.1 system that can only provide an unrefined "boom", as many htib systems have for the past 20 years or so.
To be more erudite, the hdmi switching means using that receiver for your blu-ray player, cable box, chromcast/Apple TV, game console, etc., with ease.
Since HDMI carries both sound and image - and if you have multiple sources you wanna pipe through the amp, like several games consoles, Blu-ray player, TV-box etc. then you need HDMI switching.
@@jarls5890 exactly. Nothing wrong with wanting hdmi inputs in a receiver, though you'd be hard pressed to a find a nice stereo receiver with it. After all, one of the easiest ways to connect up a cd/dvd-audio/SACD/BAD-Audio player is over hdmi! And since we're speaking budget setups, it makes some sense, since you likely wouldn't be looking for a budget audiophile hi-fi if either a) you didn't care about the sound of your TV setup, or b) already had a $1250+ setup for you tv audio
I have always enjoyed Steve's recommendations even if I disagree with some of them. Steve and the late Julian Hirsch are really the only two audio experts that I felt didn't talk down to you and usually make a good case for their opinions. 👍
I've owned the Outlaw rr2160 since Feb, driving Monitor Audio Silver 300's.. I can confirm everything Steve has said about it.. It is a beast.. you can feel the build quality, i often tell people its a "throw back" to a time when equipment was just built to last when asked to describe it
Same here.
I've had my Outlaw for about the same amount of time.
Love it.
It does just about everything I want a receiver or amplifier to do.
You could get better, but you would have to pay much, much more to get it.
Very happy with this purchase.
Also have a pair of the RP600M's and his review is spot on. Having owned many Klipsch speakers in the past, I kind of knew what to expect with these and was not disappointed. Concur on the weak bottom end, but these are bookshelf speakers and that is to be expected. The magic is in the mid/highs. That horn is amazing.
I have a subwoofer to fill in the rest.
And thanks Steve for these terrific videos.
Too bad it doesn't come with room correction such as Dirac Live or Audessey MultEQ XT32, High Res streaming system, and a wifi control app...
MiniDSP SHD (with Dirac Live 2.0) hooked up to a Crown XLS 1502 Drivecore. :)
Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac - killer Combo for under $1200 ?
.
Crown XLS1502 Drivecore Amplifier
Shiit Saga-S Preamp
Shiit Modi DAC
Elac Debut 2.0 6.2 Speakers
Love to see Audiophiliac test that against other systems for under $1200 !
@Syb 62 Does the Outlaw run 4 ohm speakers well? Does anyone know if the power of the Outlaw is cleaner or as clean as the Yamaha A-S801?
I use to work for Klipsch, was fortunate to know Paul Klipsch personally. When I worked there I thought they were outstanding. I’m proud to say my name is on the back of thousands of them, as I was a speaker tester. It’s good to see them on this list.
That's cool !
It's good to know that
It's nice to meet you .I have a pair of heresies . I bought them in 1977 .and they are still kickin ass . All of my saround sound and subwoofers are klipsch. Wow, it must have been great to work with Paul W. Klipsch 👍
My best friend had a pair of Corner horns and an incredible system. These, to this day is the best sounding speaker I have ever heard!
So,,,,I have a collection of various speakers... what I hope to achieve,,,is the sound of a pin hitting the carpet and not starting a earth quake
I miss your CNET reviews, Steve. But this video is brilliant work. Perhaps the best rundown of inexpensive audio in existence. Good luck in this new venture and thank you for your many excellent contributions to home audio over the years.
This is the installment that I have been waiting for! I love these, they are so useful!
Steve it would be extremely helpful to know the types of music you enjoy and which components and combinations thereof work best with which type of music. I’m sure your subscribers have wide ranging tastes, so this would cap your recommendations off nicely!
Great show and choices, Steve. Keep this 'systems series' coming! Now, may I add a suggestion for one? 'The best headphone systems' for...$500? $300? $600?
This would be :
1. amp (include jds atom, liquid spark, something portable? )
2. Wired headphones (open back, closed back - $100, $200, $300..), planar (H400i), and vc based (be sure to include shp9500 besides the Grados)
3. separate DAC, perhaps with bt 5.0, aptx, aptx HD (or stand-alone bt..)
4. Phono preamp..
This type of system show would really be appreciated by many of us stuck in apartments or with family/wife who give us nothing but grief when we listen to speaker-based systems. Thanks!
Chris
I once went to an audiophiles house. He had an empty room with an armchair at one end and his system at the other, he put a record on and it sounded like the artist was in the room with us. Amazing.
Much of that is in the quality of the recording.
And the psychological effect of entering into a room layed out in that manner and dedicated just to listening.
if not acoustically treated, such empty room must be a acoustic nightmare.
It's all in the armchair....
I had that experience a few years ago. I could draw a diagram and tell you exactly where every artist was standing in the recording. I was blown away.
I have the same music recording at home. Doesn't get me the same result. This is what they mean by detail and soundstage, I guess.
Well done Steve. This kind of info is priceless. Keep these types of vlogs coming. What would $2k, 3k, even 5k get you?
Steve! I've posted this to my FB page. Recently, you helped me pull the trigger on the KEF R3 after what seemed like a year of research. This is a great teaching. And I'd wager the audience for this is huge. Nice!
I'm a first-time visitor, and I immediately subscribed! Thank you for all the info. For what it's worth, I'm still in love with my Definitive Technology BP6 's. I've had them 20 + years.
I have the same set. Plus bp 30 and bp 10 The bp 30 are the best sounding speaker I've still ever heard. Glad to see a older def tec lover. The line up we have are the best they ever made. Sandy Cros def tec inventor built those him self before he sold the company. He also started Polk Audio and now he's doing Golden Ear speakers I believe. Cheers
I could watch this over and over, and probably will, thanks for the audio advice.
I've been amazed at what kind of speakers you can find at yard sales. Especially high quality vintage speakers. JBL studio monitors, ADS, Bose 901s, Altec Lansing studio monitors.
Children liquidating their parents stereos. There was this pathologist in town and I picked up a pair of speakers for $75.
Beautiful ADS, high quality wood cabinets, with spiked stands.
I bet the roughest kind of dinner music that had ever been played through them was Gershwin.
For sure! I found a marantz sr7500 and a pair of matching mach 1's for next to nothing. Not the best but definitely rocks!!
Love all your interesting recommendations! I actually didn't realize how great a $1200 system could be until I recently got my current hifi setup together. Fosi ZA3 amp, Kef q150 and SVS Micro 3000 sub. Phenomenal sound that'll knocked my socks off and never ceases to put a goofy smile on my face.
Wow, you bring me back to when I was 15, and salivating over a Fischer/Scott/Pioneer/Sansui amplifier, Garrard turn table, JBL speakers, 15" subwoofer, ... those were the days !
I was thinking the same thing. In 1972 I logged aver 100 hours in various stereo stores to find my best sound for a budget of $400 dollars. Same cost as a semester's worth of tuition back then. I bought small Advent speakers,Marantz 1060 amp and an AR single speed turntable. It was awesome.
1966, $300 got you a little Fischer 25 watt tube amp, a Dual 1019 changer/turntable and 2 AR 4a sealed speakers. It lasted into the 80's when the speaker cones wore out, probably could've been reconed! $300 was 3 semesters of tuition at my university.
Your comments about the Magnepans are so relatable. My favourite speaker of all time, and still the ones in my main system are the old babies, the MG1C. Have had several large Magneplanars driven by serious amplifiers but the little ones are just sooooo sweet. Have a spare set that I think I paid $300 for, 10 years ago. Such delight.
Sounds like an honest review to me. I haven’t bought audio gear in years because I built a system that I’m quite happy with after years of suffering from constant upgraditis. This video should help those getting into the hobby at a nice price point.
First of all, I would like to say how much I enjoy your videos. I am 65, so you and I go back to the glory days of Hi-F. I have a set of Klipsch RP-600M bookshelf speakers, a Klipsch SPL-100 Sub and a Onkyo TX-8140 stereo receiver that has 80watts/channel. It sounds great with music and movies. Retail was around 1500.00, but I was able to buy the whole system for 900.00. I wonder if you would answer a question for me? I talked to Onkyo about maybe adding another set of bookshelf speakers to the B inputs and then running on A+B to get a little more sound. Onkyo told me that their TX-8140 receiver with 80watts/channel was already under powered for the RP-600M's and that I would eventually burn their amplifier out and damage the speakers because of clipping. I must admit, that seems very strange to me. I can only turn the volume up about half way at the loudest I can stand as it is. Is 80watts/channel really under powered for these speakers? Thanks
I love your recommendations! I've been NAD/ Klipsch fan for years!
Your shirt is perfect for a bank robbery... Its un-describable
''The shirt looked like modern art. Something like one of Picasso's paintings'' -> Busted
Never Mind if wore that shirt for a bank robbery that would be two crimes !
Hahahaha you must be a fellow brit to have thought that one up. Lovely humour. Have yourself a covid free day, Pal 😊
It's his Jazz shirt.
ahahaha
I bought the Cambridge AXA35 and a pair of Dali Oberon 5 (€800 a pair). Later a little DacMagic 100 joined in the party to play FLAC from the PC and CD from the BluRay player. I couldn't be happier for the money spent. I'm also still using a sweet old Denon DCD-685 CD player and a ProJect Debut with Sumiko Pearl cartridge.
This AXA35 + Oberon 5 combination really gets the soul of the music out of the recordings with plenty of detail, punch and very satisfying bass.
Cambridge makes some beautiful amps ..I had the CXA81 for a month ; almost decided on DALIs too before opting for Kef instead. Didn't keep the amp though, too many features I didn't need -- So I went with a $150 Fosi ZA3 that sounded just as good to me. Though maybe my ears aren't sophisticated enough yet to appreciate the subtleties of premium A/B amplification.
What a fantastic rundown. I'd love to see this sort of list become an annual thing here. It's so helpful. Seriously, awesome stuff. I look forward to the day I start to rebuild my system from scratch. Mine is currently based on a Raspberry Pi running a Boss ALLO DAC into an old pair of Genelec 1029a studio monitors - they're small but mighty.
Living in Australia, it absolutely kills me to think of how far your dollar goes towards hifi audio compared with ours. That said, I enjoyed this video very much.
I live in Australia also (assuming Tasmania qualifies ;-). My system is perhaps twice what Steve is recommending here, but then (most of) it's nearly 20 years old. It has cost me less than the price of a cup of coffee per week. When I was first bitten by the bug in the early 1970s my system cost me the best part of three months' pay as a base grade clerk. As Steve says in the intro today, we never had it so good.
Depending on where you live, there's good deals to be had second hand. Especially given how everything seems to have a markup for shipping here if it's new. Or you may have to save up and try some of the local speaker brands if that's something that interests you. I think I'm lucky though that the city I live in is the perfect size for Gumtree etc.
@@RennieAsh I have a pair of Phil Vafiadis's DC-Xs and only rarely do they come up for sale second-hand even though VAF sold tens of thousands. Mine too have my cold, dead fingers award ;-) Much patience called for to acquire the really good stuff. Frustrating when it's pick-up only and the item's in QLD, NSW, or VIC and you live in TAS.
Shipping from overseas has become much cheaper and easier of late. Check out shipporter.com. I expect to save ~$5,000 importing my new cooking range from the UK where they cost ~$5,000. They are well north of $10,000 here in Oz. Living in Tasmania you get used to the "cost of shipping" bullshit and I have saved heaps importing from the mainland. Even Huon Pine is cheaper imported from VIC than it is here in the Huon where it grew!
It depends. Some brands like Rega, Naim, Kef, Focal, Musical fidelity, Exposure, Vincent, B&W, Primaluna cost very similar. Also AU wages are higher. + local brands with usually high quality.
I had a tube pre-amp and 2x 25 watt and 2x 40 watt tube power amps built by Elson Silva in Sydney and they were very reasonably priced. And I had large Timberwolf speakers built by Adelaide Speakers at a very good price.
you should keep a small pic of the speakers up on the screen as you are talking about them...
Good review as always on those speakers. I still love my Elac debut 6.2 that I bought at limit time 1/2 off their regular price. They are still at $299.00 pair at Best Buy at the moment. They just are so nice sounding and easy on the ear for hours of listening. They perform well with any genre of music I listen to. A hand clap to Andrew Jones for his amazing work.
What receiver are you using?
Steve, I am still out there pulling vintage speakers from yard sales and craigslist.
One of my favorites is a pair of Electro-Voice full-range 12 speakers. No tweeters or midrange and the sound is beautiful.
My most unique speaker is a pair of flyable church speakers made by OAB audio. The horns are incredible and the 15" coaxial speaker delivers a crisp mid base. They do however lack a deep base.
Great recommendations Thanks. I know it's been said before, but the law of diminishing returns really applies to audio equipment.
How would you know if you're not testing Expensive equipment yourself?
I paired a Reisong A10 amp ($450) with a pair of Klipsch RB 61 II speakers (discontinued - $300 on E-bay). The Reisong has some rolloff in the treble regions, but with the Klipsch speakers, that's not a bad thing. The Klipsch speakers are very efficient (95db), which the 6 watt/channel Reisong needs. Add a Zen Dac V2 ($159) and a set of Perlesmith speaker stands ($90) and you're right at $1000. You could add an Emotiva Airmotiv SE8 subwoofer ($300) and be just over the $1250 limit.
That is a deceptively amazing and unique setup many would be hard pressed to beat and I bet it would be great for rock n roll and home theater.
@@V1ralB1ack With the subwoofer, it's quite good for movies. Bass is good for bookshelf speakers, but much better with the sub. The Emotiva sub also has a high-pass filter, for bass management. Connect your source/preamp to the line in on the sub, connect the line out to the amp, and the sub strips out the low bass before sending the signal to the amp. This saves the amp from having to waste power on low bass notes.
@@careylymanjones I actually just experienced this at a friend's house and when the bookshelves were handling the full signal it sounded great but when the sub was activated the sound came to life. The highs were better the mids continued to sound perfect and the bass was more full and perfectly integrated. It surprised me
@@V1ralB1ack The Klipsch/A10 pairing is a classic example of choosing components that cover each others' shortcomings. The Klipsch have too much treble, the A10, too little. Put them together and they're just right.
One of the less-frequently mentioned benefits of a subwoofer is that they can expand the soundstage, adding additional depth.
If your friend has EQ capability, have him try about a 3db boost at around 1950 Hz, with a Q of about 1.3. Most Klipsch bookshelf speakers have a bit of a dip around 2000 Hz
@@careylymanjones My friend uses Dirac live through a processor and he said he spent hours and hours fine tuning it with minidsp as well. It really blows me away. All you said is true.
Love this the 2nd time, Steve! ❤️. What about a 2nd video with a $4,000 limit? Then we can get into some high end integrated amps, and some even better speakers!
You're a man after my own heart Steve! Thanks for the heads up on the pre-amp. Just bought 2 Schiit from Amazon. Will compare to Dyna PAS, 1970s Nakamichi, McIntosh C26, Carver, and so on. Hard to know. I go for beauty, a beautiful experience. Like you. That's why you had me with this video at "magic". Magic is what I want from my machines! And I GET it. Just setup a 5.1 all 1960s surround system with Sansui SP-3500 front, 2500 center, 1500 rear and dual subwoofers front corners. First time I ever even liked Sansui loudspeakers. But I just had this feeling it would work magic-wise. Listened to Allman's Eat A Peach, Woodstock, Solti Tannhauser, Alien Resurrection, Gabor Szabo Mizrab, Peter Ivers Knight of the Blue Communion . . . Wow! SO that's what these speakers are good for. Also, in last week rebuilt Criterion 2005 (ear blasters, but great brass), Infinity Qa (polite, too polite, no authority), Dynaco A25s (smooth boom), Mirage SM-3s (Wow!), Design Acoustics D-12s (damn fine staging, actually uncanny, actually I got up to answer the door with Ry Cooder's Bop Till You Drop and Everest 35mm Flamenco, fooled me completely twice), Polk Studio 7s (bachelor pad magic snap, mid-nirvana, weird lovely bass), big Sony APMs (eek! So controlled . . . ), Jensen 25s with Technical Pro Z-15s (BIG BIG BIG), and too many other old retired amps, turntables (Technics 1200MK2, JC Penny special (fantastic table!!!), Denon L72 and, well, almost the entire history of hifi has passed through my hands and ears since this damn pandemic began, even an old acoustic Victrola (the big one, first folded horn!) which actually sounds quite good with a cactus needle (no kidding) and the doors ajar just right . . . Anyway, thanks a million for the heads up on Schiit Audio. They look like the Dyna of 2021 minus owning your own soldering iron. Live long and prosper.
Steve you didn’t give a budget price CD player
Recommendation , Another great video thanks Steve
cambridge and emotiva
I recently got pair of Elacs DBR 62 and NAD D3020 v2, about 430 dollars (350 Euro) for speakers, and 600 dollars (499 euro) for amp. This channel partially helped me to decide for the speakers.
I know its unusual but its for PC. Main reason is for watching newer bluray formats which do have lossless audio, CDs, FLACs and also playing games which actually have really good orchestral score.
Steve, how much can you squeeze in one video. Amazing! You have covered in one video what a magazine tries to cover in one issue! Brilliantly informative and useful.
Thank you for your videos. Having an audiophile setup is a dream of mine and all the info you provide is just great for newbs like me. Someday I will use the info in this video and get there!
Nice list Steve. With some of those speakers you could be in the next level Cambridge amps. You left off the Yamaha 801 from the beginning.
Thanks Steve, I got the Mytek Liberty DAC today after your video on it. I will try it out tomorrow when I find the 1/4" adapter. Oh I ordered it one week ago and it arrived 7 days later from the U.S.A. It arrived as fast or faster that local deliveries in Thailand!
I have bought at least 3 items that Steve has recommended and have never been disappointed.
@@lynnpoole7830 I watch him daily because I trust his opinions. I am not certain I am an audiophile I just love music.
Damn, I just sold my old audio system for $500 and when I bought it in the 90's it cost me over $5000. Things sure have improved price wise.
Prices improved
Quality dropped
Martin Logan's ElectroMotion ESL are about $2500/pr - awesome for the money.
I don't know who you are and I've never seen one of your videos before but I really enjoyed it. I was stuck by your authenticity and passion for the hobby. Keep up the good work although I doubt anything could stop you anyway.
You really out did yourself with this video. It was great, thank you.
The Klipsch floorstanders, mentioned later on-Go Back, GarageWorker! ;-)
@@9147358909 You like them?
Steve, this is one of your best videos. You have covered a ton of stuff and have given the viewer plenty of options. For anyone with this kind of budget this is the video that I recommend they watch. Nicely done!
great, highly specific and informative list!
You’re
The
Greatest, Steve!
I just enjoy watching fully functioning systems go about their chores, delivering fantastic transparent, and illuminating insights of some of the world’s greatest performances.
Thank you 🙏 Steve.
the outlaw and lrs imo are the most exciting on the list.
Enjoying your enthusiasm and sincere reviews Steve. On your recommendation and after extensive reading I have made a UK deal on the purchase of a pair of Magnepan LRS speakers. I have the wonderful IMO Yammy 803D as source and driver and vintage Rotel 965BX CD player plus Yammy CT 1010 tuner alongside so expecting great things.My Clearaudio Emotion with Goldring 1042 MM completes the burgeoning picture.Excited.Can’t wait!. Hoping the report back a magical experience.
Great well needed video fills a void in audiophile world where some audiophile snobs think high price defines audiophile, thank you. I trust your real world reviews.
I have watched many of your videos, liked a lot, never followed you, but this one ended with great reasons to follow you. Playlists for speakers, and other items, interviews it all sounds good. You got me!
Glad to see you mention the mini lore with its 8 inch woofer. That and the iota amp should be sweet.
My thoughts exactly. -a happy IOTAVX SA3 owner
Which would you recommend, I'd like to buy the pro-ject s2 for a full MQA decoding and a 300 amplifier and a 600 usd speaker to listen rock, jazz and classical, whick you recommend me?
@@carloschamba4996 Only you can make the determination depending on what you value in your sound. My shortlist includes the Lore Reference, the Wharfdale Denton 85, and the new Reference B6 coming out from ELAC. One thing for certain, I won't buy anything I can't return with no questions asked.
I love my Iotavx sa3. Great little amp.
The is for the great info Steve! This helps the budget minded listeners who still want quality . Thank you!
Now, that’s what I call a great informative video. Thank you 👍
Good stuff! Most of my gear I bought used, but I am using the Schiit Mani phono stage connected to a Technics SL 1100a w/Nagaoka MP 150 cart. Sounds superb. Thanks for all your info with these videos.
U can tell based on he's sence of fashion that were dealing here with an 100 precent expert geek audiophile
Pimpin ain't easy.
lol kid u gotta get past the nike shirt and cap backwards. thats the meaning of a true dork. a lot of people WITH fashion sense would rock this shirt.
@@dvtc8u the difference is that you can tell a girl once told him it looked good on him (in the late 70's) and hes been rocking it ever since....
That's funny
and maybe "he's sence" of fashion is better than "he's sence" of spelling and writing.
Nice wrap up of options, thanks for the video. I was listening in on my Magni/Modi 2 combo and Sennheiser 650s. With young twins sleeping, I can't drive any big speakers these days :)
Loud shirt, but does not require a lot of power.
lol
I'd say it's an 80s classic.
It's called sensitivity, which you don't seem to have :)
who cares about his shirt. trolls will be trolls.
Its an "im a musician" shirt, so maybe this guy os one of those rare audiophiles who actually cares about music
Some excellent choices! I have a budget system I put together about a decade ago consisting of "refurb" equipment (they were New In Box with full warranties and free shipping) from Harman's eBay store. It consists of an HK3490 stereo receiver for $99, an HK DVD48 DVD/CD for $37, a pair of Infinity Primus 362 floorstanders for $200, and a wonky Infinity Primus PS210 subwoofer for $103 (I only used it for occasional movies). In my living room/listening room, in my Brooklyn apartment, it's a super system for under $500 all in. I recently added a Etekcity Unify bluetooth receiver for about $25 to bring it up to date.
Funny you mentioned the HK3490. I saved up the summer before my senior year of college and purchased a refurbished 3390. Served me well through a lot of music and movies for seven years before I sold it to upgrade to a more modern Yamaha. I had my 3390 paired with Sony SS-B3000s that I still use, but am upgrading this week to RP-280Fs and a 440C center, along with a JBL sub that I’ve had for two years. Feels a little sad moving completely away from my “first” sound system.
@@brandonlesco8738 Those HK stereo receivers were beasts, but have one of the very worst remotes ever designed! Lol. I'm in my 50s, so my first system (a terrible Marantz "Gold Series" setup circa 1983?) is long gone. Congratulations on the new gear! Enjoy it!
@@MrChristopherMolloy Uggh, the remote! Horrible. But the 3390 still served me well for over seven years, and is now being enjoyed by someone else. Honestly, I would have never upgraded except I was having such a difficult time hearing dialogue that I needed the center channel option, hence the Yamaha upgrade. I added a Polk center channel I got on sale, but it sounded noticeably different my Sony speakers. Excited to have a matching 3.1 channel system for movies and television. Not really a surround guy! Putting my Sony SS-B3000s in a spare room for music :)
I’m still rockin the Fisher 400 with Dynaco A25s and a Dual1229 turntable
What a great sound! Still use A25s sometimes. Perfect mids for jazz.
Steve, great review! I’m in the market now for replacement gear. I’m sold on RR2160 but you have given me additional ideas to think about. Thank You!
The RR2160 is on the way!
How did you like it?
@@pauljames1586love it! It’s a beast.
@@pauljames1586 it’s awesome!
@ love it!
Steve! This is my new favorite. Great video! Folks you can’t go wrong with anything on this list, but listen to every word. When he says the ELAC UB5s need power, he is not kidding and the Maggie’s need to be way out in the room to do what they do.
Thanks for this. I've put off getting a system for years but I'm thinking it's now time.
I have emotiva T2s, B1s, C2, SVS PB12-NSD, Crown XLS1002, and Denon receiver. BANGS.
Pretty sure you went over the budget...
@@DanKaschel On the Crown alone almost.
I look weird with bangs.
That sounds like an absolute dog shit system tbh
This was a great video & I'd love to see the Steve do this at several other price points - say, $2500 and $5000. A multi-channel post like this would be great too!
Thanks for recommending amps that pair well with speakers. Invaluable info for guys like me who are ordering blind off the internet. A sincere thanks for giving me the details I want to know.
Check my post all I do is review specifications online I brought the klipsh r820f a bit pricey no on hand display specifications only.... . Wow they blew me away and I've been into audio since the eight track...but...I will day get an equalizer if you want to hear the best of the best and you can tune it to your environment..... superb and sick everyone who visits I cant wsi9to give a demo and.....I cant turn it up halfway that loud and gets clearer with more volume..
Yamaha aventage 880 and denon x3500h have good room correction software. I got the Yamaha for slightly under $600 on Amazon and the denon for $533 on eBay.
I think you could pair them with just about anything decent out (Polk, elac, Klipsch, etc) and then use the room correction. I have the Klipsch 280f bi-amped and they have plenty of power.
As the proud new owner of a pair of LRS’s just picked up after a nearly four month wait I can verify the wait was well worth it! I can also verify that these speakers need and deserve all the clean power you can provide. Most stereo receivers just do not have the grunt to bring these to their potential. I would recommend an amp that can output 200 watts or better into four ohms. I’ve only had them for two days so still experimenting but as Steve mentioned they need to be away from the back walls 3-4 ft minimum. As always, the sweet spot yields the best soundstage and so far, for me, performance drops noticeably to either side and not the ear opening experience that the sweet spot is. If you have only heard dipoles in a showroom you haven’t heard them at their best and that is in your own home!
This is the best free sermon on value for money quality audio. Thank you 🙏
I'm so glad you guys are doing this a lot of us never stopped looking for " the best"
I haven’t tested myself the rest of the recommended gear, however I do have the Shiit mani phono preamp and it is absolutely amazing for the price. Very highly recommended
I love Steve for making me love my KEF LS50 speakers even more. It's definitely nice to have one of your choices validated by him. They are, without question, fine speakers.
Thanks for watching
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac pleasure
Lepai 2020a , pioneer andrew jones, polk or similar small sub, use your phone or pc as the source. Excellent if not exceptional sound , around 225 dollars new.
Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac: I'm putting together an audio system to replace the one I lost in Hurrican Katrina. I had a pair of TDL 0.5 Studio Monitors driven by a 125 watt per channel Denon reciever that had (believe it or not) a class A amp in it, and a Nad CD deck (I don't remember the model number but it was great).
I've never heard any other system that sounded as good; base was precise and accurate-beyond-belief, midrage was clear and perfectly detailed, and high frequencies were crystal, shimmering, and profoundly realistic - not overpowering (a clash of symbols sounded exactly like a cash of real symbols).
It was one of those systems which, when you play a CD on it, you hear parts of the music that you hadn't heard before.
The components I'm putting together now include a pair of used TDL RTL (Reference Transmission Line?) 1 speakers (I've yet to try them out and, if they don't sound good enough, I will return them and replace them with a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 Anniversary speakers), a Yamaha A-S501 integrate amplifier, and a Yamaha CD-C600 CD changer.
Please let me know what you think of my choices; any suggestions and changes would be very much appreciated.
Wasn't the 'rock' music of the 60's and early 70's remarkable?
The music of the different groups was so unique, creative, and inmaginative; you could never mistake the sound/music of one group for that of another.
Some of the songs even had a message; in one of Jethro Tull's songs Ian Anderson sang, "......and everyday - has the same old way - of giving me too much to do...".
And then there wa that line from one of The Moody Blues' s songs: "Live hand in hand - and together we'll stand - on the threshold of a dream".
I like jazz and classical too.
Have you ever heard Ralph Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending?
Or Weather Report's Nubian Sundance?
Or Miles Davis's album Kind of Blue?
I have a Denon PMA 2000 and now I added the Schiit Mani, it transferred my system to another level, this little cheap beast is the best piece ever, for the price it is a steal.
First I love these Schiit Mani preamps, but they have what seems to be a common issue that is very easy to fix. I bought 6 of these a while back after trying one on Steve's advice. My helpful hint: 3 of the 6 sounded terrible when I unboxed them. One even had a dead channel with lots of crackling. All this was fixed by moving the switches on the bottom back and forth a few times. The problem was that the switches were not thrown all the way; they were in the middle in a dead or distortion area. And the contact was bad. But once I clicked them back and forth a few times and made sure they were fully clicked into position all 6 sounded fantastic! Hey, this is a $130 dollar phono preamp. And I am used to clean Dyna tube preamps and lots of others that are generally around $500 to $1500. But at $130 this Schiit is simply unbeatable. Used with Shure V15 III/V15II Improved/V15V with a Shibata. AT-2214 with hyper elliptical. Grados, Empires, Denon 103 moving coil, AT95 with Shibata, and lots of others including Natural Linear Contact styli on AT 1200 Mk2, Denon L72, Philips 777, Lenco L75, and a dozen others. Love analogue. It's like fine wine and no headaches the next morning! Rock, jazz, classical, lots of direct-to-disc-- OK. This preamp compares well to Macs and Nakamichi preamps that sell for $1000+. And, frankly, I heard things in the Jam on the Allman Bros Eat a Peach that I just did not think were there to be heard. I was wrong. Best damn budget preamp I ever enjoyed. If you are like me and need lots of preamps for a whole room full of turntables, this will fill the room at less than the cost of one regular audiophile phono preamp. It is not consistently magical, but it has moments! And for $130, wow!
Great video! I always feel better informed watching your videos! Thanks please keep up the good work!
Never see him and Bill Nye in same room at same time.
I have a NAD D 3045 and ELAC UB5 which is a sweet setup. The NAD is extremely versatile with HDMI input, MQA and DSD capable USB DAC built in, phono stage, subwoofer output with crossover options and the power to drive the ELAC’s. Only the remote is kinda funny but you have the options to teach buttons of another remote (like from your TV) for volume/mute and ON. Sadly not the source select.
11:45 - That Vista Audio looks like a hobby project from the 50's :)
The font is like Vincent...
@@michaelg7904 Vincent?
thank you for your recommendation. the price range is really really awesome. It really goes out to most people. Thank you Steve! This episode got me!
Anyone else reminded of geddy lee? He even kinda sounds like him.
Nah, it’s Steve Vai just back from his trip to 2065.
I could sit with this guy all day and listen to him talk abbot components
Thannks for great vid. Can we expect 2k or 2,5k range too?
Great to see someone with an office just as tidy as mine ;)
Useful content for those on a realistic budget :)
Maybe I missed it. Did you talk later about the Yamaha 801? Also, what was the component that could be used instead of a subwoofer to augment bass?
I missed it the first time too, it is the Klipsch RP 5000F, as he was talking about the Klipsch RP 600M specifically
@@AhmadHishamPlus That makes sense. Thanks!
Thanks Steve, this puts things in perspective. Prices does vary A LOT depending on where we live.
In Norway a pair of Klipsch RP 600M will set you back a whopping $890!
But the NAD C316BEEv2 can be yours, shipping included for only $333
OTOH you're probably not far from SEAS. They make really excellent drivers and no doubt there are local speaker mfrs using them. Or you could build your own; THOR for example :-)
@@jonathansturm4163 For sure! SEAS, Scan-Speak, Peerless and more, lots of options for DIY. I actually researched the Thor kit when looking for new speakers, it is around $1800 ex shipping, i ended up with something completely different :)
The 2nd hand market is like a candy store over here :) So it is possible to get pretty decent stuff without breaking the bank.
@@jan9 So Thor is expensive even over there. Glad you have more affordable alternatives :-) I mentioned Thor only because it bears more than a passing resemblance to my own speakers that I have loved for nearly two decades. The speakers they replaced had SEAS drivers also. And funnily enough the speakers I hope to build will use SEAS drivers.
@@jonathansturm4163 In this day and age 2nd hand reuse is a win-win :) Actually, most of the components in my setup has had previous owners. With patience and luck i landed a very decent rig indeed :) What are you planing to build?
@@jan9 I want to build a Voigt Pipe using SEAS top-of-the-line 8 inch full-range driver, the Exotic. Voigt Pipes combine a back-loaded horn with a transmission line so the combs from each of the two portions of the pipe cancel out. It's largely curiosity that drives me.
Steve I can attest that the Rp-600m + vista spark is one hell of a pairing. My experience with this system’s bass has been of great, great satisfaction. I have tested that it goes down to 40 hz. Sometimes I find myself trying to tame the bass rather that boost it (And I am a campfire vega user) but probably it’s because my listening space is small ,I guess.
@Larry Warner This system images pretty good and it is remarkable in the depth department, especially when the speakers are properly placed (at least 1 meter from the wall). Soundstage is good with sound coming sometimes half a meter beyond the speaker’s sides. Of course, the dac / phono preamp is also playing a role here. (I use chord mojo and schiit mani)
I listen to a lot of jazz too. The system is so good with piano trios (I have been obsessively listening to phronesis lately) It can be a little bit harsh with some trumpet recordings. In the end I think of it as neutral and non-forgiving. It won’t put any false warmth when there is none. It won’t make bright tracks sound good, but it would make beautiful records shine and sound pretty human.
Love watching your videos and learning so much from them. Bought my first nice system in the 70’s that consisted of a Sansui receiver, Pioneer turntable and Norman Lab floor standing speakers. No amps. I’ve noticed on most of the videos that amps are quite often included in a system. Do you need an amp if you have a receiver with phono in and your turntable doesn’t have a built in amp. I currently don’t have a system but would love to create a new one.
You should put links to the products on Amazon so that you can get paid when people buy based on your recommendations.
Excellent recommendations and coverage, Steve. Really helpful. I'd be curious to know how the Klipsch RP600M's would fare driven by the Decware Zen Trioide.
I'd love to see this kind of video on desktop audio for use with a PC.
My mom, in 1984, bought a whole new rig for about $500!
-Pair EPI TE-100 speakers
-JVC cassette deck
-Technics dual spindle automatic platter(you could swap out the short manual spindle for an equipped changer spindle).
All tied to a Sony STR-AVX 350 receiver, one of the first in its class to provide A/V hookups, albeit stereo only, no surround processing
Pretty good sounding back then, even with my Dad's stingy 22AWG speaker wire! lol
Hi Steve, really enjoy your videos! In your list of speakers you didn’t mention Ohm. They have one called the Micro Walsh for $700.00. Does it belong in that list? Tx
Very nice. I recently picked up the Dennon dp 300f fully automatic turntable and upgraded the cartridge and really like it.
What I can't believe is that there's actually a company called "Shiit Audio." I want to buy something from them just so I can tell others it's the shit.
"Turn them Shiits up!"
Dont buy that shiit. Every single item they sell is a total piece of shiit.
Seriously, good company, though.
If you can't spell it, don't mock it.
@@bobechs7234 You are correct sir. My mistake.
I have a Schiit DAC and it is the shit
Because of space limitation and budgeting at the time, I built my audio system around 2nd hand Leak Stereo 50 from Gumtree, a new pair of Audioengine A5+'s, some nice 2nd hand silver cables, an old Thorens record deck and a Leak receiver. The speakers had built in 24-bit Dacs and sounded lovely. If you're not new to semi-high-end audio, nothing screams audiophile authority like a valve amp. Warm, gorgeous sounding glowing pieces of kit aren't out of anyone's league if money is tight if you have the nous to shop around.
Interesting. I was surprised you did not mention an Rega products , e.g. the Brio amp or the P1 turntable: or are these more expensive in the US?
Rega Brio is $995 in the US.
Great review with just right level of info on why each one is good and price point. no blah blah. Subscribed. Thank you.
Great content Steve, however lacking a bit in the source options. For this kind of money you're better off looking for quality second hand gear. You could easily pick up a system worth double your budget.
James Wright I think this could be a topic for Steve to do a follow up Presentation on. Good idea 💡
The thing with 2nd hand gear is it varies so much in price and availability based on your location. I’ve got some awesome 2nd hand gear. Not quite in the same league as what Steve is going through, but more than enough clarity and bass for my listening environment, doesn’t annoy the neighbours too much, it’s cost a fraction of these setups and gives me a huge amount of enjoyment. It has though taken me around 2 years to find the right bits for the right price.
T_Dogg Patience has its rewards in searching for quality pre-owned audio gear. In my experience it always seems that just when I close a deal on an item, soon after a better deal comes up and I start to regret my impatience and wished I could have just waited another week or so. Story of my life. Hahaha
@@Aswaguespack haha. I agree totally. This just happened to me with a rare Aaron preamp that I picked up for less than half it's original price only to see another for even less a week later. I guess you've Just got to be happy with what you have. It's all part of the audiophile journey.
@@tomholton235 it helps if you have a good audiophile knowledge and maintain an eye on new products every now and then. Of course with some brands you can't go wrong regardless of the age as long as they've been well loved.
Love all things audio, but get the most fun from bang for the buck reviews like this one. Of course , for $1,250 I would probably scour Audiogon for hours. Make that days. Weeks.
First new system, circa 1974:
Hartley Zodiacs. $205 each. Ten inch 2-way bass reflex towers. Sherwood 8900 FM only receiver. 60 watts/ch. $360. Phillip's GA 212 semiautomatic turntable with ADC XLM or Shure Type III cartridge. Less than $ 200.
Sound? Amazing. Warm, alive, and killer bass in my dorm room. About $ 800 total.
2nd system about 17 years later: NAD 3025 receiver. $ 360.
Sounded like 80-90 watts, rated at about 1/3 of that. Vandersteen 1B speakers.$ 650/pr. 2-way, easy to drive, and very transparent. Imaged well. Linn LP12 with new Linn K9 cartridge, Akito arm. $ 1,700 gently used.
Silver speaker cable, $ 5.50 / foot. Total cost: $ 2,760. Other than the bass and dynamics, better in every other way from my college setup.
My current stereo system consists of a pair of Optimus STS 100 speakers,a Optimus Pro SW 12 subwoofer,a Sony STRDH 130 AM/FM receiver, and a Sony DVP SR510H player. Total cost was less than $400. You don't have to break the bank when building a home stereo system. Mine is built totally for my music cd collection. I've ordered a dozen isolation feet for my Optimus STS 100 speakers and Sony DVP SR510H player. They cost a shade over $10. I'm totally happy with my music system. 💿
Would someone explain what the use/benefit of "HDMI switching" is? Thank you.
For using it as a stereo home theater setup, I would assume. Some audiophiles choose to combine their setups for budget purposes, after all. Many would rather have a powerful and detailed 2.0 setup than a cheap or puny sound bar, or simple 5.1 system that can only provide an unrefined "boom", as many htib systems have for the past 20 years or so.
HDMI switching is for the Home Theatre crowd.
If you only want great two-channel sound, stay away!
To be more erudite, the hdmi switching means using that receiver for your blu-ray player, cable box, chromcast/Apple TV, game console, etc., with ease.
Since HDMI carries both sound and image - and if you have multiple sources you wanna pipe through the amp, like several games consoles, Blu-ray player, TV-box etc. then you need HDMI switching.
@@jarls5890 exactly. Nothing wrong with wanting hdmi inputs in a receiver, though you'd be hard pressed to a find a nice stereo receiver with it. After all, one of the easiest ways to connect up a cd/dvd-audio/SACD/BAD-Audio player is over hdmi! And since we're speaking budget setups, it makes some sense, since you likely wouldn't be looking for a budget audiophile hi-fi if either a) you didn't care about the sound of your TV setup, or b) already had a $1250+ setup for you tv audio
Awesome video! He is so good at this: piecing together great affordable systems.
I have always enjoyed Steve's recommendations even if I disagree with some of them.
Steve and the late Julian Hirsch are really the only two audio experts that I felt didn't talk down to you and usually make a good case for their opinions.
👍
Great job, Steve. Thanks for all you do.
Looks like I'm an audiophile again.
KEF Q350 + Onkyo a-9010 (with DAC) user here. Perfect combo !