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To: gzubeck who wrote (223378)	1/16/2007 7:20:30 PM
From: bobs10	Respond to of 275872

You: The source signal is the most important item...if the recording sucks every thing else down the chain is horrible... me: No argument there. you: The amplification is important because if your speakers don't receive enough clean power the music can sound congested and less open...Tube amplifiers have better sounding distortion harmonics but are a pain in the ass to keep in top form and sound degrades as the tubes degrade (not to mention higher power consumption)...tube distortion levels decrease as you go into higher frequencies vs solid state which sounds better into lower frequencies... the new class d amplifiers if engineered correctly are suppose to give you the best of all world's... me: Well, I'm not going to argue with you about tubes vs solid state, I've been there too many times and it all comes down to personal tastes. I've heard the same thing about the new "D" amplifiers, but I doubt my tin ear will be able to tell much difference. you: audio connectors do not have to be big money as they are a ripoff...pure copper with no oxidation is the best (for the money) and maybe gold electroplating to prevent oxidation on the connectors...Oxidization will make the signal sound muddy... me: The nice thing about digital, particularly when it comes to cabling is that the old analog rules get thrown out of the window. With the digital world you either get the 1/0 or you don't, no attenuation to worry about. I really can't understand why people buy high end cabling for digital systems, especially given the way the cost of wire has gone up so much with increased commodity prices. Speaker wireing needs to be of the right size for the run, but expensive HDMI wiring is a waste of money. you: audio connectors do not have to be big money as they are a ripoff...pure copper with no oxidation is the best (for the money) and maybe gold electroplating to prevent oxidation on the connectors...Oxidization will make the signal sound muddy... me: yeah, I've noticed that even some lower-end speakers are now coming with gold plated posts. Again that's something each person will have to decide on. you: The power source is also one of the most important things especially when designing high quality components...dirty unstable power sources cause major problems in sound quality and that is part of high end sound product designs... me: Yeah, I've been hearing that for years, but personally I've never heard anything that I could attribute to power problems. Maybe I just have exceptionally clean power since I've never done anything to clean it up and things still sound fine. you: The new thing on the block is the pure digital signal is maintained until the very end of the chain where everything eventually has to go analog...you see this with Harmon Kardon Digital receivers...Once you go analog the sound begins to degrade through every part it goes through...AMD live I think is using similar technology as Harmon Kardon... me: Yeah, I been reading lots of good things about the new Harmon Kardon. Generally it's one of the better receivers on the market for the money, no matter what the price range.

To: gzubeck who wrote (223378)	1/17/2007 2:12:19 AM
From: pgerassi	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 275872

Dear Gzubeck: I have good high quality audio gear. I have seen and listened to great musicians and recorded them. The best thing in any system is the speakers. They are the hardest to get right and after a certain point, more money doesn't get much and sometimes reduces the quality of the output. The harder end for speakers is the low end. That is what takes the power. Great sounding mid range and tweeters are relatively cheap compared to the bass. The next best thing is the sound sources. Each particular type has its problems. I like most don't like vinyl. The pickups carry noise and static and generally don't deliver a clean signal. Those that do are prone to quick degradation of the source, the vinyl record. There are the laser class pickups, but they are too expensive except for the deepest pockets. Tape can be good, but of those types open reel gives the best quality and is quite good at the very low end. Best is the digital sources, CD, DAT and higher. They have good response, great dynamic range and have no degradation over time. The quality of the recording can make even the best sources sound bad. With the inherent quality of digital, the quality of the result is typically lowered to that of the original. Lastly is the stuff between. Here relatively cheap can get you excellent quality. Things to look for are signal to noise ratio, intermodulation distortion, frequency response (both flatness and -3dB frequencies) and the ability of the power amp to ignore output impedence as most good and great speakers vary in that over the frequency curve which could cause distortions. Only after you have the rest should you look at output power at 0.1%THD or better. My setup is designed with these points in mind. The speakers are Klipsch Forte IIs with an efficiency of 99dB SPL per watt at 1 meter and a +-3dB frequency response of 32Hz to 20KHz with a horn loaded midrange and tweeter. A few watts from the amp with these and the neighbors call on me to be turn it way down. They were $1500 when I bought them 15 years ago. A Klipsch KV3 Center channel and a pair of Boston Acoustics bookshelfs for surround sound (I forget the exact model number). The AV reciever is the NAD T743 5x50W. I bought it refurbished for $400. It has loads of digital and analog inputs and outputs. Most of the time its my progressive DVD player, Pioneer LaserDisc (I have a very large collection of LDs), HDTV/SDTV tuner, radio and my PC. I do like the ability to watch the TV and listen to the radio announcers (they are much better than most of the lousy sportscasters) when I watch the Packers, Badgers, Bucks and Brewers. I have an all digital setup for my PC and I won't go back to analog there, if I can help it. I do watch most of my TV there though as the picture on my CRT is far better than the TV. To keep the neighbors from being irate, I use the headphones a lot during the wee hours. For that I use the Koss PortaPros on the go and at work. It gets 15-25K at 101dB SPL at 1mW at 60 ohms impedence (I have two, one bought at $33 and one at $42). For the home, I use Koss Pro/AAA ($79). It gets 10-25K at 90dB SPL at 1mW and 250 ohms impedence. These have the best bass and sound for the money and they have lifetime free replacement (ship the offending pair in and you get brand new one shipped back). koss.com koss.com^fs^PRO4AAAT klipsch.com klipsch.com nadelectronics.com I hope this helps. Pete