Hello all,
Long time Stereophile subscriber and reader, posting in these forums for the first time. I grew up listening to my parent's and uncle's stereo systems, loving the music more than how/what it was being played on. Ultimately, in my teens during the 80's, I became engrossed with mobile hi-fi...that is, aftermarket car stereos with component speaker set-ups, amps and equalization. I was also an early computer geek from the C-64 and Apple II days, so as I moved into adulthood, music existed for me on hard drives, Win Amp and then the very first iPods. Now, in my 40's, I have several pairs of high-end headphones, a USB DAC to stream/de-code my hi-res music files to active speakers and a self-built music PC-server to store and play it all from.
But now, I want to go analog. I want to get the music I have out from inside my head and into free space using something other than the self-powered/Bluetooth speakers I've been using. I want to get a turntable to play the vintage and new vinyl that I've suddenly found myself buying. I want relive my youth where "putting the needle on the record" was more than a song lyric, so to speak. I've now narrowed my system builds to two potential set-ups:
From Pro-Ject:
- Pro-Ject RM1 Carbon Turntable w/Sumiko Pearl cartridge
- Pro-Ject CD Box S cd player
- Pro-Ject MaiA integrated amp
or, from music hall:
- music hall Ikura turntable w/Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge
- music hall c-dac 15.3 CD-player & DAC
- music hall a15.3 integrated amp
Included in the prices below for both builds are:
- Kimber Kable PBJ RCA analog interconnects (2-sets)
- Kimber Kable B Bus USB cable
- Kimber Kable V21 composite digital interconnect
- Kimber Kable 4TC speaker wire (Stereo set, 5ft, SPD termination)
Price for the Pro-Ject build: $1,882
Price for the music hall build: $2,828
As I have a modest listening area, speaker selection will either be Focal's Chorus 806V bookshelf or Audience's The One mini monitor; they have not been factored into the above price totals.
So, the question dear reader is: Is the music hall build a $1000 better, given that I'm at a relatively modest budget level?
Thanks for reading and for any thoughts or input!
Arvin
Hello all,
Long time Stereophile subscriber and reader, posting in these forums for the first time. I grew up listening to my parent's and uncle's stereo systems, loving the music more than how/what it was being played on. Ultimately, in my teens during the 80's, I became engrossed with mobile hi-fi...that is, aftermarket car stereos with component speaker set-ups, amps and equalization. I was also an early computer geek from the C-64 and Apple II days, so as I moved into adulthood, music existed for me on hard drives, Win Amp and then the very first iPods. Now, in my 40's, I have several pairs of high-end headphones, a USB DAC to stream/de-code my hi-res music files to active speakers and a self-built music PC-server to store and play it all from.
But now, I want to go analog. I want to get the music I have out from inside my head and into free space using something other than the self-powered/Bluetooth speakers I've been using. I want to get a turntable to play the vintage and new vinyl that I've suddenly found myself buying. I want relive my youth where "putting the needle on the record" was more than a song lyric, so to speak. I've now narrowed my system builds to two potential set-ups:
From Pro-Ject:
- Pro-Ject RM1 Carbon Turntable w/Sumiko Pearl cartridge
- Pro-Ject CD Box S cd player
- Pro-Ject MaiA integrated amp
or, from music hall:
- music hall Ikura turntable w/Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge
- music hall c-dac 15.3 CD-player & DAC
- music hall a15.3 integrated amp
Included in the prices below for both builds are:
- Kimber Kable PBJ RCA analog interconnects (2-sets)
- Kimber Kable B Bus USB cable
- Kimber Kable V21 composite digital interconnect
- Kimber Kable 4TC speaker wire (Stereo set, 5ft, SPD termination)
Price for the Pro-Ject build: $1,882
Price for the music hall build: $2,828
As I have a modest listening area, speaker selection will either be Focal's Chorus 806V bookshelf or Audience's The One mini monitor; they have not been factored into the above price totals.
So, the question dear reader is: Is the music hall build a $1000 better, given that I'm at a relatively modest budget level?
Thanks for reading and for any thoughts or input!
Arvin