Audiophiles hifi appreciation thread old and new

Been thinking about getting the Yamaha R-N500 receiver version of this as I like the idea of having Airplay too. Or is this just a waste of time / rubbish?

@chrisbmx @chalfie I've got a Yamaha AS500 with a Cambridge DACMagic100, Rega RP1 and an old pair of KEF speakers (not sure what model). Really pleased for the money - but things can sound a little neutral through the DAC.

Apparently the R-N500 can't connect by wifi to a network without an adapter.
I want the moon on a stick.

Yamaha R-N500>

It would certainly be a solid option. The wi-fi is not built in though - you'll need an adapter or ethernet cable connection.

Sound wise, it would be up to the usual Yamaha standard. The DAC is a Texas instruments, so high quality. If you use apple iStuff it's be easy to control with iTunes etc. once your networked.

Does your DAC have a gain setting? On my little Fiio DAC it sounds really flat when there's 0dB gain - add +6dB and it sounds way better - not just louder, but more defined and punchy.

Cheers for the replies and suggestions chaps. Think the Yamaha AS500 is the best option for hassle free clean sound, and acceptable aesthetics.

http://www.creative-audio.co.uk/staffMemo.php?&HOTDEAL2=890453567899221174482395706320455196&VISIBLE=yes

Creative audio are running some deals on the Yamaha amps at the minute.

£285 is a great deal, available in silver too. More connections, more power - future proofing!

Although the AS301 may be enough for Chris' needs.

That looks fairly spendy still. Could I get a 5.1 amp and a sub and use my speakers? I'm guessing that would work.

Or are my speakers not worth the bother?

Nurse - I'm sounding like a rep for richer sounds but they do have decent packages.

Just browse this:
http://www.richersounds.com/products/home-cinema/home-cinema-separates/home-cinema-systems

For £200 you'll have a far superior setup compared to anything you can bodge with the old PC speakers.

Otherwise you will need to get an amp with separate channel pre-outs and adapters that go from Phono to 3.5mm stereo (for each channel) The cabling alone will cost about £40 -£60

The speakers probably are only good for >120hz (possibly even higher) whereas most sub's will have a crossover at more like 50/60hz or so.

Fair enough, that £200 setup seems more than enough for my needs. I better put some money together.

If you're gonna spend£200, you may as well spend £400.
And if you're gonna spend £400.....

Yeah it's total overkill unless you need the extra features (zone 2 audio, 2x hdmi out, etc).
The package option(s) are a good option if the pc speakers aren't great though.

No gain unfortunately - but I think it might have something to do with the source, sounds pretty flat through my PC, but strangely much better through my Sony Z3 phone.

Ahh, that's not gain - what your DAC is doing is producing the music more faithfully ie: reproducing the originally recorded signal. Although some DACs are known for being too analytical and cold. It's partly the reason why the vague and warm sounds of analogue are so appealing.

The sony Z3 will have all kinds of hardware and firmware based settings that affect sound. Could almost guarantee there's bass enhancement built in along with high gain.

I wouldn't worry about it though, it's an expensive rabbit hole to go down if you start listening too hard.

Do you absolutely need surround? I'm not a snob when it comes to sound gear but cheap surround is always inferior to quality stereo. I gave away/sold all my home theatre stuff ages ago and have used stereo setups since. So much better. And you get a capable music system as well.

My current set-up is very budget, yet totally acceptable in a small living room environment.
I use a small Phillips micro system stereo as the sound for my TV - I think it was £90 from argos. It has a sound quality that beats many package cinema systems.

I've already given up.

Fuck, perfect.

Edit: silver sold out.

@NurseHolliday, I just used the speakers I had in my house, plus a new av amp to create a 4.0 surround sound system, my first tannoy speakers, at the front and some quad book shelf speakers at the rear to create it, sounds great, though I do have a hankering for a sub woofer, but my neighbours below would hate me for it.

Probably not one for the audiophiles but does anyone here have a portable record player they don't need anymore? If so could you drop me a PM? For cash obvz. Ta.

Anyone interested in a set of Rogers LS4a speakers?

Perfect working order, great sounding speakers. Cabs have some markings and are by no means mint but are perfectly presentable.

Recently replaced them with some jbl control ones (I know I know) which are more than enough for my one bed flat.

Happy to let them go for £50 collection from Lewisham

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I will take those, I live in SE10 so can collect this weekend?

i'll take reserve dibs