Have your say & ask the experts

Hi, all. First time posting here.

During the last few months I've realised how much I miss listening to music through a proper hi fi system. Ever since I moved from home (and dads hi fi) in 97 I've listened to music through either a micro system or mp3 players. I've looked around to see what's up and down in the hi-fi world and have decided to get myself an amp, standmount speakers - given the fact that my living room is not that big, and lastly a Squeezebox Duet and a DAC. Although I exclusively use Apple stuff at home and the Apple TV could've been more familiar for me I argued that the Squeezebox may be the safe bet in terms of the formats it supports.

I'm gonna split up my acquisitions in two in order to keep the expense/month lowish. Now, I don't have the opportunity to go rounds and demo amps and speakers in the stores here in Nuuk, Greenland. The shops sell pretty much exclusively what WHF terms and style-speaker packages and reciever-speaker packages, so I'm gonna rely on reviews on the net and what the shops in Denmark (that can ship to greenland) have to offer.

My plan so far:

purchase A:

Amp: NAD C326BEE / CA Azur 650A (music taste is very varied, but a quick glance at my last.fm account shows that I primarily listen to rock and some singer-songwriter stuff. anything any of these amps are better at?)

Squeezebox Duet

purchase B: 

Speakers: B&W 685 

DAC: CA Dacmagic (the only dac that's available to me up here I think) 

As said I'm on a microsystem atm. A Sony CMT-BX3. Isn't it better to do purchase A first so I can use its speakers with the amp I'll eventually get rather than using the B&W's with the micro amp?

I've got my music ripped in Apple lossless and they are on an external hdd. Will the Squeezebox be able to play them in such setup or do I need an actual NAS drive (or is this just a term used for a drive connected to the router)? 

Hi

I'd be tempted to buy the amp and speakers at the same time as you can just run a cable from your laptop/computer. It might also mean you end up not buying a dac; I'm perfectly happy with the sound from my airport express into an amp with out a dac.

I can't advise on the kit since I've only heard nad and not the ca stuff. I did
like the c320bee and c350 though.

Ed

That's actually a good idea as there's that much difference between the speakers and the squeezebox in price.

anyone with an answer in regards to :

"Will the Squeezebox be able to play them in such setup or do I need an
actual NAS drive (or is this just a term used for a drive connected to
the router)? "

skipped by a local retailer yesterday and they happen to have some dali speakers. lektor models 1, 2 and 6.

Was lucky enough to have a listen to the 2's. Getting them instead of the B&W 685's - saves me >£200

lovstromp:

anyone with an answer in regards to :

"Will the Squeezebox be able to play them in such setup or do I need an
actual NAS drive (or is this just a term used for a drive connected to
the router)? "

looking at the website and since there seems to be no usb in, i think you'll need to get a compatible nas (i'm not sure that they all are) or just have it plugged into your computer and the squeezebox software running.

Not got one myself though so don't take that as gospel.

lovstromp:

skipped by a local retailer yesterday and they happen to have some dali speakers. lektor models 1, 2 and 6.

Was lucky enough to have a listen to the 2's. Getting them instead of the B&W 685's - saves me >£200

I heard the Lektor 2s yesterday and thought they were excellent. Very musical and persuasive little speakers. I'd still say the 685s are better all-rounders but the Dalis will make a very good buy indeed.

Got an email this mornig saying that the stands I'd ordered were out of stock. Went back to the shop where I heard the Lektor 2's to have listen to the Lektor 6's. Turned out to be excactly what I wanted in speakers. Bought them and cancelled my order of the stands.

And yesterday I ordered the Marantz CD6003 - will be getting the PM6003 next month. Atm I'm using my dads Sony something-something amp. Already a big improvement to the micro system I was using. Gonna have to suffice with PS3 as a cd player or my wireless transmitter until I get the cd player. But hey! At least I got started right?

Have you had a good listen to the PM6003?

It is well made and very good with the softer accoustic stuff but an extended audition the other day showed me that it really struggles to control the textures when things get complicated. It doesn't strike me as having quite enough power - almost as if the transformer isn't providing enough current for the amp to really control the speakers. There are better amps out there. NAD make a good partner for Dali and even the old C325BEE I used to have was better all round than the 6003. I'd also suggest looking at Cambridge Audio.

You may still choose the PM6003 but best to make sure it is going to be the right thing for you.

Sounds a little disheartening. As written in my first post it's almost impossible for me to get a better look on and compare amps and others. What the shop has in store are only high end stuff and thus out of my league. Got to rely on reviews and forums

But as I can see, I can get the NAD C326BEE for the same price as the PM6003.

Was in a similar situation to you recently (no hifi, had to start all over again)

 Whatever you chose to try out, try and find a local dealer willing to allow you to audition stuff in YOUR home - it's a lot more useful. Salisbury hifi once loaded a load of amps in the boot of their car and came to my home. Was very helpful.

 If you need space, and already use a Mac, I would also recommend trying out some active speaker solutions from the usual suspects.

 Good luck

 Matt