My first hifi system as a college student
imgur.com/a/tfEbP
imgur.comPosted Aug 12, 2014, 2:29 PM UTC
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imgur.comMonitor Audio had one of the most impressive 5.1 systems I had yet heard some years ago at an AV expo. Now I had always been a B&W fan and wasn't expecting to be blown away like I was, but at this particular expo in Charlotte, they had one of the more meager setups of all the companies, but to me they and NHT stole the show with their speakers that year (I still love the NHT Super Two).
I have not had the opportunity to own a pair, but when I see someone who does I certainly respect their decision and think back to that very impressive demo. If their quality now is as good as then (say 10 years ago or so) then you have a fine set there indeed!
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After test listening to B&W and Monitor Audio speakers, I felt that MA gave a better value at my price range.
I overdid it with the amp but it's for future use, i.e. when I upgrade to a 5.1 system.
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I agree, Monitor Audio are my favorite speakers after Vandersteen. if you're looking for value though, check out the Vandersteen line. You may need more room in the future. =)
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I looked Vandersteen up and they are not available here in Sweden.
My room is pretty much maxed out right now, anything more and I'll have to remove my bed.
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Didn't know you were in Sweden! I'd stick with MA than.
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+1 for MA, I've got a pair of the BX2's and love them to death.
I didn't realize that the RX1's came in a white finish, spiffy.
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The white finish is really nice but costs more, I'm lucky to find them second hand.
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it's amusing that while most of that would've been recognizable to me when I was a college student, if you had showed up with the tablet we all would've freaked out bigtime. At that time, the x286 processor had just come out in widespread use in personal computers, and the x386 and x486 leading up to the first pentium would come out in the next 3 years.
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Now THIS is a setup. Nice speaker stands.
One more thing, pure audio on your receiver isn't really pure audio, it colours the sound significantly. Just thought you might want to know that. Running stereo with no tone control will give you a cleaner signal.
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Those golf ball dimples are so sexy. My Kevlar cones are jealous.
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Thanks for the advice, I'll try it out.
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Please don't leave anything on top of your amp that will cover the vents. Otherwise, nice setup.
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No worries, the iPad sits on a spot that doesn't cover the vents.
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I started to get more interested in audio after getting my first decent headphones (Bose IE2) from my dad. I've been upgrading my headphones after my old headphones breaking and have ended up with a Grado SR325is and a Shure SE535 LTD.
I decided to try out speakers, mainly a few B&W, Monitor Audio and Dali. I ended up buying a pair of Monitor Audio RX1 second hand and the amplifier when it was 50% off.
The speakers were bought from an elderly couple that recently upgraded to a pair of RX8.
To put it mildly, the RX8 blew the RX1 out of the water.
I'm currently using the iPad as source, streaming through Bluetooth. Not a loseless way but very practical.
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Well yeah RX8s are gonna blow them out of the water they are tower speakers. My roommate has those. You got yourself a nice piece of kit and they look really good in white. Happy listening.
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How are the SE535s?
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Really good, the SE535 are really balanced and make the vocals shine.
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Very nice setup also +1 for playing Lorde :P
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I discovered her album a few days ago. Her music style is something new for me but I like it.
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You're missing quite a big chunk of the music without a subwoofer though. So much bass. :)
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Buying a subwoofer would make the neighbors angry and block my other closets door. But I will... eventually
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Looks great, you're off to a better start that just about every other college student out there. Someday I want to have a pair of Monitor Audios too.
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Summer jobs and careful spending finally paid off. Monitor Audio are pretty affordable especially bought second hand.
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Lorde!
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Quite the system for college! I know it wouldn't have survived my friends and parties. Protect it! Thieves exist.
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aesthetically, as well as equipment-wise, this is an awesome setup.
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Great speakers nice setup.
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Thought this was r/vintageaudio and was about to ask why amp has Spotify support
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Very nice - enjoy!!!
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Those speakers look great in white, nice stands too
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Take that Spotify sticker off, please? :)
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Poor college student with very nice hifi set up checking in.
You'd be surprised what you can find on Craigslist.
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+1 for CL finds. Thrift shops can also be good too depending on location.
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Could be just a lament, but in all fairness, he never claimed to be poor haha
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Slick little setup! Grab a dock for the iPad and wire that sucker in for better audio. My old setup would stream bluetooth and I was shocked when I switched to Airplay on my new receiver (which is still a little lossy). I stream Spotify on the "Extreme" setting through Airplay now. Much more crispy and full sounding.
My amp doesn't have Airplay =/ I've tried streaming from my NAS but I don't really noticing any audible difference so I stick with Bluetooth for mobility.
Which dock do you recommend?
Any ol' dock will work as long as it has a line-out on it. I'm not sure if you have the old 30-pin style connector or the new lightning style connector but there are some decent deals out there.
I mean, heck, even a simple 3.5mm cable would work for when it's just sitting on the table. http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=102&cp_id=10218&cs_id=1021816&p_id=9765&seq=1&format=2
I agree about getting airplay over bluetooth. An Airport express is pretty cheap and having streaming over a network rather than bluetooth is much more convenient (and higher quality).
But why would a dock help? Wouldn't just a 3.5 mm cable straight from the iPad be just as good? Or are you saying the DAC in the dock will be better than the DAC in the iPad?
Dock just makes it convenient to slap the iPad on it and go. Also keeps the iPad from getting scratched up.
A 3.5mm cable is needed either way. I doubt the DAC in a dock would be better than the iPad's internal DAC. Apple products are usually fairly good in that respect.
The main point I was trying to make was that bluetooth is very lossy and any move towards a better transmission mode would probably be noticed.
Unless you have aptx Bluetooth, I like it better than airplay. Less lag, better sound and fewer drop outs in my experience.