System Building on a Budget

[kendrab]

Many people in the "real world" have the impression that a decent audio system costs a LOT of money. Consequently, they tend to settle for low end systems based on receivers or computers (if they enter audio at all). You can't assemble a very good audio system for $500, but you don't need to spend $50,000+ either (as some of my friends used to believe).

I know a lot of younger people, and the majority of them are keen on records. They are buying records and turntables again. The problem is, many of them think a $89 Crosley USB turntable or equivalent hooked to their computer is going to let them hear everything on the record.

I tell them they should build a stand alone home audio system, and they say, I can't afford that! When I ask a few more questions, I discover they think a good audio system will cost $10,000 or more.

I would like to encourage people to suggest audio systems for budget points of $1,500, $2,500, or $5,000. I believe these price points are within most people's budgets as they enter into a home audio system. Note this request is for a single-source audio system with speakers. If we can suggest lower cost systems that people can afford, we will bring more people back to home based audio systems. Any suggestions?

[Reffc]

Welcome Kendra;

I think it's admirable encouraging the young into separates via the used market. As you say, you can assemble a decent sounding system for £300 to £500 with careful choice. Recommending something is always difficult as listening room size, layout and absolute budget usually need to be understood. My advice is always to buy the best you can afford at a given budget, rather than assemble a random selection of components which can often just bring disappointment.

The message I believe needs to also inform the end user of what to look for. These should include re-saleability (as one thing's for sure is that the initial system will be likely be moved on after a year or two), music tastes, thought on layout and set-up.

You can't go wrong with some used buys like competent stand mount speakers (from Tannoy M7s, Mission 760/780i's, AE stand mounts, etc); amp-wise, anything Japenese from the 1980's is likely to be a sound bet (it costs little to service these if needs be and many include a phono-stage) such as the Denon PM350, Pioneer A300, Marantz PM66SE; NAD 3020; Rotel RA820ax or 930ax. For TT's the choice is less limited, but a good used Dual CS505 Mk2 is a good start and betters the modern plastic USB entry level decks, but some of the direct drive Pioneers, Technics and Sony decks of the 1980's are also worth a look as are early Rega Planar decks, Thorens TD160, 165, 155, 280; Anything from the 1980's by Ariston tend to be ok.

There's loads of choice. You could build a good system from the a selection of components above for under £500. The cartridge choice is the limiting factor with TT's and a good cartridge will often cost more than a used competent deck. New, I'd recommend the Ortofon 2M Red, AT95e, and one or two others. I would only advise looking for a cheap used cart if you have a cheap, used vinyl collection!

For digital, any supermarket cheap dvd player does the trick but most youngster's games consols tend to play CDs too. The other alternative if going ditigal is a decent T-amp at around £60.

[Macca]

I sorted the following system out for a friend who I would not describe as an audiophile but he does have a decently sized CD and vinyl collection and his old Richer Sounds sourced kit from the 1980s had pretty much worn out:

Ruark Templar speakers -£112 off eBay plus a tenner in gas to collect them.
Rotel RA1062 amp £200 off me
Project phono box £50 again off me
Sony SACD player £150 new from Richer Sounds
Rega Planar 3 with RB300 arm and AT95e cart - £240 ( I'd suggested a Technics SL1200 for similar money but he had always wanted a Planar 3 so that's what he got)

That's under £800 all in and it sounds fantastic through both sources. He has since mentioned to me that he has had a number of visitors compliment him on the sound and have been taken aback when he has told them how little he has had to spend.

The problem is really the magazines tend to concentrate on reviewing high-end kit as that is what their readers want but this does give the impression to the uninitiated who may be browsing the mags in the newsagent with the vague idea of buying a hi-fi that it is going to cost them a fortune to get something 'proper'. It would be good if the hi-fi forums could change that perception.

[John]

I think you pose a good question
I think its possible to build a very good system from the 1500 to 2500 mark
T amps are great value and partner with the right speakers can out perform some costly equipment. If going for sound quality the Bantam Gold ticks all the boxes for me
DACs are very competitive and you can use your computer a CD player or even blue ray player to play back sounds for not so much money. If going down the laptop route MQn is stunning in terms SQ but very basic in terms of functioning.
I really like Electricbeach Frugal Horn 3 you might need to add a sub depending on the music you like. As Paul says your room will influence the type of speakers you need as well as your musical preferences
Their loads of other possibilities but this would give you some great sounds.

[The Grand Wazoo]

Alex and his CAC Challenge proved just what can be done with a very small amount of money. For those who missed the Cheap as Chips Challenge, he asked people to spend no more than £100 on a system, take it and demonstrate it at the Scalford Show.
The comments from visitors to the room were amazing:


The cheap-as-chips system featuring Ram 150 large standmounts - sounded seriously fucking good, if it'd had a £1K pricetag I'd have thought it a bargain. Makes me wonder what some of us think we're doing?


"Cheap as Chips et al in the Fernie Room: great sound for a system costing less than the price of an Eichmann Bullet! I mean, £96! You're having a laugh, guys. Literally. At the rest of us spending fortunes and getting about 5% of the Sound per Pound. (Note to self: do not risk going in their room again next year)."


...many people commented that they were much better than a lot of other far more expensive set up's and one guy in particular told Alex that his Ram system sounded better than the £30,000 kit he has at home

Full thread here (http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?9818-Who-s-up-for-a-quot-Cheap-as-Chips-quot-Challenge)

[Tim]

I have a 'near-field' system at my computer desk which plays FLAC files and Spotify and it never ceases to amaze me how good it sounds, far better than it ought to really. I often use it more than my main system in the lounge and I can listen to it and really enjoy the music, without thinking about where it's coming from, which when you compare the two systems cost wise can make me scratch my head :scratch: But then again, I don't consider myself to be an 'audiophile'.

Amptastic Mini-T - £54.99
HRT Music Streamer II+ - £274.20
Celestion 5 speakers - £14.00 (S/H from eBay)
Mark Grant G1000HD interconnect - £35
Van Damme blue speaker cables - Under £10, can't remember exactly but bought via Amazon.

The speakers sit on some IXOS Deadrock speaker stands that I have had for many years, so add it up and that lot costs nothing really. I have the computer already which isn't really included, as I would have one anyway. I built it myself and its not an audio server, but was built with music in mind, so it runs silently (no fans) with 2 X SSD drives, a suspended 2TB mechanical drive (on a boot lace!) and a quality Seasonic fanless PSU (essential). I'm not sure how much this configuration helps as I have not directly compared it to a vanilla PC, but I have a little experience in getting the best from a PC for music and it sure sounds sweet. A laptop with an SSD would do the job too, maybe not quite as well as the electrical 'noise' interference from a laptop is not ideal in a music player, but they can be tweaked. I use my PC at the same time as playing music and never experience any lags, clicks, pops or noise from using the peripherals.

You could however add a very respectable CD player to the above and drop the HRT DAC and probably spend a lot less if you went to eBay or bought something from here in Private Exhibitions. Pioneer stable platter CDP's come up now and again for way less than I paid for the DAC and would work well in that system. Quite a few of my mates have commented on the sound when they come round and their jaw drops when I tell them how much I paid for the system, especially the speakers! They sit at their computers with tiny Logitech or similar plastic boxes, which sound shite in comparison.

So no, you don't have to pay oodles of money to get great sound, but it helps to have a little knowledge or a leg up from places like AoS if you don't ;)

[Wakefield Turntables]

If you want a giant killing amp, then I can recommend the Sansui AU719 if you can get one in decent, else the miniT amps are fantastic value for money.

[technobear]

I'm currently getting very decent sounds from:

Arcam rPAC - new £150

Kenwood KR950B Receiver - 1982 £40

Rogers LS4a - 1989'ish £63

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Last year I put together a system for an impoverished friend:

Ariston Excel Record Deck - £7

Technics SU-V7 Amp - free

Denon DCD1510 (I think) - free

Celestion Dittion 15XR - free + a fair bit of elbow grease and some black car polish

Sounds fabulous!