Dearlers, Synergy and Navigaing the hifi Minefied

Just wanted to share some recent thoughts on the above subject.

My local dealer, with whom I had built a relationship, closed 5, or so, years ago and I managed to make a thorough mess of what was once quite a nice sounding system consisting of Creek electronics with Neat speakers.

I'm now running Sugden electronics with Harbeth speakers and am delighted with the clear natural sounding result, until my CD player (bought from Hi fi Sound) stopped working.

I mention this not as a cathartic exercise but to raise a point about system synergy and peoples thoughts on how to get it right. Hi Fi Sound have been brilliant and sorted the problem quickly and efficiently and with minimal cost to me.

So I'd be grateful to hear peoples thoughts on the best way to drive towards that often elusive Hi Fi nirvana of kit really melding, is the crux of this a great dealer (with the inherent fact that they may not stock everything you'd like to hear)? Is it serial monogamy using the brothel that is Ebay or similar ? Magazines ? Forums ? Shows ? or other?

Interested to hear your responses

Jim

You need to have an idea in your mind as to what nirvana really is. For this you need to be able to hear a few different systems that are perhaps beyond your price point and decide which you prefer. This can then form the basis of your point of reference.

Don't think the reference is a particular brand either. At the Scalford Hall Show last weekend, it was clear to us that we could have radically altered the presentation of our system without changing any of the components....

Tackle issues with your mains, your cabling (does not have to be expensive at all) and supports. Get these right and the component selection gets a lot easier with differences being much more explicit.

Synergy IS important (and not from the perspective of playing components off each other as tone controls either) but hierarchy is more critical from source - pre - power down to speakers.

My own perspective is that you build your system -- in terms of its components around an amp first (I like valves) before selecting the speakers that will work with the amp and then audition the best sources and possibly preamplifiers you can get your hands on.

Hi Jim,

Good question.
I don't think there's a single right answer - all of these things have their place. However, in almost all of the different approaches there is danger!

To rely on Ebay alone would be a sure-fire way of ending up with a mismatched system - unless you were very, very lucky. Ebay is great if you know what you want & what it's worth. It's also quite good for trying stuff out that you might never have considered (if you can get it at the right price) but you do have to be careful.

Somehow or other you have to hear as much different kit as you possibly can, look at all the varied approaches to system building, understand the implications of following one 'philosophy' over another and try to learn from other peoples experiences. That's where forum membership, magazines & so on come in.

Finding a good dealer is fine, as long as they're good for you. By this, I mean that they not only need to stock a good wide range of gear, but they really have to understand you, & you have to be able to express what you want as well as what you like & don't like. There are some very good dealers with lots of valuable experience, but one thing they all have in common whether they're good or bad - They all want the money you have devoted serious time and effort into earning!!

Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with that per se, as that's how the world works, but you should always have it in mind before you commit yourself that this is usually the case. No-one becomes a hifi dealer for the good of their soul! However, there are a few absolute gents out there.

It sounds like you ended up with a good set-up thanks to a dealer. I know how good a Sugden/Harbeth system can sound - I've always liked Harbeth's stuff.

My thoughts summed up I suppose are:
Keep an open mind & ears.
Never be afraid to ask questions - The only stupid question is the one you never asked.
Don't forget about the old stuff - some of it still can't be beaten for many times the price it sells for.


Whatever happens, half the fun is finding out what if........


Good luck!!!

Don't be scared to make a mistake. But second hand, then you can sell it for what you paid for it if you don't like it. Experiment, take your time to listen to lots of your music in your environment, change it if you don't like it. Ignore what everybody else tells you (me included) go with what makes you happy. What sounds right to you in your house is all that matters.
There are no rules, there is no science, there's just you and the music.
Here endeth the first lesson :-)
Dave.