New Hifi Setup, not happy Monitor Audio Reference MR4 with Denon X1000

[vijoy]

Hi Guys,

my first ever hifi setup went not much happy.

I am from bangalore, i have Monitor Audio Reference MR4 with Denon X1000 AVR with playing mostly from NAS flac files (WD Cloud 2TB).

I had auditioned speakers almost 10 brands within 30K budget. Finally with MA MR4. My Hometheatre works great. My post is regarding the stereo sound.

The mid is almost hidden. not sure whether bc of no Amplifier or MR4. I am planning to buy an amp, mostly NAD, Arcam or Marantz. I hope MR4 should perform, or i need to change with high end speakers. i have sorted out MA silver 6 or 8, Klipsh RP series, Polk TSi500, or B&W CM8 etc.

By the way, i love listening all kind of songs from Yesudas karnatic classical to Halestorm heavy metal. I want the mid to be superior. interestingly my HTC headset with redmi 1s sound far better as the way i wish.

Let me know what you guys think.

 

[20kHz]

Since last one month I am roaming in this forum and I have learned that most budget AVRs DO NOT perform well in music section. You must get stereo amps for music to enjoy!. I don't think there is any problem with your speakers. Just get a good amp (e.g. Marantz PM6005) after audition and you are good to go
...till then wait for experienced members to come and share their views...

 

[kvm]

Hi Vijoy
Even when I tried my MA Rx6 with my old Onkyo HTiB AVR the stereo/music performance was not all that great. I switched to Arcam amp (FMJ A19) and I could notice a significant/ audible difference. I think you should try audition and invest in a good amp sooner.

regards

 

[Hari Iyer]

In my experience its the speakers that make more difference than the amps, though amps are equally important. If you can borrow an amp within your budget for a day or two from FMs to check out then you can take an informed decision.

 

[saikatbiswas82]

Try them with Yamaha amps. You might hear the difference.

 

[alpha1]

Have you made the correct speaker setting on the AVR?

Jumping from AVR to Stereo amp will only allow you more capable wattage power output.
But at low sound volume levels, even AVR should be able to perform fine.

 

[koushik]

Have you made the correct speaker setting on the AVR?

Jumping from AVR to Stereo amp will only allow you more capable wattage power output.
But at low sound volume levels, even AVR should be able to perform fine.

I beg to differ here. Do you mean a Good quality 5W class A tube amp will sound similar to an budget AVR? If yes, then you might want to revisit!

I want the mid to be superior. interestingly my HTC headset with redmi 1s sound far better as the way i wish.

That will continue to be for some time for you. It takes quite a good system to beat a basic headphone setup. Being very close to the ears, it is easier to get flatter response, cutting outside noise is also another important factor and then the old story (but lesser believed fact) of room acoustic, which has no effect here.

You just can't get good stereo sound from a basic AVR. Another thing is try different sources. AVR's media player is not the best out there. Get a proper CD player, or a PC transport & DAC. It is not a Black and White situation, many things in your chain can be responsible for the bad sound of your stereo system, which is at present far from being properly setup.

 

[sud98]

Hi Guys,

my first ever hifi setup went not much happy.

I am from bangalore, i have Monitor Audio Reference MR4 with Denon X1000 AVR with playing mostly from NAS flac files (WD Cloud 2TB).


The mid is almost hidden. not sure whether bc of no Amplifier or MR4. I am planning to buy an amp, mostly NAD, Arcam or Marantz. I hope MR4 should perform, or i need to change with high end speakers. i have sorted out MA silver 6 or 8, Klipsh RP series, Polk TSi500, or B&W CM8 etc.


Let me know what you guys think.

Just check your AVR setttings. If you have a pure/direct sound setting, check with that. Also, check if you have set your speakers to small and hence some frequencies are not going through.

 

[vijoy]

Since last one month I am roaming in this forum and I have learned that most budget AVRs DO NOT perform well in music section. You must get stereo amps for music to enjoy!. I don't think there is any problem with your speakers. Just get a good amp (e.g. Marantz PM6005) after audition and you are good to go
...till then wait for experienced members to come and share their views...

Yes, PM6005 is in my mind.

 

[vijoy]

Just check your AVR setttings. If you have a pure/direct sound setting, check with that. Also, check if you have set your speakers to small and hence some frequencies are not going through.

Denon AVR X1000 has no direct option. it seems come in only Amps

 

[vijoy]

I beg to differ here. Do you mean a Good quality 5W class A tube amp will sound similar to an budget AVR? If yes, then you might want to revisit!



That will continue to be for some time for you. It takes quite a good system to beat a basic headphone setup. Being very close to the ears, it is easier to get flatter response, cutting outside noise is also another important factor and then the old story (but lesser believed fact) of room acoustic, which has no effect here.

You just can't get good stereo sound from a basic AVR. Another thing is try different sources. AVR's media player is not the best out there. Get a proper CD player, or a PC transport & DAC. It is not a Black and White situation, many things in your chain can be responsible for the bad sound of your stereo system, which is at present far from being properly setup.

You said points. thanks

 

[vijoy]

Thanks guys for your comments. I have decided to go with Marantz PM6005 only after audition with NAD and Arcam. Mostly i will take my speakers to audition and decide the Amp. My intention is very clear. I want the mid to be superior. i am not audiophile. so no idea about warm, bright etc. just in simple words, mid should be natural, you should feel they are singing in front of you. probably need to change MR4 later time after selecting good AMP.

I also have plan with dedicated Network Player very later. It seems Pioneer N50 is the hot stream now. However, it not available in India, atleast in Bangalore. so probably Marantz N7004.

Once again thanks..

 

[vijoy]

I beg to differ here. Do you mean a Good quality 5W class A tube amp will sound similar to an budget AVR? If yes, then you might want to revisit!



That will continue to be for some time for you. It takes quite a good system to beat a basic headphone setup. Being very close to the ears, it is easier to get flatter response, cutting outside noise is also another important factor and then the old story (but lesser believed fact) of room acoustic, which has no effect here.

You just can't get good stereo sound from a basic AVR. Another thing is try different sources. AVR's media player is not the best out there. Get a proper CD player, or a PC transport & DAC. It is not a Black and White situation, many things in your chain can be responsible for the bad sound of your stereo system, which is at present far from being properly setup.

i agree with you. Tube sound far better than even normal Amps. no doubts. Check in ARS system bangalore. They have very good collection of tube amps.

 

[alpha1]

I beg to differ here. Do you mean a Good quality 5W class A tube amp will sound similar to an budget AVR? If yes, then you might want to revisit!

At very low power output I expect a tube amp to perform fairly linear, and the same expectation I hold from a poor low power AVR.
In such low wattage operating regime (perhaps in milli-watts) does my expectation sound foolish?

 

[koushik]

To me, yes! But then how much I know?

 

[sud98]

Denon AVR X1000 has no direct option. it seems come in only Amps

Hi Vijay, are you sure? I just downloaded the manual and it mentions a pure direct setting. Just recheck.

 

[Jinxed]

Hi Vijay, are you sure? I just downloaded the manual and it mentions a pure direct setting. Just recheck.

I own one and it does have a DIRECT button. It negates everything, including Audyssey. I feel you should fiddle with your settings before spending on a music amp. Also do you prefer music in pure stereo or something like 2.1?