Under 70k Stereo Hifi Setup

[Kjpro]

Hi All,

I would like to start my audiophile journey, need a recommendation for a 70K stereo setup.

I have spent a lot of time in searching speakers, Amps, DACs and filtering out based on the budget, sorting them based on the values considering the import duties on them.
I like the detailed audio and controlled bass and don't appreciate the bass that's overlapping mids and eating it up.
Music Type - Classic and Pop
Input would be Optical, PC and BT

My search suggested the following 2 setups
1) Q Acoustics 3030i + Denon PMA-600NE - Integrated Stereo
2) Q Acoustics 3030i + Norge concerto gold 1000 + SMSL Sanskrit 10 mkii DAC
3) Edifier s3000pro

My usage would be primarily for stereo and secondary for TV optical out.
Room Size 11x15.

When shall I go with the Analog Amplifier (Norge) over Intergated (Denon). Will analogue amplifier will give any benefit?

From the research I came to know Denon and Q Acoustics' are the brands who's Specifications rating I can trust.

Let me know any other setup that can yeild better performance.

Thanks for your time.

 

[argho]

My pick would be :
Q Acoustics 3030i + Denon PMA-600NE - Integrated Stereo

Would help if you tell us what sort of music you like to hear.

 

[Kjpro]

My pick would be :
Q Acoustics 3030i + Denon PMA-600NE - Integrated Stereo

Would help if you tell us what sort of music you like to hear.

Classic and pop, updated the thread as well.

 

[arj]

....

When shall I go with the Analog Amplifier (Norge) over Intergated (Denon). Will analogue amplifier will give any benefit?

From the research I came to know Denon and Q Acoustics' are the brands who's Specifications rating I can trust.

Let me know any other setup that can yeild better performance.

....

I would suggest the Fyne Audio 301 over the Q acoustic. All decent brands at this price range will have standard specs and while shortlisting by specs is fine, deciding by it is a rabbithole. The Fyne audio might just be better for vocals.

Maybe try and listen to some of these on You tube via a decent pair of headphones ? not the ideal way but will give you a hint of its tonality.

 

[DB1989]

Hi All,

I would like to start my audiophile journey, need a recommendation for a 70K stereo setup.

I have spent a lot of time in searching speakers, Amps, DACs and filtering out based on the budget, sorting them based on the values considering the import duties on them.
I like the detailed audio and controlled bass and don't appreciate the bass that's overlapping mids and eating it up.

Input would be Optical, PC and BT

My search suggested the following 2 setups
1) Q Acoustics 3030i + Denon PMA-600NE - Integrated Stereo
2) Q Acoustics 3030i + Norge concerto gold 1000 + SMSL Sanskrit 10 mkii DAC
3) Edifier s3000pro

My usage would be primarily for stereo and secondary for TV optical out.
Room Size 11x15.

When shall I go with the Analog Amplifier (Norge) over Intergated (Denon). Will analogue amplifier will give any benefit?

From the research I came to know Denon and Q Acoustics' are the brands who's Specifications rating I can trust.

Let me know any other setup that can yeild better performance.

Thanks for your time.

There are two routes to achieve the abovesaid objectives i.e. (i) an all in one active speaker system or (ii) the separates route as you have shortlisted.

Its great that you've shortlisted Q acoustics as a trustworthy brand. Q Acoustics has an all in one active speaker that achieves all of the above for 40K if not surpassing it viz. M20 HD.

The M20HD has excellent bluetooth reception. In fact, it is the best I have seen amongst budget loudspeakers i have heard such as the Edifier 1280DBs, Swans D1090 or for that matter, built into receivers e.g. Marantz SR6013, Cambridge Audio CXA81.

It also has , USB, optical and RCA inputs and a subwoofer output. Its built in DAC is very good and married with the amp and the sound signature of the speaker, as good as any budget option that I've heard such as the Ifi ZEN DAC and the Topping E30.

And the clincher is the speaker boundary adjustment with three levels which allows you to compensate for how far the speakers are from the wall, thereby ensuring the bass always digs deep without muddying the mids or sounding boomy.

Add to that excellent low level dynamics (i suspect the active DSP has much to do with it) and a sweet full sound and you've got one heck of a system that's guaranteed to sound good and hard to match, even at your above quoted budget.

The one aspect which the separates system that you have shortlisted that the Q Acoustics M20HD won't be able to quite match is loudness. While the M20 HD can go very loud in a small to mid size room and reasonably loud in a large room, the 3030i would go louder still. For your room size of 11x15, it'll be loud enough to get your head banging. And in case you add a subwoofer, it can go louder still.

However, considering the low level dynamics and how easy it is to get the bass right on the M20HD without jumping through hoops to get the placement right, you'll seldom find yourself pumping the volume to the max on the M20HD to get the party started unlike passive speakers which sometimes sound lifeless at low volumes without a loudness switch on the Amp.

Another toss up with a separates system is that you never know about component matching unless you've heard it yourself i.e. whether the sound signature of the amp gels well with the passive speaker. On the other hand, the in-built amp on the M20HD is perfectly married to the speaker and it sounds it!

I daresay you won't feel the itch to upgrade or change components once you hear the M20HD!

 

[chander]

There is an Audiolab 6000a somewhere in for sale at a pretty decent price. For that price, that amp is quite a deal. IF you are ok with used products that is.
For speakers - 3030i would pair just about fine with it. Also as suggested above, you could check our the Fyne audio 301, have heard it, quite a bit of speaker for the price.

 

[Kjpro]

There are two routes to achieve the abovesaid objectives i.e. (i) an all in one active speaker system or (ii) the separates route as you have shortlisted.

Its great that you've shortlisted Q acoustics as a trustworthy brand. Q Acoustics has an all in one active speaker that achieves all of the above for 40K if not surpassing it viz. M20 HD.

The M20HD has excellent bluetooth reception. In fact, it is the best I have seen amongst budget loudspeakers i have heard such as the Edifier 1280DBs, Swans D1090 or for that matter, built into receivers e.g. Marantz SR6013, Cambridge Audio CXA81.

It also has , USB, optical and RCA inputs and a subwoofer output. Its built in DAC is very good and married with the amp and the sound signature of the speaker, as good as any budget option that I've heard such as the Ifi ZEN DAC and the Topping E30.

And the clincher is the speaker boundary adjustment with three levels which allows you to compensate for how far the speakers are from the wall, thereby ensuring the bass always digs deep without muddying the mids or sounding boomy.

Add to that excellent low level dynamics (i suspect the active DSP has much to do with it) and a sweet full sound and you've got one heck of a system that's guaranteed to sound good and hard to match, even at your above quoted budget.

The one aspect which the separates system that you have shortlisted that the Q Acoustics M20HD won't be able to quite match is loudness. While the M20 HD can go very loud in a small to mid size room and reasonably loud in a large room, the 3030i would go louder still. For your room size of 11x15, it'll be loud enough to get your head banging. And in case you add a subwoofer, it can go louder still.

However, considering the low level dynamics and how easy it is to get the bass right on the M20HD without jumping through hoops to get the placement right, you'll seldom find yourself pumping the volume to the max on the M20HD to get the party started unlike passive speakers which sometimes sound lifeless at low volumes without a loudness switch on the Amp.

Another toss up with a separates system is that you never know about component matching unless you've heard it yourself i.e. whether the sound signature of the amp gels well with the passive speaker. On the other hand, the in-built amp on the M20HD is perfectly married to the speaker and it sounds it!

I daresay you won't feel the itch to upgrade or change components once you hear the M20HD!

Thanks for a detailed insight and the time your invested to answer my question. I will keep it in the cart before I finalize one.
I had it in my mind that its quite difficult to match the DAC and Amp and the speaker to make best sound out of it. I think right now I cant judge them even if I will get an audition for 5 to 10 mins, its my first pair so I am dependent on the valuable input from the users in the forum.

I am also interested in growing this setup in future by upgrading the components. Will that make any difference in the decision?

 

[headcase]

Spend the most on speakers. Try to get the best in budget. 60-40 %

 

[argho]

Some thoughts :
- For a starter setup, I would suggest buy an integrated amp with DAC, rather than separate amp and DAC
- For Classical and Pop, consider the QA 3020i. Will save some money there
- The Marantz PM6006 amp is worth considering
- The QA M20HD is an excellent idea and also worthy of consideration

 

[DB1989]

Thanks for a detailed insight and the time your invested to answer my question. I will keep it in the cart before I finalize one.
I had it in my mind that its quite difficult to match the DAC and Amp and the speaker to make best sound out of it.

That's quite right. Some combinations are downright atrocious and you never know unless you've heard it in person.

I think right now I cant judge them even if I will get an audition for 5 to 10 mins, its my first pair so I am dependent on the valuable input from the users in the forum.

I am also interested in growing this setup in future by upgrading the components. Will that make any difference in the decision?

Insofar as growing your setup is concerned, do you want to add to its stereo or movie performance in the future?

The one flipside with the M20 HD is that there's only so much you can do to improve it's performance since most of its components are built into the speaker itself.

Since it has an internal DAC and does an A/D to D/A conversation, adding an external mid to high end DAC also has no impact on it's performance. Frankly, the performance of its DAC is sufficient for a speaker of it's class and adding better DACs don't really beget substantially better results to justify the outlay.

Though i haven't heard the M20HD and the 3020i+PM6007 combo back to back, I can state with a certain amount of confidence that the M20HD will outperform it in most scenarios w.r.t SQ.

Add to that USB input and Bluetooth connectivity which the 3020i+PM6007 misses out on despite being a good 15K - 20K more expensive than the M20HD and you can see where the value proposition makes a case for itself.

Choose well, young padowan.

 

[DB1989]

I am also interested in growing this setup in future by upgrading the components. Will that make any difference in the decision?

That's quite right. Some combinations are downright atrocious and you never know unless you've heard it in person.

Insofar as growing your setup is concerned, do you want to add to its stereo or movie performance in the future?

The one flipside with the M20 HD is that there's only so much you can do to improve it's performance since most of its components are built into the speaker itself.

Since it has an internal DAC and does an A/D to D/A conversation, adding an external mid to high end DAC also has no impact on it's performance. Frankly, the performance of its DAC is sufficient for a speaker of it's class and adding better DACs don't really beget substantially better results to justify the outlay.

The one manner in which you can substantially improve the performance of the M20HD is by adding a subwoofer.

I have tried the M20HD with a REL T9i and the performance gains were superlative.

A more price appropriate subwoofer for the M20HD such as the Mission QX-12, Q Acoustics QB12, Rhythmik L12, etc. would also introduce an entire new dimension of performance within your budget of 70K or a little over.

Depending on stores/negotiations/offers, the overall cost of the system would be anywhere between Rs.56K to 70K (M20HD+Mission QX-12), 80 to 95K (M20HD+Q Acoustics QB-12), or upto 1.1L (M20HD+Rhythmik L12).


Besides subwoofers, you can also add a streaming source such as the excellent Allo USBridge Signature which sounds better than Bluetooth.

If you can find the right deals, you can get all of the M20HD+Mission QX-12+Allo Digione SIgnature within the budget of 70K (I built this exact system a couple of months back within the said budget with change to spare for a cup of tea).

Such a system would convincingly outperform most if not all separates system below 1L which consist of a DAC+AMP+speakers combo without any sub, especially for a mixed usage of music + movies.

 

[jenson]

I miss pandam

 

[headcase]

There's a new kid on the block u might wanna check out.

Shanling - JET1

Buy Shanling JET1 Bookshelf Speaker: Shop for speakers at the best prices in India. Choose from JBL, Marshall, JAYS wireless speakers at Headphone Zone.

www.headphonezone.in

 

[DB1989]

There's a new kid on the block u might wanna check out.

Shanling - JET1

Buy Shanling JET1 Bookshelf Speaker: Shop for speakers at the best prices in India. Choose from JBL, Marshall, JAYS wireless speakers at Headphone Zone.

www.headphonezone.in

A 4.5 incher with a -3db response of 68hz??? There ain't no woof in that woofer!

P.S. - the sensitivity is pretty appalling too!

Looks like it would take a mammoth of an amp to drive

Hope this speaker does something really special to justify the outlay which is as much as some well regarded 6.5 inchers.

 

[headcase]

A 4.5 incher with a -3db response of 68hz??? There ain't no woof in that woofer!

P.S. - the sensitivity is pretty appalling too!

Looks like it would take a mammoth of an amp to drive

Hope this speaker does something really special to justify the outlay which is as much as some well regarded 6.5 inchers.

Its meant for refinement & clarity with an AMT. Not saying this is the only option either. Sub can be assigned for the woof duty.

M20HD ain't high end either.

 

[DB1989]

Its meant for refinement & clarity with an AMT. Not saying this is the only option either. Sub can be assigned for the woof duty.

Sure. I was simply wondering about their pricing. From a brand which isn't particularly known for speakers, it'd take quite the leap of faith i would imagine, especially with the specs they sport.

The market is tough. A Wharfedale Diamond 12.2 goes for the same money and it'd give a much more rounded sound. The Mission QX-2, Q Acoustics 3030i and Elac Debut B6 are lesser still.

They need to do something really exceptional to justify the outlay.

Also, the OPs budget is 70K. The Shanling will necessarily need a sub. This would send the budget well over 1L+.

M20HD ain't high end either.

Not at all. It's simply a good and well rounded speaker that's exceptional VFM at the moment and hard to beat with a separates system <70K

 

[headcase]

Sure. I was simply wondering about their pricing. From a brand which isn't particularly known for speakers, it'd take quite the leap of faith i would imagine, especially with the specs they sport.

The market is tough. A Wharfedale Diamond 12.2 goes for the same money and it'd give a much more rounded sound. The Mission QX-2, Q Acoustics 3030i and Elac Debut B6 are lesser still.

They need to do something really exceptional to justify the outlay.

Also, the OPs budget is 70K. The Shanling will necessarily need a sub. This would send the budget well over 1L+.

Not at all. It's simply a good and well rounded speaker that's exceptional VFM at the moment and hard to beat with a separates system <70K

Yeah and adding a sub as you suggested would alone cost >70K alone so y am I only to get the beating with a stick + amp. It's like going >1L easy.

I am just impressed with the AMT. Don't know any other speakers in that price featuring that.

There can be more powered speakers with integrated amp & chip (dac + streaming) capability in near future. Even the cheaper options. Following KEF LS60

 

[DB1989]

Yeah and adding a sub as you suggested would alone cost >70K alone so y am I only to get the beating with a stick + amp. It's like going >1L easy.

The previous posts can shed some light on this aspect perhaps:

A more price appropriate subwoofer for the M20HD such as the Mission QX-12, Q Acoustics QB12, Rhythmik L12, etc. would also introduce an entire new dimension of performance within your budget of 70K or a little over.

Depending on stores/negotiations/offers, the overall cost of the system would be anywhere between Rs.56K to 70K (M20HD+Mission QX-12), 80 to 95K (M20HD+Q Acoustics QB-12), or upto 1.1L (M20HD+Rhythmik L12).


Besides subwoofers, you can also add a streaming source such as the excellent Allo USBridge Signature which sounds better than Bluetooth.

If you can find the right deals, you can get all of the M20HD+Mission QX-12+Allo Digione SIgnature within the budget of 70K (I built this exact system a couple of months back within the said budget with change to spare for a cup of tea).

 

[Enkay78]

Kali Audio IN-5 Powered Studio Monitor for professinal work.

Kali Audio IN-5-C for ceiling and wall mounting applications. Acoustically identical to the IN-5,No other Kali speaker includes this hardware

www.proaudiobrands.com

At your budget, a fantastic three way with very good measurements (spinorama). The price is for a pair.

 

[Hiten]

How about...
Marantz PM6007 (with DAC )(almost 60W/8ohms 80W/4 ohms) measured HERE
and Wharfedale 12.1 (Good linearity with deliberate minor mid dip and probably little shy of bass as is case with any bookshelf) measured HERE
The package is on offer on Hifimart. Obviously take time and try to listen if you like the sound then only buy.
Regards