What audio system do you have, or plan on getting?

[Todd]

Richer Sounds in UK do a Teac CD player for under £100 or a slightly more expensive Cambridge Audio one.

I'd advise against Cambridge Audio.  I've experienced reliability issues with their gear.  Teac, Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha are all fine.

[Daverz]

Currently all I have is a TV, a laptop, a basic Blu-Ray player, and headphones.

So my question is:
What is the essential equipment somebody should start with? What do you need for a basic but pretty good sound system? You're going to have to explain this like I'm a kid, because I don't know what most of this stuff is (except "speakers" and "subwoofer").

Also I am in a 600 sq. ft. apartment with small rooms, and unlikely to afford bigger spaces in the years to come, so if a speaker requires 5 feet of empty space behind it to sound good, that's not useful.

An integrated amp (basically an amp with volume control) and speakers would be all you need.

Speakers are either stand-mounted or floor-standing.  Floor-standing speakers don't really take up any more floor space and generally go lower in the bass.

Most speakers do need to be at least a couple feet from the wall behind them, and several feet from side walls.

[vandermolen]

I'd advise against Cambridge Audio.  I've experienced reliability issues with their gear.  Teac, Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha are all fine.

Very many thanks Todd. The Teac is significantly cheaper, so I will go for that. 

[Ken B]

I have quite a low-fi system. Second hand Kef speakers (large, floor standing), second hand NAD amplifier. Sony CD player is playing up so need new one. Richer Sounds in UK do a Teac CD player for under £100 or a slightly more expensive Cambridge Audio one. Any advice on which one to get or a not-too-expensive alternative.

Onkyo CD players are good. I like my c370. It's a changer which had build issues at first, resulting in bad reviews and a low price. But it's very fine indeed. It has a good DAC, which you need for your older amp.

[Moonfish]

Onkyo CD players are good. I like my c370. It's a changer which had build issues at first, resulting in bad reviews and a low price. But it's very fine indeed. It has a good DAC, which you need for your older amp.

Hmm, are you familiar with the Onkyo C-7030? Beyond the audio aspects I am hesitant to go for a single player (used to a 5 cd - especially with operas )...

[asin] B004UR487A[/asin]

Do most of you use carousels or do you prefer single disc players?

[Jay F]

I'd advise against Cambridge Audio.  I've experienced reliability issues with their gear.  Teac, Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha are all fine.

I had a cheap Teac cassette deck, bought new during the 1980s, that died one hour after its warranty. I have a couple of Sony SACD players that are around ten years old. The SACD part dies before the rest; they're still good for playing CDs.

[Moonfish]

I had a cheap Teac cassette deck, bought new during the 1980s, that died one hour after its warranty. I have a couple of Sony SACD players that are around ten years old. The SACD part dies before the rest; they're still good for playing CDs.

An hour! Talk about planned obsolescence!!!!   

[Todd]

Beyond the audio aspects I am hesitant to go for a single player (used to a 5 cd - especially with operas )

But how many CDs can you listen to at once?  More mechanical parts means more things to break.

[Moonfish]

But how many CDs can you listen to at once?  More mechanical parts means more things to break.

What! You only listen to one at a time?!!!    But isn't it a bit frustrating to have to change discs in a multi-disc work (operas, longer symphonies etc)?  I guess one can view it as an intermission and get a glass of wine! You are right - the fewer moving parts the better.

[Ken B]

Hmm, are you familiar with the Onkyo C-7030? Beyond the audio aspects I am hesitant to go for a single player (used to a 5 cd - especially with operas )...

[asin] B004UR487A[/asin]

Do most of you use carousels or do you prefer single disc players?

Oops, c390
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The reviews split into those who got units with buggy control logic, who give it one star,  and the rest of us. The rest of us give it great reviews.

I tried to live without a carousel when my Sony was stolen. I couldn't. The Onkyo was better than the Sony for sound, but not for formats or features.
Only downside for me: this sucker is big. Really big. Doesn't fit some cabinets big.

[Todd]

But isn't it a bit frustrating to have to change discs in a multi-disc work (operas, longer symphonies etc)?

Not really.  I need the exercise.  If I really was interested in maximum convenience, then I'd rip everything and listen using a music server and a catheter.

[Moonfish]

Not really.  I need the exercise.  If I really was interest in maximum convenience, then I'd rip everything and listen using a music server and a catheter.

In that case one should have one's amplifier in the basement and the cd player in the attic (no stairs - just rope ladders)!
I suspect that the future will include small implanted microchips connected to the auditory lobes so we have access to instant streaming at all times.

[Todd]

I suspect that the future will include small implanted microchips connected to the auditory lobes so we have access to instant streaming at all times.

Apple branded, thank you!

[Jay F]

Do most of you use carousels or do you prefer single disc players?

I have had both, and I prefer the carousel. I like Mahler, so the "opera" advantage is obvious. However, the main reason I bought it is because it was cheap and it played SACDs. If a single-player had been the same price, I might have chosen it, under the "fewer mechanical parts" logic stated earlier.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_158SCDC595/Sony-SCD-CE595.html?tp=197

It turned out that the SACD part of the player dies (relatively) quickly on all Sony SACD players, so I've owned three of these machines. The two I still have play CDs perfectly, ten and eight years later (I gave one to a friend's niece to use as a CD player). But $450 over ten years isn't bad.

If I buy another CD player (I'm currently enamored of wireless music), I might choose a used Kyocera. Mine lasted for 10 years of obsessive playing, and it looked and sounded better than the Sony. Said sonic superiority may be a product of faulty memory, of course. My stereo was a much more important part of my life before computers than it has been since.

[Daverz]

Do most of you use carousels or do you prefer single disc players?

Haven't used a carousel since the 90s. Too fragile, and good single disc players had better sound, but I've never had a player that didn't eventually have mechanical problems.

I now use dbPowerAmp to rip CDs to a Linux box running Logitech Media Server.  Playback is via a Squeezebox Touch that connects to the server over wireless network.  The Touch is connected to a DAC via USB.

Unfortunately Logitech no longer makes Squeezeboxes, though there are DIY ways to assemble your own player.  Which I'll probably have to do if my Touch gives up.

[Brian]

Thanks to all for the (public AND private) messages I've been getting so far - I need to sit down and do the research that you have paved the way for and will probably be on this thread several more times this month asking questions, picking brains, etc.

For now: a lot of my music is FLAC/MP3 on laptop or external HD. Will this add to the equipment necessary for a basic setup, getting music from computer to speakers?

[jlaurson]

Thanks to all for the (public AND private) messages I've been getting so far - I need to sit down and do the research that you have paved the way for and will probably be on this thread several more times this month asking questions, picking brains, etc.

For now: a lot of my music is FLAC/MP3 on laptop or external HD. Will this add to the equipment necessary for a basic setup, getting music from computer to speakers?

If you get a CD player with a good DAC and a digital IN, you might find that a considerable bonus as it will allow you to listen to your music via computers at a sonically appreciably better level without having to get another piece of equipment. It was one additional bonus (if not the deciding reason) for getting the CD/SACD player I have right now. Also makes the classic: CD Player, Amp, Speakers setup slightly more future-proof than it would otherwise be.

[The new erato]

I have had both, and I prefer the carousel. I like Mahler, so the "opera" advantage is obvious. However, the main reason I bought it is because it was cheap and it played SACDs. If a single-player had been the same price, I might have chosen it, under the "fewer mechanical parts" logic stated earlier.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_158SCDC595/Sony-SCD-CE595.html?tp=197

It turned out that the SACD part of the player dies (relatively) quickly on all Sony SACD players, so I've owned three of these machines. The two I still have play CDs perfectly, ten and eight years later (I gave one to a friend's niece to use as a CD player). But $450 over ten years isn't bad.

Considering I have one ten year old and one six year old Sony SACD players (different models) still playing SACD perfectly, that sounds strange.....

[Ken B]

Considering I have one ten year old and one six year old Sony SACD players (different models) still playing SACD perfectly, that sounds strange.....

It sounds strange to me too. The sacd stuff is firmware or circuitry. Interpreting bits. Why would that wear out? Carousels or sliders sure, but circuitry?

[Jay F]

Considering I have one ten year old and one six year old Sony SACD players (different models) still playing SACD perfectly, that sounds strange.....

It sounds strange to me too. The sacd stuff is firmware or circuitry. Interpreting bits. Why would that wear out? Carousels or sliders sure, but circuitry?

I don't know why or how it happens, but two of them stopped playing SACD. I read on the Steve Hoffman forum that it was something that happened to SACD players by Sony.