Real Newbie Here

[Jaggie]

I have what would probably be called by most members here zero practical knowledge with home stereo setup, so please bear with me. At this point I have a nice turntable in good working condition and an older amp and pretty terrible floorstanding speakers. In this setup, I think I plan to only keep the turntable. What can you suggest as far as amps and speakers for a modest setup? I will be listening to a wide range of music (rock, classical, electronic, etc.) but in a small area (apartment). I don't need the system to be very loud, just have a good sound to it. I do not need a surround sound system, I just want an old stero, two-speaker system. I want to hook up the turntable, a radio tuner (suggestions?) and a cd player (again, suggestions?). My budget could be described as student-like. I don't mind buying used or older equipment as long as it sounds good and fills my needs. Any and all suggestions are much appreciated!

[Chris Robinson]

Wow, you're either up really late or up really early

I would suggest an older Harman Kardon receiver, 1970's vintage. They mate really well with the Klipsch speakers, be they Heritage or other. Add a pair of Heresies and you're set with a nice system on a budget.

Heresies can be found on Ebay for $350 to $550. Cornwalls are the next step up and go for about $800. Always find Klipsch speakers that are within driving distance so they won't get damaged in shipping. They're heavy and don't ship well.

KG4's are another fav of mine and can be found in the $250-$300 range. Again, buy locally.

For the HK products, here is what I clipped from an old post last year:

H/K 430, 630, 730, and 930 are solid state twin-powered stereo AM/FM receivers made by Harmon Kardon in the early to mid 1970's. They are excellent solid state performers with Klipsch Heritage speakers. They have ultra-wide-band frequency response that is flat as a pancake. Because they are low-powered receivers, they have none of the backround noise normally associated with the majority of solid state amplifier sections of their time(hiss, etc.). They normally show up weekly on eBay. Their cost is extremely low in the used market...normally around 50 bucks or less for the 430 all the way up to 150 bucks or less for a 930. THey were CONSERVATIVELY rated in their power output...since Harman/Kardon tended to do it that way. The 430 was initially rated at 25 wpc, the 630 at 30 wpc, the 730 at 35 wpc, and the 930 at 45 wpc. Because they are twin-powered, with a separate power supply for each channel driven, they have no problem at all keeping up with transients normally found in complex musical passages. They are relatively simple "under the hood"...so they have lots of room for airflow, which means they run cool...this is important since heat build-up is a killer of older solid state amp sections. The 630, 730, and 930 have pre-amp out and main amp in connections, so that they can be used like separates...the 430 does not have this capability, though. The tuner sections in these receivers will surprise you, too!...Much better than most receivers have today...and even better than many current tuner separates. For Heritage speakers, these receivers will really surprise you...their ultra-wide band frequency response will bring out bass you never knew was there when using other power sources...they are clean and accurate throughout the midrange and high frequencies, too. The 630 and 930 came out for the 74 model year, the 430 and 730 came out for the 76 model year (september of the previous calendar year was when models came out in those days...just like cars). The 730 replaced the 630 in the lineup when it came out...since it was basically an upgrade of the 630...with 5 wpc additional output. There are a number of forum members who are living happily with one or more of these receivers powering heritage speakers from the Heresys and Cornwalls, all the way up through LaScalas and even K-horns. The biggest advantage on these receivers is the low cash outlay normally needed to aquire one...likely the best bang for the buck around! Their popularity has been climbing on the used market for the last couple of years...as people rediscover them...so another advantage is being able to use one for a time and sell it later for more than was paid for it...IF you find you are willing to part with it! The 430 was the best-selling receiver in its class in the world while it was manufactured...and in 1976 dollars it cost over 300 bucks new...which was quite high for its power-output range at that time. GIve one a try...besides, it costs less for a 430 than most people pay for a quad of tubes!

used 6.3 volt bulbs from parts express part number 070-255 for the indicator and 070-118 for the fuse type bulbs for the dial lights.....Rick

[jbsl]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Klipsch Jaggie!

For a college student budget I would go with some Heresys speakers which go for $300 and up. I believe there was a post by a forum member selling his for $395 plus shipping. I believe he lives in New Mexico and shipping these speakers would be around $120(guessing here). So if you are anywhere near NM I would do a road trip and save the money.

Heresys were my speakers in collegeand we jammed out many parties with them. If you want really deep bass then the Heresys may not work for you. But if you are not worried about deep bass then they will work great.

Fortes or Chorus would work for you but I do not know what they sell for used. I am sure someone will have a average price on these speakers which would be excellent college student speaker. Fortes and Chorus have better bass and to me sounded better than the Heresy.

Looking at the cost and the fact you are not looking to play at very loud levels I would go with the Heresys.

Others probably have some other speakers to suggest also.

You can go buy a new cheap dvd player and play your cds in it. Anyone know of a good new DVD player for cd disc playing?

A integrated amp might work good for you. I have a feeling you will get advice to buy either a solid state int amp or a tube int amp. That choice will have to be yours but both SS and tube can give you very good results.

Good luck with your search!

[Myhamish]

Welcome to the forum, Jaggie

Ditto to what Chris above has to say. You mentioned you have an

older amp. Many of the older amps have lots of bite and gonads to

them. There was a lot of premium equipment from those days that

is still sought after. If the amp is in good condition and

running good, hang on to it for a while and concentrate on speakers

first.. Keeping this in mind, you might want to start looking for

some Heresies or something bigger and upgrade the amp later.

Check out your local buy and sell flyers, flea markets, pawn shops and

etc. Every once in a while, someone on the forum finds a Klipsch

bargain. And occasionally, a forum member is upgrading so you

might find something you're looking for listed here. Have

fun. Hamish

[Cal Blacksmith]

Welcome to the forum.

As has been said, many of the older recievers from the 70s are real sleepers in todays market and are a great value of performance to price.

Heresys, are great little (by Klipsch heretage standards) speakers and will serve you well. They can be had for $300 to $700 used, depending on condition. A pair of factory re-conditioned speakers just went for about $750 on Ebay, a good price really when new was over $1000.

Fort'es in either version 1 or 2 are very good, well ballanced speakers and will keep you happy for a long time if you can fit floor standers into your room. These go for $400 to about $700 again depending on condition.

[PrestonTom]

Welcome,

You are getting good advice.

The speakers ( and how they are set up will make the biggest difference). With Klipsch speakers, their efficiency and the fact that their impedance does not go very low, make them an easy load for an amplifier. That said, the amplifier must be clean and free of hiss & hum (or else it will be faithfully reproduced). You need not spend much on an amp to get started. However, you do need to demo the amp on your speakers. At this budget level an integrated amp is probably okay (Harman Kardon can be nice). Although, separates have advantages.

The CD player is one component I would not get used, since the technology has become quite a bit better. You need not spend much money on a CD player (fewest gains will be realized).

Used Heresies, are readily available and a very good value (and will hold their value unless they get marred). In time they could always be supplemented with a sub or traded up for a pair of Cornwalls. By getting used equipment you can save quite a bit of money. If the budget is tight, I would be leery of used tube equipment.

Good luck,

-Tom

[Colin]

Indeed, the advice is good, I too like the older twin-powered harmon kardon receivers, and the Heritage loudspeakers (although Chorus and KG models are sometimes cheaper because they are less well known. However, I would say a refurbished vintage integrated tube amplifier, from somebody like NOSvalves in this forum, would be even better than the harmon kardons. Horns love tubes. Together they make music.

Oh yeah, and here is what I always ask, although you provided most of the answers already: In your profile, please specify your system: # of channels now and planned, amps, subs, room size, acoustic treatments, EQ, music source (iPod, PC, DVD, etc.), your age, music and movie preferences, percent of movie versus music listening, preferred volume level, musical instrument experience, must have features, etc! That way, the thoughtful posters here can provide answers tailored to your situation, not just simply spout off their preferences for their own situation.

[H]

[pauln]

First things first: Is your IRA for tax year 2005 funded? How about 2006?

Second: Heresys!

Third: <Insert vice here>

Nice to see the interest in records, the old HKs should have fine phono EQ (what the Brit's call the stylus interface)

Pauln

[DrWho]

I have what would probably be called by most members here zero practical knowledge with home stereo setup, so please bear with me. At this point I have a nice turntable in good working condition and an older amp and pretty terrible floorstanding speakers. In this setup, I think I plan to only keep the turntable. What can you suggest as far as amps and speakers for a modest setup? I will be listening to a wide range of music (rock, classical, electronic, etc.) but in a small area (apartment). I don't need the system to be very loud, just have a good sound to it. I do not need a surround sound system, I just want an old stero, two-speaker system. I want to hook up the turntable, a radio tuner (suggestions?) and a cd player (again, suggestions?). My budget could be described as student-like. I don't mind buying used or older equipment as long as it sounds good and fills my needs. Any and all suggestions are much appreciated!

What kind of budget are you looking at?

I too would also recommend the older HK stereo recievers...they pop up on ebay every once in a while and usually go for under $100 in good condition - definetly the best bang for the buck (extra bonus is the great phono and radio tuner).

I too am on a "student budget" and would have to recommend the Fortes. You might be able to get by with the heresies if you listen to music that doesn't need much bass, but I'm not a huge fan (I have both chorus and heresy, but i got the chorus for dirt cheap).

As far as CD players go, I'm actually a fan of Sony...they don't usually make good audio equipment, but their CD players are real nice (and real inexpensive too). Sadly, I think they're only selling the multi-disc units now...

[pmsummer]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Klipsch Jaggie!

You

can go buy a new cheap dvd player and play your cds in it.

Anyone know of a good new DVD player for cd disc

playing?

The Toshiba 38XX and 39XX DVD players ($50-100) have a 24 bit DAC and

challenge some some really TOTL CD players out of the box. Supposedly a

couple of cheap/easy mods elevates it to a very high level of

performance.

I'll also recommend the H/K Twin-Powered line, but look at the Yamaha CR and CA stuff from the late 70s/early 80s too.

[Seadog]

What Chris said.

The HK 430 is a masterpiece for a solid state receiver. Sounds real sweet with Heresys

[Dave in ABQ]

Hello and welcome!

Sounds like your on your way to some audio bliss. I also like the way the old HK430/730's sound on Klipsch. The smaller Marantz 22xx series are also nice and warm too as are the older Sansui receivers from the very early '70s. Another consideration if your budget alows is the Forte. A great speaker all around.

Like someone xman posted, I have pair of Heresy's for sale as well as a 50 watt per channel Sansui 5000x receiver that sounds great with them. (see my post and link here in 2 channel). The HK's are a bit of a better bargain though.

Good luck on your finding what you're looking for. You've come to the right place. There are a great bunch of guys here.

[jheis]

If you're truely on a limited budget, I'd take a look at KG 2 speakers. I'm a big fan of heritage (as you can see from my sig line), but I've got a pair of little (relatively speaking) KG 2's in my bedroom two channel system and they really are a sweet little speaker.

They often seem to go begging on epay, selling anywhere from about $60 to $260 - depending on who is bidding - most seem to sell for around $100/pair - or less.

Match 'em up with a HK receiver as suggested above and you're good to go - on the cheap!

James

[Audio Flynn]

KG series

KSB 3.1 or 2.1

RB-5 or RB-35 or 25

Hereseys

I have not heard the newest models yet.

As a college student there is a premium on space. An RF or Chorus or Forte are a bit big to move in a small car.

Older HK or Marantz or other reciver is good entry level vintage

amplification. I have an NAD integrated I can still like when I am

doing preventitive mainataniance on one of my vintage tube integrateds.

Tube integrateds are very nice if you can fit one in your budget.

[Jaggie]

Thank you all so much for your prompt and thorough responses.

OK, I looked at my equipment as it is now and here's what I have:

Amp: Sanyo JA V14 Stereo Amp

Speakers: Sanyo SS 690 Floorstanding X 2

Record Player: JVC QL-Y3F with Grado stylus

Tuner: Sanyo external

Yes, I know most of it is likely terrible, but it's what I have to build with now. I actually got the record player and stylus from a forum member here on these boards some time ago and I believe it to be a very good tunrtable for my needs at this point. The amp could be servicable, but again I don't know too much about this.

My major complaints with the setup is the muffled highs/mids, hiss and the skipping of the records (does this have something to do with the arm?).

My room is a small bedroom in an apartment. I am running at relatively low volumes but would like to have a nice full range of sound even at these lower volumes. I know a little bit about tube amplifiers because I play guitar and have purchased a tube amplifier there (though I was looking for one that would distort []). Being a law student, I have a limited budget and would like to make some significant improvements for under $1000. You guys are all great, thanks for the advice.

I plan on keeping my eyes out for some Heresys as they seem to be the most recommended speaker for my purposes. Any idea how much of an improvement I can expect with the Heresys and an older HK receiver over my current Sanyo setup? Please don't snicker if Sanyo is the lowest of all stereo companies (I'll admit again how new I am at this!)

Thanks!

[SilverSport]

Jaggie,

Welcome and prepare to be "blown away" when you upgrade from your speakers to KG2s or more...I love my Heresys but others RAVE about the Fortes and they can be "got" for about the same 4-500 cash if you watch for them...being a newb check to make sure they look clean and taken care of...unless you buy from someone selling them here (we are a close bunch despite some "carping") my guide has always been if they look bad on the outside they may be worse on the inside...not ALWAYS the case but be careful...if you do need repairs or "freshening" there are members here who upgrade or freshen items for very fair prices and Klipsch also has many replacement parts for fair prices.

Good luck and let us know how the hunt goes...it is a bloodsport though...when someone buys something new...and they're ALWAYS buying something 'round here...then everyone else starts buying something...

Bill

[Chris Robinson]

Muffled highs are not some we hear around here much []

Honestly, you have amp and speaker issues. I'd sell them both and the tuner if you have no emotional attachments to it.

Take the proceeds from the sales (Ebay works well) and find either the Heresies I mentioned before, KG4's or Fortes (I or II) or Choruses. The Forte and Chorus models will cost more.

Your skipping issue with the TT could be your tracking weight is out of adjustment or your records are worn. If you don't have the manual, google the model number and see how to adjust it. Thank God for the internet.

As I said at the top, muffled highs won't cut it here. None of the Klipsch speakers will give you muffled highs. With good amplification (Harman Kardons are great for almost zero dollars), a pair of Heresies or KG4's will put a real smile on your face that won't go away. You can upgrade your gear significantly and also put some cash back into your checking account.

Chris

[Colin]

Oh, where to start, loudspeakers of course, loudspeakers are the only bargain in audio: you get the most bang for your buck, so buy the biggest, heaviest and most expensive ones you can afford. Remember, the ones you get now will be the main or rear loudspeakers in your making too much money as a lawyer set-up in a few years.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

A simple little $35 Sonic Impact 5066 class T digital amplifier can easily drive a pair of Heritage horns and might actually sound better than a vintage amplifier, but it has only one mini-RCA input. I say might because the old amplifiers (when they are not worn out) can sound pretty good compared to the new cheap stuff (if it is really heavy). A better amplifier, like the twin-powered harmon kardons, sounds like a better tube guitar amplifier: better tone, easier listening in the long run.

Try another ½ to a gram of weight on the TT. I read an article, oh decades ago, that said although the weights promoted for most cartridges was 1 gram, the best weight for sound quality was actually almost 1 to 1.5 grams heavier (which does not sell cartridges very well). [H]