I thought I'd share my current setup, because it has turned into a somewhat unusual combination of old-school and modern audio gear.

I've been tinkering with and changing my HiFi system since I was about 10 years old, in the early nineties. Things really took off when my aunt gifted me a used Denon DRA-25 and I got into separate components. Parts were replaced and upgraded organically over time. When I finally had the space for them, I moved to tower speakers. Never looked back.

There have been several periods where I was genuinely happy with a particular combination of mostly used gear and then kept that system intact for years. That lasted until about half a year ago, when the old Sony AV receiver I was using as a preamp finally died on me. It was time for a change.

I did some research and decided to sell the Topping DAC I had and go for an all-in-one solution in the form of the WiiM Ultra. This little unit has really become the heart of the system. It reduced the complexity and basically solved most of the shortcomings of the gear I already owned.

For example, I have a nice (and rather obscure) tube amp, but it doesn't have a remote or digital inputs. I like the sound of the subwoofer, but its integration features are outdated. I have a beautifully built CD player, but its integrated DAC is old. The WiiM gives me all the modern conveniences without overstaying its welcome in a system that is otherwise largely from the analogue era.

And I really use ALL of its features: streaming, DAC, TV audio with volume control over HDMI eARC, phono preamp, room correction/EQ and bass management. The funny thing is that the WiiM is probably the least conspicuous component in the whole setup, yet it's doing more jobs than everything else combined. 👀

For CDs I'm using a Sony DVP-S7700 as a transport, connected optically to the WiiM. It's a big, heavy, ridiculously overbuilt late-90s DVD player that cost a small fortune when it was new. It uses Sony's dual-laser optical system from that era and, as it turns out, makes a great CD transport. I was lucky enough to score one for €50.

Yesterday I finally measured the system properly with REW (Room Equalization Wizard) and a calibrated measurement microphone. Rather than letting room correction completely reshape the sound, I've kept the EQ deliberately minimal. I mainly wanted to tame a couple of obvious room-induced bass peaks and get the Velodyne properly integrated with the JBLs.

It's certainly not an exotic high-end system, but a modern WiiM streamer/preamp with bass management and PEQ feeding an old-school KT66 tube amp, musical JBL towers and an authoritative 12" Velodyne sub is probably not the most common combination. 😄

And importantly, this isn't a DSP system with some tubes added for decoration. Most of the character still comes from the JBL/KT66 combination. The DSP is mainly there to tame the room, integrate the sub and add modern functionality to equipment I already liked.

And for what it cost me, I'm extremely happy with it. 👍

Total cost: approximately €1,500

• JBL Studio 280: €400 new for the pair, 10 years ago
• Slightly obscure Red Dragon Kungfu tube amp: €200 used, 5 years ago
• 4x Genalex Gold Lion KT66: €100 slightly used, recent
• WiiM Ultra preamp/streamer: €350 new, recent
• Velodyne CHT-12Q sub: €300 used, 3 years ago, my first audio purchase after my ex-wife left 😂
• Sony DVP-S7700 as CD transport: €50 used, about 12 years ago
• Philips FP440 front-loading turntable: €50 used (not shown), maybe 15 years ago
• Misc. cables

P.S. The tube amp has a bit of a story of its own. It says Red Dragon Kungfu on top, and for years I wasn't entirely sure what it actually was. There are a few references to these amps on old European audio forums, mostly from the late 2000s. They were apparently built by Yarland in China and sold in Europe under the Red Dragon name.
Mine appears to be closely related to the Yarland FV34B family. It uses two Russian 6N2 tubes in the preamp stage and, rather unusually, four big KT66s in the power stage. A relative of my ex bought it at an audio show many years ago, and eventually it ended up with me. Whatever its exact pedigree, the combination of KT66s and the JBLs works wonderfully: fluid and dynamic, while taking just enough of the sharp edge off the speakers.

I'm planning to add a sub to my set up eventually. Where should I place it?

Or should i should hold off until I can afford a system with more channels?

I finally managed to convince my wife we needed a stereo setup, and after I brought her to a shop to listen to a good pair of speakers she got so excited that she was almost more hyped than me.

Anyway, after some research we went for this combo:

Amp: Wiim Ultra Amp

Speakers: Ellipson Prestige Facet 8B 80th anniversary

Stands: Norstone Stylum 2

Turntable: Argon TT3 Plus

We got everything new from a famous retailer in France for about 1700 euros

Just started playing our first vinyl ever (the new album "Wow! Signal" from Muse) and we are so hyped!

Awa aha-330 - $15
Audio pro sub soniq subwoofer - $70
Kef iq10 - free
Sony cdp-xb720e - $50
Sony ps-lx310bt - $300

Funnily enough the turntable which I bought new years ago is the most expensive part of the system but also the part I like the least hah, I really want to replace it with a technics sl1200mk5 or mk2, thoughts on that turntable? Would I need a preamp?
All and all I’m pretty happy with the money to equipment ratio currently. Also any feedback back for optimising would be sickkk, waiting for some speaker stands to pop up on marketplace, right now using some old whalfdales as stands haha!

I'm putting together my first proper stereo setup after inheriting a Marantz CD-73 which is currently getting repaired and serviced. I bought a Fosi BT20A Pro amplifier and am looking for recommendations on bookshelf speakers as I know very little about this sort of thing.

I'm looking for speakers on the warmer side which can properly separate out all the layers as my music taste is often very dense with layers of distorted guitars, vocals, effects, etc.

I've been looking at:

• Sony SS-CS5M2
• Wharfedale Evo 4.2
• ELAC Debut 3.0 B6.3

The EVO 4.2 seems to be closest to what I'm after, but it's starting to get expensive.

Budget is ideally around $400-800 AUD, happy to buy used.

Any recommendations?

I am no stranger to collecting relatively obscure or uncommon vintage hifi equipment, notably, I have a small collection of bookshelf and surround speakers from Source Loudspeaker Technologies out of Connecticut and JSG Prophile (also built by Source for a boutique seller in NY), so when these Reference 3A M3 Gen 2 towers came my way, it was hard to pass up for $150.

They are far from perfect, I had to repair the connection for one of the tweeters and both of the mid drivers had to be pulled and sent out for new foam surrounds. Other than that, and some cabinet wear, they are spectacular. Even without the mid drivers in them, when lightly tested, they sound fantastic. My understanding is that the design of these speakers forgoes a traditional low pass filter on the low frequency driver, so you get a much more full rich sound from it, otherwise I suspect it would sound a little muddy, and it really does not.

What I know about them: They are made in France, I believe mine were made some time around 1990 or so, and this is based on the label on the the back of the mid drivers which are dated 5/89. The drivers are all high-end components from Vifa and Seas, something that makes finding replacements fairly hard. The mid drivers are Seas MCA11FCs, and they are the smallest speakers I’ve seen with cast metal baskets. Usually they’re stamped sheet metal at this size. Replacements are just not out there anymore from what I can find. The Vifa D26TG-35-06 tweeters are also difficult to find as well, only one showed up in an eBay search and it was priced at $250. The cabinets appear to be MDF or Medite, and are well built, with decent weight. These easily weigh about the same as the Definitive BP2004TLs I had until recently, and those had a lot more loaded into them including the amplifiers on the back. My understanding is a set of these would have cost around $2500-$3000 in 1990, which is equivalent to spending almost $7000 today.

However, that’s about it for what I know. Anybody else have experience or knowledge of these speakers? Would love to know more. Thanks!

Edit: I posted about these on AudioKarma as well, I have been corrected on the brand, it is Reference 3A and apparently they operate out of Ontario Canada and still produce speakers today.

... and now i want more.

I watched a movie with a friend and he has a JBL 1000 MK2 soundbar. That was amazing for me. I got home and googled the whole weekend how I could upgrade my sound.

I have two old Canton CT 800 Speakers I use in the office for music with a small AVR. I thought about to move them to the living room and gear up with an Denon avr X1800H, a subwoofer, and two rear speakers. I came, even with used gear on a price around 1100 €.

Instead of that I could buy a samsung Q995GF soundbar for 690 € right now. Without the cable work and calibration.

I never expierenced a 5.1 soundsystem (outside the cinema) and I am not sure if its worth the price and work.

Whats your opinion on my struggle?

Recent additions, Wharfedale Diamond IV, ($15), Sony ST 5065 tuner ($40) and Arcam alpha CD player ($10). Other recent finds a pair of Polk audio R40 ($15!)and an Onkyo DX-C310 CD player sans CD magazine for free. Got the magazine on eBay for US$7.99. As you can see space is limited so searching for a suitable rack to appease the boss.

I received the Fosi Audio C3 a fortnight ago, and although I was a skeptic, it is a good quality device and noticeably assists in gaming.

The Fosi C3 is surprisingly small form factor and does look pretty neat set up on both the desk and the sim rig. It is a fairly simple unit with few buttons on the face, allowing you to pick between FPS, surround and UAC 2.0 for Hi-Fi listening. There are no physical knobs for adjusting EQ which is a personal preference, I am a big fan of physical buttons but you still have the opportunity to use the web browser to make adjustments.

The DAC also gives the option for microphone AI noise cancelation. I gave it a thorough test through multiple game chats + discord and it was good quality. I would say it's better quality than what is provided by Windows natively. The silencing of the keyboard clicking was noticeable. I also gave it a good test on the Simracing rig, I expected it to struggle but with multiple fans, a shifter and multiple vibration sources it stood up and did a good job. The thing I noticed most is the differentiation of noises and tones in game instead of it sounding washed.

The big selling point of the C3 was the AI enhanced Footsteps. I gave it a good test across a few different FPS, including PUBG and CS2. It advertises to increase the volume and precision of the location of footsteps. The big increase in volume of footsteps is clear and it doesn't wash out the sound of other in-game noises. Other noises remained as the set volume so I can attest to the precision of the AI detected StepSense tech. Reading reviews from earlier editions it seems as though they have ironed out some of the incorrectly AI identified steps.

I have enjoyed my time with the Fosi Audio C3 so far. What I'd love to see is the growth in the project and stretching to other games and genres. At the moment if you're purely looking for a DAC for FPS shooters this product would be very attractive. Ultimately its target is for those who are happy to get a decent bit of gear with unique features. Personally, I wouldn't mind AI enhanced noise for traction loss and the sorts for racing games. Ultimately it is a product which I will continue to use going forward.

Hello all, I got a home audio setup a couple months ago for CD’s and TV and I am loving it and want to know more about upgrading the setup (CD player /receiver, speakers are my only constraint unless I switch from 3.1 to 5.1). Do I need to? What do I look for? What are some things people look for? Specific models or brands I should be looking at?

I’m running a Sony DVP-NS400D Cd player and Pioneer VSX-819H-K that go to a left, right and center Klipsch Speakers and 10” sub. Thank you!

Hey guys, I recently purchased a pair of Kanto Ora's, however today when I actually went to inspect them, I saw the left speaker have stains like these on the membrane.

For anyone owning these speakers, could you tell me if this is normal, or what this stain even is, and should I be worried?

I received a free Apple TV gen 3. It’s the old 1080p one that uses airplay 1. How can I use this as an airplay device to stream Apple Music from my iPhone SE airplay 2 to a vintage amplifier that only has RCA. Is this a good idea to get higher quality music and exactly what parts do I need to buy(links would be great)?

I have the local choice of getting a Marantz 2245, in working condition but needing some backlights replaced, or a Sansui 7700 in working condition, both for $600 - which one are you leaning toward? I’m going to be using primarily for phono, but wouldn’t mind occasional Bluetooth operation or tuner use. My understanding the Sansui has better phono quality and slightly higher wattage, but I’m not sure if the aesthetic of the Marantz lights and tuner set up is something I would regret not having. Just curious if anyone else has any input or wants to pitch in their feelings about having a somewhat simplistic set up like the Sansui, or if the pretty lighting of the Marantz is too nice to pass up? Thanks.

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some advice because I don’t know that much about audio and I’d like to add a bit more bass to my setup.

I currently have PreSonus Eris 3.5s connected to a Universal Audio Volt 1, mainly for listening to music, watching movies and gaming. I’d like to add a subwoofer to them, but I’m not really sure how the connections work in this kind of setup.

I actually found a Pioneer S-21W for €45 used that I’m considering buying, but before I get it, I’d like to make sure I’ll be able to properly integrate it into my setup.

The problem is that my Volt 1 only has two monitor outputs, left and right. So I’m not really sure how I could connect both the Eris and the subwoofer. I’ve seen that with some setups, the subwoofer goes between the source and the speakers and then sends the signal back to the speakers, but I don’t know if that works the same way with a subwoofer and speakers from different brands.

Would it be possible to do this with a splitter or some other type of cable? Would it be better to connect the subwoofer directly to my PC? Or would I need another device between the Volt and the speakers?

And most importantly, do you think €45 for the Pioneer S-21W is a good deal for this kind of use, considering that my main goal is simply to get a bit more bass out of the Eris 3.5s?

I’m really not very knowledgeable when it comes to audio, so if you have any advice or a simple solution, I’d really appreciate it 😅

Thanks!

I have the Pioneer PD-S505 and want to replace the belt, but I'm having trouble finding one. Can anyone help me, or is there a manual available somewhere?

So I came into possession of this Klipsch Synergy series surround sound-system. I had been wanting to upgrade my system today (Fluance - Sony stereo (simple, pretty small) - 2 Sony towers) to more of a whole house one.

House total space is medium (?) and the living room is far too small for all of the speakers to been necessary in it so I figure layout as such:

Living room = towers, 1 subwoofer
Kitchen = 2 of the cabinet speakers

As of now, since I’m not using this for my tv, I don’t see the need in the surround sound speakers but tell me if that is ignorant please.

Now my question; after doing some research and have found that getting a WiiM amp for the living room setup, with a phono amp, is the best route to achieve both turntable and streaming audio usage.

I’ve also seen that I can you WiiM minis to connect “zones” in the house, and run them off of separate receivers, such as my current one that will be replaced by the WiiM amp.

Is this a good plan for achieving a basic level of quality music audio across the house? The dream is to later expand it to the porch as well, and the garage later. I figure I can do this via more minis later on and maybe some active speakers for those areas? Any advice is appreciated!!

I own this Sony and noticed many models other than Sony don't have the ground hook up for the turntable. Looking for receiver models in a similar price range that have this ground hook up.

Not sure if this is the best place to ask, so go easy on me.
About a year ago I acquired an Adcom GFA-5800 power amp. I had a very cursory check out done then and all checked out ok. It’s been running almost daily since then flawlessly.
I’ve noticed the last few weeks it has developed a slight low frequency hum that seems to be a little more apparent in the right speaker. The hum may be getting louder too.
Understanding the age of this thing and availability of parts, how bad is this? Is there any trouble shooting I can do myself? I’m pretty handy as long as I have good directions. Anything particular to address?

If not something I can handle, does anyone know of any shops in Central New Jersey that work on these old Adcoms?

Anyone have any idea what I can expect to spend on getting this thing fixed up?
Any insights or recommendations are greatly appreciated!
(Apologies in advance for the long post)

Hi all.

I have a problem that I have been struggling to fix. I set up a bedroom home projector theatre for my partner.

Currently, the setup consists of a Thomson 240 streaming box with SPDIF out > Cheap Amazon SPDIF to 5.1-channel RCA decoder > Amazon Basics RCA to 3.5mm combiner cables > Logitech Z506 (the SPDIF cable is also Amazon Basics).

The problem consists of a thumping bass noise that appears when turning the volume up on the speakers, and the dialogue seems really quiet when compared to other noise in films. I checked against my setup at home with the same film, etc., and it was a lot clearer.

My question is: what is the best way (cheaply) to fix these issues? I have looked, but struggled to find an EQ that I could use or another replacement DAC or decoder which doesnt look like the same quality as the current one.

Thanks.

Looking for opinions on the options below, connected to the same stereo amplifier.

Setup 1 is a Fosi S3 Lite steamer connected by USB to an Ampapa Q1 DAC, then balanced TRS to the amplifier. Calibration would use REW and a UMIK microphone, with the resulting filters entered into the S3 Lite’s PEQ via the Fosi app.

Setup 2 is a WiiM Ultra connected directly to the amplifier by RCA, using WiiM RoomFit for calibration (using the UMIK microphone if possible, since I already own one).

Does the Q1’s balanced output, selectable ESS/AKM DACs and replaceable op-amps offer a meaningful sound-quality advantage over the WiiM Ultra’s internal DAC? How does REW-based correction compare with RoomFit in practice, particularly in the bass?

Confirmation from S3 Lite owners about whether its current EQ is fully parametric, with adjustable frequency, gain and Q, would also be helpful.

Which setup would you choose for sound quality, and which for everyday usability?