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johnwinkley

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  1. Hello I've read this thread with interest as I went through the same process - I bought some 802d's and then found that my 100W Musical Fidelity amp was inadequate - wobbly bass and generally all sounded a bit compressed and limited. I read quite a few threads on groups about these popular speakers - there seems to be a consensus that they are a tough load to drive. In the end I went for a Chord amp SPA1032. I'm based in the UK and they're a UK company which was part of the attraction, but this is also common configuration in many studios, including in the US. I think the attraction is the peak power capabilities and rock solid current delivery across the frequency range for harder loads ( I remember reading that its impedance can drop below 3ohms at some frequencies). Anyway, my point is that Chord supply pro and hifi versions of essentially the same products (I'm reliably informed) and there are some great deals on the pro ones which differ only in that they have RCA outputs only (the hifi ones are phono and RCA). I would probably have gone Classe as a second choice but an equivalent unit would have been 2-3 times the price. The chord unit is great. The combination with 802d is clinical, which I like (and I imagine is why its popular in studios) but I can imagine others preferring a warmer sound, so the points made about matching DAC and amp are clearly important. Positioning the 802d requires care too, particularly in smaller rooms and corners I'd say. Cheers John
  2. Hello Gruffster Read your post and so much of it chimed that I thought I'd register and post. I've just moved to a fully digital flac service based on Sonos. Took me a while to decide to take the plunge, but in the end it was easy and the results are pretty spectacular. Key success factors for me were the simplicity of Sonos and the capability of modern OS' for moving media files around. My setup: Stock PC tower with Windows Home Server (hidden in another room) Sonos Z90, Cambridge DACMagic, Musical Fidelity Pre Amp/Chord power/B&W802D. Musical Fidelity CD player (rotting in the corner now). I'm convinced the FLAC/digital route sounds better than the CD player. Top tips: 1) Wire up all your devices - CAT5 is fine, wireless probably isn't. 2) I'd endorse the view about being careful how you rip. I've used dBPowerAmp to uncompressed FLAC and a subscription to a metadata service. They also provide an excellent batch converter to MP3 for the IPOD and car. 3) Separate DAC seemed to make a difference, even a fairly budget one. Don't forget to run the Sonos in fixed output mode. 4) Windows home server is appealing because it's easy to upgrade discs and it backs up your stuff. It's cheap too and easy to setup. 5) I run the Sonos control software on my Iphone and on my PC. They work really well together. I've even ditched my tuner because Sonos streams radio. When I heard that Linn were planning to abandon CD players and other sources, I was sceptical, but having made the move myself, I can see why. Being able to random play your entire catalogue allows you to rediscover old gems. And no piles of CDs lying around which keeps my wife happy! Cheers. Good luck John
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