Being a student, at a private college, I don't exactly have a lot of spare cash. But I think I've assembled a pretty good system that works for my tastes. I used to have a Phase Linear 400 II power amp and a Marantz preamp but recently I got the tube bug and bought a pair of those mega cheap ASL tube amps unheard. Wow! Solid-state never again. Also, the increased impedance let's me run my CDP right into the amps. I still might get a Foreplay though for better volume control. I stuck with a universal "bargain" and bought a Marantz CD-67SE off AudioAdvisor for $250. For xmas I got the Axiom M22Tis. Very nice. Amazing what $400 buys these days. I bought the Lovan stands this spring and boy was I amazed what a good set of stands can do. At $79 a pair I don't understand why anyone wouldn't be using these sand-fillable stands instead of cheap wood ones. I think my next upgrade will be either a Foreplay preamp, the Jon Risch DIY power conditioner, or some new DIY interconnects.
Great job! I agree with Mateored, that I'd like a pair of good headphones in the dorms. As a matter of fact, I'm looking into it right now for myself :) It's good to see a fellow college student with a musical system. Cheers!
With some luck,you can find an ADCOM ACE-515 conditioner,for a buck 25,and try out KIMBER PBJ interconnects,very cheap,and maybe you will get better sound improvement.Also like the others suggest,get headphones,it will help in that enviroment.CHEERS and do well in college so that you can get and enjoy some serious hi-end audio.
You've only got one crucial piece missing for a dorm room system: headphones! Get yourself a decent pair of cans (and an HP amp if you can afford it) so you can block out the fool down the hall cranking out Eminem at full volume through his Radio Shack rig or guitar amp -- there's always one of those! Happy studying.
Stephenmeade: Considering that you are in college and all of that (and I would put that as a priority over getting an audio system any day. You can always get one after you leave school. An education is FAR MORE important than music is), I think you did pretty damn good. I like all of your choices as far as your components are concerned. At least now, you'll have something to listen to and unwind with after you are done crashing the books (which is something I would love to do after putting in long hours of studying after attending classes). I think I am going to side with "Sugarbrie" here and recommend that you upgrade your cables. I would also recommend that you get a power conditioner. Considering that you may also have a PC in addition to your stereo, I would recommend getting the best power conditioner that you can find that's affordable. I would look at a "mid-line" to "upper-line" Monster. One of those Monsters should be big enough to accomodate both your stereo and your computer. You are off to a nice start so far. Good luck with your stereo and your studies. :) --Charles--
Next thing you need to do is soup-up your CDP. Try lcaudio.com and look at their super-clocks. Everyone I talk to says that it's a steal for the amount it improves the CD-63. Cheers!
Nice job!! If you tweek anything, try better cables and interconnects later. And with all the power usage in a dorm, get a power conditioner like the Monster HTS2000.
