Stunning System! $9700
All of our customers want to be sure they’re getting the most performance for their money. What is the point of diminishing returns for my budget?
And that’s our goal at Audio Emporium. No matter how much you decide to spend, whether on a component, cables or a full system, we’ll help you get the best bang for your buck.
For this hypothetical, which occurs quite regularly by the way, let’s use $10k as our shopping number.
No Thanks To China
For openers, I’m not buying anything substantial from China. Even if you ignore their politics and 996 labor practices (manufacturing employees typically work 9am to 9pm, 6 days a week at $1.82 per hour), they screwed the market during Covid. Production of N American and Euro companies fell to a trickle and the Chinese production houses flooded the market with loads of mediocre gear. Since our N American and Euro companies are back at full strength, the Chinese can kiss off. The N American and Euro gear is better, and sometimes not much more expensive.
Speakers
Bryston A2, $4000 Per Pair
While every component is a vital link in the chain, nothing is more important than speakers. The difference between two integrated amps at a given price is much less than the difference between a couple of pairs of speakers.
Bryston is made in Canada with a 20 year warranty. The vast majority of speakers near this price point are made in Chinese job houses with a 5 year warranty. Even if they have a European name on them, in this price range they’re just Chinese mass production.
Bryston has a consistency and toughness the Chinese do not. The Euro companies that do work close to Bryston’s level, do so at much higher prices.
For me, the first order of business in a loudspeaker is to be smooth, as opposed to harsh.
It has to image broadly and have deep bass because that’s part of live music. It has to be tough as nails because most customers regularly hit ‘em hard. If it can’t throw bar bells around the room, keep looking.
Most companies only support parts for their speakers for about a decade. Bryston has you under warranty for TWO DECADES.
Bryston’s A2 runs DOUBLES. By running double woofs, mids and tweets, you’re asking for half the excursion travel of drivers, than if you used singles. Using doubles improves definition and power handling. Doubles also provide a taller, deeper sound stage than single drivers. A2 delivers sledge hammer power in a smallish tower. Please visit to hear them. You’ll think we have a subwoofer hiding when you listen to A2
Integrated Amp
Atoll IN300 Signature, $4500 (150×2)
Built in France with a 3 year warranty, IN300 is a Ferrari. It has superior weight and muscle in its musical delivery compared to anything coming from China. That includes Hegel, NAD, Parasound, Cambridge, Rotel and anything else we’ve heard.
Atoll uses dual, monstrous toroidal transformers, high filter capacitance and matched MOSFET output transistors. It uses discrete design and through hole components. The other guys run surface mount components that affect their neighbors and can’t dissipate heat well. Nobody else in this price range builds as Atoll does!
IN300 comes with on board DAC that doesn’t use negative feedback. Its voicing is smooth and highly resolving. Its performance is apples to apples with Bryston and Mac at half the price. IN300 is my favorite integrated amp value on the market- a true bargain in the integrated amp category!
CD Transport
Atoll DR100, $1200
Don’t forget your silver discs! CDs SOUND BETTER than streaming.
Atoll’s DR100 transport is a fabulous partner for shaking hands with the IN300 integrated amp. Just drop a disc in, hit play, and hear the whole program as the artist intended. You hear the music clearly without record noise- and don’t have to hassle with the care that’s required to give LPs a fighting chance.
If you want to add a streamer to this system, buy the Bluesound Node. It’s inexpensive and sounds as good as anything else because you’re running digital out into the IN300 integrated amp. Virtually every streamer out there contains a module made by Stream Unlimited. Assuming you’re running digital out, there are microscopic differences among them. Buy the Bluesound because it’s made by NAD and nobody supports streaming better. Many brands cough, sputter and buffer as they try to interface with the web. Bluesound has it DOWN.
If you’re a vinyl lover, we can help you with a myriad of options, from modest to a deep dive.
Dotting The I’s And Crossing The T’s
While you can run your electronics into a Home Depot bar and use generic cables, you can’t reach your full potential by ignoring the use of a proper Mains Conditioner and running quality speaker cables.
Isotek makes its line conditioners in Europe, not China. Pricing runs $900-$2k. If you want to eliminate line hash and noise, please plan for a line conditioner. Even the $900 Polaris V5 provides a big improvement over name brand bars- virtually all of which come from China.
Speaker cables matter. You don’t need to buy expensive jewelry. We carry Kimber Kable made in Utah. Great Kimber Kables run $224-388, for 10’ lengths with great banana plugs. Braided kables to eliminate RFI are a must to achieve top tier resolution.
