Jump to content

First time budget setup


Recommended Posts

I've wanted to get into vinyl for a while now and decided to finally bite the bullet. I have a budget of around £500 which i can be a bit flexible with so guessing i'm looking at more entry level equipment. 

Through reading this forum and reading the beginners guide i have an idea (being new to this i have to admit some of it confuses me) of what equipment i want to buy but need a little help in choosing for definite.

 

So far the setup i am looking at would be:

Turntable - Rega rp1

Integrated amp - Denon PMA-520AE

Speakers - Wharfedale diamond 10.0

 

This comes to about £470 on amazon so falls within my budget.

 

Basically i just wanted to ask if you think this would be an okay setup for a beginner or if you had any other recommendations.

 

I hope i'm not breaking any of the rules of the forum and any help would be hugely appreciated.  

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

those wharfedales aren't worth buying, if any, then 10.1, though for that denon they really wouldn't be the best match. Sevenoaks has some great stuff on clearance currently, I suggest these: http://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-9904128-monitor-audio-bronze-bx1-black-oak-speakers-pair.aspxKiller price, and they have pretty much all finishes available. Ex display, but I wouldn't worry about it, sevenoaks is solid.

 

As for the amp, you should really consider going for the bigger brother: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Denon-PMA720AE-Integrated-Amplifier-Black/dp/B007Y3OBIS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1438708803&sr=8-2&keywords=denon+amplifier

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Those speakers are at a very good price. Sevenoaks also has a Nad C 556 turntable on sale which is a Nad badged Rega if you want to be a little different to the herd

 

You can also get some good bundle deals at Richer Sounds plus at both Richers and Sevenoaks you can go and listen to this stuff and make an informed opinion of what your ears like rather than some biased Amazon review.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Those speakers are at a very good price. Sevenoaks also has a Nad C 556 turntable on sale which is a Nad badged Rega if you want to be a little different to the herd

 

You can also get some good bundle deals at Richer Sounds plus at both Richers and Sevenoaks you can go and listen to this stuff and make an informed opinion of what your ears like rather than some biased Amazon review.

Don't know why but I'm pretty set on the RP1. Probably to do with mostly favourable reviews and the simple look of the thing. I never thought of looking at bundle deals and wasnt aware of the listening option so thanks alot. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you're going to spend a couple of hundred quid on hifi surely you would want to hear what you're buying? It can all sound vastly different and you might find you don't actually like the RP1 when you hear it.

 

Also there is the 2nd hand option, for what you're paying for a new RP1 you can easily get a 2nd hand RP3 with money left for upgrades or more records or to put towards a better amplifier etc. etc..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really liked my Monitor Audio Silver RX1s.

 

BX2s are supposed to be the sweet spot in the Bronze line

 

There's a pair on that site for £109:

 

http://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-9903176-monitor-audio-bronze-bx2-walnut-speakers-pair.aspx

looks like they dont deliver them and getting to the store could be a problem for me

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you're going to spend a couple of hundred quid on hifi surely you would want to hear what you're buying? It can all sound vastly different and you might find you don't actually like the RP1 when you hear it.

 

Also there is the 2nd hand option, for what you're paying for a new RP1 you can easily get a 2nd hand RP3 with money left for upgrades or more records or to put towards a better amplifier etc. etc..

I was going to stay away from 2nd hand with me being new to the whole thing e.g. not knowing how good or bad a condition something is in. Any recommended sites with 2nd hand items?  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Any of the proper hifi classifieds like:

 

http://www.ukaudiomart.com/

 

http://www.hifiwigwam.com/forumdisplay.php?25-Private-Classifieds

 

But even ebay as the buyer is so well protected if you pay with Paypal you are unlikely to be ripped off provided you research the value properly.

Thanks alot mate will check them out

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just curious Allen, what do used RP-6's go for over there? Or is that high enough up in the tier that they don't show up often and don't have quite the same used discounts? 

 

Rp6's are a much rarer beast and a good one will be anywhere from around £500 ($750) to £800 ($1200) but I would say the right money is £550, that said a quick look on ebay and I saw one without psu and cartridge that sold for £300 which could well have been a bargain or a pile of poo with knackered arm bearings or main bearing etc etc.

 

RP3's on the other hand you have to group with the Planer 3 as they are basically identical and have been around for nearly as long as me so consequently there are bucket loads of them about and you can pick up a good one for about £100 ($150) upwards with the right money being around £150 which is basically the value of the arm.

 

The ones to get though are the RP7 and RP9 but those you don't see very often because with the choice of tables we have here, people tend to keep the RB arm and move onto things like Linn's, Funk's, Audio Notes, Michells or SME's before they spend big on the higher up Rega's and 20 years ago it was a much much more congested market place as far as high end domestic product went.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the info! I have a P3 now and love it, but looking to upgrade within a few months to see what a RP6 or higher can produce. RP6's here I've seen go for only a few hundred under new retail (saw one just go for $1800....). So crazy to me, I'd rather just buy new and get the support of a dealer for that little amount of savings. I might have to keep an eye out in the UK market.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the info! I have a P3 now and love it, but looking to upgrade within a few months to see what a RP6 or higher can produce. RP6's here I've seen go for only a few hundred under new retail (saw one just go for $1800....). So crazy to me, I'd rather just buy new and get the support of a dealer for that little amount of savings. I might have to keep an eye out in the UK market.

 

You need to check that the power supply is multi voltage and multi frequency as you might end up needing the change the PSU and the motor pulley.

 

Edit

 

In your shoes though I think I'd slowly upgrade my P3 as you can end up with a table that is way above a P6 with the satisfaction of doing it yourself and also seeing what upgrades have what effects

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Holy crap this is awesome, you're the best! The last link with the package...wow...

 

There's more than that

 

The biggest gains I've found with the Rega are arm first, (weight and internal wiring), bearing then an acrylic platter and then the plinth, things like belts and motor pulleys and are nice but last on the list really.

 

The sub platters are an interesting one as they fall into both the bearing and platter categories

 

That said in the US I would expect motor and motor drive electronics would be useful

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×

AdBlock Detected

spacer.png

We noticed that you're using an adBlocker

Yes, I'll whitelist