So I bought some home audio components...and have questions!

[dsheinem]

I am ashamed to admit I have never really owned a "good" sound system. I have a Sony Home Theater in a Box surround system from the early 2000s, I have had several decent shelf systems over the years, and I also have a Polk audio surround sound bar hooked up to a TV. I have never had a dedicated stereo system for audio before. Now I do...




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I bought this entire Kenwood set, which dates from the early 1990s, for $35 today at a yard sale. I have no remotes or manuals, and I have no speakers as of yet. I hooked everything up and got it playing fine (except the CD player won't play discs yet - gonna give it a clean), so I am interested in making it sound as good as possible.

A few questions for folks who know their home audio:

- Did I get a decent set of components? I think that Kenwood was a solid name back then...how do these components rate?

- What speakers should I get? I hooked up a pair of decent shelf speakers to the unit to test it out, and they sounded great even at 30% volume or so - I can tell this thing has the potential to get LOUD. I think I'd much rather have some good floor speakers, though...

-Is their a crucial component or two you would recommend adding? I am actually considering looking for a decent tape deck, and I already have an older Sony turntable that I plan to hook up as well.

-Any suggestions for cables or wiring? Will standard RCA jacks do the job? Would high end cables be a good investment?

Sorry that I am such a n00b with this, but I am excited to get your input! Let me know if I spent my money well and what you would do if you were me

[d123456]

Great deal. I actually recommend a Normal 2 speaker stereo set up for everyone(, except those that remain anal about having surround). And Kenwood is pretty good quality.
IMHO speakers are the weakest link in a hifi set up. So for everyone, get the best speakers possible, then hook ´em up with an older but still fully functioning amplifier.
As for what speakers to get. That´s a really tough call because speaker companies remain low key.
I can recommend one brand Focal, a buddy of mine who did alot of research got some Focal floor speakers and they sound terrific, much better than my Dali Speakers (which should be pretty OK as well)

-Any suggestions for cables or wiring? Will standard RCA jacks do the job? Would high end cables be a good investment?

High end cables would not be a good investment IMHO. Get normal priced ones. Make sure the cables are thick. Thick copper innards and thick plastic/rubber housing, but nothing expensive.
A good investment would be good speakers. I see alot of people getting a pretty decent amplifier for hundreds of bucks/euros and then they look at what cash they have left and get speakers for the remaining money. I say, focus on good speakers and a cheap second hand older amplifier.
Later on, when you have some more money you will then probably buy a new amplifier for needed extra functionality like HDMI inputs and whatnot and there will be no notable improvement in audio quality. Therefor I say focus on speakers.
And offcourse always have your input devices (tv, laptop, iphone, etc) at the highest possible volume, so that there will be a minimal amount of hiss, but not so much volume that you will hear unwanted effects like clipping and distortion.
As for the cd player, give it a good clean, vaccum, clean the lens, maybe it will work again, but it might not work at all. Old cd players are unreliable and should receive a little love at first, but when no love is returned should be killed with fire

[dsheinem]

thanks for the suggestions! curious what others think too...

The CD player is shot, in that the belts which raise and lower the eye are worn out and everything is a bit sticky (it looks like it was repaired once before too as there is a ton of grease inside). It isn't worth the time to fix, and I think I want to get one of those 100+ changers anyway...

[Valkyrie-Favor]

I never understood the appeal of those 100+ changers - or even the 8+ changers. It takes way longer to cycle through the disks and get to what you want than it does to just swap one CD. I guess if you wanted to shuffle all the songs on 100 CDs that would be something

[DinnerX]

Don't get expensive cables. As long as the cables have decent insulation you should be fine.

In case you don't already know, many audiophiles are full of nonsense. If they don't have good science and testing backing up their claims don't believe a word.

[d123456]

Don't get expensive cables. As long as the cables have decent insulation you should be fine.

In case you don't already know, many audiophiles are full of nonsense. If they don't have good science and testing backing up their claims don't believe a word.

Exactly, but don´t get caught saying it. I´m scared right now of an audiophile coming in this thread and wahsing our mouthes
I do know good speakers make a huge difference. You will hear and feel those very low basses you don´t hear with cheap speakers.

[Ziggy]

At the risk of getting yelled at by some one, I'm gonna jump on the "don't waste your money on expensive cables" bandwagon as well. BUT, that's not to say go ahead and use any cable. Take a look at the cables that come with a $15 DVD player form a drug store... those are a perfect example of cables to stay away from.

This article comes to mind. It's not about home theater cables specifically, but the facts carry over.

@ dsheinem: If you have the room, floor standing speakers will be your best bet. In my opinion, if you get a decent pair you can omit the need for a sub. Unless you really wanna pump club music bass or whatever, subs are a waste. And I don't usually like what they do to the mix. Floor standing speakers will put out a NORMAL, adequate amount of bass, and an overall balanced sound. Of course, I'm talking in terms of music here. You might want that movie theater bass when watching movies. But even then, I find my floor standings to be enough.

[gtmtnbiker]

I never understood the appeal of those 100+ changers - or even the 8+ changers. It takes way longer to cycle through the disks and get to what you want than it does to just swap one CD. I guess if you wanted to shuffle all the songs on 100 CDs that would be something

These were great back when there wasn't an ipod around. Now, I can't be bothered with CDs. Just put your stuff on the Ipod and hook it up to the stereo. Even better, use pandora radio.

[dsheinem]

I never understood the appeal of those 100+ changers - or even the 8+ changers. It takes way longer to cycle through the disks and get to what you want than it does to just swap one CD. I guess if you wanted to shuffle all the songs on 100 CDs that would be something

These were great back when there wasn't an ipod around. Now, I can't be bothered with CDs. Just put your stuff on the Ipod and hook it up to the stereo. Even better, use pandora radio.

I didn't buy a nice system to listen to lossy or streamng audio... I have 1000+ CDs, and this is for them and my fledgling vinyl collection.

Still, I might skip the large changers in favor of a basic 5-disc carousel...

[DinnerX]

Dsheinem does the amp have a "phono" input? You'll need a phono preamp for the turntable if the amp doesn't have a phono input.

These were great back when there wasn't an ipod around. Now, I can't be bothered with CDs. Just put your stuff on the Ipod and hook it up to the stereo. Even better, use pandora radio.

Aaaah compressed audio!