Change my speakers?

You're "not feeling it" due to the Blu-ray player and to a lesser extent the AV (pre)amp.

A dedicated CD player will help no end. 
Time to source a Naim CDP!

Thanks for your reply, James. However, I rarely listen to CDs; it's really the audio side of music DVDs/Blu-rays I'm interested in.

So, what do you think, a change of A/V (pre-amp) or change of speakers?

Are you listening in anything other than 2.1 stereo? (ie, when playing music DVD's is the centre channel running?)

And how, in therms of cable type, is the DVD player hooked up to the amp?

Hi James,

Depending upon the disc, sometimes 2.1 and sometimes 5.1. The blu-ray player is connected to the AV amp via an HDMI cable, (and then then Chord Cobra Plus from the AV amp to the Naim power amp).

Thanks.

How, I reckon your existing AV amp is stamping it's character all over the system.  While fine for films, music just isn't the forte of most AV amplifiers.  Sure, while many are poor, some can make a fair stab at it, but really there's a huge gulf between what you're currently using and something like Naim's AV2.  Bfeore I had an AV2 I used a top of the range Harman Kardon AV amplifier.  The power amps actually weren't bad at all, but the pre-amp section was definitely letting the side down with music when compared to the AV2.  In fact, while there may possibly be one out there, I've yet to hear an AV processor that's more adept with music.

Of course, an AV2 won't decode an HDMI feed.  You'll need a player that can decode from within and output 5.1-7.1 analog channels.

Alternatively, look at something like a Nait 5i or better.  Use this with your AV amp for multichannel but on its own for stereo.  That way, with stereo, you won't need to feed through the Yamaha as a pre-amp.  The Unity gain input on the Naim will allow a pretty seamless integration when you want multi-channel.

Of course, much will depend on just how good your Blu-ray player is as a music source.  You see where this is going...?

Hi Richard, thanks for your reply.

Do you think, then, that the Monitor Audio GS20 speakers are fine? And how crucial is the blu-ray player as a part of this?

And yes, unfortunately I do see where this is going!

How, I have to admit I'm not familiar with the GS20s.  However, a quick spin 'round the 'net courtesy of Google found me some info and also a review from Hifi World.  They seem to like them very much indeed; "First class loudspeakers that successfully combine detail, emotion and atmosphere with pace and dynamics...Brilliant."  On that basis, and assuming the reviewer wasn't totally cloth-eared, it's safe to assume that if well matched to the room then the speakers could and should be capable of a fine and involving performance.  I also note that they have an average impedence of around 6 ohms and don't dip below 5 ohms, with a sensitivity of around 88dB, so shouldn't present any problems to a Naim amplifier.  Quality rather than quantity of watts should work best.

So, suspicions are cast even more towards using the AV amp as preamp and at the Blu-ray player as source.  And yes, in answer to your question, the source makes a huge difference, digital or not.  Most digital sources these days are not bad.  In fact many are quite good.  But there's a yawning chasm between digital sources that are competent and those that do something really special.  The bad news is that the latter come at at a cost.  Budget miracles only go so far.

I think you need to have a chat with your dealer.  Tell him what you're looking for and see whether you can borrow a good quality player and amp for a few days.  Considering your speakers, a CD5i, Nait5i should be the bare minimum.

Thanks very much, Richard

Hi How,

How long is a piece of string, or in the case, how deep is your pocket!

The usual advice is that the front end is the first key, nothing further down the audio chain can add to information that was never extracted, or mishandled.

I would advise you to get to a decent dealer and listen to a top of the range audio system; this will give you a benchmark against which to judge other systems you hear.

You can then have a listen to a better AV front end: BluRay & Preamp.

It may be that what most of us here would think of as 'better' doesn't effect you, I have a number of friends who are good musicians who are left cold by HiFi.

From this you can start to put together some idea of where you are trying to get to, in terms of a system, and the steps to achieve this.

This might include units by Naim, Onkyo, Marantz, Oppo and/or Audiolab, amongst others. But, any system is an attempt to get a synergistic set of kit to work together, and getting a good dealer, who is willing to spend time with you, and lend you kit, can REALLY help.

No one can advise you remotely, even if they have the same kit, they won't have your room and furnishings, which makes a big difference.

Should be an interesting journey.

M

First thing I would try is to borrow a pair of decent RCA to RCA interconnects to connect the player to the AV amp.

And run the AV pre-amp in "pure" mode , ie no tone controls, processing etc.

But make sure the player is set to "2 channel Analog Out" or equal setting. You want use the 2ch mix off the DVD.

I too had a problem with monitor audio and yamaha. They did not mix well. I had the ma running with my denon all was good. Then changed to a yamaha. Now I am looking to change speakers. However I did change my speaker cable to atlas hyper and that helped things. But ultimately speakers are on the way out. I have moved my hifi speakers to my av for a test and things sound great. Music however is not a patch on my stereo set up. If music is a big part. What about a pre av amp like a arcam and add a nap for the rears Arcam and the gs sound sweet. The naim power amps can only improve on this It comes down to 2 rooms or 1. I am fortunate to be allowed an av room and over run the lounge with black boxes Good luck

did the post on the iphone app, i guess the returns do not come through?

Thanks for your thoughts, 2roomsor1. I do in fact have a seperate hi-fi room - Creek Evo amp, Chario Syntar speakers, etc. It's pretty good, but I'm still trying to maximise the music side of things for my AV room as well.
I did try a number of different speaker cables, including Atlas Hyper, but found in the end that Naim's own cable sounded best overall.
So, you think an Arcam amp might improve matters? Maybe the new Arcam 400? Worth a demo, I guess!

I ended up with the hyper biwire, i guess that extra cross section worked well. i was not in the naim groove when i changed my av amp. 

would be interesting to try the naim stuff in my av set up, but will wait untill my ATC's arrive.

another idea, what about the audiolab 8200ap? i have not heard this with ma g's, but a friend has a pre power running with PMC's that does sound quite nice.

let us all know how you get on.

Just to let everyone know that I bought a Cambridge Audio 650BD blu-ray player, and whilst not expecting any great sonic improvement over my existing player I was pleasantly surprised. Music sounds noticably more detailed, engrossing, etc compared with my Sony 760.

So, even with blu-ray, the quality of the source really is important!

Okay, that's Phase 1 sorted. Need to consider a new AV amp (as processor) now. . .