Tiny budget setup

Discussion in 'Speakers' started by JayC, May 17, 2016.

  1. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    Hey everyone, I was looking to get a pair of speakers and an amp for a total of 80-90 euros (from money saved up lol) and happened to come across some speakers today - a pair of Klipsch SF-1's. I heard them at the guy's place on his amp and it sounded fairly good with his music (CDs, mostly stuff i didnt listen to). I could use my stuff since we couldnt find a cable to plug my laptop in. i made a split second decision and took em, they ran me 55 euros - i figured i could sell em later on without losing much.

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    Now im looking for an amp/receiver - I have a DAC for my headphones so i can use the RCA outs from that to plug into the amp that i get so i dont really need a receiver/cd player/etc.

    I found two seemingly decent amps rom the used equipment pages between 20-40 euros:
    1. Pioneer A331
    2. Akai AM17

    There were a lot more out there for sale obviously, but i did some poking around the internet and these two seemed to be a hair better than the rest, or so it seemed to me. I'm new to the speaker world and needed some advice one which to pick (or to keep looking), so please fire away!

    I do plan to get a proper setup in about a year (14 months or so), but ofc i want to have something semi-decent for now and i'd probably be moving countries so taking stuff with me may not be an option, hence the tiny budget
     
  2. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Seriously, if your budget is that tight then make lowball offers for both amps and take whichever is the better deal. Save the rest for groceries or rent or whatever is more important.
     
  3. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    Tbh, I do have money - just that a bigger chunk of it is dads since I didn't work long enough before before starting my master's program. And I'd like to use as little of that money as possible and earn my own system when I start working a year from now :)

    Having said that, yes it would make sense to lowball people and keep the money but yeah I was trying to get "the best" (yes, this differs per person) for the money I throw down
    Hope that makes sense?
     
  4. kevnin

    kevnin #facetweeting - Friend

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    Klipsch SF-2's were my first speakers >10 years ago. Can't go wrong for 55 euros. I'm not familiar with the amps you listed, all I can say is don't pair them with something bright. The SF-2s sounded pretty bad from a Yamaha receiver, and good with Harman-Kardon.
     
  5. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    hmm, well its going to be hard to know if the amp i get is bright or warm - the class A akai am17 isnt getting much attention on that site so im trying to lowball that one and see what works out.

    another option that popped up is a Technics SU-V460, does anyone have an opinion on this one?
     
  6. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    Alright so i got the Technics SU-V460 today, plugged it in and the whole system sounds pretty good! Theres a small issue with the amp though, i swapped the speakers and checked - the left channel is very quiet at low volumes but seems okay when turned up. I know analog pots have issues like this but this is very noticeable

    I looked it up and there are others with similar issues but i couldnt find a solution..

    Any ideas on other possible causes? and fixes?
     
  7. Dr4Bob

    Dr4Bob New

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    Often a good spray of Deoxit can clean the old pots and fix the problem.
     
  8. JayC

    JayC Resident Crash Test Dummy

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    hmm, i looked around but couldnt get a can of Deoxit where I am so I just sprayed some compressed air and it didnt make a difference. I'll see if i can order some online, but for the meanwhile im just going to use the balance knob when the volume is lower

    The system really sounds great though, I'm really happy with it! :D My first passive setup, on the cheap
     
  9. Armaegis

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    Just call up your local electronics stores and ask what kind of contact cleaners they have. Very likely they have something, just not the deoxit brand.

    But it's also entirely possible that it's just an old crappy pot and has imbalance issues. No amount of magical spray goop will fix that.
     
  10. haywood

    haywood Friend

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    Deoxit would be more likely to fix a staticky potentiometer or switch that didn't make contact all the time, you might look into the diyaudio forum (http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/) to see if someone else had a similar problem.
     

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