I could probably use my reciever I have now then. I'm not sure what to use for a pre/power amp. Especially using a tube or solid state. Is it better to not use integrated?
when you say "receiver", are you talking about a radio tuner or one of those 1 box preamp/poweramp/tuner/(surround processor)? I'm assuming its a 1 box pre/power/tuner. You may be able to use this with the Maggies, but be sure the speaker impedence is ok for the receiver. Some receivers don't like anything but 6 or 8 ohm loads. I'm not sure if the Maggies are 4 ohm, but if they are, you could damage the receiver if its not up to the task.
The advantage of an integrated is that you typically get a bigger bang for the $ and can also save on interconnects. Separates give you the flexibility to upgrade each component separately and "tune" your system a bit more by selecting components having the characteristics you want (ie. a tube pre for warmth and imaging mated to a solid state amp for low end control and detail or power if you speakers need it).
I like tubes, especially for preamps. I also like to drive my speakers to high spl's, so being unable to afford high power tube amps I've stuck with solid state for power amps. This was especially true when I had the Maggies since they were pretty low sensitivity and required a decent amount of power. My current speakers are a bit more senstive and I am considering going all tube, but haven't quite decided how to go yet. I'm currently using a Panasonic SA-XR45 that is a home theater surround receiver with 6x100w digital amps. It stirred up a bunch of positive buzz on AudioCircle and AudioAsylum, so I thought I'd give it a shot while I was "between systems" - it was only $400, so I didn't think it was that much of a risk. It actually sounds very good using the digital inputs - very detailed and excellent low end, but the highs are a bit too much on some recordings. The XR45 is discontinued, but they are planning to replace it with the XR70 for the same price. If you want something for a/v surround, I would seriously consider it - sounds way better than it should for only $400 and has plenty of power to drive any speakers.
regarding the Sunfire pre/power combo. I'd try to listen to it first. I've never been too excited about the Sunfire components. Typically overpowered and lack a refined sound. I've never heard the Symponic Reference line, so I hesitate to generalize and tell you its not any good. For that much $, I'd be willing to bet you can do better.
Topic: Building a home stereo (Read 6218 times)