I'm a novice in hi-fi field and I'm doing some research to buy my first hi-fi system.
I have a limited budget so I'm looking for an integrated amp under $1000. Any idea which amps are good for metal music? Currently I'm considering NAD C355BEE, Rega Brio 3 and Music Hall A25.2.
By the way I'm planing to buy only a turntable at this point and no CD player.
I'm not really sure. Apparently you can not find a pair of floorstanding speakers with a good bass under $1000, but so far I have PSB Image T45 in mind.
for a good pair of speakers youre looking in that region of 1k usd. i havent heard the psb and i stand under correction but they are made by a sister concern of nad. in all prob nad will match them best. from what i think you want, nad may not be the route to go. its slightly on the warmer side and laid back. imo you would be better of listening to the rotel and seeing what it pairs well with. in this price range pairing is very important. its best to go down to a specialised audio store and listen to specific set ups. revolve them around the amps as each of them have defining characters. havent heard to rega or music hall so cant comment
Thanks for all your recommendations. So far I have decided on Rega Brio 3 integrated amp and Music Hall MMF 5 turntable. I guess I need to go to the audio store and audition this system with a variety of the speakers they have. I know the carry Rega and Epos speakers but I need to listen to them to decide.
PSB and NAD are sister companies and have an excellent synergy. The 355 and T45 sound very good together.
I listen to a lot of rock and metal. Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Korn, Tool, Metallica, and so on. I used to own a 320BEE and T55s. It sounded very good, but I grew tired of it. Its a bit too warm and laid back IMO. I think this type of music should be more in your face and faster paced than the NAD/PSB combo has to offer. One of my biggest complaints was the warmth the system offered. A lot of metal guitars are tuned down a bit. With a warmer sounding system, the guitars start to sound more like bass guitars. Listen to Issues by Korn through the NAD/PSB to hear more of what I mean.
Music Hall electronics are along the same lines as NAD. Its warmer, more laid back, smoother, and very boring IMO. Nothing special at all to my ears. There's a ton og gear I would take over it. Not to mention that it isn't built well at all, and the company isn't very receptive to customers' issues.
In my search for a new system, Naim and Rega really stood out to me. They weren't overly warm, had great PRaT (pace, rythym and timing), and weren't laid back. I ended up buying a Bryston B60 integrated because the right one came up at the right price at the right time. Had it not come up, I would have a full Rega system. I chose that over the entry level Naim system due to price.
The Brio is an excellent sounding integrated. On pure sound quality alone, its a better value than the Mira 3. But, the Mira 3 has a remote control and more power. More power isn't always better, but it gives more flexibility with speakers. I haven't seen the Brio enough to pick it up and inspect it, but there have been some complaints about its fit and finish quality lately. No one here has complained about them breaking down, just cosmetic issues.
Music Hall turntables sound good, but they're not the most reliable turntables. They're made in the same factory as Pro-Ject and share a lot of parts, but for some reason the Pro-Jects are far more reliable. IMO it has to be design flaws.
If you like the Rega integrateds, I'd strongly suggest pairing it up with a Rega TT. The P2 is an excellent turntable. The P3 is better, but for more money. Rega turntables have reached icon status for very good reason. They should be the first consideration, then compare everything else to them IMO. They're that good.
Rega also makes very good speakers. They sound best with Rega amplification. I wouldn't pair up Rega speakers with too many brands, but they're magic with Rega electronics. You have to hear them to know what I'm talking about.
Epos make very good speakers that'll pair up very well too. There are a ton of others that do as well.
Thanks Stu, your post was very helpful! I'll talk to my dealer to see how much a Rega P3-24 with a cartridge will cost me, or maybe consider a P2. He already gave me a good price for Rega R3 speakers but I need to listen to them because he said they don't perform very well at bass.
Sorry I'm still a beginner and I don't know the proper terms yet!
To my ears, the R3s perform very well in the bass area. A lot of it depends on room and placement. The R3s are very easy to place, but get placed closer to a back wall that most speakers.
Keep in mind that metal can be bass heavy, but the bass isn't that deep in frequency. Classical and pipe organ music's bass goes far deeper.
The only way to know what you truly need is to listen.