Hey AAers, give me a rank list!

[docmd2010]

I think that this would be a fun discussion.

Please rank the following components in order of what you think has the greatest contribution to SQ improvement.

Sources (DAC, Transport, TT, music streamer, etc)
Speakers
Power (everything power: stuff behind the walls, outlets, conditioners/distributers, power cords)
Pre-amp
Amp
Room (dimensions, acoustics treatments etc)
Cabling (all cables except power)
Isolation (racks, stillpoints etc)


I'll start first:
1. Room (this was hard between speakers, but ultimately the space has to be right!)
2. Speakers
3. Source
4. Power
5. Pre-amp
6. Amp
7. Cabling
8. Isolation . Only caveat is for TT, I think isolation for a table is super important.


Ultimately, this sequence has been where I have prioritized my money spent.

Would love to hear everyones thoughts here, including Ivan!

[GaryProtein]

Doesn't an identical thread already exist here?

[docmd2010]

Originally Posted by GaryProtein

Doesn't an identical thread already exist here?

Gary,

Sorry if this was a a duplicate. A quick search before I posted this thread didn't bring anything up. This thread can be deleted if something like it already exists.

i recall a thread ranking different cables but not components.

[2fastdriving]

Aditya, I generally agree with your ranking, except I might possibly put the preamp up a notch. Maybe even two. I'm amazed at how some people don't even use a preamp (opting to use digital volume on dac instead). I feel they're missing out.

[docmd2010]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

Aditya, I generally agree with your ranking, except I might possibly put the preamp up a notch. Maybe even two. I'm amazed at how some people don't even use a preamp (opting to use digital volume on dac instead). I feel they're missing out.

Yah Marc I agree.

Power ended up pretty high as I had a system that consisted of speakers amp preamp and source all into the wall.

Then I finished my basement and went nuts with power (subpanels, 10-2 romex, Appropriate grounding, Torus conditioner, high quality power cords) and the difference was astonishing.

I have auditioned pre amps vs what I got now, and although the difference is profound, I found that taking care of power yielded a more satisfying change in SQ. Of course YMMV.

[2fastdriving]

Originally Posted by docmd2010

Yah Marc I agree.

Power ended up pretty high as I had a system that consisted of speakers amp preamp and source all into the wall.

Then I finished my basement and went nuts with power (subpanels, 10-2 romex, Appropriate grounding, Torus conditioner, high quality power cords) and the difference was astonishing.

I have auditioned pre amps vs what I got now, and although the difference is profound, I found that taking care of power yielded a more satisfying change in SQ. Of course YMMV.

Unfortunately, it's not really possible to make a perfect ranking, because one must address all of those items in order to achieve a great system. I think other threads here have asked for the financial investment breakdown of the categories (in percentage). That might be a better barometer? I don't know. But generally, most seem to agree speakers are the most important actual component and spend the most there.

[docmd2010]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

Unfortunately, it's not really possible to make a perfect ranking, because one must address all of those items in order to achieve a great system. I think other threads here have asked for the financial investment breakdown of the categories (in percentage). That might be a better barometer? I don't know. But generally, most seem to agree speakers are the most important actual component and spend the most there.

Agree completely.

[vintage_tube]

Originally Posted by GaryProtein

Doesn't an identical thread already exist here?

This is the most recent which I recall Gary -may not touch on all the subjects in Aditya's request, but; is a start:

https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=40999

Maybe a bit of this one too:

https://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=41668

Best Sirs,

Bob

[GaryProtein]

Originally Posted by docmd2010

I think that this would be a fun discussion.

Please rank the following components in order of what you think has the greatest contribution to SQ improvement.

Sources (DAC, Transport, TT, music streamer, etc)
Speakers
Power (everything power: stuff behind the walls, outlets, conditioners/distributers, power cords)
Pre-amp
Amp
Room (dimensions, acoustics treatments etc)
Cabling (all cables except power)
Isolation (racks, stillpoints etc)


I'll start first:
1. Room (this was hard between speakers, but ultimately the space has to be right!)
2. Speakers
3. Source
4. Power
5. Pre-amp
6. Amp
7. Cabling
8. Isolation . Only caveat is for TT, I think isolation for a table is super important.


Ultimately, this sequence has been where I have prioritized my money spent.

Would love to hear everyones thoughts here, including Ivan!

My apologies about a suspected duplicate thread here. The one I recall was probably on the "west coast forum" covering the same items.

My ranking would be:

Speakers AND Room - The speakers have to be high resolving and be able to move air and project well (not beam to a six inch sweet spot) into the room. The room must be able support low frequencies and have a balance between being "dead" and "live"
Power - relatively easy and cheap to accomplish in most cases. You don't have to go crazy. You just need enough power for your amplifiers. The other components take less power than a reading lamp.
Amplifier - as long as it has enough power reserve for the speakers and can deal with weird impedance curves the speaker might have, it's OK
Preamplifier - should be compatible with the power amplifier
Source - Does not have to be too exotic. My Tascam five disk changer ($300) sounds damn good at parties played through the IRS.
Cabling - needs to be well constructed, does not need to be made of rare earth elements
Isolation - important for tube components not to be right next to woofers. You can probably place a solid state component on top of a subwoofer without any problems

[joey_v]

I’m a source man so I agree with your top 3.